Scripting: What's The Secret Behind The Viral Manifestation Trend?

In recent years, self-development gurus have been all about the concept of manifestation to bring about change and achieve your goals. You may have even tried some manifestation techniques yourself. Perhaps you're trying to turn yourself into a morning person after years of always waking up late. Or maybe you're hoping to set financial goals that you'll actually stick to. Maybe you're even in the process of transforming your life from top to bottom. No matter your end goal, proponents of manifestation believe that it can help you make progress toward the reality of your dreams.

"Manifestation is about creating a vision for the future, putting energy and intention into making that vision a reality, and then aligning your thoughts, emotions, and actions accordingly so that your vision can come into fruition," psychotherapist Denise Fournier, Ph.D., tells Self. "That process is the same one we go through whenever we work on ourselves, try to change our circumstances, or commit to reaching a personal goal. It involves intention, mindset, and directed action."

Now, a new form of manifestation called "scripting" is gaining attention for its unique approach to this process. Already, the term has over 430 million views on TikTok. But how can it help you work toward your ideal future? Here's what scripting is all about and how you can use it in your manifestation practice.

Unlike typical manifestation, which may use meditation, mantras, or journaling to paint a bright picture of the road ahead, scripting leverages the idea that your goals have already been achieved. It is built on a concept known as The Law of Assumption, which suggests that believing your outcome is predestined will help bring it to pass (via The Daily Dish). Essentially, it's a spiritual way to embrace faking it 'til you make it.

Neville Goddard discusses this idea in his classic book "The Power of Awareness." In it, he says, "You must imagine that you are already experiencing what you desire. That is, you must assume the feeling of the fulfillment of your desire until you are possessed by it and this feeling crowds all other ideas out of your consciousness." In other words, believing in a singular destiny removes the possibility of failure or compromise from your vision.

Some proponents believe that this shift in mindset will also shift your energy to vibrate in tune with your goals. But even if that seems woo-woo to you, assuming the best outcome can put you in a positive headspace to achieve success.

Scripting takes The Law of Assumption and puts pen to paper, creating a written narrative out of your dreams and expectations. So when embarking on your own scripting journey, begin with the tools you'll need to write or type your manifestation.

Why put it down in words, you ask? Scripting is all about detail, so practitioners are encouraged to write out their scripts rather than simply visualize them. This lets you expand the scene as far as it needs to go without losing focus. Writing your script can also be helpful for people who struggle with purely verbal or mental manifestation practices such as meditation or affirmations. As Lucemi Consulting explains, writing down goals in detail can help you hone in on the most important aspects of your vision and provide clarity on which steps will or won't help you get there.

If your goals seem almost too big to write about, narrow your focus. Write about something more specific, like how your ideal day will look once your goals have been achieved. Try to keep all of your scripts in one place, such as a journal, binder, or computer file. This way, you can revisit past scripts for perspective and motivation on days when your ideal future may seem far away.

Of course, it's totally fine if your concept of an ideal future changes over time. As you grow and evolve, so too will your goals, as they should always change to reflect your current values (per Selfpause). But even in this case, your past manifestation scripts still have use. Revisited, they can display your progress as you deepen your self-understanding and refine your intentions.

So you're writing out your first script under the assumption that your goals are assured. One psychological trick will help put you in the right frame of mind for manifestation — namely, writing in past or present tense, rather than future tense. Goal Setting Guide explains that your brain wants to find the easy way out, so putting goals in the future tense as if they will happen later leaves wiggle room for procrastination.

The future is also uncertain, and using the future tense can sometimes seem pie-in-the-sky or open to doubt. Choosing instead to write in past or present tense — "I did this" or "I'm doing this" rather than "I will do this" — subconsciously cements the idea that success is bound to happen. As self-development coach Roxie Nafousi suggests to Byrdie, you can even write a future date at the top of your page to make your script seem like a diary entry from the time after your goals have been achieved.

To reiterate, scripting relies on bringing your dreams to life in vibrant, specific detail. Clarity is key. As reported by Forbes, people who vividly describe or picture their desired outcome are up to 1.4 times more likely to accomplish their goals. Toward this end, it helps to get all five senses involved as you write out the scenario you're trying to manifest.

Perhaps your goal is to get a remote job and move out of the city. Don't just leave it at that. Describe the concrete results of reaching this dream. "I wake up every morning in our mountain house surrounded by trees and feel the breeze through the window. It's quiet, and the air smells fresh." This approach is much more evocative and inspiring, so allow yourself to get creative and imagine all the satisfying details that make your dream so desirable.

It can also help to figure out what kind of motivation propels you and incorporate sensory details around that driving force. For instance, if you're motivated by external validation, your script might include hearing warm compliments from a loved one or the tangible feeling of holding a paycheck rewarding your hard work.

When describing your new life, don't forget to include the way it makes you feel. Understanding the emotional impact of your goals is one of the most impactful ways to build a connection with your intentions and inspire yourself to take action (per Fringe Professional Development). In particular, Berkeley's Greater Good Magazine suggests that emotions of gratitude, compassion, and pride are strong motivators, so look for ways these might play into your scripting scenario.

"The key is focusing on the emotions of how your desired reality makes you feel and using your creativity to write or talk about the desired outcome and what it's like to have it," mindset and manifestation coach Laura Herde tells Well+Good. After all, most of us build our goals on a foundation of emotion. If your dream is a higher-paying job, that dream probably isn't purely for the money — on a deeper level, you want the feeling of security, freedom, or comfort that having money may bring.

And as Forbes observes, the critical changes in performance that will help you achieve any goal are enhanced by powerful emotional experiences. Mental determination is one thing, but emotions provide the necessary kickstart to turn goals into action and set your plans in motion. So when you're ready to start scripting to manifest your new reality, let your heart describe your future.