Recently I have been guided to increase, revise and recommit myself to my morning routine. My practice was slacking a bit and it seemed to be missing some important elements. Here is my current, recommitted routine. Every morning for years now, I read the Daily Guide in Science of Mind magazine. I always find these short articles to be thought provoking. The messages usually help me start my day with compassion, understanding, and hope. A new element I have added to my routine is “tapping.” You may know tapping as Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) or Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP). Basically it is a physical way to affect our mental programming. After I have reset my energy and thoughts with tapping, I then meditate. To rededicate myself to my routine, I have chosen a longer meditation to really ground and connect me. Next I create my day using the power of GIA – Gratitude, Intention and Affirmation. Gratitude, Intention and Affirmations are overlapping and very powerful tools. Making Gratitude, Intention and Affirmation statements are the way you define how you see the world and how you expect to experience it. GIA is the way to create your day. Let’s explore the power of GIA.
Gratitude
Gratitude frames the way we experience life. Without Gratitude, our fear-seeking monkey-minds focus on lack. For our survival, our minds normal state is to look for negativity so we can combat it and survive. But negativity is not pleasurable to experience and more importantly it does not help motivate us to the next better. Negativity tends to keep us stuck. Writing a Gratitude list daily helps us to:
1) Recognize the good we do have in our life. Again our monkey-mind tends to focus us on the negative. It is necessary to actively focus on the good.
2) Frame our day in abundance instead of lack. There is so much we have to be grateful for – air, shelter, clothing, the Internet, puppies. The list we make can be our proof that things are good, full, prosperous, and abundant.
3) Open us to more good. When we start counting our blessings it empowers us to expect to receive more.
Usually I start my Gratitude List with something like: “Thank you for another wonderful day of life.” Feel free to define the “you” as you like. Or when I am feeling giddy I might write, “Thank you for letting me wake up on the green side of the grass.” Then I launch into all of those things I normally take for granted like air, food, shelter, friends, being able to read, etc. Next I give thanks something wonderfully unexpected that happened the day before like receiving a new client or getting a prime parking spot. Finally I say thank you for what I want. These last statements are written in the present as if I have already received them like: “Thank you for sending me the right clients at the right time” or “Thank you for guiding me to make the best decisions.” There are no rules for content. Just speak from the heart.
Gratitude for things we want to receive starts to blend into the area of Intention and Affirmation as those two are more focused on what is to come. For some, Intention, Affirmation and Prayer are interchangeable. For me, I like to differentiate Intention and Affirmation by the type of goal, desire, need, prayer is being requested. Intention is about the physical world and our needs now. Affirmation is about our state of being and experience.
Intention
Intention relates to our needs and desires outside of ourselves. Intention is about relating to others, the world, our environment, and our day to day life. You can create your Intention statements by answering questions like: How do we want to relate to people? What do we want to accomplish today, this week, this year? How do we want to experience our job? Where do we want our business or career to go? What do we want to receive or own? Where do we want to travel? What do we want to experience like a play, concert, or exhibit? Ask yourself what you want to do, own, or have. Ask yourself how you want to be in relationship to others such as being a powerful speaker, setting boundaries, or being charismatic. Write these statements in the present and in the affirmative for example, “I complete the work I set out to do today.”
For some it may be difficult to create Intentions because they are unclear about what they want, they believe they don’t deserve what they desire, or they believe their desire is impossible to have. If this occurs for you, take the negative belief that comes up for you like “I don’t deserve to have a new iPod” and turn into an Affirmation “I deserve to receive all my heart desires.” Let’s learn about Affirmations.
Affirmation
In contrast to Intention’s outward focus, I see Affirmations as focused on our internal experience. Affirmations are how we want to be, how we want to experience life, how we want to act, and what we want to believe. You can create your Affirmation statements by looking in great books like You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay and find Affirmations or belief statements to help you with current physical elements. You can also create your own statements. There are Affirmation statements which deal with our belief of the world and how the world works. These usually begin with “I am” such as “I am safe” or “I am guided and supported to receive good.” There are personal belief Affirmations which revolve around how we see ourselves. Examples are “I accept and embrace my full power” and “I love and approve of myself.” Then there are state of being Affirmations which set how we want to experience life such as “I find joy in every moment.”
I encourage you to try GIA out for a week and see how your mood, your environment, and your outcomes are affected. Namaste.
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