The parking lot example

[Markus74]

The parking lot example is often used to illustrate the Intention-Manifestation theory.

You need a parking lot near the elevator in your favorite supermarket? Well, just create the intention and you will find an empty parking lot when you arrive! *poof*

Now, in case you arrive at the supermarket and there's no free parking lot near the elevator, well, you didn't really believe it in the first place!!! Did you? Otherwise it would have been empty. It's your own fault, you unbeliever!

Now, in case you arrive there and there IS an empty parking lot! Oh, behold, the intention manifested!! The Law works. The Universe prevented other people from taking that spot and they made the person who stayed there before drive home at the exact right time! It can't be a coincidence!!!

No? How can you say this after only one try? Or a few tries? I'm driving to my supermarket regularly. Sometimes there's a free spot near the elevator, sometimes not. Without me intending anything at all.

For that parking lot theory to have any value we would have to compare the probability of getting a free spot with AND without the use of the LoA. And I think it's pretty sure what the result will be: no big difference

So why are believers so unwilling to test these things? Because they know that their illusion will be destroyed.

[Erki]

There is very little room for parking in front of the house I live in, people regularily park on sidewalks and whereever there's room. However, since Spring, I have only once been left without one. And even then, I remember, one got free soon.

I personally haven't done a deep research simply because I'm too lazy to do it.

[AndyMartin]

Originally Posted by Markus74

So why are believers so unwilling to test these things? Because they know that their illusion will be destroyed.

Naturally--that is the nature of belief. It's nothing more than pinning your identity on the accuracy of a fact. That's a huge risk to take and the ego is more clever than to take a risk like that. So if the experiment is undertaken, than failure must be attributed to failure in action rather than fallacy in the belief.

The mistake people make is to think believing is the same as knowing. Belief is mind-stuff. It's fragile and transient; when knowing comes belief is irrelevant. It's really a naive idea to think that the operation of the universe has anything to do with thoughts generated by your mind.

But LoA has nothing to do with belief and everything to do with harmony. The universe flows, and if we are aligned with its flow, it will flow to us. If we stand and make waves it will flow past or knock us down. The idea is not to force a belief that you will get what you want; rather it is to make your being consistent with the ability of that desire to manifest and to put yourself in a state of receiving, and then not worry about it.

LoA does not in any way exempt anyone from the normal ebb and flow of life. Disappointment, loss and failure still occur. What LoA does is unblock the flow of what could otherwise come to us, but doesn't due to incongruency in our life.

[Lonewolf]

I think these things are untestable in any scientific experiment; everything relies too much on subjective state, you would never be able to have conclusive results one way or the other.
But, the difference between Intention/Manifestation and what is called superstition is zero, the only real variation is that IM has a kind of pseudo-scientific explanation (we insert quantum mechanics in place of spirits).

[JJH]

Here's something crazy for ya: I saw "the Secret" in late August and decided to "test" it out for myself "starting small." The car parking idea was perfect, I need carparks all the time...

It took about a week to learn how to manifest a park (I visualise, and really FEEL the feelings of success), and then, I found the flow.

It's December now and my success rate (get a park right outside where I want to be, first try) is at about 95%! It is absolutely incredible!

There's no scientific reason I can think of to make this possible, but compared to how I used to find parks (or not), this goes well beyond an improvement. This success gave me great confidence to explore bigger goals - and it's working!

[Dating Specialist]

I don't have a car yet. But I've had few successes visualising a taxi coming especially when I'm in a rush.

There were times when I started to visualise when I'm just out of my house, i the elevator before I finally hit the road pavement to wait. Guess what? At times I actually had the exact colour (in Singapore, we have different colours on taxis to differentiate the companies they belong to) as what I've visualised!

Nothing great, but it does give me a kick each time that happens ha!

[ScottS]

To all people manifesting parking spots:

- What do you consider "getting a parking spot"?

- Where is the line you draw between "getting a parking spot" and "not getting a parking spot"?

And have you tried either:

- Manifesting a parking spot infront of Costco around 2pm on the weekends? I'd be very impressed if you could even do this at least 5% of the time.

- Keeping a piece of paper in your car. Fold it in half and on the left side, write "heads (find)" and on the right side write "tails (don't find)". Then when you go somewhere, flip a coin and if it lands on heads try to manifest an empty parking spot and if it lands on tails try to manifest all the spots empty. If you succeed in your manifestation write a 1 in whichever column otherwise write a 0. Then after many trials compare the totals. Be very careful about confirmation bias, it's very important to determine where you draw the line between success and failure and apply it consistently.

[Markus74]

Good points, Scott.

[tropicality]

After seeing the Secret, I have been able to manifest a parking spot 95% + of the time right where I want it. Even if its the only parking spot within a one block radius, it is there right up front. I don't see why it is necessary to try and explain it scientifically. It works, and im happy with it, if you choose not to believe it well then that is not my problem.. Subjective reality.. its your choice.

[Clavdivs]

Originally Posted by ScottS

... on the left side, write "heads (find)" and on the right side write "tails (don't find)". Then when you go somewhere, flip a coin and if it lands on heads try to manifest an empty parking spot and if it lands on tails try to manifest all the spots empty....

ScottS, did you mean to write "if it lands on tails try to manifest all the spots full"?

[ScottS]

Originally Posted by Clavdivs

ScottS, did you mean to write "if it lands on tails try to manifest all the spots full"?

Whoops, you're correct. And I don't mean "all" the spots as in the whole parking lot or the city block. I mean all the spots below the cutoff point that you would consider the spot to be manifested had you actually been manifesting a spot.

And thinking about it more, it might be also reasonable to use a score of 1/2 if you have trouble deciding whether the particular spot is below the cutoff point or not.

The only important thing here is to be careful about being consistent to avoid confirmation bias.

Originally Posted by tropicality

After seeing the Secret, I have been able to manifest a parking spot 95% + of the time right where I want it. Even if its the only parking spot within a one block radius, it is there right up front.

Before seeing The Secret, I've been able to manifest a parking spot 99+% of the time right where I want it. The secret (no pun intended)? I park all the way in the back so I get some exercise and some room.

I don't see why it is necessary to try and explain it scientifically. It works, and im happy with it, if you choose not to believe it well then that is not my problem.. Subjective reality.. its your choice.

Um because experiments serve three purposes:

a. to validate that the LoA actually exists.
b. to determine what the limits of the LoA are (if any).
c. to determine what factors give better, worse, or neutral (i.e. the factor doesn't matter) results when it comes to manifesting things.

Being able to answer any of those is much more effective than this wishy washy talk about the LoA that we have currently. For example, consider something simple like the conservation of momentum of a collision in Newtonian physics and think about how powerful it would be if you could say something similar about the LoA.

[Lucas]

Why do you have to view LoA as a black and white/yes or no? In it's simplest form, I tink i's an excellent way to keep positive reinforcement in your life. Forget about the times stuff doesnt manifest for you, and focus on the times it does, which leads to a snowballing effect of IM. The more you focus on the good things happening, the more good things happen and the better you become for it. If you want to reduce it to switches and circuits, good luck, but dont be snide to the people who have got it working for them because you aren't experiencing their manifestations.

It's almost certainty that the people who buy into IM are people who believe in subjective reality anyway, so no one is going to validate your arguments against it anway.

However, most of us dont come from an IM norm, we all came from where you are and decided to give it a try, and it works for a lot of us, so why not start experimenting? I mean, even the best manifesters dont manifest 100% of the time, but once the synchronicities start hitting, its hard to deny it.