Abundance Thinking: The Laws of Attraction by Ken Mahoney

To a large extent, the sort of retirement you have will be determined by your outlook, as well as by the energy you put into creating the life you want.

Let’s start with the outlook you have about your retirement. How do you view your retirement years? Do you see the glass as half-full or half-empty? People who see their glasses as half-full, tend to be positive thinkers. And positive thinkers tend to attract positive results. Their glasses keep filling up. Negative thoughts, on the other hand, tend to drain those glasses. In the end, those who think they can achieve a goal, whether financial, political, or social, are generally proven correct, while those who think they can’t are similarly likely to be proven correct. Abundance in your positive thinking proves the laws of attraction correct.

We’ve all been in uncomfortable situations with our minds racing, exaggerating likely outcomes, and raising our blood pressure. Those fantasies and fears that compulsively race through our minds need to be noted and consciously controlled. Otherwise, the fears take charge of our lives. This is especially true when planning for your retirement years. It is similar to a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you spend so much time worrying about the doom and gloom of your retirement years—being financially strapped, being bored, contracting a horrible disease—it detracts from the time you have to prepare for your retirement. Spend your time wisely. Prepare now. Worrying about it isn’t going to change the outcome because what is going to happen is going to happen whether you worry about it or not. But you can put plans in place and prepare now for what is to come. This planning and positive thinking can help to alter the outcome, or at least prepare you for it.

We can re-program our minds to think positive by consciously replacing compulsive, half-empty thoughts with those likely to lead to a ‘brighter’ outcome. What are your goals for this free period of your life? What footprints do you wish to leave in the sand? If you have ever taken a yoga class, you have already been introduced to the power of positive thinking. Before every practice, as you are settling into self, you make a purpose for your practice. Then, you have to envision yourself fulfilling your purpose. Doing something similar for envisioning your retirement can work you toward the way of life you are seeking during retirement.

The concept of the power that positive thinking can have on your life isn’t a new concept, but it was most recently revisited by the best-selling book The Secret by Rhonda Byrnes. It covers how to harness positive thinking and use it in every aspect of your life -- money, health, relationships, happiness, and in every interaction you have in the world. As you progress into retirement, use the positive power within you to set and achieve your goals.