Introduction
Several movies are inspired and based on books; however, The Secret is based on a film with the same name. The movie The Secret is a documentary that features interviews in line with the theme of the film (and the book).
Released in 2006, the movie, as well as the book, takes inspiration from another book written in 1910, called The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace Wattles. The movie was also written and produced by the author Rhonda Byrne but gained popularity once the book gained the attention of celebrities, including Oprah Winfrey.
The Secret is popularly known as the ‘law of attraction’. Imagine at some point in your life, you wanted something alluring to your energy – the dream can be positive or negative. The phenomenon of later achieving your dream is what Byrne labels the law of attraction – a way in which like attracts like.
The mere thought of achieving something brings you closer to the dream. The author also highlights the need for positive thinking – since like attracts like, positive thinking would lead you to positive things, while negative thinking will deteriorate your life
Byrne compares our mind to a magnet, which attracts the energy emitted by the Universe. The Universe here refers to a higher form, capable of converting the power of thought to the frequency of events. Due to the law of attraction, the events come to enter our lives exactly the way we willed it to.
Lessons
1. The Secret
The Secret is the law of attraction. The author describes it when people regain their lost wealth slowly over time. Wealthy people constantly have a fear of losing their wealth. The Universe detects this and grants it – much to the misfortune of the person. However, the person then strives to rebuild their fortune and regain their previous life. This is an instance of the law of attraction.
Byrne takes the phrase “if you think, it will happen” to another level by even granting an explanation for the same. The Universe we live in – which is being personified –as a way to channel our thoughts into frequencies which ultimately make our wishes come true.
It is crucial to direct our minds towards positivity so that we are not led to negative circumstances. The negativity we spread in the world will come back to haunt us. So, it is always beneficial for us (and others) to have an optimistic or realistic thought. A simple way is to convert negative sounding sentences into positive ones.
2. Being aware of your thoughts
Positivity and negativity are two aspects of the same coin. Both of them are equally normal and have the same effect in their respective domains. A negative thought may be as common as a positive one. Since we know that a negative thought can be damaging, the author suggests being aware of our own thoughts.
Often, thoughts are triggered due to external stimuli. A regular mood may be invaded by one negative thought, which causes a cascade of more pessimism. The result of this is the granting of a negative thought by the Universe. So, the author suggests engaging in meditation and other forms of spiritual practices to keep our thoughts in control.
3. Telling the Universe what you want
The best way to tell someone what you need is to communicate it. Similarly, one must tell the Universe what they want – preferably, positive. By communicating, we can focus on what we really require and notice the pessimistic thoughts getting far from us.
The Universe supposedly replies through several techniques. Negative thoughts are often associated with feelings of discomfort in the chest or stomach. Sadness manifests in the body. The author interprets these unexplainable pains as messages from the Universe to change the way we think.
4. Secret Shifters
Secret Shifters is a concept proposed by the author, which promote the positivity of the thoughts. The author suggests making a list of activities that guarantee a shift in the mood of a person. It can include any type of activity but must be positive and reliving for the person.
5. Ask, believe, receive
The Secret works simply in three steps. The person must ask the Universe for their dream, then believe in the working of the secret, and lastly, receive the grant.
The ask for the wish must be specific and not vague. As long as the message is clear, the Universe will understand it. Ensure that the message is positive for you as well as others. The negativity of any sort will be detrimental to you and your associates.
Belief in the working of the secret is as important as the ask for a wish. Humans tend to restrict their belief, but the author encourages them to broaden the horizons of their thinking and believe whole-heartedly in the phenomena. The belief must also be free from any doubts or second thoughts. The author predicts a tangle in the frequency to the Universe if there is any skepticism in the mind.
Lastly, the Universe will grant your wish. One must think forward and prepare for the arrival of the dream. If someone is wishing that their business gets a huge profit in the coming year, they must play along with the belief and start working towards the tasks lined up after the wish is granted. The positivity emerging from these actions will strengthen the belief and the Universe will work towards fulfilling it. Time is relative and hence, patience is key with the completion of the wish.
6. How to ‘ask, believe, receive’
The author emphasizes on the exercises one must perform to accurately adopt the habit of ‘ask, believe, receive’. These exercises can also help one inculcate a more optimistic approach to life.
- Imagine your day as you would have liked it to go. If you had aimed at performing a certain task that you were unable to complete today, imagine how the day should have gone before going to bed. This helps one formulate a plan of action for the next day. It also instills positivity instead of the people lamenting over the fact that they were unable to complete the task.
- Visualization is the second exercise. It helps a person focus less on the impossibility of an event and focuses more on how it can happen. Visualizing receiving the dream by the Universe is also a crucial task to do.
- Lastly, we must be able to see the dream. Once we can see our aim, it becomes easier for us to get there. An automatic mind map is created which helps in the accomplishment of the wish. Creating a vision board is also a way to visualize.
7. The Secret to money
The Secret can be used to earn money as well. Realistically, money does not actually grow on trees. Nor will wishful thinking enable us to win a lottery. But thinking that these things will never happen is also wrong. The author suggests keeping a positive outlook on opportunities that can end in receiving money and not giving up hope on that.
We must dream of affording things in the future. At this point in time, it may be impossible for us to buy a certain thing but is possible later. Thinking about how the money will come in will encourage negativity, instead, we must focus all our energy on maintaining a normal routine from which we earn our bread-and-butter.
Byrne does not believe that money cannot buy happiness. The modern world relies on money. Money can come from any source, and one must not give up the thought of it happening. One must also plan what they would do with the money once it comes – in a positive way. For instance, one can think that they would engage in charity once they start earning good money. This creates a positive environment that can compel the Universe to grant the wish.
8. The Secret to relationships
The key to having a healthy and loving relationship is to not shy away from it. If someone longs for such a relationship, they must not act in a way that contradicts their wish. By adopting the belief that someone out there is compatible with them, the possibility of so is closer than what is imagined.
9. Shedding of narrow-mindedness
As mentioned above, our actions must not contradict our dreams. For something to happen, we must be susceptible to it. The author narrates the story of a girl who wanted to migrate from Australia to the US but was confused about how to go about it. She harbored positivity and willed the transfer to happen, yet the time kept delaying. Finally, the girl packed her bags, sold her belongings, and made the shift. It did take time for her to adjust, but she gradually did. Since she was open to the change and did not have a narrow-minded approach to it, she accomplished her dream.
10. The Secret to health
In medicine and health, the ‘placebo effect’ refers to the law of attraction. The placebo effect manifests when someone believes that a certain medication is working for their wellbeing. In reality, however, the medication administered may have little to no effects. Since the patient does not know it, they possess an optimistic approach to it. Eventually, the positivity fruitions and the patient starts to feel better.
Healing is the nature of the body. The body can sustain itself through the harshest of times and hence, the placebo effect is observed to be an authentic phenomenon. Similarly, maintaining positivity concerning overall health is crucial to overcome health issues. If negativity rests in the mind, the body will be unable to heal itself. The hope that one day, the situation will get better, must never be left.
11. The Secret to the world
Humans tend to resist. Resistance is what has kept us in this world, but it also keeps us from the things we desire. Channeling our energy into resisting a fear fuels the fear to manifest itself. Since the mind is invaded by the fear, the Universe gets a signal to make the misfortune occur. The focus should be on the aftermath of the unfortunate event.
A trick mentioned before was to convert a negative sentence into a positive one. This truly applied in the case of how the Secret affects the world. We should not wish that our fear be removed, but instead, the opposite is flourished. So, instead of wishing that wars do not occur, we must wish that peace be propagated. By doing so, a positive signal is sent out and has a higher chance of occurring.
12. Keep no limits
The author points out the excuse of ‘not enough’. Byrne aptly states that the phrase is a myth and one’s limitation is not limited by their ability, but instead by their mind. The mind cannot extend its imagination beyond a certain point and thus, we assume our ability is restricted at that point.
The truth is our mind is one of the most magnificent organs. It has no true limit and can stretch beyond what we believe. Since there is nothing to lose when it comes to belief, we must not restrict our abilities and think above and beyond our current status.
13. The Secret to you
Alluding to the contemporary laws of all sciences, energy cannot be created nor destroyed. The energy that exists in the universe as well as in our bodies can only be converted into another form. So, the energy within us will always exist. Since the energy is omnipresent, we can draw from it.
Byrne speaks against overthinking and letting the mind lose control. Before letting our minds free and frenzy into a negative scheme, we must stop and think of the authenticity of our feelings. We can even direct it at the Universe and expect answers. Our mind must also be trained to be patient and aware enough to receive the answers as sent by the Universe.
To have a set aim and dream, we must imagine drawing on a blackboard. The blackboard can be filled with all the things we desire. A way to let go of negativity is to wipe off the negative things. By saying out loud what is left on the board, we can reach out to the Universe. Such imagery can ascertain our purpose in life as well.
