So does LOA really work or is it just some new age nonsense? The law of attraction (LOA) attracted a larger audience when the film The Secret came out in 2007. Since then it’s gained in popularity. Many criticised the film for being too simplistic but the film’s basic message was that you create your own reality based on your thinking.
This isn’t a new idea and there’s many books on this topic which have been around for a long time. See law of attraction pdf for a collection of my favourites.
Does LOA Really Work – What Critics Say
Some critics say there’s no scientific evidence to back up the theory that thoughts manifest your reality. If you believe in something though there’s a confirmation bias which means you look for evidence to confirm your beliefs. Perhaps this explains the law of attraction? But what about the double slit experiment? Surely that explains and proves the LOA? As Henry Ford put it “Whether a man believes he can or he can’t, he’s right”.
There’s lots of evidence to suggest that our thoughts do actually manifest our reality. Belief seems to be a driving factor though. If you don’t believe you can have something, you won’t take the actions needed to bring it about. But one of the main criticisms of The Secret film was that it painted an overly simplistic view of how the law of attraction really works.
In order to dig deeper into the law of attraction, we need to take a closer look at it.
Does LOA Really Work – Where It Fails
The main premise of the LOA is that thoughts become things. One of the major misunderstandings of this is that we should be able to quickly manifest anything we desire almost instantly! So just by changing our thinking, we can about-turn our lives and get things how we would like them to be.
But that train of thought neglects to take into consideration that the LOA has been working in our lives already – perhaps for decades.
Our current circumstance is the result of many things – our location, upbringing, beliefs, attitudes and things we have done in our life. Many of our attitudes and beliefs are inherited from our culture, customs and family values. Isn’t it strange that everyone who is religious has the one and only “God”, and their God is the “right” God? But their beliefs can always be traced back to their culture and heritage. How can everyone be “right”?
Your Life Is The Result Of Your Thinking
Your current circumstances are the result of choices, beliefs and circumstances. To change your reality you have to change your thinking. If you continue to think in the same way you always have, you’ll prove yourself “right” about what you currently believe.
That is confirmation bias. One of our primary driving motivations in life to to be safe and secure. The best way to do this is to attach ourselves to an identity and a world view. When something threatens our world view, we rebel or retreat back to our old way of thinking.
If something/one challenges your beliefs do you fight back, or look closely at what you are defending? Most people will defend their beliefs to the death! So unpicking our circumstances becomes about unpicking our choices and beliefs about the world and about your self image.
How You Talk To Yourself
What do you say when you talk to yourself? Are you offering continuous encouragement and love? Or do you belittle and criticise yourself (in your head). Imagine if you had nothing but encouraging thoughts to say to yourself all day long. How do you think your life would change given 5 to 10 years of this self talk?
Unfortunately most of us have a fair amount of negative programming. We aren’t as encouraging as perhaps we should be. We doubt ourselves and tend to be our own worst enemies. Your inner voice is one of the biggest indicators as to where you are going in life.
“…the subconscious mind {resembles} a fertile garden spot, in which weeds will grow in abundance, if the seeds of more desirable nature are not grown therein” – Napoleon Hill Think and Grow Rich
Our dialogue with ourselves (and others) is a major key to the LOA. We should consider the material we allow to remain in the conscious mind, which we can become the masters of. It “feeds” our subconscious mind which is actively listening to our every word and thought.
The LOA Works Only As Much As You Understand It (And Embody It)
So does LOA really work? Since watching The Secret some years ago I was inspired. After practicing for some time (the visualisations and meditations I had read about), I was expecting something to happen. I was disappointed and discarded the idea.
Only when life got really bad did I pick the concept back up again. I read several books on the law of attraction and became convinced that it was true.
It was only my own laziness which stood in the way. I wanted a better life, like most people. But I wasn’t prepared to do anything to change myself and make it happen. Which is why nothing did! I do believe the law of attraction is a real thing. But you have to understand it not just expect some little efforts to manifest dramatic results.
Dramatic results come from dramatic actions, or small consistent actions taken over long periods of time.
Does the LOA really work? You decide, but choose wisely!
Nice one! I’ve heard a lot about LOA and had my doubts about it. But I gotta say this is by far the most realistic one that I have ever come across.