MISATTRIBUTED
“What you think about, you bring about.”
- Commonly attributed to: Bob Proctor, The Secret (Rhonda Byrne), law-of-attraction teachers
- Actual source: Anonymous motivational maxim, in print by 1969 (Raymond Hull, How to Get What You Want, Funk & Wagnalls) — a rhyming distillation of New Thought doctrine (cf. Prentice Mulford’s "Thoughts are things," 1889; Earl Nightingale’s "we become what we think about," 1956). No individual originator is identifiable.
- Earliest verified appearance: 1969 — Raymond Hull, How to Get What You Want (Funk & Wagnalls, New York): "What you speak about, you think about. What you think about, you bring about!" Also in Joyce Duco’s Can You Cope With Happiness? (1984) — both decades before The Secret (2006). Located via Internet Archive/Open Library search-inside. — 1969 print (archive scan)
- Where the misattribution started: Bob Proctor used it as a signature line, and after The Secret (2006) quote sites began crediting him as its originator — though the rhyme was in print at least 37 years earlier.
- Confidence: High · Last verified: July 2026
The verdict: Bob Proctor popularized it but did not coin it: the rhyme was already in print in Raymond Hull’s 1969 How to Get What You Want, distilling New Thought teaching that goes back to the 1880s.
Every claim above links to a primary source I checked myself. How I verify quotes →
The Power of Thought: Bob Proctor’s Law of Attraction Philosophy
Origins of What You Think About You Bring About
Bob Proctor is a Canadian-American self-help author and speaker who has become one of the most recognizable figures in the modern personal development movement. His quote “What you think about you bring about” encapsulates the core philosophy that has defined his career spanning over five decades. This deceptively simple statement reflects Proctor’s core belief that human consciousness is fundamentally creative. Our mental focus directly shapes the reality we experience. By understanding and harnessing our thoughts, we possess the power to transform our lives.
Proctor derived this quote from his deep engagement with New Thought philosophy and what he calls “universal laws,” particularly the Law of Attraction. This law posits that positive or negative thoughts bring positive or negative experiences into a person’s life. Proctor didn’t invent this idea originally. Rather, he reinterpreted concepts found in Charles Haanel’s “The Master Key System,” published in 1912. His teachings and his prominent role in the 2006 documentary film “The Secret” gave this idea explosive popular resurgence.
Proctor’s journey to becoming a self-help guru is itself a compelling American success story that lends credibility to his philosophy. He was born on July 5, 1934, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Proctor grew up in relative poverty during the Great Depression. This experience would later inform his conviction that economic circumstances are not deterministic. Instead, they are products of one’s thinking. As a young man, he struggled in school and worked various jobs. He worked as a coal miner and security guard, seemingly destined for an ordinary, working-class existence. At age 26, Proctor encountered a pivotal moment in his life. He found a copy of “The Master Key System” and began to seriously study the principles of thought and manifestation. He claims that applying these principles transformed his financial situation within a few years. This personal transformation became the foundation for his entire career as a teacher and motivational speaker.
Understanding the Power of Your Thoughts
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Proctor worked in the insurance industry. He eventually became successful enough to leave that field and dedicate himself full-time to speaking and teaching. He began delivering seminars and producing audio recordings that explained the principles he believed had changed his life. He gradually built a devoted following. One lesser-known aspect of Proctor’s career is his long association with other New Thought pioneers. He dedicated himself to studying what he considers “universal laws.” Before the internet made his work globally accessible, Proctor spent decades traveling to speaking engagements.
He produced cassette tapes and video courses that distributors circulated through personal development channels. His work remained relatively niche throughout the 1980s and 1990s. People knew him primarily within self-help circles and among committed students of personal development. Proctor achieved mainstream recognition in the early 2000s. This partly resulted from changing cultural attitudes toward self-help and the power of personal branding.
“The Secret” was the watershed moment for Proctor and his philosophy. This documentary film became a cultural phenomenon and introduced the Law of Attraction to millions of people worldwide. Proctor appears throughout the film as one of its primary teachers. He suddenly found himself at the center of a global movement. The film presents the Law of Attraction as a scientific principle—a claim that remains controversial among scientists. Proctor serves as one of its most articulate advocates.
He consistently returns to ideas like “What you think about you bring about.” He uses these ideas to explain why visualization, positive thinking, and focused intention are allegedly the keys to attracting wealth, health, and happiness. Following the film’s release, Proctor’s book “The Art of Getting What You Want” became a bestseller. His seminars and online programs also became bestsellers. He has since built an empire around Law of Attraction teachings. He creates premium courses, mastermind groups, and coaching programs that attract clients willing to invest thousands of dollars for his personal guidance.
How This Quote Transforms Your Life
Proctor’s quote and philosophy have had a profound and multifaceted cultural impact. They have influenced self-help discourse, wellness culture, and entrepreneurship. Countless entrepreneurs and business leaders cite Proctor’s work as instrumental in shaping their mindset and approach to success. The phrase “What you think about you bring about” has spread widely across social media, motivational websites, and personal development literature. It often appears without attribution or context. The idea itself resonates deeply with human psychology because it offers agency and hope. It suggests that our circumstances are not fixed or determined by external forces alone.
Instead, we possess the power to change our lives through our own mental efforts. This message has understandably appealed to people who feel trapped by their circumstances. It offers the tantalizing possibility that freedom and prosperity are merely a shift in consciousness away. However, the quote’s popularity has also attracted significant criticism. Skeptics argue that the Law of Attraction oversimplifies complex social realities. They contend that it may promote magical thinking while absolving society of responsibility for systemic inequality.
Proctor’s philosophy compels his millions of followers because it operates within the realm of psychological plausibility. Decades of research in cognitive psychology, neuroscience, and behavioral economics have confirmed that our attention, beliefs, and expectations influence our behavior and our perception of reality. When we focus our thoughts on something, we become more aware of opportunities related to it. When we expect success, we tend to take actions more consistent with achieving it. When we believe in our abilities, we’re more likely to persist through challenges and notice pathways to our goals.