I read a great article today in the Huffington Post by Russell Bishop which discusses the concept that "the universe rewards action, not thought." This article coincided with a conversation I had last night about the larger ideal behind The Law of Attraction. For those of you who are unfamiliar with The Law of Attraction, in lay terms, it "argues that active thoughts attract to it likened experiences. The Law of Attraction says that which is like unto itself is drawn." So think good thoughts and good will come to you, think bad thoughts and guess what bad thoughts come to you. This shouldn't come as a surprise to most people as we innately understand the power of positive thinking. However, what books like The Secret left out is that, you can't just sit around all day and think positively until you win a million dollars. You actually need to work for it. Now what's different here is that I don't mean "work" in bust your butt all day at a desk job and hope that one day you'll become CEO of your company. What I'm describing is a need to set an intention for what it is you hope to accomplish and determine the why then move with it. As discussed in Russell Bishop's article, the why is the most important part of the equation. You want a million dollars, and so? What will you do with that million dollars? What do you hope to gain? Will this make you happier? Does what you hope to gain come about as the result of the money that you've acquired? I would hope the answer is NO.
When it comes down to it, most people want the same things: Freedom, Health, Family, Travel, etc. What most people don't know is what is truly preventing them from having it. Chances are you are the one preventing yourself. But instead we choose to see our circumstances, the economy, the government and every other scapegoat possible to justify it. We do this for a very primordial reason, it's because, getting exactly what you want can be a very empowering experience but also very scary. As FDR and Stan Lee have said, "with great power comes great responsibility."So as humans we have a tendency to sabotage our good fortune and prevent ourselves from getting what we want because we don't want the extra responsibility. Well then what can be done? First and foremost it's important to establish "the why" then determine what is preventing you. If you find that you are the reason for your lack of success then at least we've identified the problem. When the problem has been established then you must in an honest manner ask yourself why do you not want your own success. Often times, the answer may be trivial and you'll see through the conversation how unnecessary it is to hold yourself back from living your true potential. Other times we are so deluded by the negative thought patterns in our mind that we can't even have an honest conversation with ourselves without delving deeper into the thoughts that got us there in the first place. Now what?
Though that tiny voice behind the big bad thoughts is low, it's still there. I promise. See you if you can identify that voice and start from there until it gains in strength and prevalence. Once you've had an honest one on one talk with yourself, then you can identify how you are preventing yourself. My teacher cited a study in her class saying that 80% of our thoughts are negative. 80%/!? Thats a whole lot of shit talking to do on yourself. You wouldn't be nearly as mean to anyone else as you would yourself. So how do you change the thought patterns? First identify the damning thoughts, then turn them into positive ones. For example when you look in the mirror and your mind says, "I'm ugly" change the thought to "I'm beautiful". Though it may feel foreign and awkward to say such things to yourself, eventually it becomes habit and melds into your natural thought processes. Another way to address negative thoughts is by meditating. Meditating may be difficult for some of us because we are faced with these thoughts but all the more reason to let them come up so that they can release.
Now that you've "squeegeed your mind" as Erich Schiffmann would say, you can turn your new positive thoughts into action. The important thing to remember here is that there is no such thing as failure. Every action creates another action and in which you are the director and the actor. So if you "fail" answer that failure with another action and keep moving till you get it right. Each time you will rebound back with more experience and will then be able to fine tune and prevent future failures. As Einstein so brilliantly said: "A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new."
This is where the idea of "Karma" comes in. Karma in Sanskrit translates to action. Your karma/actions will in turn determine your destiny. Turn positive thought into action and live the life you deserve. Now all that's left is deciding which colors you choose to paint canvas of your life.
