14 easy things to manifest and how to manifest them

“You can do anything you set your mind to.” 

“Believe it, and it will happen.” 

“You are your thoughts.”

If any of these phrases ring a bell, you’ve encountered the concept of manifestation. By fostering a proactive and intentional approach to achieving your goals, manifestation encourages a growth mindset. It uses concepts like visualization to help you maintain focus on your personal and professional desires and encourages you to remain optimistic about the future. 

Sometimes, however, identifying things to manifest can be challenging. Understanding more about what manifestation is and how to practice it can help.

What is manifesting?

Manifesting is the idea that, through visualizations, positive affirmations, and believing something can happen, you cultivate and create the outcome you desire. It leverages the law of attraction. To manifest something, you focus on it often to nurture the belief that it will one day become a reality. 

There is no definitive scientific evidence that proves manifestation works. However, while it might not grant you more control over your environment, it can help change your perspective and make it more positive. It helps you let go of automatic negative thoughts to create a new reality. 

For example, say you want to manifest meeting the perfect partner and relationship. Yet, after a few dates with a new person, you realize it won’t work out. Instead of staying stuck in ruminating thoughts and fear that you still haven’t found your ideal partner, you focus on how your person is still out there. You turn your attention to the idea that you just haven’t met them yet.

While different versions of “manifestation” have existed for centuries, manifestation went mainstream in 2006 with Australian TV producer Rhonda Byrne’s bestselling book and film “The Secret.” According to Byrne’s law of attraction, if you ask the universe for something and genuinely believe you have it already, the universe eventually fulfills your request. 

With that said, many take issue with the idea that simply thinking about something makes it happen. It might be more helpful to think of manifestation as a method that changes your thought patterns and behavior. By putting in a bit of hard work, you enable the benefits of positive thinking to unfold.

When you focus on your goals, it’s easier to direct your actions toward achieving them. Picturing yourself working toward something you want, like a promotion or more financial security, can help you cut through shame, overcome self-doubt, and shift a scarcity mindset. 

How to manifest something

To manifest your goals, you need to cultivate them. Simply wishing for a promotion or stronger friendships isn’t enough. You must consciously focus your energy on what you want to manifest. 

Say you want to improve your relationship-building skills and make new friends as an adult. If you focus on the fact that you lack the connections you desire, you may manifest more of a lack because that perspective owns your attention.

However, suppose you reframe your fixed mindset to hone in on connecting with people. In that case, you are more likely to manifest new interpersonal relationships into reality because you’re focused on taking steps that enable positive interactions. 

Every manifestation method has three principles at its core: ask, believe, and receive. Here’s how to put these into practice:

• Think of something you want.
• Use visualization techniques to imagine it in detail, being as specific as possible about how it looks and feels, as though you already have it.
• Ask the universe for it.
• Say or write positive affirmations in the present tense (e.g., “I’ve landed my dream job.”) Or look for images that capture the feelings you’ll have when you get what you’re trying to manifest.
• Let go, trust, and believe you’ll attract what you seek when the time is right.

Repeat this process as often as you like. Ideally, start by focusing on a single goal that garners all your attention as you work to manifest it. Remember, you should strive to create the energy you wish to receive. There are many different techniques to help you do this. 

Different manifestation techniques

Listing your goals or making a vision board aren’t the only actions to take to manifest things. The majority of the work of manifestation happens within you. Still, the following manifestation methods and techniques can help you stay focused: 

• Create a manifestation journal: Start journaling about the details of your goals and dreams to stay focused on turning them into reality. 
• Practice visualization: Close your eyes and picture what you hope to achieve. With practice, you’ll create a clear mental picture of your dream life. 
• Say positive affirmations: Repeat affirmations for confidence and self-trust to help you boost self-efficacy to ensure personal success. 
• Practice meditation or mindfulness: Create a regular mindfulness practice to stay present and focused on what is most important to you. 
• Create a vision board: Make and post a vision board somewhere you’ll see it every day so you’re always reminded of the things you aim to accomplish.
• Try the whisper method: This manifestation technique uses positive intention setting, meditation, and visualization to help you achieve specific goals or make life changes. 

Feel free to experiment with these or other manifestation techniques to find which ones help you cultivate the right energy and stick to your action plan to achieve your goals. 

14 easy things to manifest

You can use manifestation to focus your mind and emotions on whatever you most deeply desire. But if you’re struggling to pinpoint what you want, try using these manifestation examples as jumping-off points for setting your own manifestation goals.  

1. A successful presentation: If you’re nervous about public speaking and want to give a good presentation, use manifestation to calm your nerves and envision how you want the talk to go. Coupled with power poses, visualizing success can help make it a reality.
   
   
2. A promotion or new job: Use manifestation to open yourself up to new opportunities at work. For example, focusing on getting a promotion after 5 years at the same job might open your eyes to opportunities in your current workplace. It also might propel you to look for a new job by priming you to pay attention to external options.
   
   
3. Your own business: Your dream job might be to be your own boss. The detailed visualization process in manifestation can help you determine the type of business you want to start and infuse the process with positive energy instead of worry and bad stress.
   
   
4. More harmonious relationships with family members: It’s normal to experience rocky patches with loved ones, and you might even deal with toxic family dynamics. Using manifestation techniques can help you let go of resentment and identify what you can do to encourage healthy relationships. Additionally, it can provide clarity on when it’s time to let go of a relationship or friendship. 
   
   
5. New friends: If you’ve outgrown friendships, relocated, or lost touch with people over the years, you might feel lonely. Envisioning yourself enjoying time with new friends can help you identify your friendship goals and the kinds of activities you want to do with friends. This opens the door to finding these relationships in real life. 
   
   
6. Your soulmate: For some, being in a healthy, loving relationship can be an enriching and emotionally fulfilling gift. Manifest love and support in your romantic life by visualizing yourself spending time with your ideal partner.
   
   
7. More confidence: If you struggle to stand up for yourself or get stuck in cycles of self-sabotage, manifesting confidence can transform your personal and professional life. With more self-confidence, you’ll take more risks and learn how to say “no” when saying “yes” might overburden you or cross your boundaries.
   
   
8. Resilience: Sometimes life serves you lemons. While it’s best to seek professional help when working through trauma, manifesting resilience can help you overcome everyday disappointments and turn negative experiences into opportunities for growth.
   
   
9. Calmness: Certain types of stress and anxiety can have serious physical and mental consequences. If you feel mild to moderate anxiety about small things or find you can’t focus due to constant worry, spend some time manifesting a sense of calm.
   
   
10. A raise: It’s hard to ask for a raise, especially if confrontation makes you uncomfortable or you suffer from imposter syndrome. Manifesting receiving a raise can subconsciously improve your confidence and help you be more assertive when asking for one.
    
    
11. Less debt: Debt stress can have a host of negative impacts on your physical and mental health. Manifesting freedom from debt can connect you with financial wellness, lifting the stress to investigate and implement concrete steps toward clearing your debt and building a strong financial foundation.
    
    
12. Financial abundance: Manifesting financial abundance and a millionaire mindset might help you think through your financial goals and remind you why you want to achieve them.
    
    
13. Self-care: If you’re juggling various responsibilities, you might struggle to find time to focus on yourself. Manifesting moments for self-care will prompt you to examine how you can improve your time management skills to prioritize taking care of yourself.
    
    
14. Travel: Travel exposes you to new ways of seeing the world and helps you reflect on your life. If you’re feeling stuck, time away might be just what you need. Manifest your dream trip or vacation to discover what type of travel will hit the spot.

Best practices for manifesting your dreams

If you’ve never tried manifestation before, knowing what kind of “energy” to create might feel challenging. However, by imagining what it feels like to achieve your goals, you’ll better understand how to manifest them. Keep the following manifestation best practices to keep in mind as you work toward following your dreams.

Create clear goals

When your goals are clear, it’s easier to connect with and visualize them. If you’re working on big goals, such as getting a promotion or buying a house, try breaking the end goal into smaller objectives first. 

Or, if you want to earn a promotion, start manifesting your achievement by considering the qualifications and accomplishments necessary to earn it. Then, use these to build a list of smaller objectives. Starting a manifestation journal can be a great way to document these steps.

Challenge self-limiting beliefs

Limiting beliefs are ideas you have about yourself that restrict you from personal development and achieving your goals. Challenge these thoughts when they arise. 

For example, instead of saying, “I’m not good enough for a promotion,” reframe the statement to something like, “I’m working hard, worthy of success, and will earn my promotion.” 

By questioning self-limiting beliefs, you restructure your mindset. Instead of focusing on the assumption you’re not good enough, you redirect energy toward being optimistic, creating success, and trusting you have the ability to achieve your goals.

Maintain a positive mindset

Maintaining a positive mindset might be difficult as you encounter failures or setbacks, but it matters when manifesting your dreams. As shown by a study in the Journal of Management, mindset dynamics can shape the outcome of a person’s career goals. 

Accepting that you will certainly have hurdles to overcome when achieving your personal and professional goals can help you overcome these issues. A positive mindset helps you view these hurdles as learning opportunities instead of discouraging obstacles. 

You can help foster positive thinking by practicing gratitude and surrounding yourself with uplifting people. Focus on your strengths and successes instead of being ashamed of places where you may fall short. When you encounter a challenge, view it as an opportunity for growth.

Foster a gratitude practice

It’s well documented that gratitude helps you find happiness and increase health and well-being. In a study published by the Journal of Positive School Psychology, researchers noted that gratitude is one of the most effective methods of improving well-being. 

Strategies ranging from gratitude journals to grateful reappraisal are effective ways to create a gratitude practice. It can also be as simple as documenting three daily things you’re grateful for. If you don’t want to write down your list, sit quietly and think about the parts of your life that fill you with gratitude.

Live with intention

Being intentional means creating a life that aligns with your personal values and goals. You tune out anything that doesn’t serve your personal well-being, prioritizing your health, relationships, and goals. When you lead with intention, every decision is from your authentic self. The following tips can help you take action and live with more intention:

• Schedule time for your hobbies because they are good for your well-being. 
• Plan weekly dinners or regular get-togethers with friends as ways to build healthy relationships in life. 
• Take a walk every morning because movement is important to you. 
• Write examples of personal values in your manifestation journal each day. 

When you live with intention, you are guided by your life’s purpose. A 2021 study published in the Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science found that when participants took value-based actions, they experienced improved mental health. Living with intention allows you to feel more present, have a sense of agency, and work toward manifesting your goals.

Determine things to manifest and create an intentional life

The greatest benefit of manifestation is that it makes your actions intentional. You consciously consider what you want to achieve and direct your actions accordingly. 

As your list of things to manifest changes over time, use the positive results you achieved regarding previous goals to encourage focus and hard work. This develops mental fitness and resilience, which is priceless. If you need support to learn how to reach your goals, a coach can help. With the professional guidance of a BetterUp Coach and personal determination, you can begin to create your best life.