The Power of Positive Thinking

"Your focus determines your reality." Qui-Gon Jinn, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace

Important life lessons, like loyalty, bravery and how to defeat a Rancor monster, can be learnt from watching George Lucas' Star Wars films. But can the teachings of fictional Jedi Master Qui-Gon (played by Liam Neeson) be put to practical use in the real world?

Currently, the opinion is 'yes.'

Because Qui-Gon's throwaway comment to young Anakin Skywalker actually stems from a real philosophical concept. The Power of Positive Thinking.

It was Buddha who originally said: "What you have become is the result of what you have thought." That's the philosophy behind the Jedi 'faith.' Ironic, really, since the Electoral Roll recently revealed that Britain now has more registered 'Jedis' than Buddhists.

Buddha's words were meant to teach us that our life and our destiny can be determined by only one person. Ourselves.

Whether you consider yourself 'born lucky,' or your path is constantly cris-crossed by black cats, the 'positive thinking' message suggests that we all subconsciously draw negative or positive energy to ourselves. The universe secretly grants us what we desire most - and if you're a gloomy person, those desires manifest themselves as the 'bad luck' you've already expected to befall you.

It's a philosophy called 'The Law of Attraction,' which has been a popular New Age fad since William Walker Atkinson first wrote about it in his 1906 book "Thought Vibration or the Law of Attraction in the Thought World."

Recently, in a piece of marketing genius, the idea has been packaged up as "The Secret," a pseudo-scientific book and DVD claiming that this 'positive thinking' message was coveted and buried by the Catholic Church and was the power behind great minds like Galileo, Einstein and Leonardo Da Vinci. It's a shameless rip-off of the Da Vinci Code - right down to the cover, which is very similar to editions of Dan Brown's book published after the 2006 movie came out.

Cynicism aside, I have grown quite fond of 'The Secret' since I heard about it. Whether you believe your thoughts can influence the universe or not, a bit of positive thinking can do us all good. And the crazy thing? I think it might just actually work. But not for the reasons The Secret claims.

The philosophy behind The Secret is simple. There are three steps. Knowing What You Want, focusing on Getting What You Want and Accepting What You Want.

Whatever you believe, undertaking these three steps generally leads you in the direction of your goals. Just like Qui-Gon Jinn told Anakin - your focus determines your reality - if you take a moment to focus on what you actually want (instead of flailing about in general dissatisfaction, like most of us do) you actually star the journey towards achieving it.

Do you want money? Fame? Power? Love? By focusing on what you feel is lacking from your life, you develop something to strive for. And one major source of dissatisfaction in people's lives is a lack of purpose.

So just by focusing on what they really want, people discover that their lives improve. Results, without having to bother with any of the metaphysical and philosophical ramifications behind The Secret's New Age philosophy.

The second stage, focusing on Getting What You Want, is another deeply practical suggestion wrapped up in The Secret's pseudo-science. Once you've determined what you want, taking positive steps to getting it makes your chances of achieving your goals that much better. If you want money, think about getting a better job. If you want love, think about meeting new people. If you want to win the lottery - go out and buy a bloody ticket!

And the final step? Accepting What You Want? Well that again falls into the area of psychology rather than philosophy. Some people are just plain scared of getting what they want the most. I know it - because when I finally got the chance to move to America two months ago, I almost didn't take it just because the prospect was so terrifying.

By focusing and visualising what's missing from your life, the Law Of Attraction will help you achieve it. And whether that's because of secret mystical energies, manipulating the fabric of the universe - or just good old fashioned focus and ambition - the results can often be amazing. 'The Secret' DVD is filled with anecdotal evidence to back up the philosophy.

Whether it works or not, one thing is certain. A little focus, ambition and positive thinking can benefit all our lives. Even if the Law of Attraction sounds like bunkum to you, give a little thought to what you really want and see whether or not you get it. The results can be surprising. As a Grade A Skeptic, I visualised a phone call from a potential employer on Sunday and, low and behold, I got that call the very next day.

The Secret DVD and The Secret Book are both available from Amazon.com.