If you’ve kept up with trendy buzzwords on social media, you’re probably familiar with the term “manifesting.” Maybe you read it in a post about “manifesting” your dream life or even just “manifesting” your crush returning your text tomorrow.
Regardless of the context, manifestation is often featured on Instagram or TikTok to represent the spirit of empowerment. Though I love seeing empowering messages, however, something about the concept of manifestation struck me as frivolous. This tweet captures that energy, the feeling that focusing on wishful thinking as the key to fruitful success devalues actual hard work.
As a skeptic of all things based in non-science, it bothered me that this was becoming a popular method of encouragement during an incredibly stressful time, both globally and personally. However, to my surprise, a changed mindset holds genuine power over the way we conduct our daily lives, which in turn strongly contributes to overall success and happiness.
To understand the psychology of a changed mindset, one first needs to understand it’s not the Law of Attraction. The social media–version of manifesting is rooted in this disproven pseudoscientific theory—the Law of Attraction claims that when an individual thinks about what they want, the universe aligns such that “like attracts like” and their goal becomes a reality. Despite an exhaustive list of scientific reasons disproving the validity of the law, it continues to attract many followers. This version of manifesting suggests taking no action in order to achieve great success.
The self–fulfilling prophecy is a psychology term wherein the prediction of an outcome results in its occurrence. Sounds a lot like Law of Attraction manifesting in reality, right? Well, despite the similarities, there’s a significant difference: in a self–fulfilling prophecy, often the prediction itself leads people to act in a way that makes it come true.
For example, an interviewee being confident they will get a job may cause that individual to speak with more confidence or seem more qualified—which results in a higher chance of them getting the job. The prediction may have come true, but it happened because of the change in behavior—in this case, the confidence. Believing in oneself can actually change one’s behavior unknowingly, which is one way making a small change can improve life.
Another method for manifesting, writing down goals, also seemed silly to me at first—I didn’t think just writing something down on a piece of paper in my bedroom could have an external effect. However, when it comes to achieving goals, writing them down is actually an effective method—but not because it influences your external reality.
In reality, the human brain encodes what it writes, especially when it’s uniquely generated from the mind of the individual. When these written goals are encoded, the brain thinks about them even when the individual isn’t consciously focusing on them. As with the self–fulfilling prophecy, the real change is within oneself, not through an ambiguous universal power.
Finally, there’s also power in visualizing one’s goals. Many famous, successful individuals have cited this tactic as part of their road to success, and it can trigger the same unconscious thoughts as writing down your goals.
Generally, employing a growth mindset will help you to view challenges as opportunities and believe in yourself—with time, that self–confidence will become second nature. Regardless of your thoughts on the Law of Attraction itself, it’s important to understand how small changes in how you think can have a real effect on your life.
During midterm season and amidst a pandemic, it definitely can’t hurt to make some small tweaks to your advantage. Seizing control over the reigns of success doesn’t have to be daunting, and now you’re equipped with the tools to manifest—with science on your side!