What Happened to “The Law of Attraction?”

“Where focus goes, energy follows”

—Tony Robbins

They called it the “secret”, and before you know it, there was a massive following world-wide around the philosophy of The Law of Attraction. You see, very many humans have a deep seated desire to “make it in life”, and so when someone came by to tell us that there was a “Secret” to do it, we were all sold, hook-line and sinker!

So what happened? What became of even the most ardent preachers and followers of the Law of Attraction? How come there is no more noise and grand following of this secret? I tell you, it would be very interesting to find out, but before that, let us revisit the philosophy behind the Law of Attraction as it was taught.

In a nutshell, “The Secret” taught that everything you want or need can be achieved by believing that you can have it and thinking about that outcome at all times while at the same time maintaining a positive mental state in order to “attract” it. Red flag? Yes, but that red flag didn’t go up for me at all, for I was hoodwinked at this amazing way that required less work and more visualization.

“Thoughts Become Things”

I love this theory. Take an example of an engineering masterpiece, whether a bridge, road, house or skyscraper. That masterpiece is actually a product of thought, starting with a desire, a blueprint and other documentations.

This is where we get the concept of Goal-Setting or better yet, this is where we use the metaphor of “everything is created twice”. So how come this did not work for multitudes of people around the world?

One more thing that the Secret was insisting is that you can get whatever you want if you just have the belief and the thoughts at a greater wavelength. In other words, time was nothing if the thoughts and feelings generated were powerful enough. Woowoo.

“You have To Feel it”

The Law of Attraction taught (and still does) that your emotional state is important. That if you are tuned into a positive wavelength and generate positive feelings towards what you desire/want, you will also “attract it” into your life. You should have seen people worldwide trying so hard to generate positive feelings, policing themselves not to entertain any negative vibe! So how come it did not work for probably billions of people?

“Visualize”

I love this aspect of the Secret too. In fact, I believe that the environment in which we live will dictate our psychology as well as our destiny. We tend to gravitate towards that which we see…it is the essence of having a vision. So again I ask, how come the craze of “The Secret” died and is now in a massive whimper the whole wide world? How come it did not deliver what it promised?

People embraced “The Secret” en-mass and it created a near fanatical following that could have easily bordered on hysteria…UNTIL…the revealed secret did not work for the large population. It later on seemed as if the “Secret” is only applicable to some selected few “Gurus” who and mastered visualization, thinking and feeling…and well, the woowoo world!

If the Law of Attraction was a secret that now has been revealed,

• How come those who used it to overcome brokenness still are struggling financially?
• How come those who used it to get married and have a happy home life are disillusioned?
• How come those who desired houses, cars and cell phones did not get these things specifically through the Law of Attraction?
• How come there are so very few people world-wide who can credit their advancement directly to the Law of Attraction?

Why It Failed and Why It Still Will Fail

“The Secret” won’t work for the simple reason that it tries to circumvent the laws of nature. Physics says that for every action, there is an equal but opposite reaction. I have something that I call the “Law of Compensation”, which means that I get something back by doing something tangible in return.

What “The Secret” is teaching is just one thing that mostly focuses on the mind, psychology and spirituality. Unfortunately, we are living in a natural and physical world that has natural and physical laws that govern it.

Let’s Add The Church in There

In fact, the Church has been one of the biggest culprit in this kind of teaching. Christian teachers have led very many people astray and disillusioned millions by peddling miracles over work. I will say it again: Very many Christians are disillusioned because they depended on the spiritual to solve their natural problems and it never happened.

• We have stories of High School kids belonging to a Christian Union refusing to study and opting to praying.
• We have stories of people “sowing seeds” and waiting at home for a “harvest” instead of getting out to work
• We have stories of marriages on the brink of breaking up because one party is a “prayer fanatic” spending night hours in prayer other than making love to their spouse. I normally say (pretty graphic by the way), “the Holy Spirit will not give your spouse an orgasm”…but I digress.

I have written a series of articles towards this end boldly proclaiming that “God is a Goal Setter more than He is a Miracle Worker”.

So what is missing with “The Secret?”

1. Blood, Sweat and Tears

Imagine if Winston Churchill leading England against Hitler, totally outnumbered in many fronts would have resorted to “The Secret” to deliver his nation from destruction?

“I say to the House as I said to ministers who have joined this government, I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat. We have before us an orderly of the most grievous kind. We have before us many, many months of struggle and suffering. You ask, what is our policy? I can say: It is to wage war, by sea, land and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us; to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime”

You can visualize, think and generate positive feelings all you want, but if you will not put your hand to the plough, no secret will work for you.

2. Natural Laws, Systems and Processes

Every time someone comes to me with a secret that circumvents natural laws, systems and process, a red flag goes up. Such things as time, sowing and reaping, cause and effect are natural ways that God designed the world to function. You cannot sow in the woowoo and reap in the natural. I think the best person to explain this to us is a farmer. Imagine a farmer with large tracts of land applying the “Law of Attraction” to grow crops? What if he does not roll up his sleeves, put on his gumboots and revs up a tractor to cultivate? Nothing will grow. Nothing. He can visualize a plantation all he wants but it won’t grow.

3. Purpose in Life

I am sorry to say but “The Secret”, although pretty much woowoo, focused so much on selfish gain. It focused on what I can get, what I can accumulate and what I can keep to myself. Unfortunately, these things won’t give anyone lasting fulfillment and satisfaction. True fulfillment comes when you know what you were born to do and go on to do it, maximizing your full potential. Anything that peddles things over purpose is phony and won’t last long, I am sorry to say.

4. Personal Systems of Growth and Development

“The Secret” massively dwelt on the woowoo and glaringly left off the functional daily disciplines. It is as if the “Secret” was being touted as one silver bullet that can solve everything you need/want. Unfortunately, this kind of teaching creates lazy, unfocussed people who are mostly relying on thinking, visualizing and feeling. Those three are a minute detail of life. Life is all about growing and fulfilling your mandate. If you are to do that, you need to have a daily system in place that you can implement. Without a daily system, no miracle will locate you, I kid you not!

[ictt-tweet-inline] Secrets cannot be sustained. Systems and processes can. [/ictt-tweet-inline]

So for the record, I am not rubbishing the “Secret” in total and rejecting it completely. I am saying that the way it was presented to people is a lie. People have to find purpose, apply systems, obey natural laws, using them for their advantage, formulate systems and grow daily as they maximize their potential. If “The Secret” can help in that process, so be it, but I have a feeling that [ictt-tweet-inline]I can attain my maximum potential by using what “The Secret” has left out[/ictt-tweet-inline] easier than I could use “The Secret” itself.