What I give my energy to...
The Law of Attraction....Have you seen The Secret?
I saw the trailer and my cheese-o-meter was spiked. I have a low tolerance for non-edible cheeeessse.
The Secret...I hate the fact it's even called The Secret. Secrets are well, so exclusive. "I know something you don't know. Na na na na na."
Well fine, I don't want to know anyway...but really I'm dying to know what you're talking about. In a way it's good marketing, I suppose.
I've been thinking a lot about these ideas over the last couple years.
"The Secret" is based on the Law of Appreciation philosophy.
The Urban Dictionary defines The Law of Attraction as this:
"The Law of Attraction is a New Age belief based on the concept that "like attracts like" and that by focusing on positive thoughts, such as affirming to yourself that you will win a million dollars, your thoughts and affirmations will subsequently manifest themselves by granting you the one million dollars. Your thoughts are similar to magnets. Positive thoughts will attract positive outcomes and vice versa for negative thoughts."
I'm not a fan of manifesting type of theology or philosophy. I don't believe that God or the Universe rewards some, and not others based on how strong we believe it will happen. Rubbish, I think. The truth is that many non-rich people have been "blessed" have made HUGE impacts on the world. (The word “blessed” also makes me cringe a little, as it tends to be used around possessions. We are so "blessed" to have this lovely house. Well what about the family of 6 crammed in a 500 square foot home, who would actually give you the shirt off their backs). Many people who weren’t rich in possessions have made huge impacts on the world, people like Ghandi, Mother Theresa, Rosa Parks...to name a few.
So the material possession part of this manifesting philosophy seems ridiculous. If someone is driven and really wants to make money they probably will. I know for a fact that wishing one would win a lottery does not make it happen.
However...I believe that there is a golden nugget in all of this holds a ton of truth.
What we focus on expands.
Many beliefs, faiths and practices preach something along the lines of this. It's not anything new. It's classic. It's truth. It's profoundly simple, yet we don't often realize the full power of our thoughts and focus.
Here are some bible verses and quotes that support this theory:
"Be careful what you think, because your thoughts run your life." -Proverbs 4:23
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." -Philippians 4:8
“All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become.” -Buddhist quote
“We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves.” -Buddhist quote
"We create our organizations based on our anticipations of the future. The image of the future guides the current behaviour of any system." -David Cooperrider
"The way we see things is the source of the way we think and the way we act" -Stephen Covey
“Each one of us is like that butterfly the Butterfly Effect . And each tiny move toward a more positive mindset can send ripples of positivity through our organizations our families and our communities.” ― Shawn Achor, The Happiness Advantage: