A “personal bill of rights” is simply affirmations for living. They, too, are self-evident; however, after emotionally abusive situations, many have been conditioned to forget these rights. It helps to read them daily for an inner empowerment resurfaces as they become ingrained into your personal viewpoint.

These are some I have created over the years, unique to my own beliefs. Feel free to use any that seem appropriate, or create your own. As you read each of them, pause not only thinking of the meaning behind each one, but allow yourself to feel its truth. The results can be quite amazing.

 I AM.

 I am a special, unique, individual created in Divine image.

 I love myself just the way I am.

 I am who I am, wonderfully created with great intellect, intuition, creativity, wisdom, and personal power.

 I have the right feel love, to be love, and to love.

 I have the right to be myself.

 I am capable of making my own choices.

 I have the right to change my mind.

 I have the right to say, “I do not wish to experience this right now.”

 I recognize my worth as a person; I have the right to have others see me as the worthy person I am.

 I am learning to trust myself and others.

 I have the right to have others trust me as I trust myself.

 I am able to recognize my needs and take care of my needs.

 I have the ability to be self-sufficient.

 I have the right to be healthy; I take care of my health needs.

 I am strong, capable, and self-empowered.

 I live in the present moment; I take one day at a time.

 I am able to replace my fears with freedoms.

 I know that my feelings and needs are just as important as other people’s fears and needs.

 I have the right to have abundance of joy in my life.

 I am able to create my own happiness.

 I am able to release old painful thoughts and replace them with positive ones.

 With every breath, I feel love enfolding my very being.

 I know the love of my Higher Power surrounds me at each moment.

 I recognize that memories are a part of my past, thus can do me no more harm.

 I am able to release those memories that are not helpful to me at this time.

 I am able to turn over to my Higher Power (God, Christ, Universal Spirit, etc.) any memory or any part of a memory that may cause me discomfort.

 I am aware that as each memory leaves my body I am able to ask my Higher Spirit to replace it with love and a feeling of security and safety.

 I am secure in the present moment.

 I realize that each little step in a positive direction leads me to a journey of my own choosing.

 I realize that even though I cannot control the actions of others, I can control my reactions to others.

 I have the right to my own agenda.

 I am delighted to be myself. I am not formed by the words of others.

 I look inside myself and to my Higher Power for the answers I seek in my life.

 I am an empowered child of the Universe (God, Spirit, Christ, etc.).

 I am protected, cared for, and watched over by grace.

 I grow into the beauty of my tomorrows.

 I have the right to a loving, supportive relationship.

 I will accept myself as I am in this moment, as well as respecting my right to change.

 I listen to Divine guidance.

 My perceptions of today create my reality of tomorrow.

 As I love myself, I invest in my future.

 My body has a unique form of intelligence. Listening to this intelligence guides my journey.

 I accept myself just as I am, right now in this particular moment, and grant myself the joy of change.

 I recognize my own truth as separate from any negative words thrown in my direction.

 I am a valuable person in the world.

 To change the world, I first start with myself.

 I maintain my personal boundaries.

 I am able to discern my self-knowledge from the beliefs of others.

 I tap into the unconditional Spirit of my unique creation in order to fully utilize the inner strengths of which I am endowed.

 I realize that success and failure are judgmental terms coming from the beliefs of others.

 I will practice non-judgment of myself as well as of others, recognizing that judgment of my self sets limits.

 I have unlimited creative potential.

 I can be who I am and who I want to be without being what others expect me to be.

 I do not feel guilt for being myself.

 I feel overjoyed for feeling my own feelings.

 I am an open expression of my own words, thoughts, and actions.

 I am a drop of soul in the ocean of Spirit.

 I AM.

Several decades ago while sitting in the midst of an awards banquet honoring the year’s most successful Realtors, I watched with interest as the newest member weaved through the many tables in order to receive the area’s most prestigious award. With a voice that showed astonishment more than personal pride, she clutched her award plaque tightly against her chest as she spontaneously began to list the many failed attempts she had made during her lifetime of earning a living. Five minutes later the room echoed with laughter while she still recited her list. Like Thomas Edison, she had successfully failed many times before discovering her own shining light.

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Pieces of several large shipping boxes were scattered in disarray all over the floor. The owner of the new desktop computer shimmied on his back until one leg stuck out in awkward angle from the front of the desk while the other leg was pushing on the bottom of the drawer. After three hours of trying to relate the English part of the owner’s manual to the various parts of a computer, his perplexity had turned to an annoyed anguish. Gathering three leftover wires with odd-looking plugs on each end, he plopped them into the hands of his ever patient wife, exclaiming, “As soon as you figure out which plug goes into which socket, I’m sure everything will work out just fine.” With that proclamation, he left the room.

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“What is the bear’s story?” the kindergarten teacher asked the five-year-olds gathered around her. She held up a teddy bear with bright eyes and brown fur; rather ordinary looking, he was dear to her pupils. She asked, “Where does the bear live? What does he like to do? What is important to him?”

One by one, eager voices named the bear, gave him a history, and projected their own likes and dislikes onto him, imaginatively creating a personality and an imposed life for their very special stuffed bear.

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