Is Manifestation Bad? Getting to the Bottom of the Law of Attraction.

Manifestation has gained mind-blowing popularity within the world of self-help over the past several years. Everyone seems to be touting it, from every other TikTok influencer to even Oprah. But for a practice that's so widely approved and deemed so universally good, there seems to be something dark lurking under the surface here. I cannot help but ask: Is Manifestation Bad?

First, What is Manifestation?

At the heart of Manifestation is the “Law of Attraction.” Proponents of Manifestation believe that we are all governed by the Laws of the Universe, the Law of Attraction being one of those. This law states that we can attract into our lives whatever it is we want — whatever it is we desire and yearn for — just by focusing on it. 

Manifestation is premised on the idea that we can harness the power of our minds to turn our thoughts into physical, tangible realities. Simply put, we can manifest our thoughts. “All thoughts turn into things eventually,” according to the Law of Attraction website.

Because like attracts like, positive thoughts result in positive experiences. Negative thoughts, in turn, result in negative experiences. 

• Visualizing your crush texting you eventually results in a notification from them on your phone.
• Visualizing a $20,000 check eventually results in a big cash influx into your bank account.

You can will something into being. You can wish something into existence. You can manifest a dream into reality. 

And you can achieve all this just by thinking, visualizing, or writing (also known as “scripting) about it. 

The Recent History of Manifestation

Vox explains that the contemporary form of Manifestation was born out of "the mainstreaming of New Age and pagan beliefs." It's a collection of various elected ancient spiritual beliefs that were appropriated by Western culture several generations ago and then subsequently revisited and reformulated in the years after 2000. It's had another renaissance more recently, with Google searches for "Manifestation" exploding in the past 18 months.

The bible of Manifestation is arguably The Secret, by Rhonda Byne. You’ve probably heard of it. With over 30 million copies sold since it was first published in 2006, it’s hard not to have some aunt, influencer, even friend, promoting it as life-changing. 

Precursors to the book include Think and Grow Rich (1937), The Power of Positive Thinking (1952), Ask and It Is Given (2004), among others. The Secret then tied them all together.

Its basic premise is that positive things will happen to you as long as you think enough positive thoughts. This idea that you are fully in control of your destiny, that you have the power to bring positivity and happiness into your life, is naturally both empowering and affirming. 

Other authors glommed onto this thesis, and its popularity, and in the years following the publication of The Secret, similar books followed suit. There’s an entire cottage industry around these concepts. I’d even say that Gabby Berstein’s and Jen Sincero’s books fall into Manifestation and Law of Attraction territory. Just know what you’re getting into.  

What is the Science of Manifestation?

In a word, not much.

The Secret contended that the Law of Attraction was supported by a set of “scientific principles” that were implied as being rooted in quantum physics. 

Rhonda Byrne, however, is no quantum physicist. Nor is she any sort of scientist, a psychologist, or even a journalist, for that matter. 

Mirror neurons

Some proponents point to mirror neurons in the brain as evidence for the theory of the Law of Attraction, including the (biased) author of this article in the Huffington Post. If you’re not familiar with them, mirror neurons are cells that become activated in our brains when we see another person (or even animal) doing something or experiencing something that then produces a similar visceral reaction in us, the observer.

• You watch as your child gets pricked by a needle at the doctor’s office and you feel like you’re getting pricked, yourself.
• Your brother starts laughing hysterically and, even though you didn’t hear the joke that made him laugh, you find that you, too, cannot help laughing.

Mirror neurons are indeed very compelling. This instinctive capacity we seem to have to immediately understand what other people are experiencing is completely astounding.

And it would make sense that those who believe in the Law of Attraction turn to this phenomena to back their cause.

If I just put out positivity, smile, and so on, surely others will send this energy right back to me. When a stranger smiles at you on the street, it’s hard to not smile back, right? (As long as they’re not skeevy, of course.)

Well, maybe. But there are limits to what mirror neurons can achieve. Read on to learn more...

Is Manifestation Bad?

While I wouldn't say that Manifestation is entirely bad, I do think it can be dangerous if you put your full faith in it without understanding its limits. And the way Manifestation is often touted is most definitely dangerous because it preys on vulnerabilities.

Yes, positive thinking can shift your mood.

But just because you have positive thoughts and put out positive vibes (the mirror-neuron theory) DOESN’T mean bad things won’t happen to you. You can be full of positive thoughts and positive vibes, but that doesn’t mean you won’t get laid off from your job or that a loved one won’t become terminally ill.

Yes, you can turn a dream into a reality.

But you cannot will yourself into a high-paying job. You have to work for it.

You cannot will that someone specific will fall in love with you. They are their own person with their own agency, preferences, experiences, and emotional lives. (Mirror neurons can perhaps induce empathy, but not love)

Manifestation removes the following from the equation:

• Actual hard work
• Agency (both yours and others)
• Human impulse and preference (like interpersonal dynamics, emotions)
• External factors

...And that’s precisely what makes it so compelling to people!

Manifestation removes the “speed bump” between what we WANT and our ability to get what we want. Hard work is… hard. Other people are… unpredictable. External factors are… out of our control.

I don’t like Manifestation because it encourages a sense of passivity and, ironically, helplessness. 

Manifestation operates under the guise of empowerment when, in fact, it can have the opposite outcome. 

Thoughts aren't fact. That's a very healthy thing to recognize. I struggle with imposter syndrome. If I were to take that thought as truth, I'd be living a very painful life.

Manifestation and mental illness:

This sheds light on another reason Manifestation is potentially bad: it can intensify issues for people who struggle with negative thinking and thoughts, such as those with depression, anxiety, OCD, and various other mental health diagnoses.

Someone with depression might think they are worthless. Another person with anxiety might catastrophize a new, unsettling pain in their chest, thinking they are going to die.

The is compounded for people with OCD, who tend to overestimate the power of their own thoughts. 

Related Read: Beat stress with this daily 5-minute practice!

Shut Up, I’m Manifesting

Manifestation has become hugely popular in contemporary culture — on social media, in blogs, in self-help literature. "Shut up, I'm Manifesting" was one of 2020's most defining — and hilarious — memes.

And as I outline earlier, I get why. It seems to be a way of take control of and improve your life. That’s a very admirable quest!

I don’t necessarily think that the influencers, bloggers, and gurus out there touting Manifestation are all snake-oil salesmen. Many of them probably think this stuff works, or else they really want it to work, and want their followers to benefit from it, too.

On the other hand, I am sure there are other high-profile proponents who definitely don’t genuinely believe in or practice Manifestation. Instead, they are just riding the wave of popularity in order to enhance their visibility and engagement... all the way to the bank. 

I think Manifestation is bad because of the cult-like mentality that's been built up around it, because of the unquestioning belief in its limitless powers, and because of the tendency of its "leaders" to prey on other people's vulnerabilities.

Is there Anything Good about Manifestation?

As long as you understand the limits of Manifestation, I think it can be helpful for some. 

No, you cannot manifest someone to love you, or a million dollars (or whatever figure), or a successful job, or a happy marriage, or an A on a test.

But you can tap into some of Manifestation's more helpful principals.

1. Positive Psychology

There is some (very slight) overlap between Manifestation and Positive Psychology, a field of study backed by science. And, you guessed it, a positive mindset is the point of overlap. Positive Psychology, however, takes the positive mindset a step farther. Positivity (or happiness), it maintains, is part of well-being; it alone cannot give life meaning.

According to Penn's website, Positive Psychology "is founded on the belief that people want to lead meaningful and fulfilling lives, to cultivate what is best within themselves, and to enhance their experiences of love, work, and play."

I especially love Dr. Martin Seligman's book Flourish, which asks: "What is it that enables you to cultivate your talents, to build deep, lasting relationships with others, to feel pleasure, and to contribute meaningfully to the world? In a word, what is it that allows you to flourish?"

In it, he outlines the tools and mindsets that can help you do what, be who, and feel how you want. Law of Attraction... but make it science.

Related Read: 20+ ways to instantly boost your happy hormones

2. Abundance Mindset

An Abundance Mindset is one of the central tenets of the Law of Attraction, and I think it's quite useful! 

It's rooted in the belief that you are enough and that you’re deserving of the things you have in your life. These are innately beautiful truths.

I'd argue that you want to combine these ideas with a growth mindset, which encompasses the beliefs that you are not innately limited and that you have the power to take on new challenges and to develop as a person.

When you cultivate an abundance and a growth mindset, you can motivate yourself to begin to WORK TOWARD what you want. 

Doing so will also help you be resilient when things don’t go your way. And things will often not go your way, people there are certain things out of your control. 

3. Mindfulness

Manifestation uses Mindfulness exercises to tune into and connect with the energy all around us, to calm our mind, and to become more aware of our intentions.

I am a huge fan of Mindfulness, Mindfulness meditation, and Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT), in particular, the work of Dr. Mark Williams. His book with Dr. Danny Penman, Mindfulness: Finding Peace in A Frantic World, helped me through a really dark time in my life.  

Peer-reviewed studies show that:

• "The course in the book Mindfulness: Finding Peace in a Frantic World can significantly reduce anxiety, stress and depression during periods of acute pressure such as university exams. Life satisfaction and self-compassion are also enhanced."
• "Mindfulness improves working memory, creativity, attention span and reaction speeds. It also enhances mental and physical stamina and resilience"
• "Meditation improves emotional intelligence"
• "Meditation enhances brain function. It increases grey matter in areas associated with self-awareness, empathy, self-control and attention. It soothes the parts of the brain that produce stress hormones and builds those areas that lift mood and promote learning. It even reduces some of the thinning of certain areas of the brain that naturally occurs with ageing (although this may result primarily from a reduction in stress levels."

The Bottom Line: Is Manifestation Bad?

Manifestation is not a wholly bad thing, no. As I've outlined above, it does encompass some beneficial practices.

But, when practitioners do not understand the limits of Manifestation — namely, that you cannot visualize or will something into existence, and that thoughts are not facts — then, I think, it starts to wade into dangerous territory.

Unfortunately, a lot of self-help gurus and social media influencers have hopped on this bandwagon, and are promoting this very point: think it, visualize it, and you can be it, have it, achieve it.

It's a compelling notion, and one that's very attractive because it effortlessly removes the speed bumps (hard work, human agency, external factors) separating you from what you want in life.

But that's just not how life works. Some things are out of our control. Other things need to be worked toward. And I worry that some of the proponents of the Law of Attraction are just preying on our vulnerabilities.

To find true empowerment in your life, I'd instead gently, lovingly suggest turning to Positive Psychology and Mindfulness exercises, instead.

You got this.

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