The Ultimate Guide: How to Manifest Your Dreams in Midlife with 5 Real Life Examples!
“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve!”
Napoleon Hill, Think and Grow Rich
Have you ever “thought about a friend you haven’t seen in a while” or “that you should call someone” just to have them call you the next day? If you ever say “what a coincidence, I was just thinking about you”…then you have already been manifesting on a small scale whether you are aware of it or not.
You put the energy and thoughts out there into the world and they returned…like a boomerang. Now it is time to learn how to ”intentionally” harness the power of manifesting to transform your life and achieve your dreams.
A side note about this article
Before we get too far into this I want to express that I learn best from example and that is how I like share. I will give you the quick run down of definitions, steps and the “how-to’s” but the real secrets and motivation are in the stories.
I will share my personal stories of getting what I wanted in life so you can get practical tips that have actually manifested into something. They are my proof that manifestation works. (see bottom of post)
Is it Magic? No. Is there science behind it? Probably. Are they blessings from God? I believe so and give credit to Him. I put my energy of thought out to God and I receive a response in the physical manifestation of my dreams.
So, first things first…..
What is Manifestation?
Manifestation is the practice of preparing your mind and body to receive whatever it is that you desire. To manifest means to take a thought or idea and create the result.
Essentially you are imagining the dream/desire that you have and are rehearsing the process of making it a reality. Example- one tool used in manifestation may be a vision board!
You dream it, envision it, feel it, live it, feel what it is like to receive it, ask for it, believe it is yours and take intentional action towards it…you are in essence already working for it and rehearsing the process of getting it in your mind.
You already have the blessings, that is why they are in your heart, you just need to activate them . You do this by sending out energy to God. He will receive your desires and manifest them into your life.
The Bible says:
Matthew 7:7 ”ASK, and it will be given to you; SEEK, and you will find; KNOCK, and it will be opened to you.
Matthew 21:22 “And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have FAITH.”
Mark 11:24 “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”
God has already given you the instructions of how to get things in life that you desire, you just need to follow His direction.
Why haven’t my dreams manifested?
We all dream about the things we want out of life, but a lot of people stop there. Those that lack faith tell themselves “they are just dreams and wishful thinking, but can never actually happen“ or “they are not realistic to achieve.” Stop there!
You can achieve all of your dreams and nothing in this world is impossible. You just need unwavering faith that they are possible for you.
Be patient and wait for your season of change to arrive. God put the desire in your heart and is already working it out for you behind the scenes. Just look at patterns from your past blessings and you may notice that seasons of silence/struggle likely came before the promise arrived.
I know in my own life that is very true. Read my examples below to see what I mean. I had clear patterns of feeling lost, unheard and almost defeated before my blessings finally arrived and I ended up appreciating them that much more. They were being worked out and I didn’t know it until it was presented to me.
If you lack faith or don’t believe in yourself or in the process then it wont work for you. You are then manifesting things not to happen for you. You attract the energy that you put out into the world.
The practice of manifesting if done correct can help you achieve your dreams…key words there are practice, done correct and help achieve. You need to play your part in manifesting your dreams.
Have faith, believe it can happen and do the work required. Manifestation is not a genie in a bottle or wishing on a shooting star. Work is involved to get results. Here are a few key steps to help get you manifesting your dream life.
5 Steps to Manifest Your Dreams During Midlife
Reflection and Gratitude of Past Manifestations
If you ask me there is nothing more motivating and hopeful then looking back on your life and finding moments to truly be grateful for. Times when you asked for something you desired or needed and it manifested into your life. Be grateful for those times and all that you received. They were gifts just for you.
The step of reflection is all about faith building and creating a positive mindset. When you are aware that you already possess the skill of manifesting the process of using it “intentionally” will be easier for you.
Your belief in the process will grow and therefore you will have more success. Life is not just a bunch of coincidental accidents, you have manifested things to happen and you will be surprised how often.
You will recount times that your desires came true and the role you played in making it happen. You asked and you received.
This is your first lesson. It can be done, you have already done it and your dreams can come true. If you are able to accidently manifest your desires, you can surely do it intentionally.
So grab a journal & a pen and jot the answers down to the following questions. Be sure to really reflect and try to come up with 4-5 different examples of things you have manifested.
What were your dreams and desires at that time?
How detailed was your desire? (timeline, amount, etc.)
What actions did you take to make it happen? Other than asking for the desire, what further actions did you take? (writing it down, praying out loud, vision board, bucket list, day dreams, applying for, creating something etc.)
How did you receive the blessings? Were you aware you had manifested the results? Did you think it was a fluke? Were you unaware at the time your prayers were answered? Were you grateful?
Important* Motion builds momentum, so taking the first steps in recognizing manifestation in your life will get the ball rolling to living your dreams.
Dreams & Desires
Now that you are aware of how manifestation has played a role in your life it is time to start intentionally using the practice. You first need to dream and dream big. In order to manifest your desires into reality you first need to determine what they are…in detail.
So pull out your vision boards and get more detailed on how you will manifest these dreams. If you don’t have one yet, read this article on how to create a transformational vision board.
In this step please don’t list something generic like a “tropical vacation”…NO! BE DETAILED! Be specific and descriptive.
Imagine you are there and really describe your experience. This will play a key role when it comes to the following steps of Visualizing and Action Planning. You are going to be asking God to manifest this dream so let Him know exactly what it is you want.
Here is a better description of the Tropical Vacation dream:
“My desire is to be vacationing at a 5 star resort in Hawaii with my husband. We are staying in a bungalow cabin overlooking the beach with majestic evening sunsets. My days are filled sipping Pina Coladas in a hammock under a palm tree beach side.
When I am not lounging on the beach with my spouse I am exploring the jungle on scenic nature hikes and taking in the beauty of waterfalls & tropical birds. I am enjoying every moment spent with my husband, while we reconnect our marriage with quality time together after many years of marriage and parenting responsibilities.
We are served our drinks & dinner, while being completely catered to and pampered. I am taking all of April to enjoy this dream vacation. We have $5000 saved in the bank to cover all of our expenses while gone and we have not a care in the world“.
Now that you have an understanding of how to detail your dreams lets get going. Once again grab your handy dandy notebook and start answering some of the following questions to prompt your desires or if you know exactly what they are start detailing them out on paper.
Where do you see yourself living? A new home or location?
What career or calling would bring you a sense of purpose?
Are there relationships you wish you had or could improve on?
How about your finances?…more money saved, windfall, income, zero debt etc.
Do you desire a dream vacation? A new vehicle?
Do you have goals to improve your health and fitness?
Important* Dream big. Remove the tendency to downsize your dreams to fit what you “think” is possible and while you are at it scrap the fear of failure. Anything is possible…just look at Governor Schwarzenegger and President Trump. Even outlandish dreams and goals that seem impossible can happen; so why not yours?
Visualizing & Daydreaming
Visualization is a tool that helps activate the process of manifestation. It allows you to use your mind (imagination) to try and feel all the senses that will be involved once receiving the gift.
You are rehearsing what it will be like to receive the dream, as well as the process that will get you there. It is beneficial to also try and predict any roadblocks that may pop up (such as fear of failure, lack of motivation, or external factors out of your control).
This will help you problem solve in advance possible solutions. It will also allow you to feel less anxiety because you have walked through how to deal with anything that comes up that wasn’t part of the dream. Don’t give up and push through to the other side…envision doing that and achieving your dreams is well in your grasp.
The process of visualizing builds up energy and creates motivation that will propel you to take action. In plain terms you are psyching yourself up to get the goal. You are physically reacting to your thoughts, therefore more likely to take action. You can feel the adrenaline starting to pump and you create a burning desire to achieve your goal.
Let visualizing become a catalyst to follow through.
How do you actually visualize your dream?
Go back to your dream description and rehearse it.
Go visit the place physically, sit in the car, look at the house, visit the work environment. Absorb it.
Record yourself reading your dream description. Sit with your eyes closed and envision what you hear. Activate all your senses in the moment.
Rewrite the story often in a journal…describe with detail how you feel, what you smell, hear etc.
Pray. Sit and talk to God about your dreams. What they are, why you have them, how grateful you are and what you are willing to do to play your part in receiving them.
If you are a visual person create a vision board of your desires and plans. Look at it daily.
Now that you have fully visualized your desire, felt & detailed what you want, thought over the steps to take and the roadblocks to anticipate… you are finally ready to make a plan of action. Yes…action!
Intentional Planning & Action
Intentional planning and action are just as they sound. The above example of thinking about someone and then seeing them…that is manifesting but fully out of your control.
You weren’t aware you were doing it or that it was a real desire; you just put the thought vibrations our there and it manifested. On the other hand, intentional manifesting is putting thought to a desire, visualizing it, manifesting and then acting on it. Very different processes and very different results.
If you can manifest without any real effort, why not do it the easy way? Well, you can go through life without a plan and may even stumble onto some success, but unless you are intentional with your desires & plans and take action you wont really get what you want in life.
I know this sounds like so much more work than asking and just receiving, but you need to participate and it will be worth it.
You reap what you sow! In this analogy you literally plant a seed. Now, if you walk away at this stage with hopes & prayers that you will have a great harvest you run the chance of disaster. It is possible to still have some harvest, but maybe it is half the yield or smaller fruit. The entire harvest is no longer in your hands.
However, if you water the seeds, weed the garden, ensure that the plants have adequate light and nutrients, then your chances of a great harvest are vastly improved.
So feed your dreams with energy & thought, be prepared for all the obstacles that try to interfere with your growth, time your growing season and ensure you have all the tools to tend to your desires. After all your hard work is done…that is when you pray to God to provide for you and your garden.
You have now set your desires up for success. Your dreams will grow and you will reap the harvest. Sorry for the garden analogy, but besides living with purpose my other passion is for growing food.
Now lets create the plan and get to work.
Look back over your notes and write down all the steps you envisioned it would take to achieve the goals. What internal factors are required? What mindset do you need, how can you develop personal growth, learn new skills or knowledge. What external factors come in to play like money or asking for help from others or higher to God.
After you have written out all the steps put them in order of when they need or will be accomplished.
Create a roadmap. Design it however you would like…a pirate treasure map, a highway road map, a chronological chart, whatever works for you.
Now plot all the steps on the map. If the entire dream is visualized to happen in 5 years, mark half way through the map with 2.5 years. This will create a timeline for you to follow and know your progress. Be sure to give a rough date for each of the steps.
Once your map is complete start at the beginning and take action…apply for things, network, learn new skills, build a business, do a workout routine, save money…do what you have laid out on your map. Continue to visualize and ask God for your dreams. Keep the focus.
Highlight small milestones. Celebrate the milestones that are fully in your control once you complete them. As for the bigger ones that you will need a little help with, pray and ask for help with those. Put them into Gods hands and let him work his magic with those ones and thank him every step of the way. Just keep plugging away on what you can control. Make note of when things happen. Was it your work or was it a gift from God.
Give Back.
Pay it Forward. Help others achieve their dreams & goals and God will provide you with yours.
Share with others how you learned to manifest your dreams and inspire them to do the same. If they have a dream and there is a step that you can help them check off, then help them out. With open hands you will receive.
Give to others, not with the expectation that you will get something in return, but because you know the power of manifesting your dreams.
You are manifesting a vibe of generosity and that will be the energy that comes back.
5 Examples of Real Life Manifesting
Here are some real life examples of how I manifested some of my dreams into existence. I have on occasion manifested some parking tickets as well, but lets keep our focus on the positive ha ha.
College Acceptance
So the quick version of this example is I was in a position that I could not get financing for college due to a previous attendance issue from years prior...I will spare the details because they are not imperative to the story.
So, after a few years of working full-time and some serious reflection on what I wanted to do when I grew up I had finally decided that I wanted to take Interior Decorating and was super focused and excited to get started with my adult life. I applied to a local program and got in, but could not secure the funding for my tuition.
So I continued to work full-time feeling it was never going to happen for me (serious lack of faith). Then the bug hit me…I really wanted in this program (unshakeable desire). I could visualize how much fun the courses were going to be and how great I would be in this field. I planned having my own business after graduation and becoming a wildly successful Designer.
With this reignited burning desire I then reapplied for financing and was turned down again because of the prior funding issue. So I called the student loan office and told them how bad I wanted in and that I was more dedicated & responsible this time around (persistence). I really emphasized to them that this opportunity would not be wasted on me.
Guess what? It worked! I was told to send in a letter with my pitch on why I should get a second chance and it was so convincing that within a few weeks I received funding and was accepted into my program.
My passion and conviction were passed through my words and I received my dream. I then went on to graduate with honors and loved every second of my time in that program.
It was my first real lesson in manifesting what you desire and that if you want it bad enough and try hard enough you will get it.
My Sweet Dear Husband
O.K. I know it sounds weird, but yes I fully believe that I manifested meeting and falling madly in love with my husband/soul mate.
On one occasion I was talking with my best friend about finding our future husbands. We both had just turned 30 and hadn’t had much luck in the finding a quality guy department. So we sat and thoughtfully made a list of the qualities that this dream guy would have.
I was very detailed with mine. Some superficial stuff like what he looked like and how tall he was, but mostly important things like what his hobbies & talents were (musician like my father), type of parent & husband he would be, his values (honest, respectful & a man of his word) and they type of relationship we would have (best friends, love sharing life together and with similar life goals).
There were well over 30 items on my list. For a split second I felt discouraged (lack of faith). How could I possibly expect to meet someone with all of the qualities on my list, maybe I should settle for finding someone that met 10.
None the less I kept my super long list and my very high expectations (I had a strong desire to meet this great guy). To be honest we also planned our retirement house as a bunch of Single Golden Girls out of fun because we knew it was a tall order that we were asking.
Well my 6’2 tall order entered my life a few short months, maybe even weeks later. It was out of the blue and every step of the encounter felt scary and huge to me, almost to the point I froze and backed away, a few times.
But something kept pushing me past my comfort zone and I am so glad it did.
I met him at his concert (super talented musician), he called me everyday at the exact time he said he would (man of his word and super thoughtful) and we connected so well that our first date was 18 hours long and we have been inseparable ever since.
He checked all the boxes and even added a few new ones I hadn’t even realized would be important to me.
It was a whirlwind romance and we quickly fell in love, got married and created our family. We have been going strong for well over a decade now.
Oh and whatever happened to my best friend who also made a list of her future husband?
This is the craziest part! She also met her now husband within weeks of this process and they are also still living happily ever after with their family.
Thank you Lord for my perfect husband and for not making me leave my bestie alone in our retirement villa ha ha!
My Dream Job in my 30’s
So after graduating college from the Interior Decorating program I quickly landed a" “dream job” as a Custom Kitchen Designer. The only issue was it wasn’t my own business and it wasn’t my dream company to work for.
I loved the job and helping people with their designs, but I realized I wanted so much more.
On my lunch breaks while working for this company I would go “hang-out” at a high-end furniture store. I instantly fell in love and wanted to work there. I would walk through the store on my 30 minute breaks very regularly (in reflection I probably looked like a crazy stalker girl or something ha ha) and then I would reluctantly go back to my job that existed in reality.
One day, with no prior thoughts about looking for a new job, I looked at the job board. I saw a very short job post with no details other than hiring for a furniture store. No contact name. No store name. No job description. Nothing to indicate where the job was, but something came over me in that moment and I applied.
I had this burning feeling it was for that store I spent my lunch breaks in.
In no time I had an offer for an interview. I quickly accepted. I got to my interview and low and behold it was for the store!
It was for a full-time position she was creating to help launch her new kitchen design department! What? This job seemed to be created just for me. I got to do kitchen design, interior design and furniture sales.
The role also included all expense paid travel to conferences and furniture shows, I got to make my own hours and I found a mentor all in one.
I lost my mind in the car when I was offered the job on the spot. I absolutely accepted and loved every minute of working this dream job.
This was another super powerful manifesting moment for me. It felt surreal and expected at the same time.
That feeling that I had, knowing it had to be this store, that was my faith.
Two Dream Houses In A Row With A View
There have been several occasions where I manifested a home to live in when the prospects were not looking great in the market. These are two occasions of doing so, but the difference with these two is that they were both dreams to live in these houses, as well as communities.
House number 1. My family and I were living in a small 2 bedroom apartment in the city and desperately needed to upgrade to more space due to our family growing.
We looked around in the city but quickly realized that our money wouldn’t stretch very far and we needed to adapt. My husband being from a much smaller city a half hour away suggested maybe we looked there.
I had always been adamant that I would never move to a city or town smaller than where I was currently living, but I was in love and trusted his judgement.
We went for a drive to see what the town was like and all I can remember was being completely underwhelmed…until we turned down this one tree lined street, filled with old Victorian brick houses with super unique characteristics. The houses were all set far back from the road that was lined with flower bed gardens and in the centre of the neighbourhood was a forested park and playground.
It was beautiful. I told him I would only move if it was to this neighborhood. So pretty much it was never going to happen because these were not the type of homes that were rentals or anywhere near what we had in our budget.
I decided to go along with the idea of at least seeing the market in this small city. I was having little luck finding anything available, so I created an add online looking for a family home, within my price range and that would be ready in a few months. It was a shot in the dark.
Like magic, within a few days I received an email from a lady in this town who had a home for rent, who had not yet posted its availability and we scheduled a viewing.
My husband and I arrived a few minutes early and the house surpassed our expectations so much we couldn’t believe it was the correct address. It was a super ornate Victorian home with a giant front porch, treed lot and stained glass windows. It was beautiful and the Designer in me had found her dream home.
We assumed it would be for a main floor apartment and were thrilled with that idea. Once the lady arrived she let us know it was for the entire home; all 4 bedrooms of it!
She walked us through and we were silent the entire time…slightly in shock how much we loved it and also in doubt it was actually in our budget.
It had original hardwood throughout, the entry had solid wood wainscoting going up the stairs that were open to the second floor with a giant chandelier and large wooden sliding doors dividing the living spaces…it was amazing and we both loved it.
We could envision our lives changing in this home.
We then asked the hard question of how much? Remember, I had created a post with my budget which she clearly saw and she gave us a rental price of $100 less a month and never increased it during the 4 years that we lived there.
The house was amazing and oh I forgot to mention that it was in the center of that neighborhood I loved and said I would only move to. We could see the park from our house across the street. It really was a dream come true!
House Number 2. About 3 years into living in house number 1, I obsessively began watching homesteading videos (as well as full-time RV living, but that is another manifestation below).
I dreamed of having sunny land for a large garden (we currently had a fully shaded yard with only a small space out front for a very small garden that mainly consisted of containers that I had to move throughout the day to follow the sun), I dreamed of chickens that laid green & blue eggs and some goats…who have yet to arrive.
I had dreams to become more self-sufficient by growing enough of our own food and preserving it. Neither were really possible in our current house. I wanted a Homestead and I wanted it bad.
My dream to own land that size was a long way away. We are talking in the millions and unfortunaley no matter how much I wanted it I didn’t have that kind of money.
During this time my husband was working out of town and had a really scenic country drive to work every day. He would pray on the way to work to live in a beautiful area just like he was driving through. He didn’t know how it would ever happen either, but he still asked daily. God please let me live out here!
My husband has also had some powerful manifestations (he attributes it to prayer) and had dreams of a Great Pyrenees dog breed…check, a German Shepperd…check and a field he could grow sunflowers in…check.
During all of my dreaming (manifesting) our current landlord informed us she was selling the house in two months. I know I had been dreaming about these new plans but I was still half a year out from making any changes.
We had plans to RV full-time for the spring and summer and then find our permanent homestead, but she needed us out for the end of November. We live in Canada and living in an RV from December through winter is not advisable, especially for newbies.
So we were forced to commit to renting another home until we could make our RV dreams a reality when the timing was right. We searched and searched and could not find a house that didn’t already have 50 other applications on it and we could not qualify for a mortgage large enough at the time on one income for us to buy in the rapidly increasing housing market.
It was very discouraging and I would have shut it out of my mind if it weren’t for the constant reminders of our impending homelessness from all the viewings of our house the owner was having with a local real estate agent.
In one weak moment, I cracked and let the real estate agent know how stressful the process was, how there was no where for us to go in this extremely competitive rental market and that I was devastated to have to leave this house and neighborhood. Side note, sharing or complaining about my hardships is out of character for me, especially to a total stranger. I think in that moment I hoped she would agree it wasn’t fair and stop the selling process and let us stay in this house until we were ready to leave…I was praying for a miracle.
To my surprise she told me that she had word of a farmhouse for rent near my husbands work that had not been listed yet (again). It was a 4 bedroom 2 acre farm/homestead with a chicken coop and enough sunlight and space for a garden of my dreams.
There were only 5 applications that came in because it was a real estate listing and not for the general public. She then reinforced to the owners that we were a great young family, who took great care of our last home that we were in and really did what she could to get us this house, even with only meeting us a handful of times. She went above and beyond for us.
We also wrote a letter to the homeowners basically letting them know why we were the best choice for the house.
We then started driving past the house when we could to look at our “future” farm. We were excited by the prospect and prayed hard everyday to receive this house.
We ended up getting it! We moved in at the end of November 2019 and as soon as we were settled in the pandemic hit.
What seemed like a giant set back from not being able to RV fulltime and having to move right before Christmas ended up being a huge blessing. Things would have been really tough for us if this move didn’t happen when it did. Not to mention the fact that rental prices pretty much doubled right after we secured our fantastic deal.
The lesson here for us was no matter the outlook your blessings are still on their way and there is always a silver lining.
Our Home On The Road
Oh my RV dreams! I am not even sure how this dream came about. I was wrapped up in watching homesteading videos on YouTube for a very long time and I must have come across videos with full-time Rver’s and thought yes I would like to live in a super tiny house on wheels with my family of 8 ha ha.
O.K. So this dream is only half fulfilled but I know it will happen for me.
As I mentioned I was watching a lot of YouTube videos on RV renovations, travel, living full-time and remote working. So I concocted a plan of how we would live this lifestyle, now I just needed to sell it to my husband.
The first few attempts he did not buy it. Then I really planned out every detail, I sold living on a horse ranch as a travel job, house sitting in the colder months and making & selling my crafts to help pay the way as well. Sell everything and bank the money was the idea.
It wasn’t until he was in a negative space at work that this became much more appealing and he agreed (but it did take a few years of convincing).
So now the first major step was to buy an RV. Where will the money come from? We had no savings and our credit wasn’t super fantastic to secure a loan on an RV (which is one of the tougher loans to secure).
It really was wishfull thinking on my part. We decided that the best option for us would be a Class A motorhome, price range around 50K…no biggie right? Sometimes I wonder where I get these outlandish ideas…go big or go home seems to be my motto in life.
So now we needed 50K just to get started not to mention even live off of while on the road. So I started emailing people on buy & sell groups to see if anyone out there would be interested or willing to take payments to help fund my dream…unfortunately that didn’t pan out but I got a lot of well wishes on my journey from people.
We then decided to apply for a loan through a dealership and were told we would qualify with a cosigner..so we pitched our family our dream of horse ranches, mountain views and the childhood of adventure for our children and my husbands mother saw the dream, believed in it and cosigned the loan. We are now the proud owners of a 37’ giant home on wheels!
Now, to make this story a little more interesting lets throw a few wrenches in the pot now that we have the addition of this loan.
The very same afternoon that we were approved for the loan and were contacting a seller my husband lost his job…the very same day! I wasn’t letting this dream go…so with all fair warning we continued on with the loan. We bought the RV and went on our very first short little weekend trip. It was great. I could not wait to be on the road full-time. This was meant to be and I had the bug for sure.
After we got home and parked the RV the city decided it was great timing to tear up our road and leave a giant crater at the end of our driveway for the rest of the summer. We could get out with our car but our RV was stranded for the remainder of the season.
The original plan was to work and save through the winter, sell everything, arrange the ranch work and leave that April once the snow melted. Well as mentioned above in my dream houses example, our landlord didn’t get the memo of our timeline and needed us out November so she could sell. We were not prepared to live in the RV during the winter.
So our plans came crashing down for the time being….we ended up getting the farmhouse, which was also a dream of ours and parked the RV outside for me to look at and daydream of what could have been.
Luckily for us, this was all a blessing in disguise. Covid came and stopped the world…restaurants, camp grounds, everything. We would have been stranded out on the road and it would have been horrible.
We still have the RV and use it every summer for family road trips. We also have a dream to buy land, build our own homestead and our RV will be temporary living for us while we do this. All was not wasted. I also still plan on taking a summer road trip cross country to get the experience I longed for of living on the road.
The lessons here are many. Be careful what you manifest because you may just get it whether you are ready or not. God sets the timing and it is your job to look for the signs & adapt your dreams.
I hope my examples of manifesting my dreams has helped inspire you to go for yours. Please share your own personal examples in the comments section below.Anything is achievable.
Thanks for reading!