“What you put your attention on grows.”
~ Deepak Chopra

We are manifesting throughout our entire lives though we often overlook the small manifestations that we create daily. For example, an individual manifestation might be doing poorly on an exam because of the fear we generated in advance about not doing well. Or the vision of owning a home and seeing ourselves over and over again in that home until we ultimately own it. Manifestations can occur whether we intentionally focus on something or not — so it’s important to remove the doubts we have about our ability to achieve our goals. Trying to “stay positive” won’t work if the underlying feeling is “I can’t do this!” That is our “shadow” talking and it hinders our ability to manifest.

When we focus our attention on something we’d like to create, we are tapping into the spiritual aspect of manifestation. A mysterious result that occurs simply by focus and intention.
Working to illuminate our shadows, patterns, behaviors or beliefs that keep us from accomplishments in our lives, can be one of these spiritual experiences, and it can most certainly lead to manifestation. I have seen time again people who have been stuck or blocked in some aspect of their lives, only to see it being transformed through shadow work.

When we feel like we’re on an unpleasant merry-go-round, never fully moving forward in our goals or desires we understand there is a shadow or two (or three) at work. One of the reasons this happens is we focus on the negative inner voice, aka the “internal glass ceiling”, and not on the ultimate goal. We may be on a positive path but the internal bumps in the road keep us taking a step forward and two steps back. Understanding our shadowed selves can eliminate these behaviors and beliefs.

Perhaps you have been living with desires that you haven’t quite admitted to yourself or to others. Or perhaps you are craving something in your life that you can’t quite put your finger on. Getting still and answering some of the following questions* may help you to clarify what it is you want to manifest.

• What makes me joyful?
• What is my purpose for being here?
• What would I like to contribute to the world?
• Who are my role models?
• What are my unique talents?
• How did I feel at the peak moments in my life?
• What kind of world do I want to live in?
• What can I do to serve humanity?

These are important clarifying and motivating questions that will help you start the process of identifying the shadows that keep you stagnating.

1. Begin with setting an intention for yourself and let that be your motivation.
2. Ask for guidance. Working with a skilled facilitator can help you focus on what your shadows might be (I’m not good enough at X or I don’t have enough experience to Y) and the genesis of them (family dynamics, etc.)
3. As you identify and clear what’s holding you back, the path to manifestation becomes stronger. Activating that spiritual energy can stop the merry-go-round you’ve been on and fast-track your goals and desires.

Sound good? Then let’s do this. You, and the world, will be better for it.

*Questions from The Chopra Center website.