Feel first, do second: One more way to harness the law of attraction
Recently, I had a realization about myself. I realized I never allow myself to be proud of where I’m at, and what I’ve accomplished. I’m always too busy looking to the next goal, working on the next step, to stop, take pause, and celebrate how far I’ve come. The interesting thing is, we don’t attract what we want, we attract what we are, and more of what we feel. This is a major concept in the law of attraction (read more about it here), but it’s also been explained in different ways throughout history. Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. both believed something similar, advocating that the means must meet the end. Peace movements are rooted in the belief that you can’t reach a peaceful end with violent means. You can’t find love by feeling hatred. You can’t expect a happy retirement if your means of getting there was unhappy, and you can’t expect to suddenly feel proud of yourself when you do accomplish something, if you’ve never allowed yourself to feel proud of your wins in the past. Again, the means must match the end result that your wanting. If I never allow myself to feel proud, accomplished, and secure, I am not in alignment with the goals I want to accomplish because those goals, for me, equal pride, a sense of accomplishment, and a sense of security. When you’re feeling ‘hungry’ for something, you are in alignment with the feeling of not having that thing, and essentially then blocking it from coming into your life. Thus, celebrating your wins, cultivating positive feelings, practicing gratitude, and releasing yearning are all ways of breaking down your own internal barriers towards life goals. So, really, it may be about feeling first, and acting second. The choices you make and actions you take when you are feeling happy are going to be more likely to lead you to more happiness, whereas the choices you make and the actions you take when you’re feeling angry are more likely to lead you to more anger. If you want to feel happier, practice things that make you feel happy (e.g. hobbies, time with friends) and you will be more likely to attract relationships, jobs, and experiences that make you more happier. Below are 3 steps you can take to harness this concept for more happiness, success, and contentment:
Identify the feelings associated with what you are wanting. Think about what you want to attract into your life, and then imagine how you will feel when you do get those things. Is it a sense of peace, security, pride, happiness, or love?
Cultivate the feelings associated with your goals. If you want to be aligned with your goals, cultivate the feelings associated with those goals. For example, if I want to be financially successful and the feelings associated with success include, a sense of security, happiness, and contentment, I may find alternative ways to gain these feelings such as yoga classes, practicing reassuring or empowering affirmations, and meditating.
Practice gratitude. Gratitude is a cure for negative emotions. Practicing gratitude allows you to attract more gratitude into your life. Practicing gratitude helps to decrease that sense of yearning for that which you don’t have, so you can re-gain your sense of power and feel empowered to make positive choices in your life. When in doubt, practice gratitude, because chances are gratitude is aligned with whatever it is that you are wanting.
One common misconception is that practicing the law of attraction means you don’t take any action. That is simply not true. The best way to utilize these techniques is to feel good, and then take action. Again, choices made with positive feelings are going to be more aligned with what you’re wanting. If you’re feeling like a failure, you’re less likely to make the sale you’ve been working towards, or to nail that job interview. Get into alignment with what you’re wanting, then take the steps to work towards your goals. Work hard, but feel good doing it.