PDF Summary:The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne

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If you’re skeptical of the book, try to approach it pragmatically in a way you can accept. Throughout this summary, we’ve taken the original book, which can be meandering and confusing, and reconstructed it in a way that represents a process. By understanding the steps, tools, and logic of The Secret, you will start to see how you can practically implement them.

You don’t have to believe every word of The Secret to benefit. Creating a more positive life through positive thoughts has little downside. If you can allow the principles to help reduce psychological stress, at the very least, you will have benefitted.

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Think of yourself as a human transmission tower. You understand the concept of transmission as signals sent from your television to a satellite. You turn on a station, and an image appears on the screen. This image is delivered through the frequency slated for that particular channel. If you don’t like the program on one channel, you change it. A new frequency is sent for the new channel, and a new picture appears.

You have the power to operate similarly through your thoughts. Your dominant thought sends the frequency signal to the universe, which sends that frequency back as a picture. In this case, the picture is your experience. Because energy returns to the source, the universe must return whatever frequency you send out, no matter how outlandish.

• All the things you want vibrate with energy. When you focus on something, you are causing the energy particles to shift toward your vibration frequency. That new energy composition now matches yours, and that energy will return to the source, being you.
• For example, if you want a new job, hold a picture of that job in your mind. You may feel the energy, or vibrations, that job emits. If you then think of...

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• Likewise, the Law of Attraction is always in tune with how you think, speak, and act. The second you think something, you create a thought message sent into the world, and the Law of Attraction begins to leverage the universe, through people, scenarios, and events, to fulfill your thought.

You don’t have to believe in the Law of Attraction for it to work in your life. Keep your thoughts positive, and it won’t matter. Positive thinking will always lead to a more enjoyable life, whether or not you understand why.

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To truly love yourself, you must focus on the powerful presence inside you.

• Find a quiet place. Sit and relax. Put your focus on the life presence inside of you. (If this doesn’t make much sense, just try it for a few minutes. Focus on the good being within you.)
• As you focus on your power within, you will begin to understand it, see it, and feel it more.
• Anytime you feel your critical eye scanning yourself or life, switch your thoughts to the power you hold within. Its perfection will become undeniable.
• Imperfections in your life will disappear because they cannot exist when you feel the perfection of your power within.

Barriers to Self-Love

People have three common barriers to self-love: their past, self-doubt, and sacrificing for other people.

The Past

To be able to find self-love, you must let go of regret, shame, and doubt. Holding those feelings inside taints your thoughts. If you can find a way to move past those feelings, you can find a way to be happy with who you are now.

Everyone has experienced difficult things in their pasts. There is a tendency to ruminate on the hard times in the present, focusing on hurt or...

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• For example, if you are deciding which of your friends to make your maid of honor, you might say, “I wish there was an easy way to decide who to choose.” The universe will conspire to send you the answer. It may come in a phone call that gives you some insight. Or it could be that one of your friends suddenly becomes unavailable.
• The only thing you have to do is ask. The universe will take care of the rest.

Step 2: Believe Your Thoughts Have Power

You must believe that what you’ve asked for will be yours. The moment you have asked, believe and know your answer is coming. What you want already exists in the unseen, and the universe has started to conspire to bring it to the seen. Have complete faith. The universe is a mirror reflecting your dominant thoughts, so believing you already have what you’ve asked for reflects back as you having received it.

• Take the spaghetti and meatballs order. Just like you wouldn’t order it twice, you also aren’t doubting whether you will receive your meal. You kick back with your dinner guest and relax. You believe and know that spaghetti and meatballs will soon be placed in front of you.
• If you believe you...

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If you don’t know what you’re feeling, ask “How am I feeling?” When you become aware of your feelings, you are aware of your thoughts. And if you become aware of your thoughts, and they are negative, change your thoughts until you feel better. Not changing your thoughts is like saying, “I love being angry. Pile on more anger.” Not changing your thoughts also sets you up for the feelings trap.

The Feelings Trap

Changing your feelings from negative to positive helps stop a negative snowball effect. You know what a bad day feels like. Everything seems to go wrong. You stub your toe, then you’re late for work, then you miss an important phone call, then you get stuck in traffic on your way home. Your thoughts may have been, “Can this day get any worse?” or “With how this day is going, I’m sure I won’t make it home on time.”

When you get stuck on a negative frequency and do nothing to change it, the Law of Attraction dictates that you will continue to stay on that frequency. You will attract more negative situations or events to your life.

• As your feelings diminish, a chain reaction is created.
• You stub your toe, and you think, “Argh, this day is...

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The channels that answers can come through are unlimited. Answers can come in the form of a song you hear while shopping, something you overhear in line at the movies, or something you see on TV.

(Shortform note: You’ve heard the phrase, “The universe works in mysterious ways.” Being aware of life around you emulates that sentiment. You never know where answers will come from. Even something in this summary can be an answer to a question you’ve been asking. If that’s the case, take a second to feel how amazing it feels to have your questions answered. Also, you’re welcome!)

Expectation

Expectation is the feeling of believing something is likely to happen. Expectation is a powerful state of mind because of its ability to pull what you’re thinking to you.

As we expect what we’ve asked for to occur, the Law of Attraction sets in motion the necessary components to make it so.

• If you expect to be promoted, that thought likely doesn’t come from nowhere. You likely heard of an opening in management and thought, “Oh, I want that job.” You daydreamed what your co-workers would say or how your new office would look. You felt the pride of sitting in your new...

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• Whether it is envy, self-pity, resentment, or feelings of lack, those feelings (as you know with your knowledge of negative frequencies) will only attract pictures that emulate them.
  • For example, if you want a new house but are ungrateful for the home you currently live in, your predominant thoughts are going to be negative. They will surround what you dislike about your current situation, rather than good feelings about what more might be out there.
  • If you want a new house, being grateful for what you do have will strengthen your gratitude for the more you will receive. For instance, you might say, “I am so grateful for this starter home. It has served our family well.” Then, when you ask for your new house, it’s not mixed in with thoughts of “this house is terrible.” Instead, it’s mixed in with thoughts of improving your already lucky situation, which will bring about lucky results.

As you start to focus on all of the things you are grateful for, you’ll begin to notice more things to be grateful for. The more you communicate gratitude with the universe, the more the universe will bring you to be grateful for.

Act As If

Any action you take is...

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Fat Thoughts

Your thoughts are more powerful than food. When you focus on food as the culprit to weight gain, your every thought is based in fear of gaining weight. If you feel guilty about eating a certain food or believe the food will cause you to gain weight, it will.

• Being overweight is the effect. The cause was the thought of being overweight, or “fat thoughts.”
• Everyone has a friend who eats what they want and never gains weight. These people can do this because they believe they can eat what they want and not gain weight. Their belief becomes their reality.
• Turn your thoughts from, “This will make me gain weight,” and focus on, “This food has no power in this body.” That is the reality the Law of Attraction will create for you.

Some people have been diagnosed with thyroid issues and slow metabolism, or they’ve been told that their body size is hereditary. When they hear these things, they start to believe that being overweight is out of their control. This belief makes it true. But according to the book, this is not the case. These conditions are fat thoughts in disguise.

You can use the Creative Process to attain your perfect weight. Simply...

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• If you’ve ever thought, “I can’t afford it,” change those thoughts to, “I can afford that. I can buy anything I want.” Say it again and again, and believe it.
• When you see something you want, say, “I can afford that. I can buy that.” Better yet, look for things you want, and repeat those phrases.
  • If you want to buy a Porsche, find the one you want, no matter how outlandish, and repeat, “I can buy that Porsche. I can afford it.”
  • As you say the words, you will become convinced of the truth of those words. That expectation will translate into new pictures the Law of Attraction will mirror back to you.

There is abundance in the world, and your responsibility is not regarding the how of money coming to you. All you have to do is ask, believe you are receiving, and feel joyful about having received.

Making Money the Old Fashioned Way

If you believe the only way money will come to you is by struggling, release that thought immediately.

• If you believe money only comes through struggle, you are emitting that frequency. The Law of Attraction must, by its nature, make that picture your experience. You will get a struggle.
• Instead,...

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Improving Your Relationship

If you are married or in a relationship, think about what you are grateful for. Show gratitude for the way your partner uplifts your life. Make a list of all the things you love about your partner, and show gratitude for those things.

When you focus on what you love about your partner, even during times of strife, the universe will give you more to love about them.

• When you focus on what you love, you start to show more love. That love, the most powerful feeling, creates a strong signal for you and your life.
• Sit back and be amazed at how many more things you find to love about your partner. Watch how your partner begins to show you more love, as well.

When you focus on the negatives about your partner, the universe will conspire to bring you more of the same. Every couple has arguments. Every person has a list of things their partners do that drive them crazy. But if your thoughts are always on those arguments or things, the Law of Attraction has no choice to bring more into your life to make you angry.

• Ever felt suspicious about your partner’s fidelity? Ever let those thoughts become obsessions or deeply felt...

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• Byrne uses the example of a statement made by Mother Theresa. She stated she would not go to an anti-war protest. But if there was a pro-peace rally, she’d be the first one there.

It may seem like there is always the same terrible story on the news, and why is that? Is it possible that society’s interest in and acceptance of flashy, scintillating headlines is attracting more of the same? Is humanity addicted to the act of resistance and has become obsessed with stories that trigger that feeling?

It is easy to become captivated by the pictures you see around you. But if those pictures are not of what you want, turn your mind to the pictures of what you do. Rather than resisting what we don’t like, focus on the opposite of what you resist. Turn your thoughts to what you want to happen.

One Universal Mind to Govern Us All

Understanding that every person and everything in life is governed by the same Law of Attraction, the One Universal Mind, helps to strengthen community and the world. We are all connected as part of the One Mind. Although we feel separate from each other, the One Mind is the umbrella over all of us.

The One Mind is everywhere, encompassing...

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Manifesting five dollars is no easier than manifesting five hundred dollars or five thousand dollars. The only difference is your ability to believe. You likely believe that attaining five dollars is not hard because it’s not a lot of money. If you can believe the same thing about five million dollars, you will start to believe it is not hard to attain, as well.

To learn how to harness the Law of Attraction, start small. Do a test run. Ask for something small and simple. Something you have no trouble believing can be yours. When you receive that small thing, move on to something a little bigger. Once you experience receiving something small, you will be able to believe in receiving anything.

As you learn to expect good things and abundance, you will begin to create a life that includes good things and abundance.

Time Is on Your Side

You can use the Law of Attraction to create your whole life in advance. Just as you learned to set expectations for your day, set the same expectations for your life.

• When you are leaving for a vacation and think, “This trip is going to be awesome,” you are setting the frequency for an awesome vacation. The universe...