Day 43: The Law of Attraction

I made it through Valentine's Day and I'm happy about that. It wasn't miserable, because I didn't allow for that. I made it a special day for Cambria and I don't know when the last time I saw her so happy and appreciative of each gift I gave her (which weren't many, and were nothing extraordinary). 

Today I worked on a new blog post for Westwood College. I have to say, it really helped me to write it. Even though I knew the concept well, sometimes we can (re)learn by teaching others. Here it is.

“Man is the product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes.” - Mahatma Gandhi

February is the time when Cupid draws his bow and shoots us with arrows of love. Love that renders us incapable of resisting a new found attraction. While the effects of Valentine’s Day linger through this month, I’d like to encourage you to consider a different kind of attraction: The Law of Attraction.

On Wikipedia, you’ll read that “the Law of Attraction is a metaphysical belief or theory, that ‘like attracts like,’ and that Human perception of what is positive and negative thinking bring about positive and negative perceived results, respectively.” Essentially, if you can control your mind, you can affect your reality.

So what does all this mean for you?

When I was a full time college student, I was also a single mom, working a full time job. I would often be asked “How do you do all this?” For me, the success started from the inside out. I developed a strong inner belief that I was capable of doing what I needed to do. I imagined myself going to school, paying attention in class, learning what I would need and applying that to my current job. I envisioned myself as the mother I wanted to be, the employee I wanted to be and the student I wanted to be. I saw myself as successful, and I was successful.

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “When it rains, it pours.” It’s easy for us to become aware of negative events when it feels like one thing after another is happening, when it feels like everyone is against us, or as if we’re being kicked while we’re down. But when things are going great, the same trend often gets taken for granted. And rarely do we realize that we have anything to do with what’s happening to us – we assume it’s all out of our control.

In reality, we’re attracting positive or negative things based on what we think and how we feel.

Like many great things, it’s easier said than done. One day you may feel positive and notice more positivity coming to you. The next day may be the opposite. It’s unavoidable to be pulled back into the natural wave of human drama and feel victim to life’s circumstances. But the trick is that it’s all about rediscovery and persistence.

Here are a few ways to help you remember this reality on a daily basis:

1. Print or write out positive quotes and sayings that you can tape to your bathroom mirror, hang by your front door, put inside one of your school notebooks, or set up in your car. It could be as simple as something like, “I have the power to decide how I feel. I am positive. I am successful. I am intelligent. I am valuable.”
2. Identify what you want, for example: to purchase a house, to graduate college, to land your dream job, to find your soul mate, etc. Then make a list of all the traits of the perfect scenario. Sort your list into three categories: The Must-Haves, The Would-Be-Nices, and the Red Flags (i.e. warning signs that it’s something you don’t want). I have done this now three times – a list for my perfect guy, a list for my perfect house, and a list for my perfect job. Each time I made the list, I soon found nearly exactly what I was looking for.
3. Create a scrapbook of your perfect life. What does it look like? Cut out pictures from magazines, print out photos, draw pictures, write notes, etc. Get creative and don’t be shy. Use this as an opportunity to assemble your absolute, best life, however that looks for you. Don’t forget to include pictures of you – act as if this is your current life, not your future life. Then every once in awhile, go back to your scrapbook and reassess it. You can always adjust if necessary.
4. Develop a daily routine where you can start and end your day the best way possible. A colleague of mine at Westwood College likes to get up in the morning with her son and together, they jump up and down shouting, “I’m excited!” three times (see her YouTube clip). At the end of the day, my brother writes down his best accomplishment and one thing he hopes to accomplish the next day.
5. Give in to a little acting. We all have bad days, but if you remember that negative energy attracts more negative energy, it might be beneficial to contain your feelings as much as you can. I do this by simply pretending to be happy, even if I’m not. Interestingly enough, not long after I start pretending, it turns out that I actually feel happier.

If this concept of the Law of Attraction is new to you, it might seem a little farfetched. But the best way to find out if something works is to give it a try. You’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain.