I’m going to let you in on a manifesting secret. Life is not what it seems…it’s what you believe it is.

The truth is that from person to person, what is believed, perceived and experienced of life varies. Sometimes quite dramatically, even for people who live next door to each other.

Projection

We constantly project our beliefs about ourselves onto other people. Both positive and negative projections pave our life path with thoughts like: Can you believe how judgmental that guy is? Who does she think she is; she can’t achieve that? Or, conversely, I can be as great as the person I admire most; my potential, too, is limitless.

Likewise, we decorate the landscape of our life with a steady stream of beliefs — being the creative life cinematographers and directors that we are. The universe reflects our beliefs in frightening images that assail our senses and affirm a belief that the world is a scary place. Or the Universe shows us moving images of beauty and kindness that nourish our emotions and senses, affirming our belief that the Universe supports our goals and growth.

The world is a mirror of our beliefs and expectations. We see what we believe in and what we expect to see. It’s nearly impossible to see what we can’t believe is possible. Two people can see the same thing and perceive different stories. It all depends on how their brains have been trained to receive stimuli.

Is my reality your reality?

My reality may be quite different from your reality even though we are getting the same information from the media, our culture and family. I recall going to my doctor this winter and she told me how her life was being affected by the economic crisis. She was saying “You really can’t avoid being upset and unsettled by it all.” I replied: “Actually, I think it’s a choice. You don’t have to be upset by it.” I could tell by her expression, that she thought I was being dense.

Yet, if I choose not to buy into crisis-stoked emotions, is there really a crisis for me? No. I’m not blind to societal events, and I can feel compassion my those affected. Yet, I can direct my attention in more satisfying directions and take empowering actions. Then my reality is more about what I’m doing as one person, rather than about what is happening in the world at large. Ironically, this is our best path to having a positive affect on the Universe — by staying positive to what you believe in as an individual and do as result of those beliefs that positively serves others.

How to expand your life vision

So how do you limit your vision? Do you appreciate life only when it’s like you want it to be or think it should be? Or can you appreciate what is, what’s there to appreciate beyond the veil of your personal wants and needs. Try this: think of something you are really grateful for and feel how good that feels. Then, think of something that is a challenge, and try feeling grateful for this too. When you practice feeling gratitude for the obvious gifts as well as the gifts disguised as challenges, your perspective shifts radically for the better.

How do you limit your experience of every day? Is your life experience a barely-surviving expression of living or do you look for abundance and expect to experience magic? Does your core spiritual self take a role in directing your life movie or do you let your tiny dictatorial ego mind run the projector? Try this: Choose one positive thing to believe in that is a little bit of a stretch, but makes you feel really hopeful. Each morning for at least a week, recite the new belief, then look for ways the world affirms this belief.

Being clear on your answers to some of the questions above will reveal to you why you experience life as you do. Being clear will pave the way for much easier manifestation that will gladly amaze you each day.

When in doubt, start each day afresh with this simple question: What can I know new today?