The Secret is No Secret

The book starts out with a Personalized account of how Rhonda Bryne became introduced to the secret, via a 100 year old book, and why she wrote the book. Ms. Bryne does not yet mention the book she read. She continues to mention she researched the secret without mentioning the name of the secret, I'm sure it wasn't always called the secret. She has turned books like Dr. Vincent Peele's book the Power of Positive Thinking, into a mystical and secretive marketing sensation.

Motivational speakers have been touting the visualize what you want and you will get it message for years. The Bible, the best selling book of all time, preaches this message throughout it pages, the most famous passage -- "Ask and Ye Shall Receive." (Matthew 22:21). No secret revealed so far.

Rhonda Bryne gives accounts of people using the secret to overcome illness and to gain good marks and money. As one business motivational speaker says, "you are what you think about most of the time." What this means is if you think about something lots, you are passionate about it and act on it. By thinking about getting good grades you start to study and wow guess what you get good grades. By changing your thinking from self pity and fixating on illness to health and feeling good, you start to take steps to that end. You will automatically start to eat better because you are choosing to. You are thinking about being one way, you really want to be that way, and you start to act that way.

No secret so far.......

So far, the Secret is not your average book, it takes the whole mystic feel of the movie into its pages. Wording is exactly the same. The whole chapter is a collection of quotes by people who proffess to benefit from the secret.

First Page and I am astounded by the claims Ms. Bryne and her contributors are making. She names a number of famous people who knew the law, then lists all the religions and ancient civilizations that wrote about the law and how its always been there. It has always been there for whoever wanted to know about the secret: the law of attraction.

"The Law began at the beginning of time. It has always been and will always be." p.5

According to the book, the Law of Attraction determines the complete order of the universe and everything you experience. You are the one who calls the Law into action through your thoughts.

"In 1912 Charles Haanel described the law of attraction as the greatest and most infallible law upon which the entire system of creation depends." p. 5

The claim Ms. Bryne is making is that the law of attraction is Creation and only acts upon the thoughts of man.

Ms. Bryne then turns your attention toward how those who are wealthy are so because they think they are. This has been touted by those who have researched why millionaires are millionaires, the first of which was Napoleon Hill in his book, 'Think and Grow Rich.' These people are not wealthy because they just sit around and think, I'm wealthy, and voila they are wealthy. The main thought these people have is based on wealth and the lifestyle it provides them. They then ACT upon these thoughts and earn the money to gain the lifestyle they visualize as being acceptible to them. This is one of many characteristics attributed to those of wealth.

The chapter then jumps... to be continued in Chapter one part 2.

The the chapter jumps to how if you are miserable it is because you have negative thoughts and attract that which you don't want. This isn't a secret either. If you focus on that which is bad in your life you won't see the good stuff or you will minimalize the good stuff. It's how you choose to view your life, not really a matter of attracting anything to it.

Then while you are distracted thinking about these two concepts they come back to the Law of Attraction being Creation. Sorry to be all over the place, but the chapter itself is and I wanted to make a point by staying with the thought process Ms. Bryne is leading the reader with. Because right after looking at how the universe removes negative from sentence structure the next paragraph says:

"The law of attraction is the law of creation. Quantum physicists tell us that the entire Universe emerged from thought! You create your life through your thoughts and the law of attraction, and everty single person does the same. It doesn't just work if you know about it. It has always been working in your life and every other person's life throughout history. When you become aware of this great law, then you become aware of how incredibly powerful you are, to be able to THINK your life into existence." p.15

The next paragraph tells you that you are always thinking, whether you know it or not you are always thinking.

WHAT... Not only is Rhonda Bryne all over the place with no coherant structure. She is slipping huge philosophical statements into the middle to hide the huge claims these statements are making. What they are saying is that the Law of Attraction always was and always will be, created the universe and all of creation. That the Law of Attraction only works on our thought and that we created our own exhistance and the universe. In essense Rhonda Bryne and those contributing to The Secret are saying, there is no 'GOD' in the traditional sense because we are God.

To remove the impact of the statements and to try and mitigate the shock she keeps the reader going back and forth between what the reader wants from the book and the statement the writer is making about God.

The thought process of Rhonda Bryne is hard to follow as it is incomplete and all over the place. One second she is talking about creation the next how we are like television transmitters, then all of sudden about how the wealthy think and how thinking negatively brings negative then back to creation and then to meditation and then to positive thinking. My head now hurts just trying to comprehend what I was reading.

I must say this book is one heck of a marketing piece. I don't understand how Oprah attached herself to it. I get that she'd be for the positive thinking and overcoming the negatives in life, but all this other new age metaphysical stuff isn't how I perceived Oprah to be. If it wasn't for Oprah, this book would be considered a new age book and not a best seller. I'll continue with Chapter two another day, until then your comments would be appreciated please provide them.

So the secret is that we are gods and we created the universe and our exhistence with law of attraction thrown in for good measure. I'll have to continue to find out.....

Chapter two of The Secret, starts out with stating that you have complete control over everything that happens to you even the really bad stuff like 9/11. Although I agree that evil in the world is a result of consequences of choices humanity, as a whole, has made. I don't think that everyone in the twin towers had persistant thoughts of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Since the end of WW II the American Media and Politicians are constantly stirring up the fears of Americans about the outside evils, ie Cold War, Terrorism. In all that time the only attack on American soil was 9/11. There were lots of bunkers built to survive a nucular attack, but they have never been used for that purpose, thank God. The Secret is touting if you build it, it will happen.... I hope their wrong.

Then it jumps to knowing how you feel and you need to feel good all the time in order for good things to happen all the time. So if someone dies we have to think happy thoughts so no one else dies? Chances are that's not what Rhonda Bryne meant but she doesn't explain what she mean either leaving it up to constant interpretation by the reader.

The whole chapter has a very self oriented attitude where you need to be in constant awareness of your 'self'. Life is all about you, your thoughts, your feelings, your wants and through these you create the world around you.

Every day you make choices and those choices have consequences. Some consequences are bad, others are good, still others are amazing. Take responsibility for all the choices you've made so far and where they have landed you in life. Now make the choice to start over and to make better choices in the future.

Making excuses for yourself and passing blame off to others doesn't get you anywhere, maybe a middle management position. Leaders and those whom the Secret look to as examples of the Secret have taken control of their lives. By being a positive influence and making concious positive choices they have made themselves what they are, successful.

The Secret isn't a Secret, it has been touted by motivational speakers, writers, religions, trainers, entrepreneurs, business tycoons and more. It is knowing what you want, having a clear understanding of exactly what you want, coming up with a plan and making the concious choice to act in a manner as to achieve it. Nothing metaphysical about it, just attitude, clear goals and good old hard work.

Let the Law of Attraction help you on the Path to Healthy Livingor Anything you want to Achieve

Would you like to improve your health and boost your immune system? Would you like to lose weight or overcome an illness? Would you like to be the kind of person who loves exercise and meditation? Would you like more abundance and joy in your life?

The fact is, you get what you think about, whether you want it or not. Take a moment to examine what you think about all day.

Most people have a running dialogue in their head that never stops. Studies have shown that the average person has over 60,000 different thoughts in one day. What most people don't realize is the power of thought to create our lives and our future.

How to use the Law of Attraction - Create the life you want, one moment at a time

The biggest secret to creating the life you want is not really about making lists of goals to focus on or doing affirmations. The simplest way to create the life you want in the future is to focus on the present moment and feel happiness, joy, love, peace, whatever you want your life to be in the future. Whatever you want in your future, you MUST create it now because these emotions are projected into the future, creating more of what you feel at this moment.

When I say stay in the present, it doesn't mean don't think about the future or plan for the future. It's fine to plan for the future as long as you attend first to your emotions in the present. Whatever your worries, you need to try to drum up calm and joy as emotions for this present moment. The calm and joy you feel in the present moment projects into your future and brings you things to feel more happiness and joy about. But those feelings have to start in the present moment. It's the only one you really have.

It isn't the thoughts (like planning or thinking of paying bills or visualizing the perfect job) that are important, it's the feelings and emotions. In this moment, think of the emotions that are most beneficial to the present AND the future. What do you want to be creating more of in the future? Fear, Worry, Anxiety, Resentments? I would think joy and calm and peace would be more beneficial to your present AND your future so this is what you need to feel RIGHT NOW. If you create it now you are also creating it for the future.

Even if you're worrying about paying the rent, for instance, you can still

control your feelings and emotions in the present moment. You always have control of your thoughts and feelings, you always have a choice.

Whatever your worries, open to the Universe to show you a way - perhaps a way you hadn't thought of. If we ask the Universe to help us and then we proceed to hold on to the problem emotionally, figuring out how WE can solve it, then the Universe figures "OK, you're intent on solving this yourself so I don't need to do it for you."

You can take the practical steps to create the income you need or the life you want but also tell the Universe "I'm giving this over to you so if you send me

another way, let me see it. If there's another way to do this, I'm open to

that."

Maybe while feeling peace and calm and joy, you can throw in "I know the

Universe is there for me, providing help and support. I have nothing to fear

because I am not alone."

Quantum Physics Supports the Law of Attraction

Quantum physics has proven that thoughts have energy and the vibration of our thoughts can influence the future and our reality. If you think a thought, you emit a certain vibration and by the law of attraction, you receive experiences back into your life that match your vibration.

The Law of Attraction is based on the concept that like attracts like. If you get out of bed in the morning and stub your toe, you could begin thinking "this is going to be a terrible day! I have so many stressful things going on today, I'll probably be late for work, my boss will yell at me and my kids will fight when I get home! Today is sure to be a rotten day."

By the Law of Attraction you have set into motion attracting people, situations and negative energy that is going to bring that day to your reality. Negative thought attracts more negative thought.

Use the Law of Attraction to Create your Day

For the Rest of the Law of Attraction Article and other Law of Attraction Resources

Well, until I get to this chapter......

May I suggest you read:

Rich Dad Poor Dad
The Wealthy Barber
The Richest Man in Babylon

There are lots of good sound financial planning books out there that have good practical advice....

We'll see if the Secret is one of Them.

The lesson that everyone can benefit from is to think positive. Focus on that which is good and find the silver lining in that which is bad. By doing so you will be happier and see more good in your life.

Will you always get a perfect parking spot? Will only cheques come in the mail? It is all in how you view it and what you make of it. Open your eyes and mind to the possibilities and see what happens? All you have to loose is a negative attitude.

The secret is all about positive thinking and reaping the rewards of visualization. So how can you start to enhance your life using these two important lessons from the Secret book?

1. Make a list of all your blessings
2. Remember that even your worst day is 1000 times better than 95% of the world's populations best day.
3. Always remember that things work themselves out
4. Find the positive in every negative - it's there you just have to find it, then focus on it.
5. Stop complaining
6. Stop listening to other people complain**
7. Thank God every day for all the great things that happened
8. Stop focusing on what you WANT and focus on what you HAVE
9. Stop trying to keep up with the Jones'
10. Have positive role models and positive celebrities to emulate.

**By stop listening to others complain, I mean those that find constant stress, negativity, and shortcomings about everyday life and don't really want help to change it. Still be there for those around you who really need your help and be there to listen to their hardships.

Why the recycle symbol? Because what goes around comes around, start with positive attitude and it will pass on to others until it reaches you again.