How to Manifest the 2025 of Your Dreams

For nearly 20 years, I’ve been teaching spiritual principles and the power of manifesting. Over those years I've noticed a common trend, which is that many people tend to overlook the deep inner work necessary for real and lasting change.

Manifesting has become buzzy and with that, oversimplified. The hard truth is that although we can make surface-level adjustments to our actions, true change can only happen when we heal from within and address the beliefs we hold at our core that block us from manifesting the life we desire. The negative beliefs from our past—our traumas, our suffering, our pain—are all replayed in the present and projected onto the future. Beliefs such as, "It's not safe to ask for what I want," "I struggle with money," "I'm not smart," or "I'm not worthy of love" can dominate our consciousness and become our reality. We manifest what we believe.

I get it—most of us want a quick fix or an easy method for manifesting. We want a tool for attracting romance, abundance, or success. The desire for quick change is understandable and it is even possible. That’s because manifesting methods can improve your outlook, your attitude, and your energy, allowing you to attract certain desires into your life. But once you attract what you want, can you keep it? Will you believe you’re worthy of it? No. It doesn’t stick because lasting shifts require genuine, permanent change—the kind of change that cracks you open to infinite possibilities and redirects your life. That change requires a deep dive inward.

"We cannot heal what we cannot see and we cannot transform what we won’t accept."

To create true and lasting change and manifest our desires, we must be willing to courageously confront and heal the repeated thoughts, childhood traumas, and core beliefs that shape the trajectory of our life.

You may be thinking, Gabby, how the heck can I change my core beliefs? I understand it may seem like an insurmountable task, but here's some good news: You're already taking the first step towards it. Just by reading this you’ve sent a clear message to the Universe that you're ready and willing for transformation and healing.

Even if your current life circumstances don't align with your deepest desires, trust this: You’re already on the right path. Witnessing the beliefs that hold you back from inner peace and a life you desire is the first step towards change. We cannot heal what we cannot see and we cannot transform what we won’t accept. The moments in our lives when we’re on our knees, struggling with addiction, going through a divorce, walking away from a career, receiving a diagnosis—those terrifying moments are the catalyst for our greatest awakening and transformation. They are the moments that open us up to the possibility of believing something new. They are the moments when we surrender enough to let Self help.

One night I received a heart-wrenching text from a friend that read simply: "He asked for a divorce." I immediately called her, and she bravely shared her pain as she spoke about her husband, the man who once fulfilled her greatest desires, now leaving her. Amidst her tears, she courageously acknowledged her own role in the relationship, recognizing the need for self-healing. With compassion and clarity, I responded, "This is your opening, sister. When you hit rock bottom, you have the opportunity to heal the core beliefs that block you."

Though my response may not have been the optimistic talk she hoped for, it was the truth. Instead of offering quick tips for manifesting a new partner or ways to persuade her husband to come back, I shared the most significant advice I could give her: Turn inward and explore the beliefs that hold you back from the love you desire.

Now, I offer the same advice to you. This is your moment—the major opportunity to heal your past and transform your future. Start now.

Take a moment to reflect on any fear-based or limiting beliefs that you carry. Do you live with an incessant inner dialogue of “I’ll never be good enough” or “No one will ever love me” or “I have to suffer to succeed”? Notice one core belief that runs the show in your life. How does it make you feel? How does it hold you back? How long has that belief been around?

I imagine it’s been around for a long time, maybe as long as you can remember. Likely since childhood, when you built up defenses for managing emotions. Open your mind a bit more and consider that this belief is like a defense mechanism you've forged over time; a way of protecting yourself from disappointment, shame, fear, or feelings of inadequacy.

Inside the pages of my tenth book, Self Help, This is Your Chance to Change Your Life, I reveal a four-step process for checking-in with these beliefs to help them heal. This practice is based on the principles of Internal Family Systems Therapy and will offer you great relief from the stronghold of the beliefs that block you. Here's how the Check-in Method works:

1. Choose to check in with a limiting belief that blocks you. Begin by consciously choosing to look inward.

2. Get curious about this belief. Close your eyes, breathe deeply, and bring attention inward. What feelings, thoughts, or sensations are attached to this belief? Where does it live in your body? How long has it been around? Let images, stories, or thoughts come. Don't overanalyze, just listen.

3. Compassionately connect. Breathe into the feelings for 90 seconds, allowing them space. Ask the part of you that carries this belief: What do you need? Listen without judgment, even if it surprises you.

4. Check in again to see how you feel. Do you feel confidence, calmness, clarity, connection, courage, commitment, creativity? Do you feel more settled and at ease?

If you experienced even the slightest inner shift or sensation of calmness, that’s enough. Healing happens at your own pace through inner connection.

'Self Help' by Gabrielle Bernstein $26

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A powerful way to kick off the new year is to commit to practicing these four steps every morning. Instead of checking out, choose to check in with yourself. By following these steps consistently, you can rely on compassionate connection to help you address and soothe the core beliefs that may have been holding you back. With each subtle shift, you’ll experience greater relief. By accumulating these small changes, you can heal your core beliefs and manifest what you truly desire.

Remember, you manifest what you believe. Compassionately connecting with your core beliefs allows them to soften, subtly shift, and ultimately transform. You have the ability to heal your beliefs and now you have a simple method to guide you. This is your chance to change your life.

Read the original article on InStyle