I'll be the first to admit that the concept of manifestation is kind of hoaky. But I really think there is something to it. Whether it's the universe or your own mind or something else entirely that makes it work, living your life as if something you want is going to happen tends to help it happen.
"[Manifestation is] about creating the life you want and being deliberate about those steps," Maryann Reid, founder of Aphanista.com, a career and business platform for multicultural women, tells Bustle. "To be deliberate, you need to have a clear intention of what you want to achieve, and to do that, you need to be able to focus on what those goals are. When you focus on something, your will strengthens, and when your will strengthens, it develops a feeling of power to move things in your favor."
Manifestation can be a double-edged sword, though, Reid says. Be careful what you wish for, because you could end up in a job you don't actually want if you haven't given it enough thought. "You have to be very clear on what your intentions are because you never know what you're manifesting," says Reid.
Already know what your dream job is? Then here are some tips that could help you manifest it.
1Prepare Your Website
In her Chakra Girl Business School course, Chakra Girl Collective founder and intuitive business coach Amber-Lee Lyons suggests making a page for your website that describes yourself in a role you want. You don't have to publish it yet, but having it prepared for when the time comes will tell the universe and your subconscious to bring it on.
2Make A Folder On Your Computer
Want to write a book or movie script some day? Or create a business plan? If there's anything you want to create that can be made into a file, Lyons' class suggests creating a folder with the label "book," "script," "business plan," or whatever it is so that it's ready to be filled with your words.
3Find A Higher Purpose
"Purpose creates change, and the purpose should be more elevated than being able to afford all the handbags you want," Lyons tells Bustle. "How is stepping into the role going to change your life, the lives of people around you, and ripple into changing the world? Journal on how you're changing the world and spend time really imagining what that would look like."
4Give Yourself A Title
You don't need to have fully stepped into a role to start calling yourself by your new title. If you're making art, you can call yourself an artist before you sell it. If you're building up your marketing skills, Lyons suggests putting "marketing expert" or "the master of marketing" in your Instagram bio. "It's so much easier for the universe to deliver your dream job to you when you're acting, dressing, talking, and walking like you already have it," she says.
5Dress The Part
"'Dress for success' didn't come out of the blue," says Reid. "It's a manifestation concept." Wear what the person in the job you want would wear, and you just may feel more suited to it (no pun intended).
6Prepare Your Office
If your job involves an office, even if it's a home office, Lyons recommends decorating it in advance. "Whether you buy it today or keep it in your online shopping cart, you're getting ready to show up in your new role," she says.
7Network
Being around people you aspire to be like can inspire you and give you valuable advice and connections. Reid recommends finding three people on LinkedIn doing a career that you love and making coffee dates with them.
8Travel
"There’s something about stepping into the unknown that accelerates your impact and connection to others," says Reid. Bonus points if you can get work experience abroad.
9Make A Playlist
Music can help you visualize what you want and get you pumped up to go after it. If it's wealth that you're after, try this money manifestation playlist Reid created.
Of course, you still have to do all the work you would do otherwise to achieve your dreams. But that work will go even further if you believe your dream career is within reach and already on the way.
