Hi,
Any one tried Self talk CD by Shad Helmstetter. http://www.selftalk.org/productdetail.cfm?productid=5

Any good?
Thanks

I bought many self talk tapes in the early
90's and used them often.

I did not notice any significant effect. Perhaps some more motivation or a change of
negative thinking might have been the effect.

The tape set mentioned in the link was not available at that time.

Later I heard that Shad Helmstetter went into some Multi-Level Marketing. I don't know what he's doing now.

He properly went to Amway (maybe). He wrote a book about that. His book What to say when you talk to yourself was good. I try some example and I can see improvement.

Hi ycloh,

It is great that you are seeing some improvement, and there is a way that you can see even more.

One of the main problems with "self-talk" as S.H. formulates it, is that he puts the affirmations in the present. Unfortunately, this makes it sound, to the unconscious mind, as if you already have the result you are going for. The unconscious mind then simply rejects the affirmation as being untrue.

A much better way to use affirmations is to put them into the future:

"I am becoming better and better, every day, in every way."

An even more powerful technique is to ask your unconscious mind open-ended questions. The unconscious is a "goal seeking" mechanism -- meaning if you ask it a question, it will continue to search for the answer long after you've forgotten you asked.

"I wonder how quickly my unconscious mind can help me achieve the self-confidence to do X?"

Also, the old Huna religion says, "Energy flows where attention goes." This means that noticing what you are already doing right has a tendency to "attract" more of the same into your life:

"I notice I am more confident today than I was yesterday and I wonder how much more confident I will be tomorrow?"

The most important thing, IMHO, is that you are trying. If you continue to try to improve yourself, you will improve yourself.

MikeB

Mike B, what books or materials can I get that will offer more information about using open ended questions to the subconscious mind as a way of empowerment and creating change?

Try these:
http://www.afformations.com/whatareafformations.html
http://www.idea-seminars.com/articles/affirm.htm

Hope it helps!

Hi Mike B,
You mention:
"One of the main problems with "self-talk" as S.H. formulates it, is that he puts the affirmations in the present. Unfortunately, this makes it sound, to the unconscious mind, as if you already have the result you are going for. The unconscious mind then simply rejects the affirmation as being untrue."

Actuall I have spend sometime looking for good affirmation. During the search I also read and compare notes form all alike. Most of them puts the affirmations in the present.
Here is an example how affirmation said.
"Affirm that something is happening here and now. Be careful that you are not affirming something will happen in the future. This is actually a negative affirmation, which says, "Oh, someday I will be rich." Place the results in today, rather than the future."
http://www.io.com/~rga/affirm.html

Here, another example:
"Keep them in the present. Say "my physical power, energy, and vitality are now exploding massively," rather than "in three months I will have all the physical power, energy, and vitality I desire." A power affirmation is not always a statement of "truth." That is not the purpose of using power affirmations. The purpose of power affirmations is to create what you desire by transforming intangible invisible thought into physical reality. A reality that most likely does not presently exist in your life. Think about it. If what you were confessing already existed in your life, it wouldn't be necessary for you to use the affirmations."

And another:
"Use the present tense. Don’t say, "I WILL grow confident" otherwise your subconscious will keep postponing your desire to "someday" in the future. Instead say, "I AM growing confident."

Be specific. Don’t say, "I am losing weight." After all, your subconscious doesn’t know how much you would like to lose, so it may stop after you lose one pound! Instead, say, "I am losing 15 pounds by October 31st, this year."

This also clear my doubt what to say and how to say.

Regards,
YC

I personally believe that affirmations (I am ____) have a high failure rate for most people. I can constantly repeat in my mind or out loud that "I am rich and open to abundance" but if I am constantly overwhelmed by bills, never have enough money for living expenses, and have a history of money problems, just repeating an affirmation is not enough to override my belief system and reality. I copied the following from Steve Mensing's forum on emoclear.com and his remarks clearly explain the problems with using affirmations.

Hi JoJett:

JoJett asks: "Why is it that most affirmation systems don't work? If they do, they take weeks of practice?"

JoJett the four largest hurdles for affirmational systems are:

(1) We often have beliefs, intentions, doubts, and feelings that oppose our affirmational beliefs. If we manage to install an affirmational belief it often gets lots of opposition which neutralizes its effects. It's unwise to lay in beliefs above preexisting ones. Opposing beliefs, intentions, doubts, and feelings will need to be cleared or the newly planted affirmational belief will get strangled by the weeds.

(2) Affirmational beliefs have to overcome cognitive dissonance before they are believed. Cognitive dissonance means the affirmational belief has to feel natural at the emotional level. If it's not--it's not going to be gut held or believed.

(3) Affirmational beliefs, to be of value, have to be more than outcome images or end point imagery. The affirmational belief has to convey the images of how you got there as well as a well formed outcome. Outcomes alone don't appear to help. Some studies indicate that having just outcome images may actually inhibit motivation. (You already feel like you've accomplished it.)

(4) Affirmational beliefs require actual action not magical and wishful thinking. We can believe all we want, but unless we actually DO something, the chances are incredibly slim to none that our magical thinking will get fulfilled by the seas parting or treasures manifesting out of thin air.

Take care, Steve