TL;DR – This Isn’t About the Vision Board
If manifesting more still feels hard, your nervous system might still be in survival mode.
Abundance isn’t something you chase. It’s something you allow.
And the only way to allow it is to clear out all the old gunk that says you’re not ready, not worthy, not safe. You are. You just might not have been shown how to feel it yet.
You don’t have to have it all figured out. You don’t have to fix yourself first. You do have to stop bypassing the truth of where you’re actually at.
Do the work inside, and the outside follows. Every time.
Let me be honest with you: most of what’s taught about manifestation is a distraction. The journaling, the scripting, the high-vibe playlists — it’s all fine. But if you’re still ignoring what’s really going on under the surface, none of that’s going to hold.
I used to chase all the things — the money, the vision board, the checklists of what I wanted to “manifest.” But behind the scenes, I was burned out, disconnected, and faking alignment while secretly feeling like something was always off.
Here’s what I know now: abundance comes when you stop performing your healing and actually do it. When you stop outsourcing your worth to how much you achieve. When you stop trying to prove you’re ready — and start getting real about who you are underneath all that noise.
This post isn’t some Pinterest-perfect guide. It’s a direct, grounded invitation to get under the surface and do the kind of inner work that actually creates movement. Not just in your vision board — but in your nervous system, your life, and your ability to hold more.
Let’s get into it.
1. Know Yourself (Before You Try to “Create” Yourself)
Most people want to manifest a better life — but they haven’t stopped to ask who they’re building it for. If you’re still operating from an identity shaped by fear, pressure, or old programming, no new reality is going to stick.
Start here:
- Get honest about what actually matters to you (not what’s trending).
- Ask for feedback from people you trust — not to people-please, but to gain clarity.
- Notice what drains you vs. what leaves you feeling full — that’s where your compass lives.
Here’s what that looked like for me: I thought financial freedom meant building a big empire. But deep down, what I really wanted was peace. Less noise. More time with my family. The minute I stopped chasing the version of success that wasn’t mine, things began to open.
This is also where the magic of a well-crafted vision board can actually work — not as a cute collage, but as an honest mirror of what your regulated self is reaching for. (Related: How Vision Boards Can Backfire)
2. Do the Deep Inner Work
Manifestation isn’t about thinking positive and hoping for the best. It’s about addressing the energetic and emotional blocks that are shaping your reality by default.
That means:
- Sitting with your discomfort (not spiritually bypassing it)
- Looking at the root of your beliefs around money, worth, and success
- Releasing trapped energy in your body
Here’s the truth: I used to tell myself I was “doing the work” because I had a nice morning routine. But I was avoiding the stuff that actually hurt — like looking at why I never felt safe receiving help. That was the block. Not my mindset. My conditioning.
And let me tell you — doing that work doesn’t feel like a glow-up. It feels like grief. Like nausea. Like uncertainty. But it also feels like freedom.
This is the work most people skip. But it’s where everything changes. (Start here: Shadow Work Prompts for Deep Inner Healing)
3. Build a Nervous System That Can Actually Receive
You can’t receive what you’re not regulated enough to hold. Period.
This isn’t about forcing yourself to feel ready. It’s about slowly teaching your body that it’s safe to receive — love, money, rest, visibility, support.
Try this:
- Daily 5-minute grounding practice (breathwork, walking, or silence)
- Journaling to notice where you feel tense around abundance
- Letting yourself receive something small — and staying with the feeling
Real talk: the first time someone offered to help me financially, I panicked. My chest tightened. I almost said no before even thinking. That was my nervous system screaming, “Not safe.” Regulating didn’t mean I suddenly loved asking for help — it meant I didn’t feel like I was going to die doing it.
This is what we focus on inside The Collective. Because if your system isn’t safe, your desires will stay out of reach.
4. Gratitude (Not as a Buzzword — As a Nervous System Rewire)
Gratitude isn’t about faking joy when things suck. It’s about creating small openings in your brain that say, “I see what’s good. I trust more can come.”
Start with three simple things:
- What feels nourishing right now?
- Where did something go right today?
- Who or what brought a sense of ease or connection?
When I started doing this, it was in the middle of a season that felt like a total mess. I wasn’t grateful because life was perfect. I was grateful that I had five minutes of quiet. That someone sent a kind text. That my kid smiled at breakfast. That’s what helped me hold it together.
This isn’t about ignoring reality. It’s about expanding your capacity to notice more of it — the good, the soft, the supportive. That’s what abundance magnetizes to.
5. Align with What Actually Matters to You
You’re not here to live someone else’s version of success. The clearer you get about what’s yours, the easier it becomes to take aligned action.
But clarity doesn’t come from overthinking. It comes from embodied awareness:
- Movement
- Stillness
- Asking better questions like “What do I actually want?” or “What am I done pretending to care about?”
This came up hard for me during a season where I was achieving — but felt disconnected as hell. Everything looked good from the outside, but I wasn’t lit up by it. Once I slowed down and started listening to what my body actually wanted, the path became clearer. And easier.
Your life purpose isn’t a job title. It’s a state of being. (See: Key Insights for Intuitive Personal Growth)
Ready for a reset that’s actually worth your time? Start with The Manifestation Reset — a 10-minute nervous system shift designed to bring you back into alignment.
