Manifestation 101: What It Means, Does It Work, and How to Practice It
An in-depth guide on manifestation and how to practice it effectively.
As I’ve been writing on this blog for more than a year, I’ve learned a lot. I’ve written so much on a diversity of self-help and well-being subjects.
There were topics I felt confident about, and there were some I only knew at a superficial level. And, I was unsure if I could write on some topics. Manifestation is one of those.
It’s a buzzword, isn’t it? Everyone seems to have something to say about it, but we aren’t really sure whom to listen to, or if what they’re saying is right or not. We wonder if it actually works or is just a fad.
So, I took it upon myself to deeply understand manifestation and how it works. In this post, I’ll address the topic of manifestation, its most important pillars, and how to do it right. Let’s first clearly state what it means.
What does manifestation mean?
Manifestation means to shape your reality into your ideal one with the power of your thoughts. So, it’s really similar to how we think about achieving goals and but it gives special focus on our state of mind.
It is not primarily focused on planning and execution. It’s more about how our thoughts shape our reality, not the other way around.
Manifestation is focused on creating a beautiful and peaceful state of mind that creates a beautiful and peaceful world for us.
Everything we have made has started from a thought. All that we see around us. So, creating the right thoughts will help us create a conscious, intentional reality.
When we only focus on the action without considering the fundamental influence of thoughts and our frame of mind, we may not reach a place of peace and happiness.
Think about it. What is more influential, a situation or our perspective on it? You might remember a time when you were with a group of people and everyone had their own take on the severity or fixability of a certain problem.
Some people become really stressed out and maximize the impact of a problem whereas some stay composed and assure others that things will be alright, focusing on what the solutions can be.
The situation is the same, but how one takes it is different. This is the essence of manifestation. It is through the strength and quality of our thoughts that we shape our reality. What you think about, you bring about.
If we think and really believe that it is okay and easily solvable, it will become that for us. But, if we think that everything is wrong and out of control, that is how our reality will be.
This is the strength of manifestation and the opportunity of it. If it sounds easy and flimsy, think again. Starting to work towards a goal with excitement and self-belief is common, but how many people can keep it going?
To persevere and still stay committed day by day, week by week, to keep our thoughts in control and in a positive state requires practice and good choices. So, let’s learn how manifestation works and what we can do to effectively practice it.
5 Steps for Effective Manifestation
- Be very clear about what you want
- Focus and commit wholeheartedly
- Choose to think healthy thoughts
- Keep yourself in good company
- Practice manifestation techniques
1. Be very clear about what you want
This is the very first step and one that determines your direction. What do you want to achieve? How do you want your life to be?
The important thing here is to make sure that what we want is truly what we want, that it’s not an imitation or something we’re pursuing to impress or leading with fear.
This requires introspection. We have to decide and reconnect with our values. Think about what you are naturally drawn towards. What have you longed for? What is it that you want to give to the world?
This can be anything. It can be as simple as landing a job that you genuinely love, learning clear and peaceful ways of communication, working in animal welfare, and more.
Think about who you want to be, and what you want to be remembered for, and choose goals that align with it.
2. Focus and commit wholeheartedly
Now, once we decide on our goals, we must become fully committed and focused on them. Let no distraction from external sources (situations, people, changes) or internal sources (negative thoughts) lead you astray.
This is why it is so important to build a healthy mind. When we have nurtured and grown seed to a tree that is resilient and capable, outside environment, storms, and unreliable conditions don’t bother it. The tree flourishes as we keep watering it, keep caring for it.
So, to make it easier for you to focus and commit, strengthen your mind.
3. Choose to think healthy thoughts
Although this point applies in all areas, I think we should address it dedicatedly. In manifestation, it is imperative to choose what we think, over and over again. You might read this post and feel inspired to change your self-dialogue.
In high spirits, it is easy to be motivated. But, it is crucial to keep choosing these optimistic and confident thoughts consistently. Yes, it can be challenging, but we will not say that.
We will think that it is easy. It is easy for us to be positive. It is easy for us to choose healthy thoughts. It is easy to believe in ourselves. Everything is okay and in control. There is always hope.
Remember that it is not our reality that should create these thoughts, but our thoughts that should create our reality. So, make your thoughts independent.
They should not be a reflection of what is around you but how you want them to be. This hope strengthens us, it carries us through. It is not silly to believe in a better reality, it’s a sign of resilience.
4. Keep yourself in good company
So, there are some things that we can do to make it easier for us to be in a healthy, positive state of mind, and the people we give our time and energy to have a big impact on that.
If we stay around uplifting, understanding, and glass-half-full kind of folks, we will be like them and they will support us to be who we want to be. On the contrary, staying with complainers, looking at the dark side, and discouraging people will move us in that headspace too.
So, choose to be with people who are realistic and still hopeful. People who don’t run away from the truth but still realize their power over changing it, who know that things will get better, and choose to believe?
In the end, all of us want peace and happiness. And, it is only those who believe that they deserve it and can experience it, end up feeling it truly, completely, and consistently.
5. Practice manifestation techniques
So, there are multiple manifestation techniques but I am going to focus on three that I myself practice and can advise you to try too.
I also recommend our tool called the Gratitude app which has been carefully created to help you practice these techniques effectively. Here they are:
Gratitude journaling: Gratitude is simple and supreme. It is so powerful. It is a choice to shift from the perspective of scarcity to the perspective of abundance.
So many of us only focus on what we want and don’t have, but gratitude brings our attention to what we already do, to the little and beautiful blessings in our lives.
It supports us and shapes a mind that exists peacefully. I recently launched a course that will help you understand gratitude and make it a part of your life.
Positive Affirmations: We’ve been talking about choosing positive thoughts, haven’t we? This is the tool that you count on here. Positive affirmations are the phrases or statements that we can use to affirm a good feeling or respond to a challenging situation.
They are words of hope, belief, confidence, and love. Here are some examples of manifestation affirmations:
- The future I want is manifesting right now.
- I am a magnet for my dreams and goals.
- I am achieving my dreams.
- I am living in a wonderful house in a wonderful neighborhood.
- Good things are happening every day in my life.
- Everything I do turns into success.
- I am present.
- I am strong.
- I am blessed and abundant.
- I am optimistic about the future.
- I have high positive energy.
- I am capable of manifesting anything I want.
- I am led by love and joy.
- I am a magnet for miracles.
- I am a powerful manifestor.
For 600+ affirmations and audio sessions that thousands of people listen to, you can try out our app right here.
Vision Board: This is another tool that keeps us motivated and focused on our goals while keeping a positive mindset. Vision boards are visualization tools.
In Jack Canfield's words, "A vision board is a visualization tool which refers to a board of any sort used to build a collage of words and pictures that represent your goals and dreams. The inspirational collages serve as your image of the future – a tangible example, idea, or representation of where you are going."
To get deep into it, you can enroll in our How to Create Vision Board course made by the wonderful Shealing Young who will teach you everything you need to know about creating your most powerful vision board.
And, that’s it for this one! Remember that this is a long-term lifetime change, so please give yourself time. We have lived in a certain state of mind for years, so it is only fair to trust ourselves as we build a mind that manifests a beautiful reality.
Keep connected with the steps I mentioned above and practice manifestation techniques dedicatedly. I wish you the very best. You have everything that you need within yourself, always believe that.
👉 Continue Reading: What are Affirmations and How They Can Help You? + Examples
