Afformations®: The Miracle of Positive Self-Talk

I learned of this book by listening to a podcast by the Fat Burning Man. I decided to buy the Kindle version of the book at a mere $10 to see if there was any more usable information in the book than was on the podcast. It turns out the only additional info was several lists of pre-formed "afformations", which might be worth the 10 bucks, or not. The free podcast tells you everything you need to know. The "too long; didn't read" version of the book (as other reviewers mention) is that you turn the typical affirmation into a question. Instead of "I am thin and healthy" you phrase it "why is it so easy for me to thin and healthy?" That's it. Nothing more.Now St. John does provide some minimal explanation of why it supposedly works. The mind will reject a statement or affirmation that the mind does not believe to be true. (you: "I am rich and wealthy!" - mind: "No I'm not!") I think psychologists have proven this over the years. On the other hand, when treated as a question, the mind is more willing to entertain the presupposition. (you: "Why is it so easy for me to be rich and wealthy!" - mind: "That's curious. If it's easy and if I were rich, then how did I get there?") That's about as far as St. John goes with the explanation. If you want more explanation, you won't find it here. The neural linguistic programmers (NLPers) out there have been successfully leveraging the use of linguistics like this for years, so it's nothing new. The real psychologists like Carol Dweck and Gabriele Oettingen have been studying success scientifically, and have books out on it too. They have much better insight into the how's and why's.As a side note, the author claims to have invented the word, "afformations". That's not quite true. He invented a trademark, not a word. Everything in his material is assiduously protected by copyrights and trademarks, which protects his income stream. That's why it's so easy for him to be rich.In summary, the book is pretty light reading, and light on content. It's written for people who want just that, a light overview, little psychology, and a promise of quick fixes. Based on other sources, I think this just might work for some people. Others might be turned off by the sales pitch like approach to the book.

Instead of writing a review, I will share a letter I wrote the author about a year ago, which he nicely responded to. Here's the text of my letter:"Dear Noah,I am writing to let you know what an amazing effect your afformations have had on me since I discovered them a few weeks ago.Some brief backstory on me: I have suffered from depression on and off over the past several years, and I have been on and off antidepressants during that time.For a few years in the middle of that, though, I used affirmations to great effect and was as happy as I had ever felt in my life. However, the affirmations took a herculean amount of effort to be effective: almost constant repetition for weeks at a time before I could significantly alter my deepest beliefs and self-image. As you point out, though, affirmations do work sometimes for some people, and they brought me a level of consistent happiness that I had never experienced before.About two years ago, though, that happiness faded; and I have since tried in vain to recapture it. Try as I might - even with antidepressants - I was unable to alter my bleak view of the world around me, and, even worse, of myself. I tried to use affirmations, but they bounced off of my subconscious like rubber bullets off of a tank. I could not change my morose view of myself and of life. I smiled here and there when great things happened to me, but the smile never stuck around for long.A few weeks ago, I was browsing the self-improvement section at the bookstore, searching for anything that might help make me happier and more successful than I have felt over the past few years. I saw your book Afformations and read a few pages. Excited, I bought the book right away and finished it in two days. Along the way, I highlighted dozens of passages, and then I went back and reread those passages.Everything you said made sense, so I tested it out. I wrote out afformations pertaining to every area of my life that I wanted to improve, and then I read them and did my best to absorb them as truthful.I barely even had to try. The unique phrasing of the afformations allowed the ideas to go straight to my subconscious and immediately stick. For the first time ever, I believed positive statements about myself and my future without having to sledgehammer them into my brain and hope for the best.The most astounding change resulted from my afformations regarding happiness. I repeated them, and suddenly I actually felt happy: not on the surface, but from the inside outward, in a way that I had not experienced in years. Just one recitation of my afformations for happiness brings on an almost scarily strong burst of good feelings, as though my subconscious is immediately confirming: "Yes - I agree - you are happy".Even better, with some repetition, it has stuck, and I have spent the last several days feeling mentally light and happy almost without interruption. I have been walking around my city feeling happy and excited and marveling at the beauty of the world around me. I have found myself smiling without even trying to - smiling so widely it has almost hurt! - and the smiles stick around long after any initial stimulus has faded.Noah, I had been truly afraid that I would never experience this feeling again, and even if the effect goes away (though I don't believe it will), I am just so incredibly grateful for having experienced it again after so long. It has been like seeing the sun shine after spending years underground.Noah, thank you for sharing your amazing findings with the world. In just a few weeks, they have made me feel like a new person. I wish you and your family all the best in any future endeavors."

I wasn't sure what i was expecting when I ordered the book. I've heard of Afformations,and seen people use them in headlines, I just never thought abut practical application. The book has plenty of examples and I love the long standing relationships that Noah St John has with his clients. I think you'll love this book if you want to go a step further than affirmations and thinking in a possitive way. I just didn't like the quality of the physical book. If you're sensory like me, the pages will "grate" on you as you turn them. I guess I've been spoilt by so many books having smooth white paper that I miss it. The Kindle version will eliminate this aspect. I loved the content, let's be clear about that.

I won't give away Noah's technique in this review, but trust me - it's very simple and practical, and it works. I recommend this book to any of my friends who are going through problems, and it always delivers the goods. The only problem is the poor quality paper used by Hay House.. it yellows very quickly, and also the front cover quickly starts to curl up towards you instead of lying flat. Oh, for the old days when publishers used WHITE paper!

This is a great book and a huge improvement on Affirmations that I have used in the past (and did not rely work!). The results are much better.You simply ask a positive question - 'Why am I so Healthy and Happy?' and the brain searches for the answer and helps you to achieve just that! I had heard of it before through Kinesiology but have jus thought this book - it is vey interesting and so simple to do. Highly recommended. So many people I know use affirmations and they are not always helpful. This is definitely worth trying.

This book really is one of the best books I've ever read. So simple yet so incredibly powerful. I'm a huge fan of affirmations but the Afformations feel completely different.There is a section of the book that gives examples for you to have a go with and by the end of the book you'll easily be creating your own powerful Afformations.Great examples of how other people have used afformations too which I always love.Brilliant, brilliant book. I hope everyone buys a copy.

I enjoyed this book. It’s content was something I will like to try out and wait to see how they work for me.