Complete Guide to Manifestation for Beginners

This article is for the complete beginner to manifestation. It is meant as the starting point, setting the stage for further development and exploration.

Part one will be about understanding manifestation. Part two will be about how to implement this understanding.

What we will explore:

1) How manifestation works, and how the external world changes
2) The role of the subconscious mind, and the “power of consciousness”
3) What you need to do in order to manifest
4) Picking the right goal, and understanding the various manifestation methods
5) How to actually begin manifesting your desire, including performing the method, and keeping the right mindset
6) Principles to follow to make sure you are doing it correctly
7) A daily routine to follow
8) How and when the manifestation will appear

Contents show

Preface

Unfortunately, many people struggle with manifestation and never attain results of any significance. There can be many reasons for this, but it really doesn’t have to be this way for you too.

There is an illimitable power stored within you, and there is no end to what it can do for you. My sincere wish is that you learn to use this power. It has changed everything for me, and I want the same joy for you.

I have endeavored to give the best possible information I can in the hope that It might nudge you on the right path. I cannot guarantee your success, however. It requires that you are willing to apply the methods and exercises conscientiously and regularly, that you are willing to keep an open mind, and persist through the many trials ahead.

With that out of the way, let us get started.

What is Manifestation?

This is the simplest way I can describe manifestation: It is the idea that one can through the power of thought alone turn an idea, intention, or desire into a tangible fact. A person who wants a better social life, more money, freedom, security, joy can produce such conditions in their life through manifestation. Even further, specific goals like an exact amount of money, an exact person as a friend or partner, an exact job or dream career path, or any other sort of particular desire can also be attained. It is believed that all things are possible; any goal you may have can be manifested. An alluring concept, for sure!

Manifestation is no doubt a spiritual concept, and most people would, at best, be extremely skeptical of it. The question now begs: how do you even know that it is true? I speak of it as fact, but how can I be so sure? Let us explore that in the next section.

For those who want further elaboration, read ”What is Manifestation? Explained for Beginners.”

Does Manifestation Work?

As we will look at in subsequent sections, faith, and belief are really important to succeed with manifestation. To manifest something, one needs to believe that it will work.

Manifestation works. I know it does because I do and have done it. I see it happening in my life, and so I know it must be true. You too will only know it works when you begin getting results. The claims and testimonies of others will not suffice. Critical thinking is essential in life, and I am not asking you to fully believe in something like this until you actually experience it for yourself.

Manifestation is no doubt a bold claim, and even if one really wanted to, full belief would not be attained overnight. I want you to remember however that a little doubt is okay. To some extent, belief is a choice, but we cannot rid ourselves of our deeply ingrained beliefs at a moment’s notice. If done correctly, manifestation will still work for you even if you doubt from time to time.

All that is asked of you is to choose to have faith the best you can for the sake of getting results. Keep an open mind and see what happens. Pretend that you are testing it out of curiosity. An attitude like this will put less pressure on yourself.

For those more on this, I recommend this article: ”Does Manifestation Actually Work? An Exploration.”

Manifestation Works For Everyone

An important point to consider is that manifestation works for everyone.

While training is required, this is not a skill only few are gifted with. For some, they learn it easily and attain results upon the first few tries. For others (like me), it takes a while before they can really do it. One may naturally be open-minded, used to success anyway, and expects good out of life, whereas the other is more gloomy and expects failure. These two kinds of attitudes influence one’s ability to succeed in any endeavor. No matter where one may fall on this spectrum, anyone with the sincere desire and motivation to, can learn how to manifest.

I explain this too in my article, “Can Everyone Manifest? Or Is It Only The Lucky Few?”

We Are Manifesting All The Time

Those thinking of themselves as failures may benefit by understanding this: Everyone is manifesting all the time and cannot help it. We can think of this as passive manifestation. Whether consciously or unconsciously, the thoughts we habitually dwell on affect what we manifest.

Be careful with your thinking. This does not mean the toxic idea of “positive thinking” — sometimes we simply need to face bad experiences, fears, etc. head-on — it is more about not letting yourself get lost in unwarranted self-pity and despair, and giving up when the first sign of failure shows up. One who constantly thinks “I can’t” is doomed to fail.

How Does Manifestation Work?

There are many views as to how manifestation works. How mere thought can make an influence in the physical world no doubt requires an explanation. Perhaps you have heard of things like the popular “Law of Attraction.” How true the Law of Attraction is I do not know, but I do know it is not the whole story.

The principle at the back of manifestation is the counterintuitive conception that consciousness is fundamental reality, not the physical world. The normal view is that the physical world has an independent existence and that consciousness emerges as a product of the brain. This other view turns the whole thing around: consciousness is reality itself, and the physical world, including the brain, is an experience of consciousness.

Video Game Analogy

This is no doubt a strange concept. It means that the three-dimensional world we live and move in is not as solid as we think it is, but rather an artifact of a far more complicated reality.

You can liken it to how the environment in a video game is only an illusion. The terrain, the mountains, the city one may experience in the video game, obviously do not exist. They are nothing but the results of a set of complicated activities taking place inside the computer.

Comparing it to this new view of reality, the “computer” is “fundamental consciousness,” and the “video game” is the “physical world.”

In the video game, If a new string of code were to be added the video game environment would change. A person with access to the code would be able to alter the video game as they pleased. Similarly, if new states of consciousness are “encoded” into the fundamental consciousness a corresponding change is produced in physical reality. Manifestation, as we now see it, is nothing but the deliberate “encoding” of a new idea.

The Power of Consciousness

One can think of consciousness as a companion endowed with infinite power and intelligence and as the first cause-substance from whence everything flows. A person’s consciousness is the “god-in-man” as some have called it. Discussing this in detail is not appropriate for this article, but I wish the reader to get a sense of the magnitude of power we are dealing with. In learning to cooperate with it there is no limit to what it can do for you.

Do not worry, if this sounds abstract, because it really is. For now, I just want you to understand that the seemingly solid “reality” that surrounds you is the manifestation of a power residing within.

The Conscious and the Subconscious Mind

There are two distinct selves within you: the conscious mind and the subconscious mind. The understanding of this has practical merit because the power of manifestation is to be found in the subconscious.

Conscious Mind — The Boat: The conscious mind is the part of you that you think you are, and home to a number of faculties like willpower, intellect, and reason. You can think of it as residing on the surface of the mind, like a boat sailing on the ocean.

Subconscious Mind — The Ocean: The subconscious mind is deeper than the conscious mind. It is not “sub”-conscious as in being inferior; it is subconscious as existing “below” the conscious awareness. It is the deep and grand ocean on which the boat floats.

Just before we talked about how “consciousness” is the fundamental reality. I want you to think of it in this way: consciousness itself is the subconscious mind. That “thing” that is aware inside you is the subconscious mind. This is why it is also sometimes called subjective mind — it is the subject, or “experiencer.”

It is called by many names: “consciousness,” “subconscious mind,” or even “spirit” or “universal mind.” Do not be confused, these are all just words describing different facets of the same power.

Hopefully, you are still with me. Do not worry if you are a bit confused. All this will make more sense to you in the future. The main thing I want you to remember from this section is that manifestation is about working with the subconscious mind. It is not done through daydreaming or strong acts of willpower, as that would be like getting the boat to do the work of the ocean.

How Conscious Manifestation Works

We just talked about how manifestation is about working with the subconscious, a theme I’ll continue to emphasize.

As discussed, we are always doing passive manifestation; our habitual thinking influences the subconscious, and thus we cannot help but produce manifestations all the time. Your current life is the result of passive manifestation.

What we really want is to learn how to direct this force; to guide it toward desirable ends, and to turn our deepest desires into reality.

Imagine your subconscious as a fertile garden, and your desires as seeds you plant within it. Just like seeds in the earth, these desires, once sown into the subconscious, begin their journey towards sprouting into existence.

The subconscious is responsive to suggestions. What we give to it, it will work upon. To achieve a specific desire, we want to implant this idea upon the subconscious — a bit like how a gardener would plant a seed in his garden. Now this is a skill that requires practice. But it is the skill that once learned, grants us mastery over the subconscious and therefore over the direction of our lives.

Example: Manifesting Wealth

Say we want “wealth.” We are tired of always being enslaved by a lack of money, and we want financial freedom. With this newly discovered power of manifestation, we understand that our current circumstances are the creation of a deeper reality, which is consciousness itself (or the subconscious mind as I have ventured to call it).

We now see that to become wealthy we must implant the idea of wealth in the subconscious. As this is done, most of the burden is lifted from our shoulders, and the subconscious will bring its own powers and intelligence to bear in order to produce the manifestation.

As the manifestation process commences, you will encounter a series of events that over time lead you step-by-step toward achievement. In this instance, you may stumble upon a high-paying job, you may find a business opportunity, you may win the lottery, you may inherit money from a long-lost uncle — who knows! The “how” is constructed by the subconscious mind, without the knowledge or awareness of the conscious mind. Like pawns on a chess board, everything and everyone (including ourselves) are moved in an orchestrated plan until the final outcome is achieved.

The circumstances you initially find yourself in, that may make “wealth” seem like an impossibility, do not matter. You may be broke, in debt, and devoid of ideas. But when working with the subconscious you are working with a power that exists beyond circumstances. It is not limited by them and can create new ones in their place. Using our video game analogy from earlier, it doesn’t matter what the old code is; if a new code is added the video game will change.

I talk more about the role of circumstances in this article.

From Understanding to Application: Getting Started With Manifestation

The philosophy forwarded in the last section can be summarized like this: 1) the fundamental reality is consciousness (which to you is your “subconscious mind”), 2) the physical world is the manifestation of consciousness, and 3) one can use the power of the subconscious to manifest their desires.

With a solid understanding of this philosophy, we are now ready to look at how manifestation is done on a more practical level.

Always remember that results are the arbiter of truth. It doesn’t really matter what I or anyone else tells you, the results that you get are far more insightful and far more potent. Doing the “mental work” is how you progress and how you reap the benefits of manifestation.

Let us now look at various manifestation techniques, the proper mindset one must have, how to pick your goal, and how to begin practicing manifestation and developing a routine so as to get the best results with this.

Your Job in Manifestation

For clarity and to avoid confusion, your job in manifestation is to 1) impress the idea of your desire upon the subconscious mind, 2) to repeatedly strengthen and nurture this idea, and 3) to avoid implanting ideas of an opposite nature.

If the suggestion of your desire is firmly rooted, the subconscious will bring its own powers and intelligence to bear upon it. Things will happen beyond your knowledge. You will be led down a path of action, new circumstances will appear, your reality will transform, all this being the manifestation of an unseen plan culminating in the accomplishment of your goal.

Preparation: Setting Achievable Goals

Manifestation can be used for any goal or desire you may have. It can be as broad or specific as you like. No doubt, as you become more successful and more confident in manifestation, you will naturally progress onto bigger and better goals.

If, however, you do not feel confident in your ability to manifest, I recommend going for a goal that you believe is within your ability to accomplish — something that isn’t so far out that faith crumbles.

Ego-Strengthening Goals

For example, one can choose an ego-strengthening goal — a goal that primarily focuses on self-improvement or changes within oneself. It could be more productivity, more self-confidence, a better mindset, strength, etc. I talk more about goal-setting here.

Broad Goals

Another thing to consider is that the more specific the goal, the harder it is to believe that it can be accomplished. In my article “30-day manifestation challenge” I recommend focusing on a general state like “accomplishment.” If the idea of “accomplishment” gets transformed into a subconscious state, accomplishment will flow through and lift up every aspect of your life.

A Simple Beginner-Friendly Test

A very simple beginner-friendly test for those who are always tired in the morning is this: in your bed at night affirm to yourself: “I am always fresh and energetic in the morning ready for the day.” If you are still tired the first few mornings, don’t beat yourself up. Realize that if you continue this practice, the affirmation will become increasingly stronger in your subconscious.

Now, this “manifestation” may not be on the same level of grandiosity of the things you want to achieve, but it is no doubt a good practice for familiarizing yourself with the process of impressing the subconscious mind. It is easy to adjust your method because the following morning will always tell you how far you’ve come.

Manifestation Techniques For Beginners

We now come to the crux of the matter; the point where we will begin manifesting our goal.

We know that manifestation is about impressing the subconscious mind, letting the idea grow in strength until its influence can be seen in the form of results. But how do you do that?

This is done by performing certain mental exercises that act as a gateway of communication to the subconscious. These mental exercises are what we will call manifestation techniques or manifestation methods.

Important: Performing these methods or exercises requires you to sit down, relax, close your eyes, and draw your attention within. This is done so as to induce a state of self-hypnosis, which gets one into closer rapport with the subconscious. You need to do this at least one of these “sittings” a day, which we will look at in the “manifestation routine” section.

The three manifestation methods I recommend you use are listed below.

For reference, I have a list of what I consider to be the 5 best manifestation methods.

1. Visualization

How to use visualization:

Go into a relaxed state of mind and body
Visualize in one of the three following ways:
- Visualize a scene that would take place were your goal now to be a reality. This is the SATS method.
- Use allegorical visualization, like planting the seed of your desire in the garden of the subconscious.
- Use abstract visualization, like seeing thoughts as colored, dynamic energy bubbles in your mind. A single word like “wealth,” for instance, may have an abstract visual presence in your mind as you think it. Any form of abstract imagery that makes sense to you will do. This is an unfiltered, raw way of visualizing.
Concentrate your mind on the visualization. Combined with a relaxed mental state, this is what makes an impression on the subconscious.

Read the full guide on visualization here.

2. The “SATS method”

This is how you do the SATS method:

Go into a relaxed state of mind and body
Visualize something that implies that your goal is now already a realized fact. It could, for instance, be receiving good news about something from a friend. Imagine from a first-person point of view looking through your own imaginary eyes just as if it were really happening.
Concentrate and immerse yourself into this imagined state letting your mind get lost in it.
Fall asleep as you loop the scene. If you cannot do so, let yourself fall asleep shortly after.

Read the full guide on the SATS method here.

3. Affirmations

This is how one can do affirmations:

Go into a relaxed state of mind and body
Repeat a simple affirmation like “I am wealthy, I am wealthy…” over and over again.
Concentrate on the affirmation to the point all other thoughts are crowded out. A one-pointed, absorbed attention has the biggest impact.

Learn more about affirmations here. Additionally, learn how to construct good affirmations here.

None of these methods is better than the other; choose what you think fits your temperament. Some don’t like visualization, in which case I recommend affirmations. You can also do both, and alternate between them.

Each of these methods should be performed for at least a few minutes but can be done for as long as you like. The method should be repeated once a day. As you perform any of these methods, you are impressing and strengthening your desire in the subconscious.

A bit later, in the “manifestation routine” section, I will explain how often one should perform these methods for best results.

Doing a Successful Practice

As you may have noticed, certain common elements appear in all three of the listed methods. Namely, self-hypnosis and concentration.

The Importance of a Self-Hypnotic State

The first step is always going into a relaxed state of mind and body. This is done in order to amplify the potency of the particular manifestation technique used.

This is essentially a state of meditation or self-hypnosis. It is characterized by reduced peripheral awareness and an increased focus on the internal world.

To achieve this state, sit or lie down, close your eyes, and draw your attention from the outside world. In this aid, one can use something like progressive muscle relaxation to go deeper.

This mental condition is optimal because it increases suggestibility. The subconscious itself is responsive to suggestion but is hindered by the faculties of the waking conscious mind. In this state of meditation, the rigid barrier of critical factors existing between you and the subconscious is reduced.

A relaxed, self-hypnotic, meditative state is the first step before you engage in your manifestation method. Do not rush it. Over time, as you practice this, you will learn to deepen this state and get better access to the subconscious.

The Importance of Concentration

When you are in this meditative state, concentrate completely on the idea in your mind. Imagine or affirm with faith and conviction.

If you successfully hold the idea “I am wealthy” or “I am becoming wealthy,” without any other thought intruding, you are, in a sense, hypnotized by that idea. And at that moment, it is a fact to your mind. This is when the impact on the subconscious is at its strongest.

Do it with no effort. If you use willpower to think “I am wealthy,” you are actually thinking “I want to think this but I cannot.” Strong acts of will come with the suggestion of struggle and resistance. Complete self-hypnosis by a thought is done through effortless concentration. This is an exceedingly important point. It must be easy and it must be effortless.

Having the Proper Manifestation Mindset

We just talked about techniques. These are what impress the desire upon the subconscious. But when you are not deep in meditation performing a technique you still need to regulate your thinking.

The Importance of Mindset in Manifestation

Remember when we talked about passive manifestation? Our daily thoughts and attitudes have a strong effect and can be really potent in that they bypass the critical faculty unnoticed and sink into the subconscious.

For instance, if one is apt to self-blame, a harsh negative conclusion developed in your mind is likely to be accepted by you, further reinforcing the self-blame. If one feels that they are stuck and enchained in everyday life, thoughts of success are more easily rejected, and thoughts of “I can’t” and “It won’t work,” are more easily accepted.

To succeed with manifestation, we cannot undo our work by getting lost in doubt. If initially, we correctly visualized our goal the seed has been planted. But if we then begin thinking “This won’t work,” “I didn’t do it correctly,” or another thought of the same nature, we uproot that seed. Therefore, no result is obtained.

We must retain a sense of faith, or at least an open-mindedness that this will work. This requires a shift in mindset.

The Right Mindset

Here’s a rundown of the proper mindset one must adopt to succeed with manifestation:

Faith: One needs to trust that this will work. Dwelling on a thought saying, “This will never come to pass,” gives an opposite suggestion to the subconscious, and undoes the work you did while performing your manifestation technique.
Letting go: Counterintuitively, manifestation requires you to let go of control. Remember the boat and ocean analogy — the boat being the conscious self, and the ocean being the subconscious? The boat cannot do the work of the ocean. We must trust that the subconscious will do its work undisturbed. This is something that eluded me for a long time.
Conscientiousness: As will be explored in a moment, repetition and consistency is important. Likely, your desire will not set root upon first session, and the manifestation method must be performed on a regular basis to nurture the seed until it is a permanent part of your mind.
Perseverance: We cannot fear failure, because there likely will be many of them. The only way forward is by embracing failure as part of progression.
Simplicity: Many complicated problems can be resolved by simple action. Do not let the simplicity of these methods deceive you. The hidden mechanism may be complicated but the action is simple.

Keep these things in mind. Remember, manifestation requires practice, and trial and error is the way forward.

For further elaboration, I have an article dedicated to the development and importance of a proper manifestation mindset.

Dealing with Doubts and Limiting Beliefs

Doubts and limiting beliefs are much like weeds in a garden that threaten the growth and vitality of your desired goals. They are what causes you to think “I can’t” or “this won’t work” when you try to succeed in something.

I will not even attempt to go into this in lengthy detail here. For now, I want you to understand that a big part of overcoming a limiting belief is identifying it. If you find yourself in a doubtful pattern of thought, ask yourself: “What is causing me to think this way?”

I mentioned earlier that belief to some extent is a choice. You may not be able to uproot a deeply ingrained limiting belief immediately, but you can decide that you will not be enslaved by it.

Generally, if you can keep an open mind you can expect decent initial results from manifestation. From here, your faith will only skyrocket. If you fail, do not let it deter you. Failure simply indicates a mistake in your approach. Learning from failure leads to progress.

For more on limiting beliefs, I recommend this article: “How To Get Rid Of Limiting Beliefs When Manifesting.”

Developing a Manifestation Routine

I have mentioned a couple of times that repetition is key. As we just looked at, limiting beliefs and doubts are like weeds in a garden. They overpower and kill off the seed of your desire before it has attained enough strength to set root in the subconscious.

One needs to water and nurture the seed by regularly performing the chosen manifestation method, whether it be visualization, SATS, or affirmations. At some point, the newly implanted idea will be strong enough so that it becomes a permanent state in the subconscious, from where it will begin its sprouting into physical form.

Morning and Night Practice

Performing the manifestation method during these times leverages the spontaneously occurring mental state of increased suggestibility that comes betwixt waking and sleep. In this state, you are naturally in closer rapport with the subconscious.

In bed at night perform your manifestation method, and while doing so, let yourself fall asleep. If you cannot do so, fall asleep shortly after.

Upon waking in the morning before the mind is fully alert, perform the manifestation.

Daytime Practice

In addition to the morning and night routine, you should during the day find a quiet moment to close your eyes and enter a meditation. From this state of inner calm and focus, engage in your chosen manifestation method. As mentioned, this doesn’t require a lengthy session; even a few minutes can be effective.

During each session, fully immerse yourself in the experience. It should not feel like a chore. Rather, it should be a pleasant and enjoyable pause from the turmoil of daily life.

Additional Tip: One could also keep the night and morning practice for giving the subconscious the suggestion of general improvement and betterment (as talked about in the former section on “setting goals”). The middle-day practice would here be reserved for the suggestion of one’s particular desire. As the broad idea of general improvement becomes part of the subconscious, it will automatically help strengthen the particular desire.

Creating a Journal

I highly recommend you keep a journal as a record of your progress. It does not have to be written down by hand — you can use your phone or computer. If you are like me, you are probably scared that someone will find it. In that case, the digital option may be the best.

A journal can include:

Clarification of one’s goals
A record of one’s successful and unsuccessful manifestation
One’s approach to a particular manifestation
Concerns and speculations one wants to test out
How long a manifestation takes

A journal is a great way to see patterns, perhaps mistakes in one’s approach, and to find what works and what doesn’t. Writing things down in this way will give you a great deal of clarity.

The Bridge of Incidents and Taking Action

If you do the methods conscientiously, if you retain the proper manifestation mindset, your particular goal, intention, or desire, will only grow stronger and stronger, until it becomes a permanent part of your subconscious mind.

As this happens, you will be led across a series of events — a “bridge of incidents” — that lead you step by step to the accomplishment of your desire. You will get new ideas and feel compelled to take action. New circumstances, people, events, opportunities will appear, and reality itself will shape and mold under the hand of the subconscious until your desire has been completely transformed into physical fact.

When a seeming opportunity appears before you, do not hesitate to move toward it. It might be the first sprouting of the seed. Manifestation will open a new path in the forest, but you will have to do the walking.

Sometimes results are rapid, and sometimes it will take a bit longer. Do not be so concerned with the particular timeframe. The less you worry about this, the faster it will come. As you gain experience with manifestation, not only will you feel more confident in attaining more ambitious goals, but the timeframe of manifestation will shorten too.

Conclusion

Hopefully, you now have a better understanding of manifestation. If you feel confused, do not worry; we covered a lot of information. It will all make sense to you in due time.

I will emphasize once again the importance of putting manifestation into practice. Results really are the arbiter of truth. It is the only way to get results, and far and away the best way to learn and gain new insights. As mentioned in the “manifestation routine” section, you should keep up a regular practice, on a consistent basis. It is almost exactly as if you were exercising.

Do not fear failure. Accept it as part of the process. No one has ever achieved anything without failure. Let trial and error lead the way. Be open-minded toward this. Adopt the mindset of curiosity. You are testing manifestation, and can therefore lay aside your personal doubts and prejudices.

I hope you found this article helpful. I wish you all the best in your manifestation journey. Did you like or dislike this article? Could it be improved? Feel free to send feedback, comments, opinions, or questions — nothing is off-limits. Thanks for reading.