Notes

The Art of Manifesting: Tap Into The Power of The Universe To Live Your Best Life - Book by Carolyn Boyes

Learn how to manifest the life you want with easy, actionable steps.

You have the power, right now, to change anything you want in your life. If you know how, you can bring your deepest visions into reality.

This is what manifesting is all about. And according to the author, it is backed by two fundamental laws shared across many belief systems over thousands of years. These are the Law of Oneness and the Law of Attraction.

The Law of Oneness declares that everything in the universe comes from the same source and is made up of the same type of energy, so it’s all connected. That means any action, thought or emotion impacts everything around you, and vice versa.

The Law of Attraction states that “like attracts like,” so whatever signal your personal energy is sending out there, you’re going to magnetize more of it, good or bad. You have the power to change the signal, which also means you can change the outcome.

If you can accept these things as true then, according to the author, you have awakened to your power. Now it’s just about putting it to use. Time to manifest.

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Step 1: Decide what you really want

Think of the most beautiful painting or sculpture you’ve ever seen. Now consider what it was before — just a blank canvas or block of raw material. Similar to how the artist brought their masterpiece to life, you can do the same with your future. It starts with a clear vision, which is the first step to manifesting.

Do you know what you truly want the most in life? If not, try the following exercise.

Take about five minutes and ease into a calm, rested state with your eyes closed. Relax your breathing. Use all of your senses to take in the moment. Now, imagine a radiant light entering your body, moving from head to toe, then expanding throughout the universe. Ask yourself what your heart truly desires in the entire world, and take note of any thoughts or observations that enter your mind. Pull the light back in and conclude the exercise.

If that doesn’t work for you, another practice is to sort your life into categories, such as love life, home, job and so on. How do you feel about each category? Rate them and note what needs improvement and why.

Once you’ve identified your strongest desires, write them down as if you already have them. Make sure the statement you write is a positive one. Since the universe responds to the content of your thoughts, you must state what you want, not what you don’t. And if the signal you’re giving says what you want is already here, the energy will line up to make it so.

For example, if you want a loving relationship, you’d write “I am in a loving relationship,” not “I want to stop having such bad luck at dating.”

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Step 2: Add details to your vision

Now that you have a goal in mind, it’s time to add details. Details inspire feelings, engage your subconscious mind and put your whole brain to work toward what you want to see happen.

The subconscious mind dramatically impacts how well you can actually manifest what you want, because subconscious thoughts and emotions can overrule anything your conscious mind wants to see. Thankfully, you have more say in what your subconscious does than you may think. It just takes some practice.

If you have any doubt, try this trick. Relax and rest your eyes while imagining you’re handed a lemon and a knife. Slice the lemon into wedges, take one and bite into the juicy fruit. Now, how does your mouth feel? Did you salivate a bit? While the lemon isn’t real, this exercise usually causes a real, physical reaction.

Now that you know the lemon trick, have a think about it. Why wouldn’t you want to use your imagination to create real, physical evidence of something far better than some saliva?

What you’re going to do is take your goal and create what the author calls a future memory, or a mental snapshot that includes as much detail as possible. Here are some questions to get your mind going: Where will you be? What will you be wearing? Will anyone be with you, and if so, who? As you create the visual, consider your other senses. Are there fragrant flowers? Can you feel cool water and sand beneath your feet as you stroll along a beach at sunset? What do you hear?

And again, how does the total picture make you feel? Pay close attention and revise your picture if any negative emotions arise. Remember the positive emotions and be sure to amplify them any time you revisit your future memory, which you’ll be doing in the steps to come.

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Step 3: Calm your mind

You know that easy feeling you have when you’re just about to fall asleep? This is what scientists call the alpha state. It’s basically a slower-than-usual rate of brain wave activity, and it’s the overall vibe you want to be in when you set out to manifest your vision.

We just covered the importance of the subconscious mind in manifesting. According to the author, the subconscious mind receives messages best when your brain is in an alpha state. It follows that the better you are at relaxing into this state, the more effective your manifesting will be. So try this following exercise.

Sit still with your eyes closed. Draw your attention to your breathing until you notice it naturally slow. Do not focus on anything else. Remind yourself your only job is to relax. Start with your head and move down your body, slowly telling each part to loosen any tension. You can reach a deeper state by counting from 100 down to one. Then, visualize the future memory you created in step two. Remember to feel all of the good feelings that come with the visualization.

To make this exercise even more powerful, when you’re imagining the scene you want, switch to becoming an observer who is watching as you experience the moment. Save what you see as a mental photograph and imagine pinning it to your personal timeline. Last, give the universe a sincere “thanks in advance,” and set your vision free.

Manifesting only works if you accept that the outcome is out of your hands. So release any attachment to the outcome, and keep your vision to yourself.

This doesn’t mean there’s nothing more you can do, though. Let’s find out what more you can do to help your vision come true.

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Step 4: Take action

While we just covered stepping back and trusting the process, there are some things you can do to help your vision become reality. You shouldn’t obsess over the outcome, but you can set it up for success. Think of planting a seed: You don't have to hover over it as long as you choose fertile ground and give it the water it needs. Do the same with your vision.

Consider any obvious things that need to happen toward your goal. For example, If you want a change in your career, start looking for other opportunities. If you want to attract a mate, you should consider offers for dates. These are simple and easy ways to show you’re willing to do your part.

If you struggle with motivation, gratitude practices can help. When you begin to see and appreciate the world’s many opportunities, you’re more likely to spot the right one when it comes along. For example, staying open to dinner invitations may land you in a seat next to your future partner.

Here’s a quick exercise you can use to bring gratitude into your daily life. Every day, list three things or experiences you noticed and appreciated. For each, simply say “thank you.” To enhance this practice, give thanks for some things that haven’t happened yet. This adds the power of your trust that energy is working in your favor. As you increase your awareness of what’s going right for you, more will come, like a social invitation that leads to romance or lands an awesome new job.

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Step 5: Adjust your beliefs

When you receive a bill or invoice, how do you feel? It’s probably not a wave of gratitude. If anything, you may dread paying it.

As you’ve learned by now, thoughts and feelings have power. If you’re sending out a distress signal when you get a bill, that’s the vibe you’re sending the universe about you and money in general. Do you want it to give you more of that bad feeling?

Next time you get notice that a bill is due, make a point to stop and be thankful for whatever the debt is for and then give the universe a “thanks in advance” that you can pay it.

This is just one example of how you can change your mindset from negative to positive to perfect your manifesting. Since beliefs drive your thoughts and feelings, rewriting them can shift your entire mindset about money.

You can do this type of exercise for just about any topic where your subconscious beliefs may be keeping you from what your conscious mind wants. Maybe it’s not money but something else, like losing weight. To narrow your focus, consider your struggles toward that goal. Make notes about what you believe to be true about them. Consider where those beliefs are rooted. Then, separate feelings from facts. Is what you’re thinking even true?

For example, have you had enough bad work experiences to where you think every workplace is toxic? Can you choose to believe that maybe some aren’t? Rewrite your belief to a statement like, “It’s more likely there are thousands of good places to work. I will find one.” All you need is one!

You have the power to change the stories you tell yourself. With consistent practice, you can make a new belief completely replace an old one that isn’t working for you.

Now let’s see how to build that practice.

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Step 6: Set up a routine

When you have a routine, you build a habit that keeps you positive and focused. A routine also ensures you are sending the universe the same message consistently.

Take a moment each day to consider your vision. Think about whether your feelings have changed about it, and note any progress you may see. If you like visuals, making a drawing or collage can be helpful. This exercise will keep your mind trained on what you desire and your motivations for it.

Actually, you should consider all good things as they happen, regardless of whether they seem related to your vision. This will encourage positive self-talk on your journey.

To structure your routine even more, set up a weekly schedule where you assign each day for different parts of your life. The author suggests a day each for home, emotions, body, heart, communication, nature and rest. Do at least one activity daily that’s relevant to the topic, such as journaling on your communication day, acts of kindness on your emotions day and of course, resting on your rest day.

You can customize your routine in whatever way you want to help manifest your vision. For example, you may want to assign days to do things related to your family relationships, career or a hobby. Let’s say Tuesday is career day, and you set aside an hour to do one professional development course online. The next Tuesday, you could polish your resume.

Over time and practice, you will become more orderly and intentional with your manifesting, and set it up for success!

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Step 7: Manifest

So you’ve learned how to identify exactly what you want, created a vivid image of it in your mind and take the actions you can to help it happen. You’ve also committed to a structured and positivity-building routine. Now it’s time to put it all together in a meditation the author created specifically for your subconscious mind.

Similar to previous meditations, you begin in a quiet place, eyes closed, and become aware of your breathing, slowing it until you are in a fully relaxed state.

Next, think about your favorite storybook as a kid. Imagine yourself within the book’s world, where you find a delightful and comforting garden. Use your imagination to fill it with every feature and creature your heart desires. Take a few moments to take in all the things you’ve created and how you feel. As you start to explore, you notice a dazzling light drawing you in its direction, so you follow it.

You start to encounter some areas that look a little dark, and the terrain even becomes challenging and a bit twisty. Yet the light feels reassuring, so you continue to follow it. All of a sudden, you notice the scene has changed again and is as beautiful as it was before, if not more. You’re standing before a stunning body of water with incredibly vivid colors, and the light you’ve been following fills the water and sky.

As you gaze at the water, you see scenes from your life playing out in its reflection, allowing you to observe and think about these situations in different ways. These images shift to show different scenarios for your future life, almost like a crystal ball. At that moment, you discover you can use your mind to create the future scenes you want.

As you do, you commit the scenes to memory and know that you can come back to this place any time. Eventually, what you see in the water will be what you see in reality.

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You have the power to bring about any change you want in your life.

To use this power, you must first identify what you want most and picture it with details that evoke strong, positive feelings. Then, you can do simple exercises to increase your manifesting power, including practices in relaxation, gratitude and reframing of your beliefs.

Doing this work consistently will align your own energy with the life you’ve envisioned. Every time you manifest, your mindset will become stronger and more creative, improving the results you see in your life.