Six Words
By Brian Dean
(Published in the November 2014 issue of Natural Awakenings as Six Words to Live By)

Everyone has times in their lives when they are not sure, when they wonder if they have the strength to do something whether it be public speaking, or carrying out a plan they have devised. We might wonder "how do I go through this?" or "Am I strong enough?" And thanks to a Neil Diamond song, there are two words that can be used to bolster that strength. Those words are "I AM".

Yes, I AM. Not I am, but said with force, with inner strength, with power... I AM. I AM something. I AM strong. I AM centered. I AM within my power. I AM connected with all the strength available to me from the core of my being to the tips of my fingers and beyond. I AM attunes you to energies, to power. It puts you in harmony with any situation. It is the affirmation of belief in yourself that gives you the power you need. It allows you to stand up and do whatever you need to do.

I AM aligns you with the universe giving you strength to complete whatever task you have decided to take on. I AM someone than can do this. I AM strong, I AM powerful, I AM whole. I can do this because I AM.

But now, we are supplied with the next two words... I CAN. Once we have the strength, I CAN allows us to do anything we want. I CAN wipes away all doubt, all fears. It gives us the center of purpose to persevere through anything until it is completed. I CAN tells us that we have made up our mind to do something and that we will see it through to the end. Combined with the strength from I AM, I CAN says we have made the decision and are going to do something knowing it can be done.

Now we look for the final two words, and most would expect them to be "I will". That would be the next logical progression. But "I will", while it holds promise, could hold an empty promise. They simply are not strong enough. Therefore, the final two words are... I DO.

I DO holds a promise fulfilled. It says, "I am doing this, not just promising to do it." How many times do we say "I will" and not lived up to the promise? I DO says, that we have made it past all of that, and are in fact doing what we said we would. I DO says we have taken a giant leap and lived up to our promises. I DO says we have found the strength, conquered the fear, and pushed past all boundaries to actually accomplish something. It says "I've found the confidence to take action" whatever that action may be.

Six words can change your entire existence if you accept them and bring them into yourself with conviction. I AM centers you and connects you to the inner strength you may not have known you have. I CAN erases all doubt and pushes you past all fears, and convinces you that all things are possible. I DO reinforces that confidence and acknowledges that you are accomplishing what you wanted to accomplish.

I AM. I CAN. I DO. Make these words your mantra, because with them, you can accomplish anything.