Habit Shift: Conscious Manifestation
The closest I've come to manifestation is that impossible time I found myself on a flight back to Istanbul. Impossible because I was completely broke and emotionally broken. Five months earlier there would have been no way for me to predict this happening so soon but there I was.
Deep down inside I knew that I needed to return to Istanbul as a form of catharsis after leaving my abusive marriage. We had lived together in Istanbul and the fear I felt tainted my relationship with the city. Going back was a way for me to confront my fears and reclaim my relationship with myself and with Istanbul.
Although the end of my marriage left me with nothing materially, finding the strength to leave it left me with an experience of profound clarity.
For the first in a long time, I knew what I wanted and what I didn't want. Surviving the trauma emptied me of all self-doubt. There was only me and the darkness and my inner voice beaming like a light in a lighthouse.
What I felt and what I wanted were no longer clouded by thoughts of what I should or shouldn't do to try to fulfil other people's desires. There was no negative self-talk or feelings of being not good enough.
I was free to build the life I wanted. To dig deep into my values and listen to my intuition and focus on the things that brought me joy. And I knew deep down that I needed to return to Istanbul on my own to gain the closure I needed to move forward but I wasn't sure how I would do that.
At that time, that was my intent and it was clear. I then focused on what I could do to begin putting my life back together again. I went back to school to focus on my love of travel writing. I started to journal and then blog. I wrote to preserve my story and to connect with others. And it was through my blog that I received an offer a few months later to teach in Istanbul.
It all felt so hard and yet by getting clear on what I wanted and meeting the universe halfway by putting in the work, I was able to achieve my goals despite the odds. About 6 months after setting my intention, I was on a flight back to Istanbul.
When things recently slowed down in my life, I started to wonder if it would be possible to live life like that all the time - to continually consciously manifest a life aligned to my deepest values and goals and what that would look like.
I even gave that lifestyle a name - intuitive living.
Because to be honest, despite everything I had achieved and all the things I had to be grateful for, I wasn't feeling happy inside. If anything, a part of me felt disconnected from my innermost self.
I didn't just want to fix that. I wanted to find a way to live aligned with myself all the time.
Long story short, something clicked in me when I started reading a book called Manifestation Journal by Lauri Albert.
Not only did what I read resonate with my experience, but it also gave it a name and it outlined a practice that could be used to incorporate conscious manifestation into everyday life.
Manifestation is defined as using the power of our minds to will something that we want into existence. As a practice, conscious manifestation requires clarity of intention, alignment of our actions to support our goals, and an ongoing openness to change. It also requires us to live life fully in the present moment, to express gratitude for the life we have now and to have faith in the process.
As a way of life, it encourages us to develop positive thought patterns and habits that encourage us to grow in the direction of our dreams. And as a result, we feel happier, more satisfied and more empowered in our life right now.
That is what I want. To live life in the present moment, aligned with my innermost values and so I've taken on the challenge of incorporating conscious manifestation as part of my daily practice.
Easy? No. Because it requires a change of mindset and letting go of routines that have become comfortable but already, by guiding myself to remain present at the moment, I feel less anxious and more connected to the real world around me and that is really having a positive impact on my quality of life.
The three essential tools I'm using for my practice are journaling, meditation and commitment to a consistent practice. Other core tools include visualisation, the use of affirmations and scripting. The book I'm reading is Manifesting Journal by Lauri Albert which I highly recommend to anyone interested in the practice. It's really practical and straight to the point and easy to read. I also love the cover 🙂 Another book I'm reading on manifestation is Make It Happen by Jordanna Levin and it is very down-to-earth and practical as well.
