One of the frequent issues I notice magicians experience is they don't always get the results they want, or they get the results, but then the results slip through their fingers. So they went to all that effort to get that result, and yet it hasn't worked out. It's enough to make a person really doubt whether or not magic works.
Yet, so many people do practice magic and do get results, so surely it works. The question is, "Why aren't you getting the results you're shooting for?" And in this article I'm going to share 4 reasons you may not be getting the results you want as well as what actions you can take to remedy that issue. And if you want a cheatsheet, with everything I share here, download my better results checklist.
Unfortunately when you don't get the result you're looking for, it's all too easy to get frustrated with yourself and think that something must be wrong with how you're practicing magic. And while it may be true that you could do something different, one of the problems I don’t see discussed is the results themselves…specifically how people approach results and their place in magical workings.
"But Taylor, the result is just the end goal. How else could it be important you ask?"
I get why you might think that way about results, because if you look at most magical literature on results, there's not a lot of focus on the functional of results in magic, but there's something I want you to keep in mind about results, that can help you understand how to actively use results to improve your magical workings:
Even when you don't get the result you want, you've still gotten a result and that can tell you a lot about what isn't working in your magical practice.
Whew! That was a mouthful, but this is an axiom of mine about results that I've used to help me understand, on the occasions it happens, why my magical working hasn't helped me achieve the result I wanted.
Now you might think...that sounds great in theory Taylor, but when I've done a magical work and haven't gotten any result at all, as in nothing has happened, then how does this even apply?
And you know that's a valid question to ask...
But permit me to point out that even getting nothing as a result is still a result and what it tells you is nothing worked. And that may not seem too encouraging, but it is in our failures that truly discover the lessons that help us become better magicians and people.
Now I want to share with you the 4 reasons you may not be getting results, as well as actions you can take to address each of those reasons. You can also get this information in my better results cheatsheet, which also includes an exercise to help you take a look at why you may not be getting the results you want.
Reason 1: Some part of you is resistant to getting the result
It may be hard to believe, but sometimes you don’t really want the result you say you want…or at least part of you doesn’t.
The problem with internal resistance to a result is that it sabotages the result. Even if you get a result for the short term that part of you that is resistant will find some way to undermine you, and the result will go away.
There are different reasons why we feel internal resistance. Let’s explore what those are.
The first reason you may feel internal resistance toward a result could be that the result (or the way you achieved it) goes against your ethical/moral code. If you ever have part of yourself screaming don’t do something in your mind, its wise to heed that voice and figure out why some part of you feels resistant.
However you could be honoring your ethical/moral compass and still sabotage the result. In that case, it could be that part of you feels unworthy of the result. When we don’t feel worthy of something, we find a way to get rid of it, because that lack of worthiness makes us feel uncomfortable with ourselves.
Finally you might just come to the conclusion that you didn’t want the result that you thought you wanted. Sometimes having something manifest makes you realize you don’t really need it.
So how do you resolve the internal resistance?
In the case of your ethical/moral compass, it’s important to honor your code and stick to it. If you can’t find a way to achieve a result that doesn’t violate that code, you either need to change your code, or abandon the result.
In the case of not feeling worthy, you need to figure out what the underlying beliefs and narratives are about your unworthiness. I recommend doing some type of meditation that allows you to sit with and work through the emotions around your feeling of unworthiness.
Finally, if you don't do divination before your magical working, you may want to do a Tarot reading or use some other system of divination that can give you some insights on what might get in the way of you achieving the result.
Reason 2: I didn't get the result immediately
Some people do a magical working and expect the result to manifest immediately. The problem is they’ve bought into the Hollywood version of magic that seems to work spontaneously. But what we practice isn’t Hollywood magic and while it is possible to get a result to manifest shortly after you’ve done a ritual, not all results will occur that quickly and sometimes you may not want them to.
It really comes down to understanding the role of timing in magic. A good question to ask is when do I want the result to manifest (and possibly where)? Getting a result immediately may not always be the best possible outcome, because it may not afford you the opportunity to fully take advantage of it.
Some of the best results I’ve gotten with magic has involved setting the working up around when I want the result to show up.
So how do you go about doing that?
First you need to recognize that time is always a variable and that you can purposely apply that variable to your working and second you need to ask yourself when you need that result.
Then program that desired time into your working and let it happen.
What many people forget is that magic isn’t a cure all or instant gratification. It’s the alignment of the right variables that stack the deck of fate in your favor and help you turn a desired possibility into a reality. And getting a result isn't always about instant gratification so much as its having the result up when you need it to and purposely making that part of your magical working.
Reason 3: you don't recognize the result
Sometimes we don’t recognize the result, because we’re so busy looking for it to show up in a way that we expect that we don’t open ourselves to unexpected avenues of manifestation.
It’s also worth remembering that magic often operates in a very subtle way.
When it seems like you haven’t achieved your result, consider first what would tell you if you’d accomplished your result. Then consider if perhaps your limiting yourself to only seeing the result if it showed up in that way. What other ways might your result show up? What else would tell you that the result has manifested?
What makes magic, well magic is that it doesn’t always operate in the way we expect. We can do a magical working and send the magic out into the world and have it come back in a way we don’t plan for, which is nonetheless valid. I've had this happen with my own workings and I've learned not to be attached to preconceived expectations about how the result will show up, which leads me to reason 4...
Reason 4: You're obsessed with the result
Nothing keeps a result from manifesting like obsessing over it. The more you think about the result, the more you push it away.
You might be doing a double take and wondering why that is?
Basically when you're thinking about and imagining the desired result, you're keeping it in the place of imagination and preventing the result from manifesting in to reality. When you obsess about something it occupies your energy, emotions, and thoughts, and so you don't effectively employ them to help you get the result.
Ironically thoughts of the result becomes a distraction from the actual magical work.
So how do you stop obsessing about the result?
One of the reasons banishing is done after a magical working is so you can focus your thoughts and emotions on other matters than the desired result. Your magical working, in and of itself, is a focus of everything you have directed at turning the possibility into a reality. And what banishing does, after the working, is fully release your consciousness so you can focus on other things instead of the results.
One approach I also like to take if I find myself thinking about a desired result too much is to consciously recognize the obsessive thoughts and emotions and then visualize them being redirected toward the magical working, using them as fuel for the magical working. I've found that taking this approach helps a lot because then I'm doing something useful with the obsessive thoughts and emotions.
