Manifesting is all about pairing mindset with action to get real results, and as psychiatrist Anna Yusim, M.D., previously explained to mbg, it was popularized by Rhonda Byrne’s book and movie The Secret, describing the universal principle that our thoughts create our reality. “We are what we think, consciously and unconsciously. In other words, what we attract into our lives reflects the contents of our mind,” Yusim explains. Think of it this way: If you want to build a table, you start to visualize in your mind the process of building that table. You know in your heart that you can build the table with the right tools and supplies. You start to get a clear idea of what you need to do in order to build that table. Then, you get the supplies you need and you build it. Boom: table, manifested. The key is the thought came first, you held onto it, and you manifested the table into reality. While that’s a more concrete, tangible example, that is the essence of manifestation, just replace the table with “love” or “abundance,” for example. A key to remember with the law of attraction is that the universe recognizes resistance and scarcity mindsets. You have to actually believe in what you want—and your ability to get it. For example, if love is what you’re seeking but you don’t truly believe you’re lovable and you’re not displaying love for yourself, others, or the collective, you’re not aligning or attracting loving energy. (Here’s our full guide to the law of attraction for more information.) Intrigued yet? Let’s get into our seven favorite manifestation methods to help you get started. Through journaling, she says, you may realize you’re unintentionally manifesting the opposite of what you want because you don’t truly feel aligned with it, for example. Neuroscientist Tara Swart, M.D., Ph.D., recommends manifestation journaling for that same reason, telling mbg that journaling daily can help you recognize a scarcity mindset (which will only hold you back) versus an abundance mindset. “If we don’t have a clear direction of where we’re headed or where we want to go, it can be very easy to get caught up in things that aren’t actually good for us. Creating a vision board is a powerful way of getting to know yourself and what it is you truly want to manifest and call into your life,” reiki master and spiritual author Kelsey Patel previously told mbg. Check out our complete guide to vision boarding for more inspo. This is further going to help solidify your visualization process as you feel into the reality you’re seeking because, again, by feeling it for real, we’re vibrationally aligning with it. “Feeling is the secret,” Cameron adds. What you’re actually doing with this process, though, is holding your goal in mind throughout the day, which is helpful for tapping into your subconscious. Hypnotist Shauna Cummins previously explained that this method can be useful because it allows your brain to “find what it’s looking for and therefore [become] more likely to magnetize your desires into action.” Take a look at our list of 50-plus affirmations for more ideas. As Cameron puts it, it’s about beginning to think like the version of yourself you want to be, feeling like that version, and behaving like that version. “So it’s about really starting to behave according to the new image instead of the old patterns and programs,” she explains. And that’s not to say if you want to be rich, you should spend all your money as if you were, she adds. In that case, you would be looking to align yourself with who you are when you’re living in abundance. What is that person like and how can you start acting like them? What people get wrong about manifesting is thinking that it requires no real change on their part, when it very much does. “It doesn’t have anything to do with the number of times you write something out, but it does have to do with the person that you see yourself as,” Cameron explains. Even thinking of this version of yourself that you’re seeking as your “future” self or “higher” self is actually keeping you separate from that self. You already are that self, you just have to align your thoughts and behavior with it. “If you’re feeling desperate, needy, sad, or impatient, and you do manifestation methods, you could actually be amplifying those feelings and breathing more faith into those feelings,” Cameron explains. Long story short: Mindset is everything. Methods are not.
