You’ve probably heard of the mystical term “manifestation” by now, especially since it became a super popular TikTok trend.
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But what is manifestation, really? Is it some crazy magical spiritual thing used to control your circumstances? Is it a completely bogus practice? Or is there actually some merit to it?
What Is Manifestation?
Manifestation seems super mystical and a little out there and New Age-y at first glance. And there are a ton of different manifestation “methods” — the super trendy TikTok one is the 3-6-9 method, where you write your intention 3 times in the morning, 6 times midday, and 9 times at night. Many manifestation methods have numbers associated with them, and others are simpler, saying that just focusing on positive thoughts will make good things happen to you. Some manifestation practices even feel distinctly religious or demonic, as they draw angels or witchcraft into the equation.
At its core though, the concept of manifestation is pretty simple — cultivate positive energy within you, and positive things will happen to you.
Does Manifestation Work?
The resounding and simple answer is no — you can’t get a Tesla by thinking about a Tesla for hours on end. However, some manifestation practices have merit in that they’ll help you become the person who will have a Tesla. For example, let’s say you want to have a Tesla. You think about having a Tesla a lot. If you stop here, you’re not going to get the Tesla. But if you let those thoughts go further — i.e. thinking about what you would need to do to get enough money to have a Tesla, how to get a job to make that much money, etc., your dream of someday owning a Tesla may actually come true. But it won’t be just because you thought about it enough.
Seen from this perspective, “manifestation” can actually be helpful, in that it becomes a tool to help you achieve your goals. And thinking of this tool in terms of a primarily mental exercise can really help some people. For example, some individuals may just need to believe they can achieve their goals — manifestation can help them cultivate that belief as they picture living their dream life. Thus, the goals have become less of a distant prospect and more something that’s actually feasible, meaning you’re more likely to reach for them.
That’s how it was for me. For ages I thought I’d never be a digital nomad — I figured I didn’t have enough marketable skills, I didn’t know anyone, it was too hard to get into the business, etc. But when I suddenly lost my job and rediscovered my writing skills, I started to picture myself in a writing job. It suddenly seemed like a feasible achievement, and I had a ton of time on my hands (being jobless and all), so becoming a remote writer was all I thought about day and night. I spent probably 40-50 hours one week applying to jobs. I marketed myself well because I truly believed I could achieve that dream. And voila! Here I am, friends, living my dream — and I would argue that manifestation played a huge role in that.
7 Manifestation Techniques To Start Today
So by now we know that manifestation as a magical law-of-attraction-esque thing probably doesn’t work. But using manifestation as a goal-oriented tool can send you well on your way to your dream life! Here are my 7 favorite manifestation techniques.
1. Create a vision board
If you’re a visual person like me, vision boards can be super helpful manifestation techniques — they’re a great way to visualize your goals, which is often the first step to achieving them!
This website is a great beginner’s guide to creating your first vision board. The most important thing is to have fun with it! You can make different vision boards for different goals, different life seasons, or if you’re feeling super motivated, for each month’s specific goals.
2. Meditate on your goals
Meditation is another powerful tool to help you visualize your goals. Clearing your headspace for an extended period of time allows your goals to manifest in your mind and will make the following few tips easier! Here are some meditation tips that will help you clear your mind so you can meditate on your goals:
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Make your physical space calming and free from distractions. If you have pets or kids, keep them occupied in another room while you meditate. Don’t have anything going on in the background — nothing in the oven or on the stove. Your meditation room should be clean and calming. Lavender candles or an essential oil diffuser and a quiet playlist of instrumental yoga music are some of my favorite tools to create a calming space!
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Close your eyes and let any thoughts come into your head for the first couple minutes. Acknowledge what comes up and then place it away for your meditation period. Acknowledging any thoughts at the beginning will help to keep them from coming up further into your meditation.
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Start to focus your attention on your goals. Let this happen in a way that feels natural to you — maybe you picture them visually, maybe words flow into your head, maybe something different. Anything goes!
3. Picture yourself living your dream life
This is an important part of your meditation. Really picture yourself living your dream life. Notice the following things: What do you look like? What qualities/characteristics does dream-you have that you may not have right now? Notice any other ways in which your dream life looks different from your current life.
Once you’ve spent some time meditating on your dream life, start visualizing how you got there. It doesn’t need to be any specifics yet — just picture (even vaguely) the path that took you from now-you to dream-you.
Continue your meditation for as long as you’d like! I recommend doing it at least 3-4 times/week. Incorporate it into your self-care time, or find a time that works for you — just try to make it regular and calming.
4. Write down your goals over and over, regularly
Remember that “3-6-9” method I mentioned earlier? We’re actually going to kind of use that here. The 3-6-9 method is often chalked up to be especially powerful, so feel free to use that if it speaks to you. In it, you write your specific intention down three times in the morning, six times in the middle of the day, and nine times at night.
The most important thing is just to make goal-writing a habit. This will help keep your goals in the forefront of your mind, which is why I love this manifestation technique! Writing things down also helps you remember them — literally, the act of your hand making words on paper forges a connection with your brain! Writing down your goals is the first step to making them a physical reality.
5. Write yourself letters from your future self
So we’ve talked about picturing your future self and writing down your goals — let’s combine them for one of the most superpowered manifestation techniques!
Picture yourself as your future self. You may want to do this directly following a meditation, so it’s easier to get into that headspace. Then, as your future self, write letters to yourself now. The letters could contain anything you want — anything your future self might want to tell yourself now. Maybe you want to give yourself advice or encouragement. Maybe you want to tell yourself how amazing future-you is. Again, anything goes here!
Once you’re done, put the letters away for a little bit. You could keep them in a drawer or even put them in envelopes marked with dates on which to open them. Just distance yourself from them for a little bit so you don’t remember everything you wrote. Then, sometime later — maybe a week, maybe a month — open the letter and read what you wrote to yourself. You might be surprised to read it again, and may gain valuable insight on how to achieve your goals!
6. Cultivate beliefs and behaviors that align with your intentions
Time to put all that hard work you’ve just done into action! By now you probably have an idea of what you need to do to get where you want to go. Or, more importantly, you know who you need to be to get there.
Start aligning now-you with future-you. You don’t even need to have the dream job yet or find the perfect guy to make this happen — just get into the mentality. Is future you confident and courageous? Then start practicing confidence and courage. Hold your head high and back straight when you walk down the street. Start dressing yourself daily as future-you would dress. Does future you eat healthy, energizing foods? Practice that now. No step is too small, and over time, these small changes in mentality will become habitual. You’ll really be on your way to becoming dream-you in no time!
7. Maintain a gratitude journal
You have lots to look forward to — future you is amazing. But don’t forget that who you are today is amazing, too. There’s a lot to be grateful for every day, even if you feel overwhelmed with kids running around, a work life that doesn’t stop, or other day-to-day stresses.
Start a gratitude journal and keep a log of what you’re grateful for every day. This will help you cultivate a positive mindset — and we already know that the mind is a super powerful thing! Gratitude is a really powerful practice that will make it easier to recognize the good things in your life, and a little positivity will go a long way in helping you achieve your dream life.
What do you think of manifestation? Will you be using any of these manifestation techniques to achieve your dream life? Let us know in the comments!
For More Inspirational Practices, You Should Read:
How Self-Management In The Digital Age Can Help You Become Your Best Self
Roses, Buds, And Thorns: Our Favorite Way To Practice Mindfulness Every Day
