How to Get What You Wish For in 2024

Posted by Michelle Chappel on December 30, 2023 in True Self, Your True Calling | 2 comments

It’s that time of year when many of us begin making big goals for the coming new year. But a whopping 80% of us give up on our resolutions by February! So why even try? The problem is that we often set intentions that don’t align with what we’re meant to do in the world. So, they fizzle out.

Each of us is born with a unique purpose and a special set of gifts. But most of us stuff them down in the unconscious to fit in with others and forget who we truly are. When you remember your true calling, your wishes are likely to come true. It’s like Joseph Campbell said, “Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls.”

As much as my workshop participants say they’re ready to improve their lots in life, I am always surprised by how many don’t allow themselves to dream all that much about what they truly want in life. When I ask them to envision their ideal future, they often draw a blank. The funny thing about wish lists is that they work. The most difficult part of my job has been getting people to try them in the first place.     

Sometimes I wonder whether it has anything to do with the stories we’ve all heard about genies and fairy godmothers granting wishes. Have you ever noticed how these tales tend to end in twisted and funky ways? For example, I saw a funny comic strip the other day in which an old woman was given three wishes. First, she asked to have her tiny dumpy bed turned into a four-poster king-sized bed. Poof, there it was. Then, she requested to be changed into a beautiful, sexually desirable woman. Instantly her withered body transformed into that of a supermodel.

Finally, she demanded that her cat be refashioned into a handsome young man. Where her kitty had once been napping, a muscular Adonis now appeared. However, in the last frame of the cartoon, the woman’s face showed great disappointment as this sexy hunk said to her, “I bet you’re glad you had me castrated now!” Who wants to risk making a wish when the outcome is likely to be an unhappy one?

Rest assured, wish lists turn out much better than the typical genie story would have you believe. We can ask for more than just three things. If the first few don’t pan out, we always get more chances. I have to admit, though, there is a definite trickster energy to visualization. Just like in that old Rolling Stones song — “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes you just might find you get what you need” — setting intentions doesn’t always bring about what you long for, but it often gives you just what you need.

The trick is to ask for what you really want, not what others tell you you should want. This will align your goals with your true self and put you in a powerful position to actualize them. So, how do you find those goals? Imagine looking back on your life during the last moments of your life. What would you wish you had done?

According to Bronnie Ware, the top five regrets of the dying are:

1. I wish I lived a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
2. I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.
3. I wish I dared to express my feelings.
4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
5. I wish I had let myself be happier

If you’re not sure where to begin, ask yourself which regrets stand out as most important for you. Start creating your wish list with that in mind.

Creating a wish list is similar to doing a thought experiment. It’s about going for what you really hunger for and putting all the reasons you think you can’t have it aside. These aspirations can range from the material (such as a new car) to the psychological (high self-worth), to the spiritual (inner peace), to — well — pretty much anything we can think of. Whenever my workshop participants tell me they have no idea where to start, I urge them to jot down one or two ideas just for fun anyway. Once they begin moving their pens they are amazed to see that they really do know what they yearn for. The ideas may come in dribs and drabs but they always appear.

Pretend I’m your fairy godmother and I give you permission to be your most magnificent self. You look down startled to discover you’ve instantly grown a pair. (Sorry if I went too far here — I was feeling feisty.) What would you do next with this new bravado? What kind of life would be music to your ears? It doesn’t matter whether it seems unattainable or even downright crazy. Giving yourself permission to daydream about a rich and fulfilling life is the first step to manifesting it.

You are here on this planet right now for a reason. You have a unique purpose. If you think too small, you may miss the chance to claim the power of your chosen destiny. Comic Jim Carrey expressed this sentiment beautifully in his 2014 commencement speech to Maharishi University:

“My father could have been a great comedian but he didn’t believe that was possible for him so he made a conservative choice. Instead, he got a safe job as an accountant and when I was 12 years old he was let go from that safe job and our family had to do whatever we could to survive. I learned many great lessons from my father, not the least of which was that you can fail at what you don’t want so you might as well take a chance on doing what you love.”

You probably haven’t believed that the life you want is possible so you haven’t even allowed yourself to entertain it. Settling for less keeps you from discovering and owning your superpowers. When you create a wish list, buried aspirations resurface, childhood passions reappear, and things suddenly seem possible again. Why not own a ranch in Montana, or learn to play piano, or live overseas like you promised yourself you would someday?

This will be fun! Take a moment to reflect. Grab a pen or open a doc and write down seven wishes for the New Year RIGHT NOW. Get quiet. Be honest. Think big. What would you like your career, your relationships, your health, your finances, and your spiritual life to be like? Provide enough details for each entry to seem tangible to you.

Most likely, you spend a lot of time focusing on what you don’t want instead of what you do want. Look beyond the horizon of your everyday life and reach for more. According to Jim Carrey, ”What we really want seems impossibly out of reach and ridiculous to expect so we never dare to ask the universe for it. I’m saying, I’m the proof that you can ask the universe for it.” When you start to visualize your deepest desires, opportunities will spring into your life as if by magic.

Make it a goal to read your list when you first wake up in the morning and again at night before you fall asleep. That way you’ll be sure to do it at least once a day. I keep my wishes on my computer. The first thing I do in the morning is write in my journal. Then I fire up the laptop and look over my goals. Then, it’s off to work.

Can you think of a daily routine that will help remind you of your aspirations? I can’t tell you how easy it is to forget to do this. I’ve been guilty of ignoring my wish lists more times than I care to admit. Take it from me, you must make a habit of re-reading your ambitions to achieve your desired results. Otherwise, it’s just wishful thinking.

I promise this works, so why not give it a try? In my next few blogs, I’m going to share wish-list success stories and magic clues for manifesting the goals you jotted down today. In the meantime, congratulations on getting the ball rolling. I wish you a Happy New Year!

Next blog: The Magic of Making Wish Lists