“Lucky Girl Syndrome” is taking the internet by storm. It’s a phrase that’s popping up all over the internet. It originated on TikTok and there have been more than 170M views on videos with the hashtag #luckygirlsyndrome. So what is Lucky Girl Syndrome? Does it really exist? Why? How? Is this mindset deliberate or delusional? Read on for a full breakdown of what that phrase means and how people are embodying this mindset.
What is it?
“Lucky Girl Syndrome” is in its simplest form, a mindset and paradigm shift. Lucky Girl Syndrome is a way of thinking or manifestation that focuses on bringing luck into your life through positive thinking, focusing on the positive aspects of any situation, and the belief that good luck is always coming one’s way.
Lucky girl syndrome is very similar to the “Law of Assumption” and the “Law of Attraction.” The Law of Assumption is a spiritual philosophy that whatever we assume to be true will actually come true. And the Law of Attraction is a philosophy theory that asserts positive thoughts will bring positive outcomes, and negative thoughts will bring negative outcomes.
Basically wherever you focus your energies, is what will multiply and come back into your reality. In some ways it’s about convincing yourself that you already live the lucky life you want to achieve and live. You believe you simply are a lucky person (if not THE luckiest person) and that luck is always on your side. It’s said that if you are putting this energy into the universe, that’s the kind of energy that will come back to you.
What’s most interesting to me is that this kind of positive mindset is not something that comes naturally to most people. Thinking that luck magically and simply flows our direction isn’t the norm. In fact most of us are conditioned to think, “when it rains, it pours” or that we have to work extremely hard to have good things happen in our lives. It’s also common to think we have to be “in the right place at the right time.” Lucky Girl Syndrome is the antithesis of that, thus accepted by some and rejected by others.
What the critics are saying
While this philosophy may sound positive overall, this wouldn’t be a proper TikTok trend without naysayers. Some of the most common opposing views are:
- These theories aren’t anything new and very reminiscent to The Secret. Many say that Lucky Girl Syndrome is simply The Secret which has basically been repackaged from GenX to GenZ. In its hey day, the Secret was widely popular and also the butt of many pop culture jokes/references. It was also at the center of controversy for a lot of different reasons including a woman who chose to forgo medical treatment in hopes of her positive thoughts saving her, and ties with white-collar criminals.
- Others say that Lucky Girl Syndrome is “delusional,” and “toxic optimism” and doesn’t allow for negative emotions or feelings, which are normal.
- The (somewhat ‘unproven’) pressure to “think good thoughts” can be unhelpful if you suffer from certain mental health conditions. Additionally, critics have pointed out that its especially hard for people with disabilities, or people seen to be oppressed by systemic racism, to “think their way out of” their situations.
So does this kind of thinking and positive energy work? A few years back, there was a study about an experiment conducted with plants and the effects that negative talk had on their growth. Plants were kept in the same conditions but one group of plants only heard praise and positive affirmations, while the other plants were verbally “bullied.” This study is often cited but it turns out that study was an IKEA marketing campaign – so, obviously the results are questionable here.
Others say that there is some science behind the lucky girl mental framework. Within our brains is the ‘reticular activating system (RAS)’, a network of neurons that filters information. This set of neurons activates when we focus it on a particular outcome or perception. The RAS then starts to filter out that information through our conscious and subconscious mind towards that particular goal or outcome.
How to “get lucky”
Ultimately if this philosophy resonates with you, there are a few steps you can take to catch lucky girl syndrome. If you’re new to manifesting, here’s an oversimplified breakdown:
First and foremost, you have to believe that you are naturally and inherently a lucky girl (or guy). This may sound delusional, but that’s kind of the point. As the law of attraction states, positive thoughts bring positive outcomes. The caveat here is that in order to catch lucky girl syndrome, you have to believe and act as if you are already are the luckiest person in the world. Romanticize everything and unapologetically put it out into the world.
- Write it down: Researchers say that the unique, complex, spatial and tactile activity of writing by hand on physical paper is most likely what leads to remembering information. In fact, writing on physical paper can lead to more brain activity when recalling the information. This is why you might retain more when you write out a to-do list by hand vs typing a to-do list on a computer. So get out your notebook and write out affirmations that remind you, you are the indeed, already, the luckiest person in the world.
- Say it out loud: Reminding yourself that you’re the luckiest person in the world outloud will help reinforce your new mindset. Research has shown that there are many positive benefits of saying things outloud including self-talk influencing behavior and cognition. Saying things outloud can help your mind better retain information in comparison to not speaking out loud. Further more if you address yourself in second or third person, the benefits can increase (wow!). If you feel ridiculous saying whatever you are saying, you’re probably on the right track.
- Hear it, believe it: By repeatedly hearing positive affirmations or statements, the mind can start to incorporate them into our belief systems. In other words, our brains can’t tell the difference between reality and imagination. The mind can be subject to neuroplasticity when hearing positive affirmations which can lead to formations of new neural connections. The more we hear something, the more our brains will believe it to be true. In addition to saying it out loud, listening to positive affirmations is another way to retain lucky girl affirmations. Bonus if you can take the extra step of recording yourself saying your personalized positive affirmations and then listening to them regularly.
- See and recognize it: It’s been proven that expressing gratitude has benefits on mental health. Seeing and recognizing everyday blessings / romanticizing everything in your life is another important part of Lucky Girl syndrome. In order to reinforce that luck is always flowing your way, you’ll need to recognize all the lucky things in your life. Got a parking spot right in front of the store? Lucky! Won $1 on a $5 scratcher? Lucky! Got the last shirt size at your favorite store? Lucky! According to the lucky girl philosophy, all of this positive lucky energy adds up and more luck will come your way.
[READ: Transform your mindset with these 23 hot girl walk podcasts]
Lucky Girl affirmations
If you’re looking for ideas on what kind of affirmations to write out, visualize or say, here are some ideas:
- I’m so lucky, everything works out for me all the time.
- All positive energy and luck flows to me effortlessly.
- I’m effortlessly lucky.
- Everything always works out for me.
- I’m grateful for my luck and will continue to be lucky.
- I live a blessed and lucky life.
- Miracles flow to me.
- I’m always in the right place at the right time, anywhere and everywhere.
- Luck is on my side.
- Great things come to me unexpectedly.
- I’m so lucky and grateful for all opportunities and gifts that come my way.
- My life is lucky and easy.
- I don’t chase luck, I attract luck.
- Every decision I make opens the door to more luck.
- I am always open to great opportunities and abundant luck.
Choose the affirmations that resonate with you or make up your own. The key is to believe that you are ALREADY living your luckiest life.
Whether you believe in Lucky Girl Syndrome or think this is a woo-woo TikTok trend, I personally think that most people could use a little positive self-talk – it can’t hurt, right? Whether or not you’ll really stumble across lucky occurrences and opportunities is probably going to be dependent on your mindset. Wishing you the best of luck!
