"The Secret"

[Mephisto]

We've all seen those ridiculous little self-help books while waiting in line at the supermarket. They all promise to help you lose weight, feel better, increase your vocabulary, quit smoking and so on. They rarely make a real difference in anyone's life and their rarely require any deep thought. Well, there is a new "spiritual trend" that's making the rounds among non-skeptics and (as you might expect) even Oprah has jumped on the bandwagon.

It's called "The Secret."

What is basically "Positive Thinking" has been repackaged by a woman named Rhonda Byrne that has gleaned thousands of devout followers through skillful marketing and the notion that "the world's greatest thinkers" have known "the secret" to attaining anything you desire.

Frankly, I believe that ANY philosophy that preaches that you can attain (let alone, deserve) anything you desire is detrimental to critical thought, but apparently intelligent people are buying into this BS. Does anyone have any personal anecdotes or knowledge they'd like to pass on regarding this trend? Any input is greatly appreciated.

Here is some background on "the secret" and the accompanying philosophy of "the laws of attraction."

Decoding 'The Secret'

Oprah lives by it. Millions are reading it. The latest self-help sensation claims we can change our lives by thinking. But this 'new thought' may just be new marketing.

By Jerry Adler
Newsweek
March 5, 2007 issue - If you're a woman trying to lose weight, you had your choice of two pieces of advice last week. One, from the American Heart Association, was to eat more vegetables and exercise an hour a day. The other was from a woman named Rhonda Byrne, a former television producer who has written what could be the fastest-selling book of its kind in the history of publishing with 1.75 million copies projected to be in print by March 2, just over three months since it came out, plus 1.5 million DVDs sold. Byrne's recommendation was to avoid looking at fat people. Based on what she calls the "law of attraction"—that thoughts, good or bad, "attract" more of whatever they're about—she writes: "If you see people who are overweight, do not observe them, but immediately switch your mind to the picture of you in your perfect body and feel it." So if you're having trouble giving up ice cream, maybe you could just cut back on "The Sopranos" instead.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17314883/site/newsweek/

Self-help gone nutty

A craze called 'The Secret' blends Tony Robbins with 'The Da Vinci Code,' telling people to have it all without trying.

By Karin Klein

February 13, 2007

WHEN MY SISTER arrived from New York over the holidays, she plopped a hand-tooled leather satchel on my piano bench and said, "See the beautiful bag I manifested for myself?" Gorgeous, indeed. But manifested?

Well, I suppose that's easier than dealing in cash.

"Manifesting," for those outside the self-help loop, is the big buzzword from "The Secret," a new DVD with a tie-in book featuring the ancient idea of having it all without trying very hard. If "The Secret" had a plot, it might go something like "Tony Robbins uncovers the Judas Gospel and learns to use the Force."

The DVD is screened regularly at gatherings of the energy-healer crowd. The video opens with a "Da Vinci Code"-style shot: A man in a ragged tunic makes off with a hot papyrus. A voice-over assures us that an ancient secret, hidden from most of mankind, is about to be revealed. (Insert little conspiracy montage: A medieval priestly type privately unrolls the secret scroll; men in suits scheme in a smoke-filled boardroom.) Then motivational speakers take turns elaborating on this idea: If you want something, think of it with loving and positive feelings and it will "manifest." The concept apparently stems from the work of Esther Hicks, a famous channeler.

I never would have heard of "The Secret" if it weren't for my sister, the sort of person who has a spirit guide and professes to "massage energy." (Friends say the wrong sister moved to California.) But apparently it has found major cultural traction. It was featured on "Oprah" last week. The book is No. 4 on The Times' nonfiction bestseller list and No. 2 on Amazon (with the audio CD set No. 3). At my local Barnes & Noble, it was sold out.

Americans are never too jaded for another get-rich-quick chimera. In "The Secret," real and sustained effort is unnecessary, even frowned on. The scheme lays out a "law of attraction" — a strange misreading of quantum physics — that asserts that the universe grants your wishes because you are the "most powerful transmission tower on in the world." Send out "wealth frequencies" with your thoughts and the universe's wealth frequencies will be pulled to you.

Here was my favorite bit: "Food is not responsible for putting on weight. It is your thought that food is responsible for putting on weight that actually has food put on weight." It's a position that seems to have a lot in common with President Bush's ideas about global warming. Carbon emissions warm the Earth only if you worry that they will.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-klein13feb13,0,3953992.story?coll=la-opinion-rightrail

"You Are God in a Physical Body"

On the Self-Help Bestseller The Secret and Why You Suck
By PAUL CONSTANT

hen I worked at Borders, I came to hate Oprah Winfrey and NPR. The reason for this was simple: Both suggested books all the time—and every time a title tumbled from the lips of Oprah or Ira Glass, our phones would start ringing like a celebrity disaster telethon. "Do you have this book?" the voices would ask, and then thoughtfully add, "I need this book." We would always have two or three copies on hand—NPR and Oprah never recommend bestsellers, they create bestsellers—and we'd put those on hold for the people who had the presence of mind to call the minute that Terry Gross told them to.

The calls would continue for hours—sometimes, thanks to word of mouth, days or weeks—after the books were gone. The customers would become irate and inconsolable: "How could you be out of this book? This is a very important book!" Unofficially, we in the staff called them lemming books because the need for them seemed to be primal, unexplainable, and great hordes of people would do anything for them. Sometimes lemming books are important, but usually they're junk, and I'd guess that only about 30 percent of them are actually read.

The very latest lemming book is thanks to Oprah, and it's quite possibly the most shameful in the long history of lemming books. It's a self-help book called The Secret, and there's absolutely nothing of worth in it. In fact, it's that rarest of breeds: a potentially harmful book. It's written by Rhonda Byrne with the assistance of a supergroup of 24 self-help authors, including luminaries such as Jack Canfield, of the execrable Chicken Soup for the Soul series, and "Dr." John Gray, of the excrementious Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus series.*

The Secret is being marketed the way The Da Vinci Code was: All the world's best thinkers have been privy to a secret that has never before been revealed... until now. Now, free of charge, I will reveal what The Secret is: It's nothing more than the Power of Positive Thinking taken to an absurd extreme. Byrne writes that Positive Thinking works for weight loss: "Food is not responsible for putting on weight. It is your thought that food is responsible for putting on weight that actually has food put on weight... think perfect thoughts and the result must be perfect weight." And David Schirmer, one of The Secret's self-help gurus, claims that Positive Thinking works for life's more simple pleasures: "I would visualize a parking space exactly where I wanted it, and 95 percent of the time it would be there for me and I would just pull straight in."

They call this the Law of Attraction, under the pretense that the universe wants to shower you with abundance and beauty. Again, Byrne: "The only reason any person does not have enough money is because they are blocking money from coming to them with their thoughts." The Secret protects you from cancer and other diseases: "You are also inviting illness if you are listening to people talking about their illness... If you really want to help that person, change the conversation to good things, if you can, or be on your way." It will even help out that pesky Peak Oil problem: "Belize has become an oil-producing country because an extraordinary team of people believed in the unlimited power of the mind."

http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=170546

I'm anxious to discuss this with anyone having personal experience with "the secret," whether in favor of it or skeptical of it. I hope that several people IN FAVOR of this "self-help" philosophy manifest here to discuss their findings and allow them to be put to the scrutiny of skeptics.

 

[strathmeyer]

What about the MLM angle? Doesn't this effect how we judge this particular philosophy?

 

[Dancing David]

Old hat:

The Power of Postive Thinking ( by wossaname)

Creative Visualization (Shakti Gwain)

Magick in Theory and Practice (Crowley)

The basic theory runs like this,

you can changes in perception, changes in perception lead to changes in behaviors , changes in behavior lead to changes in consequence.


The rest is window dressing.

 

[Mephisto]

What about the MLM angle? Doesn't this effect how we judge this particular philosophy?

Sorry, I don't know what the MLM angle is? Could you please elaborate?

 

[Mephisto]

Old hat:

The Power of Postive Thinking ( by wossaname)

Creative Visualization (Shakti Gwain)

Magick in Theory and Practice (Crowley)

The basic theory runs like this,

you can changes in perception, changes in perception lead to changes in behaviors , changes in behavior lead to changes in consequence.


The rest is window dressing.

I agree. I believe "The Secret" is little more than a number of old "self-help" rules cleverly repackaged. The followers of "The Secret" appear to be somewhat vehement about their newfound philosophy and I'm confused why so many "intelligent" people buy into it?

 

[steverino]

I agree. I believe "The Secret" is little more than a number of old "self-help" rules cleverly repackaged. The followers of "The Secret" appear to be somewhat vehement about their newfound philosophy and I'm confused why so many "intelligent" people buy into it?

I wrote about The Secret on this forum last December when I'd visited some old friends in Tucson and was shocked that they were deeply commited to the Law of Intentions and shared the film with me. They held "Intention Circles" and even raised money for new "members" they labeled as "worthy of their help," code, of course, for worthy of belonging in their clique. I was ostracized simply for questioning the logic of this belief system, and was told I was negative and viewed the world from inside a little black box. It was not even as if they were against the war in Iraq. They simply felt that by giving it thought, they were buying into conflict. This could be a clue as to the Secret's appeal.

I believe the Secret gave my pals security and a sense of control in their lives. I am almost certain that none could find Lebanon or Madagascar on a globe, nor knew where Ahmadinejad lives. I was shocked that when I brought up the topic of illegal immigration (without inserting any particular point of view) no one had an opinion or much knowledge of this. REMEMBER, THIS IS TUCSON, an hour north of the Mexican border.

Mephisto, this sounds so cliche, but I say they are operating on "Ignorance is bliss." That's all I can make of it.

 

[Mephisto]

I wrote about The Secret on this forum last December when I'd visited some old friends in Tucson and was shocked that they were deeply commited to the Law of Intentions and shared the film with me. They held "Intention Circles" and even raised money for new "members" they labeled as "worthy of their help," code, of course, for worthy of belonging in their clique. I was ostracized simply for questioning the logic of this belief system, and was told I was negative and viewed the world from inside a little black box.

I've often said that I believe most religions are simply a way for humans to draw a line between themselves and others. It looks like those buying into "The Secret" are using it exactly in that manner. I believe that THEY are the ones looking at the world from inside a box.

It was not even as if they were against the war in Iraq. They simply felt that by giving it thought, they were buying into conflict. This could be a clue as to the Secret's appeal.

In my short research into "the secret" I've found some suggestions that, "if you're trying to lose weight, you shouldn't look at fat people." That sounds terribily elitist and downright discriminatory - almost as though they blame other's physical appearance for their faults. One of the (unbelievable) suggestions was, "if you like ice cream, you shouldn't watch "The Sopranos," (obviously because of the fat people). What a crock!

I believe the Secret gave my pals security and a sense of control in their lives. I am almost certain that none could find Lebanon or Madagascar on a globe, nor knew where Ahmadinejad lives. I was shocked that when I brought up the topic of illegal immigration (without inserting any particular point of view) no one had an opinion or much knowledge of this. REMEMBER, THIS IS TUCSON, an hour north of the Mexican border.

This sounds like a philosophy of "sticking your head in the sand." I wonder what they'd be forced to "give up" if they wanted to manifest being more cynical and skeptical?

Mephisto, this sounds so cliche, but I say they are operating on "Ignorance is bliss." That's all I can make of it.

And they're right, ignorance IS bliss, but only to the ignorant.

 

[Pup]

The basic theory runs like this,

you can changes in perception, changes in perception lead to changes in behaviors , changes in behavior lead to changes in consequence.

The rest is window dressing.

That about sums it up. Nothing new. But I'd also say that it's been repeated so many times in so many ways because it does work, not through any woo woo mechanism, but simply because focussing constantly and steadily on something keeps you always ready to take opportunities, encourages you to learn and apply all new knowledge toward reaching a goal, makes you consider everything in a creative way as a stepping-stone toward your goal, and so forth--almost without realizing you're doing it.

No different than the mental tricks an athlete uses to push through pain, stay focussed, keep motivated during hundreds of boring hours of training, or whatever. But it's the training that makes him win, not the mind games themselves.

I followed the older incarnation of the "positive thinking" craze as a teenager/20-something in the 1960s-70s, and found it a great way to accomplish goals--still do. I visualized retiring at 40 with enough money to live on the investment income, so I could do whatever I wanted, and retired at 31, because plans worked out faster than I expected. I wanted to find a particular kind of wife--that took longer, didn't get married until I was 31 (no coincidence), but avoided the usual young marriage and messy divorce because I knew exactly what I was looking for. It was love at first sight when he did meet, got married a couple months later and have been happily married for 16 years since.

You hate me now, right? I wonder if that's what causes some of the hostility toward the idea. Nobody wants to hear that they could do the same thing just by sitting around and visualizing success, or whatever. "It's not that easy."

Well, like the athlete, it's not that easy. It's the hard work and self denial that causes the success, not the mind games. The mind games just make the other stuff a little more bearable.

I haven't seen "The Secret" (uh, it's a movie, right? Or not?), nor read much about it, as you can tell. So I have no idea what good or bad stuff is being linked to this particular incarnation of positive thinking. But I'd say the basic core concept of visualization, positive thinking, focussing on what you want, or whatever it's being called these days, is pretty sound and not particularly wooish.

 

[steverino]

It's a movie, a video, you can buy. I am not sure it was in theaters, but maybe it was on cable. My pals owned the film. There is also the best-selling book. It's theme is the law of intentions.

http://www.powerfulintentions.com/

Let's be clear. If you are focused on a specific goal, you educate yourself, avoid distraction and perhaps certain temptations that might sidetrack you, you are managing your life, and there is a calculated cause and effect. That is different from holding a stone in your hand, "intending" it to heal, mailing that stone to a sick person in Africa, and that person placing that stone on his belly to try to remove cancer with its intended healing powers. This (roughly) was an example in The Secret.

If one wants to save the whales, and educates himself about whales, makes enough money to donate to whale organizations, etc., that is quite different from saying, "Let's not think about whales in conflict. This negative thought will cause their demise."

Just my thoughts.

 

[Ladewig]

you can changes in perception, changes in perception lead to changes in behaviors , changes in behavior lead to changes in consequence.

This stuff is different from what you and Pup describe. The Secret does not stress focussing your mind as you perform the necessary steps to reach your goal. The Secret is simply focussing your mind and expecting the goal to appear before you. Whether it is as small as finding a convenient parking space or a large as acquiring a million dollars, the goal is manifested by wishful thinking.

These folks believe that people who worry about commuter traffic will be late getting to work and that people who imagine not being struck in traffic will arrive at work on time. The universe picks up on your thoughts and creates situations based on those thoughts. That is not positive thinking, that is magical thinking.

 

[Dancing David]

That about sums it up. Nothing new. But I'd also say that it's been repeated so many times in so many ways because it does work, not through any woo woo mechanism, but simply because focussing constantly and steadily on something keeps you always ready to take opportunities, encourages you to learn and apply all new knowledge toward reaching a goal, makes you consider everything in a creative way as a stepping-stone toward your goal, and so forth--almost without realizing you're doing it.

No different than the mental tricks an athlete uses to push through pain, stay focussed, keep motivated during hundreds of boring hours of training, or whatever. But it's the training that makes him win, not the mind games themselves.

I followed the older incarnation of the "positive thinking" craze as a teenager/20-something in the 1960s-70s, and found it a great way to accomplish goals--still do. I visualized retiring at 40 with enough money to live on the investment income, so I could do whatever I wanted, and retired at 31, because plans worked out faster than I expected. I wanted to find a particular kind of wife--that took longer, didn't get married until I was 31 (no coincidence), but avoided the usual young marriage and messy divorce because I knew exactly what I was looking for. It was love at first sight when he did meet, got married a couple months later and have been happily married for 16 years since.

You hate me now, right? I wonder if that's what causes some of the hostility toward the idea. Nobody wants to hear that they could do the same thing just by sitting around and visualizing success, or whatever. "It's not that easy."

I doubt I would hate you unless you are God Send, and more likely i would just mock you.

I am familiar with the secret's foundation.

The point to visualization, or whatever path takes your fancy is that you no longer envisage your limitations, most people worry more about how they won't get something done rather than trying it.

The secret is this:

In the language of Crowley: the human is a little piece of heaven and a little piece of hell, the scenery of the play is yours to choose. Never surrender yourself to obsession or possesion because you are the one crucial thing, alive.

Or in the language of modern psychology: Choices ansd consequences.

Well, like the athlete, it's not that easy. It's the hard work and self denial that causes the success, not the mind games. The mind games just make the other stuff a little more bearable.

they can also be used to reprogram the way we internaly and externaly effect our selves and our enviroment.

But as they say: Row for the shore!

I haven't seen "The Secret" (uh, it's a movie, right? Or not?), nor read much about it, as you can tell. So I have no idea what good or bad stuff is being linked to this particular incarnation of positive thinking. But I'd say the basic core concept of visualization, positive thinking, focussing on what you want, or whatever it's being called these days, is pretty sound and not particularly wooish.

Some of it is also cognitive behavioral therapy.

 

[Dancing David]

This stuff is different from what you and Pup describe. The Secret does not stress focussing your mind as you perform the necessary steps to reach your goal. The Secret is simply focussing your mind and expecting the goal to appear before you. Whether it is as small as finding a convenient parking space or a large as acquiring a million dollars, the goal is manifested by wishful thinking.

These folks believe that people who worry about commuter traffic will be late getting to work and that people who imagine not being struck in traffic will arrive at work on time. The universe picks up on your thoughts and creates situations based on those thoughts. That is not positive thinking, that is magical thinking.

Well said!

Many people are given the tools and just abuse them. It is like having the flashlight of consciousness and just staring into the light.

 

[Transgressor]

I had to watch "The Secret" for one of my high school classes. It was pretty revolting, but at least I got to bash it in an essay.

Let's be clear. If you are focused on a specific goal, you educate yourself, avoid distraction and perhaps certain temptations that might sidetrack you, you are managing your life, and there is a calculated cause and effect. That is different from holding a stone in your hand, "intending" it to heal, mailing that stone to a sick person in Africa, and that person placing that stone on his belly to try to remove cancer with its intended healing powers. This (roughly) was an example in The Secret.

This was by far the most ludicrous part of the film. I mean, how many African kids died after their parents spent ten dollars on one of those stupid rocks? I'd imagine ten dollars could go a long way in Africa to buy medicine for treating some of the less serious illnesses these children incurred.

I was also mildly irked by Beethoven being mentioned among the list of historical practitioners of "the secret." I doubt he would have placed his "order with the universe" to contract syphilis (or whatever caused his hearing loss) and go deaf. Not to mention that Beethoven isn't particularly known for his cheeriness and optimism.

 

[steverino]

I know what you mean. Plus, "The Secret" movie flashed a photo of the Dali Lama. I thought that was misleading. I am skeptical that he endorses or supports this stuff. This is speculation, but he strikes me as having a practical side when dealing with poverty and helping alleviate suffering. The poor need medicine, clean water, money, and family and community support, not magic rocks.

 

[Ladewig]

The official website of "The Secret" http://www.thesecret.tv/home.html lists Albert Einstein as someone who transformed his life by using the Law of Attraction.  No, he didn't.   Mr. Einstein spent the last couple of decades of his life sincerely and diligently searching for a Grand Unifying Theory. Some biographers go as far as describing this desire as a consuming quest that occupied his thoughts until the day he died. He was not able to make the universe manifest his desire. Wishing for things is not enough - "the Secret" is bunkum.

 

[Mephisto]

That about sums it up. Nothing new. But I'd also say that it's been repeated so many times in so many ways because it does work, not through any woo woo mechanism, but simply because focussing constantly and steadily on something keeps you always ready to take opportunities, encourages you to learn and apply all new knowledge toward reaching a goal, makes you consider everything in a creative way as a stepping-stone toward your goal, and so forth--almost without realizing you're doing it.

No different than the mental tricks an athlete uses to push through pain, stay focussed, keep motivated during hundreds of boring hours of training, or whatever. But it's the training that makes him win, not the mind games themselves.

I followed the older incarnation of the "positive thinking" craze as a teenager/20-something in the 1960s-70s, and found it a great way to accomplish goals--still do. I visualized retiring at 40 with enough money to live on the investment income, so I could do whatever I wanted, and retired at 31, because plans worked out faster than I expected. I wanted to find a particular kind of wife--that took longer, didn't get married until I was 31 (no coincidence), but avoided the usual young marriage and messy divorce because I knew exactly what I was looking for. It was love at first sight when he did meet, got married a couple months later and have been happily married for 16 years since.

You hate me now, right? I wonder if that's what causes some of the hostility toward the idea. Nobody wants to hear that they could do the same thing just by sitting around and visualizing success, or whatever. "It's not that easy."

Well, like the athlete, it's not that easy. It's the hard work and self denial that causes the success, not the mind games. The mind games just make the other stuff a little more bearable.

I haven't seen "The Secret" (uh, it's a movie, right? Or not?), nor read much about it, as you can tell. So I have no idea what good or bad stuff is being linked to this particular incarnation of positive thinking. But I'd say the basic core concept of visualization, positive thinking, focussing on what you want, or whatever it's being called these days, is pretty sound and not particularly wooish.

I think you're a perfect example of how one can achieve a goal through determination and clear-thought. It's not because you know a particular secret, but more because you were wiling to devote yourself to attaining your goals.

The writer of "The Secret" would claim that your success is due to her secret.

 

[Mephisto]

It's a movie, a video, you can buy. I am not sure it was in theaters, but maybe it was on cable. My pals owned the film. There is also the best-selling book. It's theme is the law of intentions.

http://www.powerfulintentions.com/

Let's be clear. If you are focused on a specific goal, you educate yourself, avoid distraction and perhaps certain temptations that might sidetrack you, you are managing your life, and there is a calculated cause and effect. That is different from holding a stone in your hand, "intending" it to heal, mailing that stone to a sick person in Africa, and that person placing that stone on his belly to try to remove cancer with its intended healing powers. This (roughly) was an example in The Secret.

If one wants to save the whales, and educates himself about whales, makes enough money to donate to whale organizations, etc., that is quite different from saying, "Let's not think about whales in conflict. This negative thought will cause their demise."

Just my thoughts.

The woo BS about the sick healing themselves with "The Secret" is my biggest problem with the program. I've read that some people have actually given up medical treatment to "manifest" their cure. Needless to say, they're finding out that "the Secret" ISN'T a cure all.

 

[Mephisto]

The official website of "The Secret" http://www.thesecret.tv/home.html lists Albert Einstein as someone who transformed his life by using the Law of Attraction. *No, he didn't. * Mr. Einstein spent the last couple of decades of his life sincerely and diligently searching for a Grand Unifying Theory. Some biographers go as far as describing this desire as a consuming quest that occupied his thoughts until the day he died. He was not able to make the universe manifest his desire. Wishing for things is not enough - "the Secret" is bunkum.

I agree and would add that I (personally) think it unfair that the supporters of "the secret" are using Albert Einstein, Leonardo Da Vinci, Michaelangelo and other great minds to sell their BS.

Positive thought and cognitive behavioral therapy are not new, but this marketing ploy is - and it's sucking people into believing that they can cure dangerous disease (or lose weight) just by wishing.