Show notes
The truth about the law of attraction is different from the book and movie. If you're feeling frustrated in your business, ask yourself, you know, am I really clear on exactly what it is that I'm building here or the thing that I want to build here?
And to the extent that it's not coming together, how's your vision? Are you very clear on what that means?
David: Hi, and welcome to the podcast. In today's episode, co host Jay McFarland and I will be discussing the truth about the Law of Attraction. Now, this applies to business, it applies to life.
If you're familiar with the movie The Secret and the book The Secret, there's been a lot of talk about this concept, the Law of Attraction. It basically says that we attract into our lives the people and circumstances we need, based on essentially the vibes that we're putting out.
Jay: Well, and I was just sitting here thinking, I must not be putting out very good vibes.
David: I'm sure it's not that. But... I think sometimes when people get into this mindset, they can get frustrated, because if you think that all you have to do is really want it and it's going to come to you, it's not quite the whole story.
And I think the movie and the book called The Secret probably caused some people some problems with this. And part of it is because that movie, a lot of it was based on a book called The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace Wattles. And if you read that book, you recognize that there's a whole lot more to it than just trying to attract it with your mind.
I mean, you actually have to follow up. You have to do some things afterwards if you want to try to get the results that you're actually looking for. So I feel like what they did in the book and the movie was kind of a disservice to the whole concept, which I think can be valid, if you follow up with it.
Jay: Yeah, I've always kind of felt, you know, talking about this, that it's more about a change in mentality than it is that you'll speak into the universe and the universe will grant you this wonderful thing out of the kindness of its heart. That because you've said these things, it's just like setting a goal.
Right? And so, when you hear things spoken, when your mind hears them, when you speak them with your mouth, it's different than just thinking about them. And so, over time, I think it changes your behavior, which leads you to that thing that you, quote, spoke into the universe.
David: Yeah, I believe that entirely as well.
I think that when you are focused on a goal, when you're focused on trying to accomplish something in your life, when your mind is going in that direction, it is a lot more likely to get you enthused about it, get you thinking about it more and get you taking action on it, which ultimately is what is going to lead to the success.
Now one aspect of it that I think is really important, on the front end of that, is that you have enough belief in what it is that you want to accomplish, that you continue to look for the ways to make it happen.
Because if you don't believe you can do it, obviously you're not going to do it. I think that's pretty much a given. If you don't think you can do something, if you don't think you can accomplish something, then you will very likely not take the actions necessary to make it happen.
So in those circumstances, it's kind of a given that you won't succeed. But if you've got the consummate belief in what it is that you want to do and what you're pursuing, then in a lot of cases, it will allow you to start to see the things that will make it possible.
So when people talk about the idea of attracting the people and circumstances into your life, I definitely believe there is truth to that, but I also think a lot of that might've been there to begin with.
But when you're aware of it, you're going to be more likely to see it, you're looking for it, you're going to be more likely to find it, you'll take action on it, and that's when it actually starts to pay off.
Jay: Yeah, I really like that you're building awareness because you've spoken these things and you've kind of made these mental goals. Whereas before, if you hadn't taken the time to even assess what you want and talk to yourself about what you want, kind of make these mental goals, then when that person enters your life or that opportunity arises, you're not going to see it for what it is.
'Because you haven't planned ahead, you haven't made a mental note that that's specifically something that you wanted or needed.
David: Right, you're not tuned into it. And, you know, the mind has this particular activating system that many people are aware of. It's the part of your brain that notices the things that you're interested in.
So, a common example is if you just got a certain kind of car, or if you're looking at a certain type of car and thinking about buying it, chances are you'll be seeing it all over the road now, because it's now in your mind and you see it and you recognize it.
So, there's a little bit of that. But the primary thing that I think is important for anyone to consider as they're trying to accomplish things in their lives and in their businesses is that the idea, the goal is a great beginning.
And we'll be talking about this in future podcasts, but then ultimately, it's what comes from that. The ideas that we get, the things that we take action on, that's ultimately going to help us to get there.
Jay: Yeah, and I've always felt like, and I think this is kind of the core of what we're talking about, that it's very important to not just think about something.
That you attach benchmarks to it, you attach follow up to it. Maybe you work backwards from that thing, that you don't just put it to chance. If you work towards that thing then first of all the odds of it happening are going to be much greater and you've gone out, and you've taken it for yourself anyway
David: Yeah, and I know we don't normally get to woo woo in these podcasts, and I'm not looking to really do that today, but I think that there's been so much talk about this over the years that it's at least worth having a discussion about for people who may be thinking that, you know, they're doing everything they can to accomplish what they're looking to accomplish, and they don't realize that there may be some steps that are missing.
There's a quote from St. Augustine that says, Pray as though everything depended on God, work as though everything depended on you. And I think that's sort of a different take on it, but it covers kind of the same thing.
If you take responsibility for what you're looking for, and I really love what you mentioned, about the idea of those benchmarks, because if you've got something that you want to accomplish and you're keeping track of each benchmark along the way, then you will be more likely to see the people and circumstances that are already there that will allow you to get to the next benchmark.
When you just have your eye on the goal and you're not really thinking in terms of all the interim steps in between, you can really miss out on a lot because you're looking for this and right now you're only ready for this.
Jay: Yeah, you know, I've spent a lot of time studying highly successful people, Elon Musk, Bill Gates you know, very, very successful people, and none of them sat around and waited for anything, right?
Mark Cuban, and even after they have found incredible success they didn't say, okay, got what I wanted. They continue to work aggressively every single day. And I think about what would I do if I had that kind of money?
Would I continue to work? Or would you find me on a beach somewhere? You know, this is a mentality, it's part of them. It's their love. It's their passion. I think it has very little to do with money.
David: I agree. that's the result of sort of doing the things that you're good at and the things that you love exceptionally well. When you do that and you're able to impact enough other people, and I think that's a key component that's often missing, is that they're great at what they did and they pursued it with passion.
But what they were pursuing was able to impact enough other people, that they were able to generate the result. They were able to generate the revenue, which is essentially the reward for being able to serve or service enough people so that it comes back to you like that.
Jay: Yeah. So I think it's about, you know, kind of thinking about those things that you want to achieve, creating a plan to get there and working as hard as you can, to achieve that success.
David: Yeah. I know personally, the times in my life where I was really focused on a particular goal, especially business, we're talking business here. I have an idea for something. You have an idea for a business or you have an idea for a product. You have an idea for something. And when you believe in it enough, and when you're passionate enough about it, It just seems to almost take on a life of its own.
You sort of know what to do next. You see the opportunities and you take them because you know how it fits in. And pretty much every major success that I've had in business has rolled that way.
A lot of times when you're just sort of trying to slug something out and you're trying to figure it out and things aren't coming together. I think some of it has to do with the vision. Either the vision isn't clear enough of exactly what it is that you want this thing to be, because you have to have that first.
Just like building a house, you have to know what it's going to look like. You want the blueprint before you start nailing boards together. So you need to have a clear idea of it first, because when you've got that clear idea, then it becomes a whole lot easier to build.
Jay: Yeah, it's so true. I mean,