Does manifesting your goals really help to achieve them?

I remember reading some research about a study in the UK. They asked school kids to spell out their goals for the future. Some kids wrote them down and others did not. Years later they went back to see who had achieved their goals. They found the kids who wrote them down had a achieved more of their goals than those who did not. I wish I could find this study but I have never been able to track it down again.

Anyway, I find writing my goals down does help me to achieve them. I think because I am reminded of them when I look at the list. I don’t think it is about positive thinking as much as the list is there and is a reminder of things/tasks I have set myself to complete. Or it could be that I also have to send details of my goals to my bosses and they can see whether I achieved them too! Not having to explain why I didn’t achieve anything on my list might be the motivation….

As to visualising, perhaps do some research about weight loss? Visualising yourself thin is often suggested as a method to help people reach their weight loss goals. Not sure if it is ever successful. I can see myself thin in my head until the cows come home but I am not noticing my arse shrinking :D

Research has shown that writing down goals helps in achieving them.

Works for me. I write stuff down and revise all through the month, every few months and so on until I either get what I want or decide it’s not that important after all or for some other time. For me, it’s a lot of excitement to watch/make something get closer and closer and each time I’m successful, it kind of ups the ante as to what I think I can tackle.

Same here @Neizvestnaya. I write down goals for homework every night – it works very well for me. I wouldn’t call it “meditating,” but for larger goals I think about what it will feel like to reach it, and how others will be proud of me for reaching that goal. It makes me feel like I have a significant purpose in life.

Short answer: no. Long answer: noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

Studies have shown the best way to achieve a goal is to actually work for it, instead of just thinking about it. By all means, if you need some motivation, and visualising the way in which you’ll carry out your goal helps you: do it. But assuming that writing something down will mystically make it more likely is nonsensical.

Motivation is everything. However there is a fine line between giving up on something because of challenges vs giving up on something because of the realization that what you thought was for you really isn’t. We do have to have the motivation to at least find out what our goals should be to begin with. We won’t know until we at least try.

I watched a documentary once about a young woman gymnast training for the Olympics, when learning a new routine she would visualise herself performing the routine prior to carrying it out for the first time, visualisation worked for her.