Affirmations work amazingly well. In hypnotherapist talk, we call repetitions "compounding" and this is one of the most fundamental tools used in hypnosis. That is to say: repetition of the main phrases is the key to most hypnotherapy. If I tell you that you are "happy the way your are", or a "non-smoker" just one time, it won't have much effect, but if I tell you 10 or 100 times, your subconscious mind starts to get patterned.
How far away is the affirmation from your reality? Many affirmations tend to be describing an ideal situation or ideal behavior. This is affirmations like "I enjoy life as abundant as a multi-millionaire," when in reality it may be you are floundering economically. Internally you may be quite optimistic, filled with positive ideas and dreams, so in this case it may not take long before the affirmations to effect your mindset. On the other hand, if I\internally, if you have been beaten down by the boot-heal of life, and your body generates negative feelings and emotions just by thinking of your economic situation--in that case you will need to do many more affirmations to chip away at your old mentality. If the affirmations are already mostly true anyway, such as you can think of many situations where you have positive self-esteem, etc. then the affirmations will be a rapid way to give your mind a tune-up.
We don't want to feel bad. We don't want the negative emotions, but it is always THOUGHTS that trigger emotions. Affirmations is taking the intiative to get control of your thoughts before they start. How badly do you want to stay in a happy zone? Could an negative emotional outbreak be avoided by doing enough affirmations? Yes. So do as many as you can.
More tips: Write them down. Repeat them out loud. Ponder them. Use my video recordings as background music to your daily activities. Fit them in as much as you can. Imagine that you have to brainwash yourself and that it is your first priority in your life to be happy.
Here is an affirmations for being positive and reinforcing self-esteem:
