Dream Escape: Visualizing My Best Life Led to an Inviting Retreat in the Maldives

Manifesting has exploded in recent years, particularly on social media, where the hashtag has billions of views. The Cambridge Dictionary defines it as “the act of using methods such as visualisation and affirmation to help you imagine achieving something, in the belief that doing so will make it more likely to happen.” Essentially: thinking your dreams into reality.

From celebrities like Oprah and Jim Carrey crediting their success to manifestation, to ordinary people sharing their “manifestation success stories” online, it’s become a cultural phenomenon. Critics dismiss it as wishful thinking or toxic positivity, while believers swear by vision boards, affirmations, and the law of attraction. The truth, I suspect, lies somewhere in between.

I first started experimenting with it a year ago. I’d just been made redundant and was feeling directionless. I was also very worried about money, as I’m the main earner. I wanted to write full-time – I felt like this was clearly my calling – but didn’t have the chutzpah to go for it. I’ve written five books, and none of them has offered up the financial rewards I’d hoped.

I started to think specifically about the things I wanted to happen in my life, then visualising them happening, then working really hard to bring them to reality.

Uncanny things started to happen – like I thought about how I wanted to do public speaking and started writing down exactly what I’d like to do. The next day someone emailed me with a speaking opportunity at an all-female conference in London. It felt magical, as if this was something that had come literally out of nowhere.

Fast forward to last month. I was going through another dip. Work was quieter. I was arguing with my other half more than usual. The kids were acting up. I felt overwhelmed and was struggling to think positively about anything.

So I decided to try a manifestation course taught by US life coach and author Gabby Bernstein. This one was called the “21-Day Trust the Universe” course. If anything, I was just hoping it would help me re-frame my thinking and be a bit less pessimistic. I also wondered whether the course would help me trust that good things were on the horizon, perhaps? And whether I’d be able to attract more opportunities into my life?

A month of manifesting

Each day the course offers a mix of audio commentaries, written exercises and meditations. In the first exercise we are asked to write down what we want to achieve, and I write: I want to feel more positive about my life and the future.

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I listen to the 10 minute audio each morning before I get out of bed and before the school run chaos kicks off in earnest. Gabby tells me that I need to think about how life would feel if I had more faith in the universe and things actually turned out okay. Weirdly, just after starting the course, I get confirmation that a writing assignment is going ahead – something that had been in the pipeline for a while, but I wasn’t sure was definitely happening.

Turns out this writing assignment is in the Maldives – it’s a menopause retreat in a magnificent resort. Is it just a coincidence that I’ve started the manifesting challenge and this has happened to me? Of course it could be a coincidence – and that’s the likely explanation – but still it fills my heart with optimism .

Visualise how you want to feel

One exercise I find particularly helpful is one where I have to think about how I want to feel. I am the type of person who is often overwhelmed by feeling. I rarely think about how I have some power over how I want to feel. By Day 11 of the challenge, I realise I really don’t want to feel like a castle under siege anymore. I want to feel calm. I want to feel joy. I want to stop criticising everyone in my family.

I visualise more revenue streams opening up, and then an old client gets in touch with a brief for some brand consultancy. The thing is we’ve stayed in touch so it’s not totally surprising that she’s reached out, but it’s the timing that feels perfect – as if I’ve conjured this opportunity up for myself.

Practicing gratitude

Half way through the challenge, Gabby asks me to think seriously about the things that bring me joy. This might sound trite, but it’s so easy sometimes to get stuck in the grind and the hustle. There is so much child-related admin that I feel like I’m drowning.

I write down three things: writing my new book (a fiction book loosely based on a woman who manifests a new life), visiting the sauna in the local gym, and quality time with the kids. Even this small exercise gives me a clear sense of what I need to be doing more of to attract more joy into my life.

Gabby advises us to ‘trust the universe’ and to trust the timing. On day 19 I get an email with the itinerary for the Maldives. The universe can be trusted, perhaps.

Filtering out negative thoughts

Things will unfold as they should. If they don’t, then there is nothing much I can do about it. I think what I’m experiencing is a certain level of detachment. It’s not that I only expect positive – no, it’s more that I surrender and don’t always anticipate bad.

By Day 21 I am actually in the Maldives. I know – sickening – but let me frame this by telling you that I never ever go to such exotic locations and am usually in the local park with my kids. I’m surrounded by an amazing, inspiring group of women. I have never been anywhere so incredible.

Since coming home I’ve tried to set aside a little bit of time each day to reflect on how lucky I am, how amazing the trip to the Maldives was. I feel a bit less frazzled and more in control.

The course has shifted some of the old brain junk and taught me to spot the good things that are happening. This has then led me to feeling more confident. I’m also more optimistic.

For me, it’s about re-framing the way you see the world. It’s about actively appreciating the things I have – acknowledging what brings me joy and what sucks my energy.

So am I a convert? Not entirely. I still think the universe probably doesn’t care about my vision board. But I do think there’s magic in believing that good things are possible, in getting clear about what you want, and in staying open to opportunities when they appear. Sometimes, that’s enough.