I used to get a little eye roll-y towards the idea of positive affirmations. Despite the widely shared wisdom of ask and you shall receive, The Law of Attraction, what you pay attention to grows…. Yada-yada-yada, we’ve all heard these things before. I come from a long line of worriers so this just doesn't come easy to me. I mean, what if I ask for the wrong thing? (now I’m eye-rolling towards myself).

But recently at a mindset retreat with Fabienne Fredrickson, I heard a bit of wisdom that really hit home, and it changed my attitude if you will:

“In the end you have what (1) you believe you deserve, (2 ) expect to happen, and (3) allow in.”

Well when you put it that way...no wonder it’s easy to feel stuck. 

But if you are like me, naming what you want can feel a little all over the place or maybe even a bit lackluster. So here’s a good reverse engineering trick I learned from her to help tease out desires when they seem overwhelming to name: 

1. Get a piece of paper and draw a line down the middle 

2. On one side list what you don’t want or some particularly negative beliefs - for your life, your career, your relationships- whatever comes up. Get specific with yourself - Why don’t you want this thing? What don’t you want to feel like as a result of this thing, what impact does it have? Let that guide you to a statement that resonates in you gut.

3. Then, on the other side of the line, next to each thing you wrote, write down the exact opposite of that statement as if it has already happened or is happening in the present.  Let yourself get just as specific on this other side. 

Ex:  Financial Stress and feeling insecure in my livelihood can convert to: I have financial freedom doing what I love and what I am called to do.

Or, I have no good ideas, and nothing I make has value to anyone can convert to: I have creative ideas all the time, and the right people are waiting for me to share them.

Boom, you have your affirmations to work with. 

And if you are still like “yeah whatever”, I hear you. Something that clicked even further for me though, is recalling how often I use a positive open mindset/inner dialogue in my performance practice and how much it works. When I’m performing, I am 100 percent in the flow. I’m at my most present, confident, and generous. I’m certainly not focused on my negative thought loops. Instead, I am connected to one of my deepest passions. So when I come up against a sticky situation, or a challenging obstacle amidst the wild unknowns of live performance and immersive interactive theater in particular, It’s almost as if I positively will a situation to work out in my mind because it has to- because there is no choice - because we are live, and here I am with all these other humans, and the show must go on right? In those moments of willing my consciousness towards a positive outcome, whatever happens often creates a result that is better than I expected in the most divine way. Perhaps this is a bit of a stretch, but if you are an performer like me perhaps you recognize this feeling in your body. And if not, or regardless, can you connect to a time that you were so committed to what you wanted to see happen, so connected to your passion that if felt like the universe rearranged itself in your favor?

So why not? Go ahead. Make the list. And say the things you want out loud (to yourself). Feel a little silly. Do the dance. Show up to what you want. And repeat.

You are enough, you are worthy of your deepest desires, and I believe in you. Share this with someone you love today.

Tara

Does this spark up something for you that you’d like some insight on?