Behind the Laptop //017: How Manifestation Actually Works: The 4 Phases of Conscious Creation (that most people skip)

July 21, 2025•10 min read

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Header graphic for a blog on conscious manifestation and the 4 phases of embodiment, explaining how shadow work and energetic alignment unlock personal power and leadership.”

Why Your Manifestation Isn’t Working (And What Most People Are Missing)

She came to me on a Thursday, lit up with a brilliant new idea, one that felt like her next level.

By Sunday, she’d torn the whole thing down ready to start all over (again.)

Another client had just returned from vacation. A week earlier, she was riding a high. Magnetic, clear, in her power. But now? Her nervous system was spiraling. She hadn’t posted in days, and suddenly she had an “inspirational pull” to start 10 new content series from scratch.

Then there was the client in the middle of a pivot.

She’d just gotten a fresh idea for a new offer, one that really lit her up.

But she held herself back. “I need to finish what I started first,” she said.

Even though, deep down, she knew that chapter was already complete.

Three different women. Three different moments.

But beneath the surface, the same energetic pattern:

They didn’t realize where they were in the manifestation process; so they tried to leap ahead to a phase they weren’t fully ready for.

And that’s why everything started to feel unstable.

Trying to manifest your goals without knowing the phases of manifestation is like waking up in the middle of a dark forest with no way to know where to go.

You can try moving in the dark without a map and that’s an excellent way to get more lost than where you started.

But when you understand the four phases of manifestation, it allows for the sun to rise, and a map to appear within your hands.

The Truth About Manifestation: It’s Not Just About Taking Action, Strategy, or Manifestation Rituals

Most manifestation teachings boil it down to a single mantra:

“Get in alignment. Take aligned action. Trust in the Universe.”

But what if you don’t know what “alignment” looks like yet?

What if you’re not clear on what you actually want?

Or you’ve decided what you want… but your body doesn’t feel safe taking the leap?

This is what most people don’t understand about manifestation:

Manifestation isn’t just about “taking action” or “trusting in the universe,” it’s about knowing what you need next.

You can’t “be in alignment” if you have no clear direction on what is required next of you.

Sometimes what you need is mindset.

Sometimes what you need is self-worth.

Sometimes what you need is trust.

Sometimes what you need is action.

And that next step always depends on where you are in the process.

You can’t take bold action if you haven’t fully committed to your desire.

You can’t truly commit if you still feel unworthy of having it.

And no amount of “trusting the timing” will help you if you’re avoiding the action that would actually move you forward.

The reason why manifestation still feels like guesswork is is because you’re taking the “right” action; but at the wrong stage of the process.

That’s why you’re investing in every program, writing your dreams in your journal every night, meditating, visualizing, holding your crystals in the shower, listening to mantras and hypnosis track on repeat…

…and still not seeing the results you’re calling in.

If you want manifestation to become a simple 4-phase process to unlock unlimited income, attract the love of your life, and step into the success, visibility, and influence you know you’re meant for,

It’s all about knowing what’s required of you next.

The 4 Phases of Conscious Manifestation: How to Manifest like Clockwork

Every desire you hold; whether it’s a $50K month, a soulmate relationship, or stepping into your next level of visibility and leadership, moves through the same four phases.

Desire > Commitment > Action > Trust

Each phase requires something different from you: energetically, emotionally, and behaviorally. Each one is an initiation into a new, more conscious, version of you.

In the sections that follow, I’ll break down what each phase actually looks like in practice, what internal shifts are required, and how to know exactly where you are.

Let’s begin.

Phase 1: Desire: The First Step to Conscious Manifestation

This is the phase of contrast. You’re figuring out what you want, what you don’t want, and why it matters to you.

As Abraham Hicks likes to say: “This is the phase of sifting and sorting.”

In this phase, you’re moving through experiences that help you identify what you want, and what you don’t. Your job here is to create a clear image of the new reality you wish to step into next and upgrade your self-worth to feel fully worthy of precisely what you desire.

And if there’s something you aren’t sure about, ie: if the desire still feels foggy or unformed, this is exactly why you’ll attract situations that feel misaligned and even uncomfortable. Not as punishment, but to help create contrast.

This phase is tied to the Prostitute/Lover archetypes within Shadow Consciousness.

(p.s. stay tuned for next week’s article where we will begin deep diving into the 4 Shadow Consciousness Archetypes. You can subscribe by clicking here)

Phase 2: Commitment: Owning Your Authority as a Conscious Creator

This is the phase of authority.

You’ve clarified what you want. You’ve upgraded your self-worth to reflect the reality you’re stepping into.

Now it’s time to awaken your inner authority; the part of you that no longer hopes for your desires, but declares they will be yours.

It’s not about waiting for signs or asking if you’re “allowed” to want more. It’s about owning your role as the commander of your life and anchoring into the certainty that what you desire is no longer a possibility, it’s the plan.

In this phase, the shift is subtle but radical. You move from asking life what’s possible for you, to deciding what will be.

No more wondering what the rules are. No more waiting for permission.

You write the rules now. You decide what reality you walk into next, and the moment you choose it, the path begins to form beneath your feet.

This phase is tied to the Child/Sovereign archetypes within Shadow Consciousness.

Phase 3: Action: Creating a Ripple Effect Through Aligned Behavior

This is the phase of action. But not from urgency, fear, or insecurity plagued effort to prove your worth.

You’ve clarified the desire. You’ve committed to the outcome.

Now, it’s time to embody it, through action.

Most people jump straight to action, hoping it will earn them the result. They skip the embodiment. They bypass the commitment.

They treat action like a negotiation with the Universe: “If I do enough, will you give me what I want?”

But action isn’t meant to manipulate your reality into submission. It’s meant to reinforce the frequency you’ve already chosen.

Truly aligned action isn’t rushed or reactive. It’s clear. Clean. Certain.

It comes from the version of you who already knows her desire is unfolding and shows up accordingly. Not with fear that something will go wrong. But with trust that every step sends a ripple into the world that reflects her highest timeline back to her.

This is the phase where your inner identity becomes outer reality through the interaction between your action and the rest of the universe.

This phase is tied to the Victim/Warrior archetypes within Shadow Consciousness.

Phase 4: Trust & Timing: How to Manifest Without Forcing

This is the final phase, surrender and trust.

By the time you reach phase 4, you’ve clarified the desire. You’ve committed to the outcome. You’ve taken aligned action. And now, your job is to hold the frequency of having what you want, and allow your desired manifestation to land in your reality.

During this phase you should already have a clear plan forward, and consistently be taking aligned action towards what you want.

This phase isn’t about passively “waiting,” it’s the ability to hold your desire strongly in your spirit along with making proactive decisions that consistently guide you towards your desired manifestation.

If you’ve done all the “work,” both internally and strategically, and your manifestation still hasn’t landed, this is the step where you’re getting tripped up.

You begin to doubt the process. You question your timeline. You scrap the strategy that was working, and decide to pivot too soon. You start tweaking and over-preparing, not because it's coming from a place of inspiration, but because fear has crept back in and now you want to start everything over because you’ve decided that what you’ve done up until this point is wrong and wasn’t working.

It’s like planting a seed, watering it daily, nurturing the soil, and then ripping it from the earth because it hasn’t bloomed fast enough.

What you don’t realize is that the roots are growing. And the moment you stop interfering, you give your manifestation the space it needs to break through.

This phase is tied to the Saboteur/Magician archetypes within Shadow Consciousness.

Shadow Work Is the Missing Piece in Your Manifestation Process

Every phase of the manifestation process reveals a shadow.

And unless you’re willing to meet that shadow with clarity, compassion, and consciousness, you’ll keep looping the same patterns again and again.

Desire brings up unworthiness.
Commitment reveals self-doubt.
Action stirs fear and resistance.
Trust challenges your grip on control.

This is why shadow work is the missing piece in most manifestation teachings, it’s not something separate you do before manifesting. It’s woven into every single step.

Manifestation isn’t a process where you’re not just calling something in, you’re becoming the version of you who can create and hold your desire for yourself.

That version of you requires identity shifts, nervous system upgrades, and the release of old protective patterns that were never designed for your next level.

Doing shadow work in manifestation is the direct path to aligned creation.

In next week’s article, I’ll break down the four Shadow Consciousness Archetypes and how they unconsciously block each phase of the manifestation process unless integrated.

But for now, ask yourself:

Where am I in the process?
What phase am I in right now?
And what’s the next aligned move, from this place?

Final Thoughts: The Real Reason You’re Not Manifesting What You Want

If trying harder was the answer to manifesting more of what you want, you’d be swimming in cash and every day would be a luxury retreat to a new exotic location.

Manifestation mastery isn’t about writing in your journal more, meditating every day, or charging your crystals under the full moon, it’s about full embodiment in the mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual level.

It’s the ability to lead yourself.

To make decisions from your highest frequency, even when the results haven’t landed yet.

To show up in your business as the version of you who already holds the vision and to build from that place.

That’s what we practice inside Aesteria Academia, my high-touch, private mastermind.

It’s not just about building a brand.

It’s about becoming the kind of leader who can hold everything you want and more.

Inside this high-touch container, we blend brand strategy with energetic alignment so your content, offers, and message don’t just look good, they feel like you.

We work together to: