Like Attracts Like: The Basis of the Law of Attraction

Like Attracts Like Is the Basis of the Law of Attraction

This article is an excerpt from the Shortform book guide to "The Power" by Rhonda Byrne. Shortform has the world's best summaries and analyses of books you should be reading.

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Is the concept of like attracts like true? What is the basic premise of the law of attraction?

Like attracts like is true because when you give love, you receive love — and vice versa. The law of attraction dictates that what you attract to your life is an outcome of whatever energy you put into the world.

Read on to understand the importance of the concept of like attracts like to your relationships in life.

Like Attracts Like

When you give love, you receive love. It’s that simple. The law of attraction dictates that whatever energy you put into the world is the energy that will come back to you. In simpler terms, what you give is returned in equal measure to you. You put positivity into the world and get positivity back. Likewise, you put negativity in the world, and guess what you get back? That’s right—negativity.

Think about it this way:

When you yell at someone, do they respond with love?
When you complain about dinner, does it taste delicious?
When you criticize the world around you, do you live a satisfying life?

The answer to all those questions is “probably not.” When you express yourself negatively, you close the door to positivity.

The Power of Thoughts and Feelings

So how do you know when you’re giving positivity versus negativity? Check your thoughts and feelings, for these are the aspects through which you express the force of love.

Thoughts: Your life is created through the things you think. If you think today is going to be a hard day, it will be a hard day. If you think life is wonderful, life will be wonderful. You express what you think either as words in your mind or spoken language.

Your thoughts create a positive or negative energy. Positive thoughts are about what you love. Negative thoughts are about what you don’t love. Because like attracts like, you can only attract the same type of energy back. Whether you think about what you love or don’t love determines what type of life circumstances you’ll experience.
If you believe you’ll find love and think about love positively, the universe has no choice but to bring you circumstances that support your positive ideals of love.
If you grumble or obsess about not having enough money, you’re telling the universe you have a negative relationship with money. All that can be returned to you are situations that support your negative relationship with money.
You’re a magnet, your thoughts create the landscape by which things are drawn to you. Think positively about what you want to create a positive life.

Feelings: Your thoughts are not isolated groups of words. They carry emotional attachments, and the attached feelings are what give your thoughts power. When you think positive thoughts, you feel good. When you think negative thoughts, you feel bad.

When you think about what you want in life, you can choose to feel positively or negatively about it. Since like attracts like, whatever feelings you attach to the thought is the energy that will surround your thought.
If you think your job is boring but focus on what you love about it, such as the ability to support your family or the experience you’re gaining for the future, your feelings about work are positive. You will experience more joy because your positive feelings will attract positive circumstances to help you find more love.
If you think your job is boring and feel frustrated or unfulfilled, you create a life where work is frustrating or unfulfilling.

It’s impossible to feel good about negative things or negative about positive things. Focus on the feeling of love in every situation, and you will bring more love into your life.

Like Attracts Like: The Basis of the Law of Attraction