Welcoming April—the month of spring, daylight saving, and this year, Ramzan. A lot of change comes with the change of season, but just as much (if not more) remains the same; universal truths and individual traits endure the thawing of ice, longer days, and shorter nights.
So, as spring comes to us with the promise of new life—bunnies, flowers, and all that cute shit—my question to you (and myself) is this:
How much of what happens in our lives is a result of HOW WE ACT versus WHAT WE ATTRACT?
I believe there’s a co-existence, a dependency even, between the two factors. Because in my own life, I have found that time and time again, new attractions are the result of my actions.
Whether it’s new connections, unexpected opportunities, or surreal déjà vu-like scenarios—the older I get, the more I have experiences that feel almost dreamlike, the more I see my life change in ways that I never thought possible, and the more I become a believer in the unexplainable.
This might be a little too “out there” for some of you, but, from my point of view, I’ve found these beliefs to be inexplicably true—and evermore apparent as times goes on. Over the years, I’ve come to believe is that the Universe can, and will, conspire with you (instead of against you) if you choose to take an active role in the process of creation. You must remain open to possibility while putting in the work to make your dreams a reality. I know this can be particularly difficult when it appears that everything is turning to shit. With our current economy, divisive society, and what feels like an abundance of both stupidity and negativity, it’s hard to believe in possibility. When terrible thing after terrible thing keeps happening, it’s easy to fall into a downward spiral and self-paralyzing loop of depressive thinking—preventing you (and me) from taking any action to believe in, or create, the contrary.
However, with a sincere belief that thoughts are things,you can begin to change course and turn things around. Now, that’s not to say that bad shit will cease to happen to you by simply changing your world view, but I want you to think about this for a moment (seriously, stop and think):
Is there anything more powerful—or is there any thought more empowering—than the belief that you can change/create the future?
. . . I’ll wait . . .
So, when I say that I believe thoughts are things, here’s my interpretation of that (and maybe I’m wrong, but this is how I see it):
Do you believe actions lead to outcomes?
If so, what is the precursor to any and all action?
Well, it’s a thought.
First, you have to think about what you’re going to do before you do it—right? In other words, every action (good or bad) is created by a thought. So, why not extend that belief just a step further and embrace the idea that your thoughts determine your reality? After all, why is it that two people can experience the exact same thing, but have two wildly different interpretations of the event or hardship? Well, it’s because two people can have two opposing thoughts regarding an experience (positive or negative).
Now, if all of the above were true (which it is), what harm is there in believing that we can actually attract things in our life using our actions?
Again, stop and think. What is the negative outcome of believing that?
Here’s the way I see it: Whether it’s true or not, this belief makes life a hell of a lot more fun. Not to mention, it forces you to become far more cognizant of how you act, react, and think—which is ultimately what will have the biggest impact on your life and your future. So, if anything, use this belief as a reason to be more positive and deliberate with your thoughts and decisions.
To me, the Law of Attraction is often muddied—becoming more mystical than actionable—which is what turns many people off to the idea. The truth is, no matter what you believe, you have to act in pursuit of what you desire; you can’t just sit back and wait for something good to fall in your lap. Sure, life might occasionally work like that, but luck is not a viable long-term plan. As with everything in life, you get out what you put in, and you find what you are willing to see.
And the reason for acting is just as important as the action itself.
i.e., Do you take action out of fear or in the pursuit of possibility?
The past few months have been a challenge for me: mentally, financially, physically—if it ends in “l-l-y”—it’s been a wild, wild ride.
I’ve never stopped working and I’ve never stopped trying to make things happen—but, honestly, up until recently—I was operating out of fear more than anything. Fear of losing the ‘self’ I recognized, fear of wasting my time, fear of getting what I’ve worked for, but it still not being “enough.” And so on.
However, the past three weeks, so many pieces of the puzzle have started to fall into place in a manner that’s odd, unexplainable even. Things that I’ve thought about—but never communicated to anyone—have just, well, happened. And I haven’t done anything differently than I was doing before other than pulling my head from underwater long enough to remind myself to put in the work with the belief that my energy would be returned to me in the form of new opportunities, connections, and options.
Plain and simple, for some time, I lost my vision.
Vision creates direction.
The idea of a “vision board” or “visualization” to me always felt silly. Until I realized that I’d been doing it pretty much my entire life. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve been a persistent daydreamer. Far too often, I live in my own head more than the real world, playing out the same scenario in my mind, over and over again. And, quite honestly, more times than I can count, my repetitive visualizations have eventually become real-world occurrences.
In 2021, I decided to start putting my visualizations into a physical form by simply creating a desktop background on my laptop as a reminder of my desired outcomes and goals each and every time I open my computer to work. or study (Think of this like a parent who keeps photos of their kids in their office to remind them of why they are doing it all in the first place.)
In 2007, long before Aubrey “Drake” Graham became, well, the Drake that we know him as today, he googled “world’s craziest residential pools.” He found one that he loved, saved the image, and set it as his desktop wallpaper. At the time, he was 21 years old—and despite being known to the world as “Jimmy Brooks” from Degrassi—he was unsigned and unproven in the music industry. As an artist, he was a nobody.
Fast-forward to 2012, while searching for property in California—a year before he would go on to win his first Grammy for “Best Rap Album”—he came across a home sitting on 6.5 acres for sell in Hidden Hills . . . and when he looked at the back yard, he recognized the pool immediately. It was the exact fucking pool that he’d saved on his computer five years prior. In a Rolling Stone interview Drake said, “This house was the desktop image on my computer years before I bought it.”
I’ve heard similar stories from several of my most successful friends—musicians, entrepreneurs, actors, fellow daydreamers, and others. If there’s one thing that they all have in common, it’s vision.
Now, did Drake attract that house by simply staring at a picture of it year after year?
No.
But did his actions allow him to the purchase the very home that he was attracted to? Did that desktop background serve as a constant reminder of a desired outcome? Did he maintain a vision and focus all his energy in a specific direction?
Definitely.
And is there still something unexplainable, magnetic, and perhaps even mystical about the fact that the exact home was available when he was ready to make a purchase?
Absolutely.
And I cannot tell you how many times in my own life that I have put my mind to something, taken daily action to make it real, and had it appear in the most coincidental and timely of ways.
It’s eerie, but I really do believe that’s the power of our thinking and our energy.
“Truly, ‘thoughts are things,’ and powerful things at that, when they are mixed with definiteness of purpose, persistence, and a burning desire for their translation into riches, or other material objects.”
—Napoleon Hill, Think and Grow Rich, 1937
iVolunteer Blog - everything about volunteering 