There's been so much good and bad that's come out of the blockbuster movie and book "The Secret" that it's sometimes hard to discern what to keep and what to throw away. Because of the backlash against "The Secret," some people have decided to throw out the baby with the bath water, so to speak. (By the way, did you ever wonder where that expression came from? Another post, another time.) As one of the 24 original teachers in the movie "The Secret," I have seen it all and have lived to tell the tale.
Some of the good that came out of this phenomenon is that it helped expose millions of people to concepts they never would've heard of without it, and it helped many people move from living life as victims to living life taking more responsibility for their thoughts, feelings and beliefs and how they affect what we experience.
However, these good results, in and of themselves, as many have found, are not always enough to make the law of attraction work in your life in a balanced and fulfilling way.
And so once we see that we have some responsibility in our experience, many of us either turn to blaming ourselves for what we have or don't have in our lives and feel beaten down even further or we feverishly try and manipulate our thoughts, feelings and beliefs in order to impose our will on the world. But neither one of these strategies works.
Because of this, I've composed a partial list of the some of the tips to employ and pitfalls to avoid in order to responsibly create better lives for ourselves and those we care about -- and to create in such a way that our whole planet benefits by our engagement, and not just ourselves.
So, sorry if I ruffle some feathers! However, I need to tell my truth as I see it -- and as I've discovered it -- from working at this for over 35 years with people all over the planet.
Here are the 10 tips you can use to responsibly employ the law of attraction in your life:
1.Stop blaming yourself.
When we feel like we're responsible, it's not an excuse to blame ourselves for every little thing that happens in our lives. Love yourself as you are instead!
2.Take simple and outrageous action.
If we sit around on our duffs and work diligently to try and change how we think and feel and don't get into action, most of us are sorely disappointed. Combine right thinking and feeling with right action and then you truly have a winning combination.
3.It's about giving, not just getting.
When we get caught up in attracting what we want, we can forget that "the giver is truly blessed." Learn to give without wanting something back in return. That's true giving and it opens up the floodgates of creation.
4.It doesn't work to simply put on a happy face.
When we try to think and feel positively, we fall on our faces because we're denying how we truly think and feel and are simply trying to paint a happy face on top of less happy thoughts and feelings. The most powerful way to move forward is to let go of the inner negatives we have and uncover or make room for the inner positive, which are right here, right now. (By the way, most of my fellow teachers in "The Secret" conduct their lives from this perspective.)
5.Don't fake it until you make it.
Once we go down the path of "acting as if" or "telling ourselves a positive story," we often lose touch with what is actually here now and get into magical thinking, which only produces disappointment. Discover what is actually here now and respond to what is.
6.It's not all about you.
When we think we can simply manipulate our thoughts, feelings and beliefs to get what we can, we may forget that we are not alone on this planet and everything any of us does affects everyone else. Start adding what's in everyone's highest and best good to your goals.
7.We are not our thoughts.
Yes, our minds are like computers, and if we put garbage in, we will get garbage out. However, we are not our minds, our thoughts, feelings or beliefs. What we are is that which is aware of or present to all that we experience. And as people begin to experience this for themselves, they also experience tremendous relief and greater clarity.
8.Thoughts are not things.
Sorry! This sounds great, but it's just not true. Thoughts are just symbols that represent memories that we have given meaning to and invest our energy in. If we stop believing in our thoughts as being so real, we can discover something beyond thinking: the source of true power.
9.Open to the flow.
When we try and impose our will on ourselves and everything and everyone else, we lose track of our essence and our humanity. What if everything is unfolding as it should be unfolding in this moment? What if we are all part of the whole, a greater organism, a greater intelligent energy? Please ponder on that.
10.You are enough.
The one who has the most toys when he dies does not win! They leave without their toys. We are not our toys and more of them is not going make us happy. If you turn and look inside, you can discover that right here, right now you are enough as you are -- and this changes everything.
I'm sure there's more I'll want to share with you, but that will come later. I just gave myself many new posts to write. So, stay tuned as I expand on the ideas above -- and a lot more. Enjoy!
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We've just released a new free Letting Go App -- Money Now for IPhone and Android phones and tablets. This app is one of our ways of trying to help everyone get back on track and to support everyone in having more abundance and success now -- even with today's challenges. Please feel free to share this with everyone you care about.
By the way, I'd love to hear what you think about this post and what else you'd like me to explore and share. Please post comments, questions, ideas and experiences below.