For a few years now I've been thinking about the similarities between Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and the Law of Attraction (LOA). I know, I know... stick with me though. Put simply, they both emphasize the very real power of your thoughts over your life experiences. Changing your thoughts impacts: feelings, behaviors, beliefs, expectations, what you notice in the world, who you're drawn to, who you repel, etc. In my opinion, they are very similar in spirit and purpose, though the LOA sometimes takes a spiritual and "magical" slant. Which works very well for some people.
I talk to some of my clients about this at times, and I love bringing it into therapy. For me, the greatest benefit of being a therapist is watching people who can work through darkness and blocks, and return to the knowledge that they do have power over themselves (even if we are powerless over structures and other people) and can change their experience of life through taking back control over their habits of thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors.
I've interacted with a variety of books and teachers related to the subject. For years, I watched a lot of Abraham Hicks videos (don't judge me that a middle aged White woman channeling a set of ghosts was my pastor), and found the perspectives on energy and desire to be super helpful. In much of the media I consumed, the book, "Think and Grown Rich" kept coming up in quotes or recommended readings. And I'm always working on setting a goal for myself so why not? What an incredible and unexpected little book!
It's a very old book and there are parts that definitely seem dated. If you can look past that and think about the principles that most certainly can be applied (even a millennium later and beyond anything they could technologically fathom in the days it was written), you'll find that is actually pretty practical.
My favorite parts have been the things I'm instructed to review and read twice a day, and the time I'm supposed to devote daily to reinforcing the person I intend to become. I feel like some of the exercises and activities are what bridge the gap into how the LOA actually works. It's not just about forcing yourself to believe in something you've never had any background or experience with. It's how to build the thought patterns that permeate outward into action, how to develop the self-confidence to believe that you can achieve your own potential, and how to stay on task (thereby harnessing the focus it takes to keep working on your goals).
I noticed something really precious this morning. I've been journaling since I was a little girl, and the content can go from mundane descriptions of my day, to lamenting over the crap hand I was dealt, to affirming my hopes and dreams. So it wasn't difficult for me to incorporate that 30 minutes of time everyday to focus on the person I intend to become.
This is a money book, a goals book, instructions on how to meet your financial potential. Yet every morning I find myself writing about the personal things I'm working on, relationships and growth and some deep old wounds. But something magical is happening. I say my truth of the matter, no matter how ugly. This was something I avoided in previous work with LOA, terrified that if I paid attention to the bad, I would amplify it.
But at this point in my life, I know that I need to acknowledge and affirm my experiences, all of them, because they have been my truth. But because of this book, I'm also asking myself: What kind of person do I intend to become, and how does that version of me handle a problem like this? I expect to treat myself with kindness and compassion, with a flexible and adaptive attitude. And so it's a shortcut to the positive expectations for a good outcome. It's re-wiring my brain, laying down new track for this healthier and more adaptive person that I want to become, starting a new habit. Which is manifesting itself into different choices in my behavior. Today.
I'm still thinking about the empire I want to create, and I'm reviewing those plans twice a day, and after a relatively short time, my confidence in who I know I am and what I know I can do is growing. I will have these concrete business and money goals as well. But who knew that working on those goals would so powerfully translate into other areas of my life? It's beautiful. I highly recommend this book for its dual purpose. May you find the same type of magic!