Since Rhonda Byrne released The Secret in 2006, there has been renewed interest in the Law of Attraction (LOA).   In case you’re one of the few people who hasn’t seen or at least heard of this movie, the basic premise of the film is that the universe manifests into our life what we think about most. So, for example, if I constantly think about becoming a millionaire, the universe will manifest it into my reality.  I believe in the LOA, as I’ve seen it work in my life. But honestly, I have no idea how it works. However, the process that Ms. Byrne presented in her movie isn’t really convincing, and contains a lot of new age fluff. I know a lot of people who have dismissed the LOA simply off of watching The Secret; mostly because it contradicted their religious or scientific beliefs.  For those skeptical of the LOA, I have proposed some theories on how the LOA works, as well as some ways to make it work for you.

Religious Theory:  The Universe is God

Many people were turned off from the Law of Attraction due to the experts in The Secret crediting THE UNIVERSE with manifesting things into our lives.  Many people think that believing in the LOA makes them an atheist or a non-believer.  They also believe that the LOA is based on selfishness.  Byrne’s version of the LOA is completely watered down and designed to sell a bunch of books and movies by capitalizing on people’s greed. That is not the real LOA.  The book that inspired The Secret was The Science of Getting Rich (1910), by Wallace D. Wattles.  Mr. Wattles was a deeply spiritual man, and what The Secret refers to as the universe is actually referred to as God in Wattles book. The title is a bit deceiving, as Wattles’ book focuses on being grateful to God and contributing to the well-being of your fellow man and humanity.   According to Wattles, only by doing this can a person gain wealth.  He also stressed that one should not become rich for selfish gain, but use their riches to gain access to all the tools and resources they need to maximize their potential and make the world a better place. Focusing on what you want is FAITH;  faith that if you ask God for something and you are loving and grateful, he will give it to you.  A key to the LOA is being grateful and recognizing the world is abundant.   God commands us to be thankful and to help our fellow man. However, many of us are uncomfortable giving to others freely.  The root of this selfishness is a belief that there is lack in the world, which causes us to be selfish because we have to keep our limited resources for ourselves.  However, recognizing that there is no lack because God will provide us with whatever we need allows us to become more giving.  In Matthew 6:25-6:27 it states:

25. “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?” 26.“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” 27.“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”

The Bible also explicitly talks about the Wattle’s version of the LOA in these verses:

Matthew 7:8 “For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”

Proverbs 23:7 “For as a man thinketh in his heart so is he.”

James 4:3 “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”

So as you can see, LOA doesn’t contradict a belief in God, but reinforces it.

Cognitive Psychology Theory:  The Brain Filters The Information We Receive

Have you ever got a new car, and then suddenly saw that same car everywhere you went. Or got a new hairstyle, and then noticed that everywhere you went you saw someone with that same hairstyle.  The reason this happens is because our brain filters our experiences so that our particular car or hairstyle stands out in our awareness. Every second, our brain receives endless stimuli.  From the pressure of our bottoms on a chair and the wind blowing on our skin; to how your wedding ring feels on your finger, the thoughts in your head, and the sounds that you hear.   If the brain acknowledged ALL these stimuli at the same time, we would be unable to focus and life would be merely an undifferentiated bath of physical and mental stimulation.  Life would have no ryhme or reason.  A study by Yale University (http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/scitech-news/2010/01/20/brain-filters-out-useless-info-study-finds/) found that the brain filters out useless information and only focuses on what we pay attention to. So how does this apply to the LOA?  If you focus on becoming successful, suddenly you will notice ANY opportunity that allows you to achieve that objective.    Conversely, if you focus on failure, in those same opportunities you will focus on the chance of failure.   In Industrial/Organizational Psychology, this is called a promotion focus (focusing on maximizing gains) and a prevention focus (focusing on preventing losses).    This is why the LOA stresses FOCUSING ONLY ON WHAT YOU WANT!  If you want to become rich, a lawyer, a rock star, whatever; don’t focus on failing at your goal because these reservations will cause you to shy away from opportunities that will help you achieve it.   As the old saying says, “Some people play to win, and others play not to lose”. Do the former not the latter. This is one of the most important parts of the LOA.

Quantum Craziness: The Many World Theory

The first thing that any expert in Quantum Mechanics will tell you is that no one really knows how it works.  I’m sure many of you have no idea what it even is! If you need an introduction to Quantum Theory, you can simply Google “Quantum Mechanics” or “Quantum Physics”.   Or you can go to http://www.ipod.org.uk/reality/reality_quantum_intro.asp to get a full introduction and overview on Quantum Theory.   I am very interested in Quantum Mechanics because of the implications it has on our view of reality.  What it basically says is that things don’t exist as static entities, but rather as waves of possibility.   It states that something  only exists as a possibility wave, and then once observed either collapses into one reality (wave function collapses) or splits into separate dimensions (the Many Worlds Interpretation).    Simply put, when no one is looking at it the moon it exists as a wave of possibilities, then once observed it collapses into one reality.  Another interpretation is that once the moon is observed, all realities occur but in different dimensions or universes. So to elaborate this point further, the South and the North both won the Civil War; we are simply living in the universe or reality in which the North won. However, another universe, reality, or dimension exists in which the South won.  This is called the Many Worlds Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics.   It states that every possible outcome in history has happened somewhere in the multiverse (science recognizes there’s not just one universe).   Maybe (and this is a huge maybe put it’s possible) through some form of quantum entanglement our thoughts decide which universe we experience. Actually on a basic level this is true.  For instance, If I’m at a crossroads of staying home or going out, I will definitely experience the reality of staying home if I consciously choose to do so. Meanwhile, another Jason in a different universe will be out partying!  At the very least, my decisions are increasing or decreasing the likelihood of me experiencing the reality I truly want to experience.  On the extreme end they are directly creating my reality. In this instance, if I focus on becoming a famous rap star I will only experience realities that will make that happen. Or, if I’m focusing on becoming a Nobel Prize winner I will only experience realities that will lead to that. So instead of manifesting my reality, I’m actually using thought to choose  it!   This is speculative, but I feel that for people with an understanding of quantum mechanics this is definitely a possibility.

To Sum It All Up

I’ve just provided three theories that explain the LOA: One for people of faith, one based on cognitive processes (which is probably the easiest pill to swallow), and one based in the still unknown world of Quantum Mechanics.  Regardless of which theory you ascribe to the process of the LOA is still the same. FOCUS ONLY ON WHAT YOU WANT, AND NOT THE OPPOSITE!  Doing this will increase the likelihood of you creating the type of life you want for yourself!