The power of the human mind is undisputed; it goes back to the teachings of Aristotle, and is one of the fundamental images of humanity; the person with the plan solving the problem, getting play in myths from Theseus to Batman. It’s also a power you can harness to create the life you want.

By now, we have heard of The Secret. Whether you are one of the millions that bought the book and watched the movie or not, you have to know that it all dealt with the Law of Attraction. The Law of Attraction, which everyone by now knows that the basis is you will attract what it is you think about, the main point is that your mind will manifest whatever you think about. What most people don’t realize is that this happens whether you actively make it happen or not.

In scientific studies, this is sometimes called the observer effect, or the Placebo Effect. More plausibly, it’s that keeping a good mental attitude and a solid set of goals in mind keeps you mentally prepared to take advantage of opportunities you’d've overlooked before. Opportunism is one of the great defining characteristics of successful people; though this is also the reason why hypochondriacs get sick more often as well. What you believe will alter how you interact with the world, and how you see your own ‘personal karma’.

While the singular of data is not anecdote, there is some direct experience you’ve had. How many times have you woken up in the morning thinking this was going to be a bad day, or ‘one of those days’. And then had a self-fulfilling prophecy? Welcome to the Law of Attraction on a personal scale. It’s your own mind and your own expectations sabotaging you.

There has actually been a lot of hard scientific evidence to back this up. Quantum mechanics explains that at the subatomic level there is no such thing as matter; it is just energy. Experiments have shown that incredibly this ‘energy’ only exists because it is being observed. That means that it only exists because of the mind of the observer; this the real power of the mind!

Some of the more fringe scientific studies are trying to link this observer effect to thinks like remote viewing, telepathy, and other ‘supernatural’ powers. An even greater extension is that everything we see, feel and hear; all of our sensory inputs, may well be something ‘stitched together’ into a narrative by our minds. On the extreme end, this leads to solipsism, the belief that nothing is real until you observe it, and the question of ‘If a tree falls in the woods, and nobody’s around, does it make any sound?’

Although you may not even have considered it before; learning how to use the power of your mind is vitally important to having a great life! Obviously it is better to have your assets working for you instead of working against you. Let’s take a closer look at how to use the power of your mind to achieve what you want.

Start with a goal. Visualize it clearly in your mind. Make it a goal with boundaries; for example, if you’re thinking about money, don’t think of the goal in the context of ‘A lot of money’. Put a dollar figure on it. Make it a real goal, with precision. Once the goal is set, focus your mental actions on achieving that goal. Keep the effort constant; don’t do it in bursts and lags.

Some people are aware of the power of their mind; they focus on tasks, they set goals, they make lists, and they follow through them. You can see them; they’re the ones who always seem to have a plan and who always focus on what’s around them. Everything they do is aimed at furthering that goal, and with their mind and will ruling their passions, they have a palpable air of success. This success isn’t difficult to emulate; it’s very simple. It just requires clarity of purpose and focus.

Your ability to shape your life, by actively taking part in the influence your mind has on your perceptions of reality is nearly unlimited. It’s limited primarily by what you can imagine yourself doing. At times, this can border on obsession; imagine wanting a new home. Every day you start out with a list of tasks that will bring you closer to your dream of home ownership. You plan it, you think about color schemes and landscaping. Eventually, this will boost your performance at work; it’ll encourage you to save, or to cut back your credit card debt.

And eventually, if you follow through, you will get everything you want. You’ll have a base of knowledge that you can use to further your career, and a foundation in how to learn independently to make your future endeavors more efficient. On top of that, you’ll have ample evidence that a positive attitude and setting goals can get you anywhere in life. All of your energy focused through the Law of Attraction can be quite potent.

You can do this. Stop just letting life happen to you, make it happen for you. Decide on a small goal at first. Clearly define that goal. Do not doubt the power of your mind and you will be amazed at what happens!