Visualization That Leads to Manifestation - Discovering the Place of Magic

Psychologists have known for many years that people who write their goals down on paper are much more likely to achieve them, and the more specific the goal, the more likely they are to achieve it. Back in the late eighties I attended a course on personal growth where writing your specific goals ...Psychologists have known for many years that people who write their goals down on paper are much more likely to achieve them, and the more specific the goal, the more likely they are to achieve it. Back in the late eighties I attended a course on personal growth where writing your specific goals on a sheet of paper was a requirement for registration. (And indeed, I found that I had achieved my goals for that course soon afterwards, some even before the course began.) It was already known back then that when you visualized--and took to heart--exactly what you wanted, your mind would come up with the ideas and the inspired actions to accomplish it.

With the release of the DVD "The Secret" a couple of years ago, you are encouraged to create a "vision board"--a cork board or a poster on which photos and other visual reminders of what you want are posted. The idea is, photos help you visualize (and "attract") your goals better than plain words on paper. Taking this idea still further, you can go all out and spend money and lots of time making a "mind movie" project about your goals. An undertaking like a movie might help you visualize your goals better and perhaps motivate you even more, but is visualization what really matters when it comes to results? When it comes to accessing the magic of interconnectedness and manifesting your dreams, is visualization what's important?

Yes, and no. Let me explain. I found that visualization helps specifically because:

* It forces you to think about and define your goal. Quite often, asking yourself what's really important in your life helps connect you with a deeper part of yourself that you're normally too busy to connect with

* You become ready for and serious about the changes you want in your life and it motivates you to stay actively engaged in your project

* Your goals take you out of your comfort zone to a place where you're required to rely on abilities you might not have used much until now, and it forces you to rely on your intuition (your connection to your inner core) more. This connection is where the magic lies

I discovered that visualization and visualization tools are helpful, but they aren't absolutely critical for manifestation. I found that the magic was not in the act of visualization, but in the getting in touch with that creative part of yourself (your higher self) and having the courage to take the actions that are inspired by your higher self. The magic is in aligning with your higher self, which means following through on the creative inspirations and inspired actions that bring you closer to your goals. What's also important is staying actively engaged in your project until it manifests.

For example, when I first received the idea to write a book, I spent a little bit of time visualizing myself as an author (which, up until I actually held a completed manuscript in my hands, I wasn't). Months before I started writing my book, I wrote in my journal, many a time, "I am preparing myself for inspiration . . ."

All this helped get me started, but I spent much more time focusing on my creativity in the moment than on my future dreams. I visualized, but just enough to keep me going when confronted with obstacles.

And in fact, sometimes visualization wasn't enough when confronted with certain obstacles. Sometimes what I needed was to get past the beliefs that held me back. Letting go of tired, inaccurate beliefs about what I was capable of was an important part of my process.

So where did the magic lie? I noticed that when I let go of some of my old beliefs about myself and listened to my intuition instead, something favorable would always occur. By letting go of certain beliefs and continuing to follow through on my intuition, I got to a place where my writing "flowed." Then like magic, something would happen every day that helped forward my project. Amazing things occurred that kept me motivated and kept me going despite some rather huge obstacles. My experience was similar to W. H. Murray's (The Scottish Himalayan Expedition, 1951): ". . . the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred . . ." This is exactly where the magic lies.

You can use whatever tools you like to help keep you focused on your project (a notebook, a vision board, or you can go all-out and create a movie of what you want to manifest; it's up to you). But it isn't these visualization tools that are all important. What's critical is remaining actively engaged in your project (by committing oneself and then simply following through on the guidance of your higher self promptly and consistently) until your vision manifests. Nothing can ever beat this experience.