Putting the Law of Attraction to Work
In the last post about New Year’s Resolutions, I briefly mentioned the law of attraction. It’s a concept that’s very popular in the spirituality circles, but I also think it can be misunderstood easily.
If you are not familiar with the law of attraction, it’s this concept that you attract people and things that vibrate at a similar frequency as you. If you thought, “Vibrate? I don’t vibrate!”, well, that’s a vibration. Your thoughts are energies, and as energies, they vibrate at a certain frequency. These thoughts may not be visible, but we all have the capacity to sense the gist of them nevertheless. The energies we emit are constantly rippling out into the world, and we’re also constantly interpreting the energies we receive from the others.
For example, I’m sure you’ve had instances where you knew someone was in a bad mood before either of you even spoke a word. If you were feeling ok, you most likely tried to stay away and give the person some space, but if you were also in a bad mood, you might have been tempted to say a few cutting words. The opposite can very easily happen, too. When you see someone laughing hysterically, it might also bring a smile on your face. But if you are in a bad mood, the laughter might register as annoying and you might try to leave the room. That, supposedly, is the law of attraction at work.
Does the Law of Attraction Really Work?
So, does the law of attraction actually work, and if it does, can you use it to your advantage? Can it help you attain something that you want? Personally, I have had enough experiences in my own life that seem to support the idea. In fact, I watched my own son do it a few years ago.
My oldest son has a birthday very close to Christmas, so the family asked him to make a list of some toys that he was interested in receiving as a present. He was still in elementary school at the time, so he would come home every day and double check the list, imagining who might get him which gift. I reminded him that he’s probably not going to get everything off of that wish list and that he might receive something else. He understood and said he would be grateful to receive any gift.
When my son opened his birthday presents, everything he got was from the wish list. This wasn’t too surprising since the gifts were from our closest family members, all of whom knew about the list. The surprise, however, came on Christmas, when he opened the presents from some of our more distant family and friends. They had no idea what was on my son’s Christmas list, yet all of them still got something that he had listed. That year, he ended up receiving everything on his wish list, and there were no duplicates.
Why Did it Work?
I think there were several things my son did right in this instance. First, he made a list of what he wanted. This helps to clarify our desires and makes the goal more tangible. Next, he spent some time every day FEELING excited about it. This step is more important than you think! Feelings, just like thoughts, are energies. My son’s feeling of excited anticipation attracted things that would bring excitement to him. Third, he let go of control. He wasn’t interested in forcing this to happen. When we become desperate to obtain the desired outcome, there’s an attached assumption that this outcome is difficult to achieve. And as a consequence, that is the situation we end up attracting. When you are thinking about your desired outcome, you want to be as relaxed as possible.
Law of attraction sounds far-fetched when you first hear about it, but when you pay attention, examples of it happening are everywhere. The best way to understand anything, I say, is to experience it yourself. I hope you’ll suspend your disbelief and see if a change in your thought process really can change your outside world!
In the next post, I’d like to delve a little deeper into the first step, writing down a wish list.