Routine Maintenance - Meditation & Affirmations

I've struggled with this one!

I've done it every day but don't feel I'm getting what I want to out of it. This is one of those things that I had never really done before. I had heard tons about it from things I had read or listened to but never got down to the nitty gritty of crafting and reciting the affirmations.

This is what I do know. And, once again much of this comes from my beautiful wife.

Affirmations must be simple, direct, and memorable

They should, if possible, begin with I as in ME.

They must be in the present tense as in I am, not I will be.

They should be spoken out loud with conviction

I think my first mistake was starting out the month without having gone through the process of designing the affirmations before hand. I remember that first morning of the year. Sitting in the best most relaxing "meditation position" I could muster a few minutes after waking up and thinking...

I am... tired. I don't know what to say. Can I eat breakfast?

That morning I watched a few youtube videos and read a few articles for some form of inspiration and direction on how to pull this together.

The things I value most in life are the relationships I have with other people. I love my people.

I decided to make a list of the different relationship types that I have and build my affirmations to strengthen each of these bonds.

So, in the order of critical importance of relationship, here is my list...

Self

Son (of God)

Husband

Father

Son (of my parents)

Brother

Friend

What? Brandon, you egocentric little punk! Why would you put yourself at the top of the list?

Feel free to tell me all the reasons why I'm wrong and a selfish brat. That's fine. It's right for me.

Here's my reason.

If you don't take care of yourself your can't take care of others.

We are always taught things like "putting other people first" and being "selfless". It may seem like a contradiction but I agree with this 100%.

I want to be able to give others MY BEST ME. They deserve it! Each one of the relationships I have deserves me to be engaged and present in the moment. Each one deserves for me to be at my best.

This is something I have been failing at for years and I sincerely apologize.

This is reason numero uno why Burning the Script and simplifying my life has become so important to me. I want to strip away and dispose of anything and everything (physical, psychological, spiritual...) that distract me from the essential beauty of each relationship I have.

I've drafted my affirmations. I am reciting and editing them each morning and night. I'll continue to mold and shape them until they feel right and paint an accurate picture of the person I want to be.