One thing you must know in order to master this process, is that the universe is eager to please you. It keeps listening to your thoughts and feelings, waiting for the keywords that pop up in your mind. Whatever images you chose to concentrate on is what you attract, be it the little purple flowers, abundance, or convenient parking spots. Ask and it is given. Unfortunately, if you find yourself concentrating on the things you dread, you attract them into your life instead, as the universe that is listening to your thoughts has no way of distinguishing between things you love or fear. Whatever ideas, thoughts or objects (be they good or bad) you envision, those are the ones that you call into existence. This is what you attract. So, you might as well choose to concentrate on things you want. And all you need to do in order to receive them is to put yourself into the allowing mode. You need to be in the mindset of acceptance in order to be able to see all the paths that lead you to where you want to go, and to notice doors opening in front of you.

Let me tell you a little story. There is a tricky exit from highway 394 that leads directly to a downtown parking ramp. For years, since I have been told about it, I had been convinced that there is no passage way into the city from that exit, even though it had been accurately labeled. Once I put myself into the allowing mode, I noticed that the exit contained options, one led to the parking ramp and another – to the city streets, which ended up being the most convenient rout to my destination. It almost felt like I had been wearing blinders preventing me from seeing the big picture all the years I doubted and therefore blocked that option out.

The way you think and feel influences what you perceive to be true. It also creates a powerful momentum that makes things happen in your life.

Let’s play a little game, just paying attention to your thoughts and feelings. Imagine that your mind was like a smart phone screen. Every time a negative thought of judgement or criticism comes about, you can swipe it away. If it shows up as sounds, hit the deny call button and see it disappear. You can also change the ring tone on this imaginary phone to circus music to remind yourself that the voice of judgment is not to be taken seriously. Go ahead and try it now. Notice the difference. How does that negative thought affect you now? Perhaps the effect is less noticeable, or maybe it even makes you laugh. If you still hear the negative message playing in your mind, make it turn into a voice from one of the children’s cartoons. It is hard to take someone seriously who sounds like a clown, or perhaps like Mickey Mouse, or any character of your choice. That feels better, doesn’t it?

You don’t need to try too hard. If this feels too hard, you are not doing it right.  It could also mean that you are dealing with a strong momentum you have created in the past. If you had been stuck in negative thinking, sacrifice, suffering of any kind, self-deprecation, self-doubt and judgement, it might take some time to allow that old momentum to end. Creating momentum is like pushing a train down a hill. It may require perseverance. First you nudge the train off a little, then it speeds up as you keep applying force by dedicating thoughts to it. If that negative momentum has been going on for a while, it might take some time till it stops completely. Just be patient and kind with yourself and know that change is on the way. As long as you are no longer throwing coal into that steam engine, the train of negative thoughts is already slowing down.

Using a car analogy, concentrating on the things you want, allows you to move forward. It is like putting your car into the drive mode. Self-doubt and negative self-talk create a negative momentum taking you further away from your goals. It is like putting your vehicle into reverse.

I would like to share another game you might like with you. We’ll get to it in a moment. In order to make it most efficient, first we need to make sure you are “in the drive mode,” and that the momentum you are creating is the positive one. Swipe away all the negative thoughts, convert them into silly voices, or just distract yourself from unpleasant thoughts into neutral or slightly positive ones. You can do it by taking time for doing something you love, or just thinking about it. Go ahead and do it now. This changes your state to the state of gratitude, allowing and receptivity. Stay in that state for 17 seconds, or take a whole minute, or three minutes to revel in pleasant thoughts. When you notice a genuine smile on your lips after taking a minute of gratitude, you are ready to start manifesting, because the positive momentum has already started. That smile, that thought and feeling you held onto for just a minute or so has just fueled the boat or train engine of positive momentum. Make yourself comfortable and enjoy the ride.

Once you practice positivity this way by plucking out negative thoughts and reinforcing the positive ones, “driving” your vehicle becomes easy and effortless. It is an exercise like any other. Using this “positive thinking muscle” makes it stronger, and the more you do it, the more it turns into a habit and into a way of being. It doesn’t have to be difficult at all, as you don’t need to force it. Just allow yourself to take three one- or three-minute breaks throughout the day to dedicate this time to doing something you really enjoy, thinking about it, or thinking about something or someone you are really grateful for. It is especially easy if you have a pet that makes you smile, or if you start listing all the things that are functioning properly in your life (arms, legs, roof, a drivable vehicle or clean air). It can be anything that is big or small, whatever you can feel grateful for right now.

Any practice only takes twenty-one repetitions until it becomes a habit. Which means, in three weeks, your momentum train will be strong and active. And when it is, the next step in the game I am going to share with you now will be the most fun. Here it is.

After you make sure your state is positive (after taking a moment of gratitude, watching a comedy, or taking a nap), think of what you would like to materialize: a fun party, a pleasant conversation, finding easy parking, or effortlessly buying a gift. When it comes to shopping, once your momentum is up to speed, it becomes surprisingly fun. For example, you may see an outfit in a catalog, and decide that you would like it in a slightly different color and you would be happy to buy it for half that price. Before you know it, you find exactly what you visualized at the exact price you declared reasonable. The same process is applicable to finding an ideal mate or ideal job. However, you might want to practice on little things like outfits and parking spots to get a hang of this manifesting process. Once you become familiar with it, nothing is off limits. Enjoy yourself and have fun with it. That is really the only requirement there is.