Good Vibrations or Brain Plasticity?

changing brainLaw of Attraction people advise us to raise our vibrations. They believe we are are able to create the things you want including health and wealth by broadcasting our good vibrations into the universe. They have The Secret and ascribe to a belief that they ought to be thinking only positive thoughts.

“There are many books out there that explore visualisation and the laws of attraction, this is definitely not one of the better examples [The Secret]. It is however brilliantly marketed, sadly though for a book so completely lacking in substance this has not done the self-empowerment industry any good.” Source

The Law of Attraction was popularized by a book and video called “The Secret” which Oprah promoted. The book contains the wisdom of the ages and that means there is nothing new in it but please buy the book. The book and movie give the impression that wishful thinking will get you what you want and many people actually end up believing it is so.

In “The Secret” video the claim is made that how the Law of Attraction works all due to the operation of quantum physics. The claim is that all molecules vibrating in your body at a certain resonance attract like things. That’s certainly no secret but it’s not quantum physics.

It’s neuroplasticity. The more you think about something the more your reticular cortex notices similar things. Have you not noticed that if you buy a new car then all of a sudden you see that same car in the same color all over the place. That is your reticular cortex at work. The same principal causes the law of attraction to work.

The discovery of neuroplasticity, that our thoughts can change the structure and function of our brains, even into old age, is the most important breakthrough in our understanding of the brain in four hundred years. Dr. Norman Doidge introduces principles we can all use to overcome brain limitations and explores the profound brain implications of the changing brain in an immensely moving book that will permanently alter the way we look at human possibility and human nature.

Norman Doidge on the brain and neuroplasticity

The Brain That Changes – Part 2_3

In Tibetan Buddhism, the concept of neuralplasticity has been around for far longer than Western science has recognized it – the term for it is le-su-rung-wa which means “pliability”; your brain can change based on repeated experience. It’s no surprise then that studies have been performed on plasticity during meditation and have shown that the brain can change based purely on mental training. This of course has huge ramifications for mental practice and its impact on overall well-being. If you can think yourself into being more compassionate, or more positive and more resourceful, or calmer and more content, it seems a little too good to be true. But with some effort, it’s possible. –  Neuroplasticity: Your Brain’s Amazing Ability to Form New Habits

Oprah began by raving about how the Law of Attraction encompassed everything she had ever believed, but when a viewer wrote to thank her for that show and tell her that she was planning to eschew conventional cancer treatments and rely on the LOA, Oprah freaked out and hunted her down to bring her on the show and urge her to follow her doctor’s advice.

The Secret and its followers are  a cult-like phenomena. They focus on using positive thinking to focus energy on securing material health,  wealth and financial success from the Universe that smacks of religion that puts me right off.  Have you ever heard an Law of Attraction advocate talk about human frailty or death? Well, those are the only certainties known to man.

When the truth is that you don’t like the way things are, then it’s time to set yourself free of the magical thinking you had as a child.  Learn to tune and listen to your inner child self. Is that little child seeking  material things? If so then instead of broadcasting those desires into the universe help that little child within to grow up and face reality just as it is.

Everything we do is based on core beliefs and agreements we have made – agreements with ourselves, with other people, with life. But the most important agreements are the ones we make with ourselves. In these agreements we tell ourselves who we are, how to behave, what is possible, what is impossible. One single agreement is not such a problem, but we have many agreements that come from fear, deplete our energy, and diminish our self-worth. Remove all core values your previously agreed to that are harmful and/or useless and place them with healthy ones.

Learn how to love yourself by practicing self-acceptance. And when you practice self-acceptance of your feelings just as they are right now, you will experience real changes in consciousness. Learn how to meditate and how to remain  in the present moment.  Learn how to view every failure and/or obstacle to becoming a better person as a stepping stone to success. Learn how to choose to be happy no matter what.

I value my powers of critical thought and I value negative people and circumstances too, because they test my ability to stay in touch with my higher self and become a better person day by day.

If  anyone counsels me to use The Law of Attraction to escape something undesirable or to acquire something like wealth, status, fame, health or love — I run the other direction as quickly as I can, knowing such egocentric broadcasting is doomed to failure because I am objecting to reality.

Use your brain. Change your thoughts. Face reality head on. Live your life honorably. Learn how to accept what is, how make changes where you can, and how use all opportunities to become a better person — a healthier, happier and more compassionate person.

It’s no secret

globeThe Secret has led to many people becoming self-styled Law of Attraction (LOA) “gurus. This movement is rapidly expanding as friends challenge friends and the overlapping circles of acolytes grow.

The Secret AKA Law of Attraction (the power of positive thinking plus creative visualization) is not new to me. I have been reading books on this subject for many years, and also practicing relaxation and creative visualization techniques.

Psycho-Cybernetics: A New Way to Get More Living out of Life was first published in 1960 by Prentice-Hall and first appeared in a pocket book edition in 1969.

Happiness and success are habits. So are failure and misery. But negative habits can be changed–and Psycho-Cybernetics shows you how. The mind/body connection us the concept that paved the way for most of today s personal empowerment programs. Turn crises into creative opportunities, dehypnotize yourself from false beliefs, and celebrate new freedom from fear and guilt.  Testimonials and stories are interspersed with advice from author Maxwell Maltz, as well as techniques for relaxation and visualization.

Psycho-Cybernetics introduced Maltz’s view that a person must have an accurate and positive view of one’s self before setting goals, otherwise he or she will get stuck in a continuing pattern of limiting beliefs. His ideas focus on visualizing one’s goals. He believed that self-image is the cornerstone of all the changes that take place in a person. If one’s self-image is unhealthy, or faulty, all of his or her efforts will end in failure.

William Walker Atkinson, Richard Ingalese, Opheil and many others, have written books on the power of the mind to attract what one thinks about, and these books are still popular and available at bookstores. Other known authors are Joseph Murphy, Napoleon Hill and Wallace D. Wattle. Shakti Gawain also wrote an excellent book on the subject and popularized the term “Creative Visualization“. All of these books are about what is now termed The Law of Attraction or The Secret.

So what is this secret?

An underlying principle of The Law of Attraction is that the Universe is neutral. What you get from the Universe what you’re a vibrational match to. This means that if you were raised with negative core values as a child, and grew up to be a person of low self esteem, then you’re getting negative stuff you don’t want from the Universe because you are in sync with negative vibrations, rather than positive vibrations.  In other words,  you must also be out of sync with what you do want or you’d be already enjoying it.

According to The Law of Attraction everything in your current reality is a perfect vibrational match to you.  If you want something different then you have to change your vibration to make what you do want ie. positive stuff in order for it to be part of your reality.

In Subjective Reality Q & A, Steve Pavlina contributes this:  Subjective reality is a belief system in which (1) there is only one consciousness, (2) you are that singular consciousness, and (3) everything and everyone in your reality is a projection of your thoughts. We create our own reality.  We attract those things in our life (money, relationships, employment) that we focus on. People who are efficient in attracting positives have trained their minds to focus on their desires and abundance comes to them naturally. They wouldn’t blink an eye if someone suggested they don’t deserve something, because it isn’t part of their reality.

The Law Of Attraction and The Law Of Resistance

In his book The Law of Attraction, Michael Losier suggests changing your perception around statements that activate its counterpart, The Law of Resistance. He suggests beginning to move towards making vibrational change with an exercise that amounts to making two columns: one that lists everything that you don’t like or don’t want; and one that reframes the resistance-filled statement with one that contains what you do want.

The following steps are to replace negative core values with positive ones thereby  so shift your focus from your feelings of lack, and toward feelings of gratitude and abundance.  The idea is to believe in yourself  and know that you can make whatever changes in your life you want by  creatively visualizing what you want and focusing on it.

The love of money: believe, request, receive

There are many different  LOA “gurus” and they all have their own programs including  pamphlets, ebook and videos, workshops, etc.  Some are focused on instructing their acolytes to jettison the work ethic as clinging to it will means you will remain “stuck”.  They encourage creatively visualizing enjoying  what you love and then believing, requesting, and receiving wealth  from the Universe.  focusing on it. For example, if  making money easily is what you’d love to do, then focus on it and attract it to you like a magnet attracts metal filings.

I have posted a link to some videos at the end of this post for those who wish to view them.

A recent survey of “Wealth Beyond Reason” students asked the question: “What are you finding most frustrating about attracting what you want utilizing what you know about the Law of Attraction?” As a result, a series of videos addressing the top responses was created.

The first two videos explain how to stay focused on your desire in the midst of “real life circumstances”… the next video deals with the issue of knowing what you really want when you start to intentionally create your life by design …

a further video deals with the critical issue of being held back by limiting beliefs that act as resistance against what you’re trying to attract … and the final video deals with the tricky subject of money.
Personal Development Videos – Law of Attraction

Core beliefs: Would you care to share?

It’s a quirk of human nature that we maintain our beliefs by selectively exposing ourselves to information that we already know is likely to support those beliefs. Yet, when we remove the emotional elements and take the time to gather information on the opposite side of any issue we are more likely to come to different conclusions. This is why it’s not surprising that gut responses based on deeply held core beliefs are not always the most accurate.

I’m aware that every decision I make is based on my core beliefs. To open my mind I review my core beliefs in an ongoing process I quiz myself about each one by asking myself  why I believe it. Next I imagine that I don’t exactly believe it any more, but instead believe something marginally different, and then marginally different again.

My  core beliefs are unique to me and my friend’s core beliefs are unique to them.  An open mind is comfortable with  the differences, and also capable of using a variety of lenses to view any issue from many angles.   So I ask you, my readers, if you would care to  share whether or not you have re-examined the core beliefs you were inculcated with as a child and replaced the negative with positive.

* This post was inspired by the repeated  personal attacks I was subjected to by an  LOA acolyte who became nasty in a  forum thread.