The Law of Attraction

[Gaining Strength]

I am interested in what you think about The Law of Attraction which one website defined as, "The simple point is that you get what you focus on in life. You get the types of experiences that you consistently think about, that you feel you're likely to get, that you expect and that you believe in. You attract to you that which you're emanating. "

Are there some of you who believe this or some variation of this?  Are there skeptics out there?

I like the concept.  I'm not sure how to get my "unconscious" thoughts in line.  What do you think?

[Hopalong]

I am skeptical.

I do believe that when I put out positive energy the universe seems a more positive place, and vice versa.

But I don't believe in personal power that can literally affect external events.

Then again, mysterious things happen around prayer.
(Not my prayers. But on occasion when others have told me they've prayed for me.)

Hops

[mudpuppy]

Sure, my wife sat around focused on getting breast cancer and the rest of us all wondered how we might bring some lunatics into our orbits to turn our lives upside down.

Mark me down as a skeptic.

I do believe in the power of prayer, but I give the credit there to the Fellow upstairs, not to any mind rays emanting from my cranium.

mud

[Just Me]

A good friend just gave me a DVD called THE SECRET. It's a program about the law of attraction, and features folks like Neale Donald Walsch and "Chicken Soup" Jack Canfield talking about this topic and how they've used this "law."  I found the program hokey and belabored, and remained skeptical about the idea that we can simply concentrate on what we want and see it manifest. This link (and too many experiences with self-entitled Ns who believe they deserve many things they do NOT, and also should not be expected to contribute to our wish fulfillment) supported that skepticism: http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2006/08/the-law-of-attraction/

Having said all that, I then held an experiment. I had been unable to find some favorite pieces of jewelry for nearly a year, and was eager to enjoy them again. I considered this law and then drew pictures of jewelry that I had "lost," and put them by my night table about a week ago. I looked at the drawings and concentrated on these objects before bed, and kept them in my mind during the day.  A few days later, I found the beautiful necklace a dear friend gave me ... and all the other missing pieces in succession.  The success of the experiment did not turn me into a rabid convert, but (with the help of yet another friend), I do recognize that mental powers of visualization, persistence and benevolent intent carry energies of their own.

 

[tremusan]

I think that everyone should be able to find some common denominator in the statement..... "what you fear will find you."  Self fulfilling prophesies are all around us... sometimes happening to us.  Sometimes it's just bad luck or genetics.... but sometimes, it's not. 

IMO, there is a connection between what we think and what happens to us.  Sometimes we don't want to see it.  Sometimes we can't see it until much later in our lives. 

If you think back about what you were doing when you met an N then cultivated a relationship with them..... you'll most likely see that there were clues as to his behavior.  If we choose to ignore them..... then we have something we need to figure out about ourselves.... at least on some level.  Tremusan

[moonlight52]

Beyond the "law of attactraction".....(WHICH WOULD INDICATE OPPOSITES)........ there is a place where all is love .......................

 MAYBE THAT IS A  PLACE IN ONES HEART WHERE LOVE ,ACCEPTANCE AND PEACE ARE FOUND.

But using powers to attracting an outcome I do not believe this .

Being strong for self and others and directing one's help where needed is a good thing .

Also that would include an understanding good thoughts improve one's life.

Under any circumstances.

LOVE TO ALL

MoonLight

[Just Me]

Well said, Tremusan. When (and not if) those discoveries come, they may not be pleasant, but they are vital.

[tremusan]

Well said, Tremusan. When (and not if) those discoveries come, they may not be pleasant, but they are vital.**

If we focus our energy...... we accomplish more than if our thoughts are swinging around wildly, like a monkey in a tree.    It makes sense that.... if we focus on negative things..... if we focus on positive things..... we will probably get more of it. 

We make choices every day..... about how we'll let external forces affect us.  We can cultivate coping strategies and problem solving skills. We can choose to ask ourselves why someone cut us off in traffic, for instance...... or why someone was rude, etc.... instead of letting them transfer those feelings of aggression to us.  We can just be glad that we aren't having a bad day or dealing with whatever is bothering them.   

For some it's natural to question their own motives and actions.  For others... it's not.  I think it's necessary to grow and learn from our history.  ::shrug::   Lona   

[Sela]

Wow!  Hi All!  

Glad to see the board up and running again!   Thanks Dr. G!

Re: The law of attraction

I don't see it as some magical mysterious magnetic management technique in my life but I do believe firmly in the power of the mind.  The idea to me means positive mental effort helps propel us toward our goals (and bad nasty negative thinking can trip us up....block us from achieving goals).

The simple point that you get what you focus on in life rings true for me.  If I focus on ugly junk, my life feels pretty ugly.  If I look for the good stuff, my life seems better to me.  That doesn't necessarily mean it is, I guess.  It does however, help me tolerate it alot better than when I can't see anything attractive about it.

You get the types of experiences that you consistently think about, that you feel you're likely to get, that you expect and that you believe in. You attract to you that which you're emanating.

I guess I'm on the fence re the above.  On the one hand, when I think positive, believe, hope and expect good outcomes, I certainly cannot miss them when they arrive.  The trouble starts when I do all of that and it doesn't work out the way I'd thought/hoped/prayed it would.

There again, I can do one of two things.  I can say:  "What's the use?" or I can revise what I want, try a different approach or glean what golden threads of knowledge the experience taught me and move along to something else.  It is all up to me.  It's just another reaction, I think.  A choice.

Sometimes, I choose to see it as that and other times, I feel weak and give that power to others/circumstances/luck.  I do try not to put the responsibility on the Guy upstairs because I really think He has bigger fish to fry.  I'm merely a grain of sand.  Or salt.  Or dust or something.   Just snuff me outta your nose if I'm up there, by the way.  

So if I think about something hard enough, positively enough, frequently enough, and with as many good vibes as my poor one functioning brain cell can buzz out....will I get what I want or what I am trying to attract?  I might.  I might not.   The thing is I probably won't get it....highly unlikely......if I don't try.  But it could happen.  Stuff does.

It does seem like more flies come around when my toast has honey on it......more than when there's vinegar dripping off my tongue.  Hmmmm?   That's only useful if one likes flies, however.

Ahhhhh.  It feels good to think out loud.  Thanks for this thread.

  Sela

[Bones]

I'm a bit skeptical when it comes to metaphysical stuff...especially where all forms of child abuse and neglect is concerned.  No child wishes or wants THAT!   

Bones

[Stormchild]

Two edged sword time.

Yes, perseverance and focus can bring great things into one's life. Prayer is amazing.

But serendipity can also play a role.

And there's its opposite, affliction.

Did Job request his testing? I think not. Nor did I, nor did most of us. [Edit in: I'm morally certain that his children, livestock, and servants who were all killed didn't volunteer for their parts...]

If we deny the role of luck, of chance, of grace, of the miraculous, we retain the illusion of total control over events. Isn't that magical thinking?

And if we really did have such control, wouldn't we all long ago have used it to make our parents and other Ns capable of loving, our alcoholic and drug addicted loved ones clean and sober, and the world as a whole more just?

Now there's an experiment I wouldn't mind participating in at all!

[moonlight52]

AWWWWWWWWWW   

STORMY

You are so cracking me up I will sign up for that experiment.

Job indeed was a brave one to volunteer lol for what he went though ....... enough was enough

Thinking of Job will straighten out anyone's pity party..

BLESSINGS TO YOU

LOVE TO YOU

And Iris the fetch kitty kat says meow

moonlight

[Gaining Strength]

OK.  I think I  got what I might have expected.  There is no question that Job, children abused, people with debilitating diseases do not sit around focusing on receiving these wretched situations to come into their lives.  I agree with you all whole heartedly.

On the other hand - while I did not look to be brought into a family that didn't, couldn't nurture and that did - unconsciously and still denies - put me down incessantly, nonetheless, I did take out into the world my fears of being rejected and my resentment for being treated differently.  I took these expectations out into the world unconsciously.  Until recently I was in denial about my own approach to life.  Now that I can see how I experienced my  family life and how it colored everything I did later I can begin to alter my approach.

Being afraid of ANYTHING is difficult to change.  Try telling a child not to be afraid of the dark.  Fear rarely responds to rational conversation.  Fear of being left out or rejected ironically engenders behavior that leads to the very thing most feared.  There is no way out - except to let go of the fear.  Well that usually takes some kind of nurturing, security and love and if you life is short of these things then how do you conquer fear?

Ultimately, to change my path I must get to these unconscious fears so that I can expose them.  That has to be the first step.  And then I can apply some variant of the "Law of Attraction" by which I mean try to counter my fears by focusing on what I want rather than what I fear. 

From my own experience most of what holds me back are suppressed fears.  But why bring them to the surface unless there is something I can do about them and overcoming them with something positive is a goal that motivates me.

I do believe that acknowledging my fears and focusing on the opposite can slowly begin to change my path.  Any thoughts or comments on this aspect of the "Law of Attraction"?

[mudpuppy]

I think I agree with Stormy on this one. Serendipity is part of life. Time and chance happen to all men, as Solomon said.

We can conquer whatever fears we might have and emanate the most trusting, trustable and positive nature to others, but we still have no assurance that we won't just as likely attract a counterfeit of a decent person as the genuine article. Who is more attracted to a sweet, trusting soul than an N or some other PD type?
 Having said all that, I have to admit that a confident, contented person does increase his/her odds of attracting somebody similar, if for no other reason than stable people with sound judgement usually recognize and avoid troubled people.

I think maybe, the value of conquering fear is not that we might receive an external award, but that we have taken care of what we are responsible for and what we can change, and the rest is up to fate. And if fate deals us another bad hand, at least we are prepared to deal with it rather than curl up like a burnt feather.

mud

[Gaining Strength]

I think maybe, the value of conquering fear is not that we might receive an external award, but that we have taken care of what we are responsible for and what we can change, and the rest is up to fate. And if fate deals us another bad hand, at least we are prepared to deal with it rather than curl up like a burnt feather.

To achieve the ability to face another bad hand and NOT curl up like a burnt feather would be a vast improvement in my life.  To no longer face or fear paralyzing anxiety would give me a new life.  That is an awful lot.

Thanks Mudpuppy.