What we tell ourselves matters. If your internal dialogue is an unbroken string of insults about your body, your work performance, and your past then guess what? Achieving your dreams will be next to impossible. You don’t have to be a star athlete to realize that Olympic champions don’t earn gold medals by exercising once a week and eating buckets of fried chicken. No, they achieve their goals by training their bodies. Well, in order to succeed you have to train your mind just as fiercely. If you train your mind to believe the absolute worst things about yourself, then the worst is exactly what you will get.
The sad truth is few of us would ever speak to a stranger let alone a close friend the way we often speak to ourselves. We really are our own worst enemy. That’s unfortunate. Why? Because how we speak to ourselves has a lot to do with our actions. If you want to achieve your dreams, it’s important to learn how to apply the law of attraction. Here’s some tips.
Attraction Explained
Although often misattributed to Gautama Buddha, regardless of its source I think this quote explains the law of attraction perfectly. “What you think you become. What you feel you attract. What you imagine you create.” In other words, start manifesting! After studying with Buddhist monks, psychologist and researcher Richard Davidson discovered how even short-term meditation can bring about changes in gene expression. This is how genes encode proteins, which then determines the function of a cell. So by manifesting a positive outlook for ourselves and our career we can not only alter our perspective but set ourselves upon the path toward achieving it. As Davidson points out, people can be trained to develop awareness, connection, insight, and purpose.
The law of attraction is premised on the idea that like attracts like. If you manifest a positive outlook, you’ll get positive results. If you view your future negatively, you’ll get negative results. It doesn’t matter whether or not you believe in the law of attraction. If you decide not to believe in gravity, it won’t make the ground any softer when you fall out of a tree. Understanding how to apply the law of attraction isn’t a free ticket to riches. Believing the universe will make you wealthy isn’t the same as telling yourself that you deserve success, you will work your butt off to succeed at your goals, and the universe will help you during your journey. As the old cliche goes, the harder you work, the luckier you will get. Still, working 80-hour weeks while encased in an impenetrable prison of negativity isn’t a recipe for success. Instead, change your internal dialogue. Retrain yourself to celebrate what you have already accomplished. Instead of criticizing your thighs, congratulate yourself for going on a jog. Don’t obsess over an embarrassment from last year, focus on an achievement from last week.
Practice Gratitude
It’s so easy to obsess over the things we don’t have. The problem is, no one ever has everything. Even if you buy a bigger house or a newer car, it’s no guarantee you’ll be satisfied. You’ll likely still want more. Yet the truth is, for most people, life is pretty amazing. A few centuries ago even the wealthiest kings lived in drafty, rat-infested castles facing death from myriad diseases or their own people. Today you likely had enough to eat and a roof over your head. Yet even those who lack those things find room for gratitude. So start your day making a list of the things you are grateful for. It can be simple like a great cup of coffee or a good night’s sleep. It could be a recent promotion or a new relationship. Writing down what you are grateful for will help train your mind. Plus, in one study, participants who kept a gratitude journal for two weeks had fewer headaches, less stomach pain, clearer skin, and reduced congestion. In other words just writing down the things they were grateful for gave them more reasons to be grateful!
After you’ve made a gratitude list, try meditating for a few minutes. Learning to be present is another secret on how to apply the law of attraction. That’s because much of our negative self talk is based on the past; most of our stressful anxiety is concerned with the future. The present is the one thing we can immediately affect by focusing on the good things we have each day. The law of attraction is not a pollyanna ritual nor a command to always be happy. Life is about balance, there will be bad along with good. No, the key is identifying those good things and appreciating them in the moment.
Visualize
Going back to the Olympic athlete, they of course do more than just train their body. They train their mind as well. Anytime there’s a conversation about visualization, a sports star is often named. That’s because there’s a clear line between visualizing victory and the result. Regular life is more complex than a tournament. Yet just as an athlete pictures not just the trophy and the championship, you need to see not just the promotion or successful business but the steps you will take to get there. The best time to visualize is when you are at your most relaxed –– often in the morning or the evening. Close your eyes. Then imagine the steps you will take to achieve success.
After creating a vivid picture, you can work a SMART program –– for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound goals. Ask yourself what it is that you truly desire. Be honest. Retraining our internal monologue and manifesting positive energy isn’t easy. Still, I firmly believe the time you devote to it will be time well spent.
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