I just attended the most impactful conference of my life. The Free The Dream conference in Franklin, Tennessee challenged everything I thought I knew about affirmations, goal-setting, and what it takes to build a business on your own terms. Here is what I learned and what I am putting into practice.<\/p>\n
The inaugural Free The Dream conference, hosted by Cliff Ravenscraft in Franklin, Tennessee, brought together about 100 people who were all working toward realizing a dream. The production quality was outstanding and the content was practical and actionable.<\/p>\n
Cliff took the group through exercises to identify dreams, uncover limiting beliefs, and build practical plans. The speakers included Dan Miller, Aaron Walker, Ken Davis, Leslie Samuel, and PJ Jonas from Goat Milk Stuff. Breakthroughs were real — people were in tears as they finally saw a clear path forward.<\/p>\n
The key takeaway I want to share is affirmations.<\/strong> I was skeptical. My mental model of affirmations was the Stuart Smalley sketch from Saturday Night Live. But I found real research supporting the practice.<\/p>\n A Carnegie Mellon study showed that people who practiced self-affirmation performed measurably better at problem-solving under stress. The evidence shifted my thinking from dismissal to genuine curiosity.<\/p>\n What are good affirmations?<\/strong> Present-tense statements describing your desired state. “I am a person who eats right and takes care of my body.” Your subconscious mind works to bring you into integrity with these declarations, similar to how athletes use visualization to improve performance.<\/p>\n Three levels of practice:<\/strong> Reading silently, speaking aloud, and recording yourself and listening back. Cliff uses the ThinkUp app for the recording approach, which adds the power of hearing your own voice affirm these statements.<\/p>\n I am starting with affirmations around health and fitness, and following through on business commitments. I plan to share my affirmations and results as I go.<\/p>\n I also shared plans for new Late Night Internet Marketing content: a free introductory course for people brand new to internet marketing, and future content around selling on Amazon, which I have been building experience with over the past year.<\/p>\n The full transcript for this episode is available at LNIM 153 Transcript: Free the Dream and Affirmations<\/a>.<\/p>\n Write three present-tense affirmations this week about areas where you want growth. Read them aloud each morning. Notice how it feels and whether your behavior begins to shift. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts<\/a> or Spotify<\/a>.<\/p>\nKey Takeaways<\/h2>\n
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