That Time I Manifested a Glazed Donut

or "Confessions of a Closet Optimist."

Yep, I manifested a real donut. And not one of those generic grocery store brands or vending machine ones that crumble once you crack open the cellophane. No, I manifested a fresh, warm, glazed yeasty delicious ring of dough. More about the pastry from thin air in a moment, but first: manifesting business results.

A dear friend called a while back and asked if I could help her with her digital marketing. So thrilled with the results, she wanted to return the favor. She told me all about the manifesting. "The Law of Attraction," "The Secret," and the like all have manifestation at their core. In short, the practice of how one could "wish" things true. Her discourse on Manifesting 101 immediately followed including a lesson on how to manifest anything or - anyone - I wanted.

"What do you want to manifest?," she asked.

"I have what I need," I said, "though I'd love to sell one of my film scripts."

Now this may come as a shock, but native New Yorkers are not always the most optimistic people in the room *pauses for gasps of surprise*. OK, so it's not that we're all pessimistic - we're just very realistic. Or to put it colloquially, most of us can spot a snake oil salesman coming down Broadway. Needless to say, I was more than a bit skeptical about manifesting. But a few years ago, I moved to the Land of La La where crystals, reiki, and cauliflower pizza crust all live together in perfect harmony. And so I've become - dare I say it- an optimist and some of that the non-traditional - albeit new age way of thinking is not (totally) lost on me. Particularly when it comes to business.

So the concept of "manifesting" was at least up for consideration. As instructed by my friend, every day I wrote down a simple thought: that I would sell a film script to a production company. A year later, with the help of a literary manager, headway was made through incremental steps forward, but still no sale.

Now back to that donut...

One evening, I was at my local watering hole drinking, well, water. I've never been much for alcohol and the bar food was average, but the conversations with its patrons and staff were always spirited. On this particular day, the hot wings and fries just weren't hitting the spot and I craved something sweet. A foodie and dessert snob, those convenience store treats shall never pass these lips again. But at almost 10 pm on a Wednesday, all the nearby bakeries had closed. I started to focus on what I truly wanted: a donut. Los Angelinos love their donuts and the city boasts on making some of the nation's best. But I wasn't going to walk home, get in my car, and hope to find a late night spot open. Especially alone.

Instead, I walked out of the bar and sat at one of its curbside tables. I thought more about specifically what kind of a donut I wanted. No more than 15 minutes later, a caravan of cars drove by slowly. They had lit up the outside of their cars and created an impromptu parade like high school fans celebrating their team's big win. But these young men were from a local place of worship, and had chosen to ride up and down the street and introduce themselves to locals for nothing else than to be good neighbors as part of their community outreach program. As part of their welcoming outreach, the young men approached passers-by offering not pamphlets but ... fresh donuts. I gladly accepted and it was delicious. (O.K, I had two but he said it was fine since I asked nicely.) I never saw those young men before or since. Nor have any passers-by offered donuts, desserts, pamphlets or anything else for that matter.

So why did manifesting a donut happen so quickly and easily but a script sale has not? Could it be that at that moment, I wanted a donut more? Was it simply economies of scale and the only thing the Universe will bring you is your true love or consumer goods with a retail value of $5 or less? Or was it that by focusing on the fact that I wanted a donut made me leave the bar where my chances of getting a donut there were zero? Ironically, in that same bar a year earlier, I was someone's manifestation. But I'll save that story for another time.

I'm not suggesting that those of you in sales should tell your manager you will forgo your weekly calls in lieu of wishing buyers to call. But manifesting in business does indeed work as it forces the brain to focus your efforts on a single task or desire, therefore increasing the odds of achieving, attracting, obtaining that goal regardless of what it may be. (Heck, or maybe it is a higher power or the Universe. I don't know - I'm a registered Independent, not Rasputin.) What I am sure of is that by moving to Los Angeles, it got me significantly closer to achieving my goals, and writing every day will manifest that script sale sooner. And perhaps, donuts or a brownie every once in a while.