Can you manifest career success? Experts unpack the pros and cons of positive thinking

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Long before vision boards filled social media, Oprah Winfrey stood on a stage and invited millions to consider the bold idea that “your thoughts become things”. It’s one of the most iconic lines from The Secret – the best-selling self-help book that catapulted the concept of manifestation into the mainstream – introducing the idea that we can shape our reality through positive thinking and laws of attraction. Thanks to Oprah’s on-air spotlight, manifestation became a cultural phenomenon. In the present day, this positive perseverance approach has an impressive following through self-help books, life coaches and social media – with the hashtag "manifestation" clocking up over 90 billion views on TikTok.

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Whether you believe in the power of positive thinking or not, the practice of manifestation has also gained a permanent foothold in the business world. With its roots in spirituality, manifestation has since transcended the mystical realm to take its place in the cut-and-thrust of corporate life – an environment that champions goals, aspirations and achievements. But can positive thoughts lead to positive outcomes? Is manifestation real? And can you use manifestation to shape your career? These questions led Dr Lucas Dixon and Associate Professor Nicole Hartley from UQ Business School to spearhead a research project investigating the pros and cons of adopting this belief system.

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Part 1. Magical thinking: taking manifestation to the extreme

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While manifestation exists on a spectrum, the UQ Business School study focused on the definition espoused in The Secret. They defined manifestation as a psychological belief system centred on wishful or “magical thinking” aligned with the idea of the “law of attraction” and explored how it helped or hindered a person’s success. “Manifestation from a ‘magical thinking’ perspective is an intuitive sense of belief in the power of your thoughts to just make things happen,” Dr Dixon said. “For example, people who practise this more extreme form of manifestation may act as if they’re already wealthy by saying positive affirmations, visualising money coming to them and even writing pretend cheques. “They believe these symbolic actions will transmit the ‘energy’ or ‘vibration’ of wealth, which is returned to them materially by a higher power.”

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The research found that while manifestation using magical thinking could generate optimism, hope, and self-confidence, its use warrants careful consideration. “This form of manifestation could be beneficial at the beginning of big goal pursuits,” Dr Dixon said. “If you think something is impossible, you’re not going to start, so it may help to have some degree of magical thinking to set those big goals in the first place.” However, he warned business leaders to avoid the pitfalls of this belief system.

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Tip 1: Aim for optimism grounded in reality

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“Followers of The Secret often believe the mind is the sole barrier and driver of limitless achievement," Dr Dixon said. "In terms of decision making, we found that manifestation belief was related to overoptimistic goal setting, attraction to get-rich-quick schemes and more risky investments. So, contrary to The Secret, perhaps most of us would benefit from more grounded decision-making. My challenge to business leaders is to strive to master the art of optimism grounded in reality and bold yet calculated risks. This way we can get the benefits of optimism, without the magical thinking.”

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Tip 2: Avoid toxic positivity

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“At the extreme, manifestation proponents claim that positive thoughts are the sole cause of positive outcomes, so negative thoughts cause negative outcomes," he said. "This thinking – apart from having no scientific grounding – presents many pitfalls. In our studies, we found that as manifestation belief increased, so did the likelihood of bankruptcy. If your thoughts control outcomes, then you may not notice or address external issues in your business environment. Or, if you avoid negative thinking, then you may be slow to acknowledge mounting debt, for example. A positive vision of the future isn’t sufficient for success. It needs to be coupled with thinking about and planning for what could go wrong. That way, when negative things inevitably happen, you notice them quickly and have the resources to address them.”

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Tip 3: Rethink the ‘positive vibes only’ workplace

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“The perils of mandating positivity and banishing negativity also extend to leading others," Dr Dixon said. "A ‘positive vibes only’ workplace risks missing important employee feedback if it’s perceived as uncomfortable or negative, which limits potential opportunities for collaboration and innovation.”

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Part 2. Perseverance and power: an alternative view of manifestation

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UQ Business School MBA Director Associate Professor Nicole Hartley co-supervised the research project with Dr Dixon and co-authored the report, “The Secret” to Success? The Psychology of Belief in Manifestation, which developed a Manifestation Scale for measuring an individual’s belief in personal power and cosmic collaboration. The researchers conceded that some people may have a softer view of manifestation as “transforming wishes into reality through focused thought, belief and action” and that this was more likely to help people achieve their career aspirations. This definition aligns with psychological theories of self-efficacy – a person’s belief that they have the power and capacity to act in a way that achieves their goals – and grit, which draws on personality traits of perseverance and passion to reach a goal.

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Dr Hartley suggested that business leaders pair thoughts and actions to achieve success. “Manifestation that’s built on setting intentions around desired outcomes that align with actions and goals is perhaps more attainable than relying on something happening because it’s in the hands of a superstitious belief,” she said. “Manifestation is a direction of energy towards what your actions should be at the end of the day.” Dr Hartley named 4 potential benefits that demonstrate the true power of manifestation.

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Benefit 1: A positive mindset

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“Positive affirmations and visualisations can make you more optimistic and hopeful in your outlook on life. That can build into things like enhanced motivation and resilience, which are drivers of goal achievement," she said.

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Benefit 2: Clarity of goals

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“Manifestation requires you to visualise your goals. Crystalising those goals and having a clear line of sight is a really positive thing for leaders and anyone who wants to succeed at something.”

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Benefit 3: Increased focus

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“By consistently engaging in manifestation beliefs, whether through daily mantras or visualisations, you’re actually focusing on what you want. You’re not teetering, you’re not deterred, you’re focused on your goal.”

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Benefit 4: Boosted confidence

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“Manifesting builds a strong sense of self-belief and confidence so you can start to see ways in which you can achieve your goals. The intentional actions you set in place through this confidence enhance the likelihood that your goals will be realised," Dr Hartley said.

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Part 3. Manifesting your career milestones

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Ryan Webb, UQ Business School’s Master of Business Administration (MBA) Careers Consultant, understands the professional power of manifestation. The MBA Career Milestones Program launched in 2025 to support students and alumni with their career aspirations. The program helps MBA students and graduates develop personal career strategies across 5 stages, or milestones: awareness, exploration, prototyping, implementation and leadership.

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It’s in this first stage, where participants are asked to reflect on their current career and visualise their goals, that Mr Webb sees manifestation playing a role. “I use the example of buying a new car,” Mr Webb said. “When you make the decision to buy that car, all of a sudden, you see the same cars on the road a lot more. Align that thinking to a career strategy; your clear articulation of what you want to do in the future starts to become your method of creating what wasn’t there before. Whether you call it manifestation or opportunity, you’ll notice business events pop up or networks start to formulate that can guide you towards your end goal.”

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While manifestation plays a salient role in career goal setting, Mr Webb cautioned that it must be backed by action to improve the likelihood of success, offering the following career advice:

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Tip 1: Unpack your current career strategy. Build your awareness around the value you bring and brand it accordingly. Even if you already know what you’re good at, if you’re not branding it clearly and concisely defining what your value proposition is, it becomes a missed opportunity for progress.

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Tip 2: Manifest or set your goal and work backwards from that point. If this is your goal, how do you put all the pieces into place to realise it?

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Tip 3: Believe in the power of incremental change. For instance, break down your first-year goal and set specific, actionable targets across the 12 months.

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Tip 4: Use the tools you already have to reach your goals, such as your alumni network or professional membership groups.

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Tip 5: Turn your career strategy into a superpower. Anticipate change, transform and keep setting or manifesting the next big goal.

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Part 4. Act like a main character, not a spectator: alumni share manifestation in real life

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Director and founder of Be Seen Socials and UQ Business School alum, Alexandra Murray, is a firm believer in manifesting to make your dreams a reality. She credits this strategy – alongside her hard work and business acumen – with landing a place on the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list in 2024. “One of my biggest goals was Forbes 30 Under 30, but I thought it was still a little further in the future for me, not something I would achieve at 25,” Ms Murray said. “One of the ways I manifested, which is so weird, and I feel like I’ve never said this out loud, is by adding a photoshopped photo of my Instagram profile with ‘Forbes 30 Under 30’ in my bio to my vision board. I like to manifest in ways that feel so realistic to me, and one thing I’ve always loved is seeing business owners who are public figures on Instagram having Forbes 30 Under 30 in their bio. Obviously, it was a metaphor for the bigger achievement of actually getting named on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, but manifestation is so powerful. I’m a huge believer in visualising that you can do it.”

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Importantly, Ms Murray’s story reflects the kind of manifestation that Dr Hartley suggests is more realistic – where visualisation is paired with focus, perseverance and actionable goal-setting behaviours.“A good idea is one thing, but your ability to execute, pivot and persist is what makes or breaks it,” Ms Murray said. “But you don’t need to know everything; you just need to believe you’ll figure it out.”

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General Manager of TwentyTwo Digital marketing agency and recent UQ MBA graduate Ashton Tuckerman describes herself as an unwitting participant in the manifestation process. “I’ve always been a visualisation person; I imagine myself doing something and picture each step in my head before doing it – it’s part of how I operate. I never realised that not everyone did this!” Ms Tuckerman explained. “When I went to the MBA information evening at UQ, they spoke about the program’s global exchanges and the opportunity to study at Harvard. And as soon as I heard that, I immediately visualised myself there and it became a tangible goal.”

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The marketing executive realised her goal, completing a leadership unit at Harvard Business School in July 2024. But it wasn’t just top-level manifestation that secured her spot in the course; reaching her goal was the result of an action plan, hard work and a lot of administrative paperwork. “If you articulate your goal, write it down, make it visible and known, then it’s more likely to happen,” Ms Tuckerman said. “Manifestation – putting the thought out there – is just the first step. Part two involves taking affirmative action to make it happen. Achievement rarely comes from putting it out there, sitting back and letting the universe take charge. Don’t be a passive spectator to your own life. You’re the main character in your story, and you have to play that role actively.”

Tim

I couldn’t have put it better! Manifestation’s a tool, not a miracle worker. Well, thanks for listening to another Momentum audio article. We'll have more to unpack in future episodes.

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Thank you! You can read more UQ Business School research insights at business.uq.edu.au/momentum. See you next time.