Do You Know How to Manifest?

Have you ever tried to manifest something?

I’m thrilled that words like ‘manifest, visualize, ask the universe’ have become so mainstream. It means we want things to change for the better. But I worry that their meanings get lost. Life coaches use them to empower you. You read a book or attend a seminar and you get swept up in them – you feel elevated, energized – YES! I’M GOING TO MANIFEST! And then you get home and realize you don’t actually know what it means to manifest something. Do you know how to manifest?

Let’s get something clear first. Manifesting is NOT making a wish. You don’t manifest a better career path for yourself by dropping a Loonie in a fountain or making a wish as you blow out your birthday candles. You don’t manifest a leather coat or a new car. So, what IS it then?

Manifesting is bigger than birthday candles and leather coats. Manifesting is when you create a goal for yourself and then make every fiber of your body and soul about that goal. There is the practical part of goal setting – writing a plan, creating a vision board, building a timeline to make it happen. But manifesting addresses the intangibles of who you are: your heart, your spirit, the very essence of your energy. It is the act of opening your heart wide and feeling your goal. I’m not just talking about picturing the Audi you’re going to buy when you’ve landed that promotion and raise.

Try this, right now.

Sit comfortably, arms at your side, feet flat on the ground/floor. Take a couple of deep breaths and close your eyes. Imagine yourself at your computer and the moment you get the email that says you got the promotion. Feel how excited, emotional, relieved you are. Acknowledge how validated, how affirming it is that everyone really DOES know how fantastic you are. Imagine the whole scene of sharing your good news – crying and laughing at the same time as you hug your partner, how you and your best friend scream with excitement at each other over the phone. Now, picture yourself waking up in your bed, but in the house of your dreams. The one with the beautiful hardwood floors and the giant windows that let in the most perfect natural sunlight. Imagine how good that sleepy state feels, knowing you’re in THE house. Or the sense of awe and wonder when you step off the plane in Athens, and all the signs and loudspeaker announcements that are in Greek tell you that you have arrived on that vacation you always dreamed of. Really FEEL it…

Now, with that really blissful feeling running through your body, ask yourself what is the very next step you have to take to move a step closer to your dream. Don’t worry about the step after that or the one after that. Don’t think about a month from now or a year from now. Don’t think about the bill you forgot to pay. Use the bliss you just created only to fuel that next step – nothing else. Don’t waste your bliss on the bills.

Do that same thing each step along the way. Use that visceral feeling of basking in your accomplishments and fulfilled dreams to fuel your energy to do what it takes to achieve them. Every time a doubt starts to enter your mind, every time an obstacle arises, every time you have a bad day or start to feel frustrated about where you are right now – tap into that bliss.

The bliss is the universe speaking to you.The universe responds when you go all in, when you let yourself be open to it, when you let yourself be vulnerable. I know what you’re thinking! In this day and age, being vulnerable is a scary proposition! There are scammers around every corner, waiting to prey on your vulnerability. Do you realize the strength it takes to be vulnerable despite the negative forces in the world? It is the epitome of love – for yourself, for others, for the universe.

Be brave, be strong, be afraid – and do it anyway. THAT is manifesting.
The universe will reward you for going all in, fear of rejection be damned.