The Yoga Studio That Overcharged Me Taught Me Neville Goddard’s Real Secret
I was trying to “manifest” a refund. What I got instead was a masterclass in the one law that changes everything.
Photo by Ginny Rose Stewart on Unsplash
You know that feeling when you get caught by a fine print you never saw coming?
I (Sophia) was three weeks into a “1-Month Trial” at a local yoga studio. Life happened — I got sick, my fitness goals shifted — so I politely emailed them. “Hey, can you cancel my renewal for next month? Thanks for the great classes!”
Their reply was a gut punch.
“Per our policy, we require a 30-day written notice to cancel.”
I read it twice. A 30-day notice for a one-month trial? To cancel a subscription I didn’t even want to continue, I would have had to notify them on day one.
I felt that hot rush of injustice. Disrespected. Cheated. It wasn’t even about the hundred-ish dollars; it was the principle. The “how dare they” story lit up in my mind like a neon sign.
My first instinct was to fight. My second, as a teacher of manifestation and the power of the mind, was to manifest. I visualized the refund. I affirmed “the studio is generous and understanding.” I tried to bend reality to my will.
And nothing happened.
The renewal date came, and the charge hit my account. My manifestation felt like a dud.
That’s when I remembered a line from Neville Goddard’s The Power of Awareness that I’d been teaching just days before:
“Man’s chief delusion is his conviction that there are causes other than his own state of consciousness.”
Ouch.
I had been seeing the yoga studio as the “cause” of my problem. But Neville states, bluntly, that this is a delusion. The real cause was my own state of consciousness. I was the common denominator in this story.
This is where I learned the critical difference between manifesting and identity shifting.
Manifesting (the way I was doing it) was like sending out a wishlist to the universe: “I want them to be fair.” It comes from a place of lack.
Identity Shifting, as Neville teaches, is becoming the person for whom the solution is already true. It comes from a place of assumption.
Neville defines assumption as “a thing that is accepted as true or as certain to happen, without proof.”
So, I stopped trying to get a refund.
I became the person who was already treated with fairness and respect by the businesses they engage with.
But here’s the part I never understood until that moment. This isn’t just a mental exercise. This new state of consciousness requires integrating the second meaning of the word, “assumption” which is the “act of taking on power or responsibility.”
And responsibility, I realized, isn’t about blame. It’s about response-ability. The ability to respond to your reality by first looking within.
A question surfaced from a place of deep knowing, one that changed everything:
“Where have I not kept my own promises?”
The answer came instantly, clear and cringe-worthy.
Months prior, I had launched a digital course. I had delivered all the core content, but one promotional bonus — a juicy, hour-long video — had fallen through the cracks. I’d never sent it. It was a “small” thing, not critical to the course, but a promise was a promise. I had, in essence, hidden my own “fine print” from my students.
The yoga studio was holding up a mirror, and I finally had the courage to look.
I didn’t meditate harder on the refund. I didn’t do another visualization. I sat down at my computer and spent the next two hours creating that forgotten bonus video. I finished it, uploaded it, and sent a heartfelt email to every student who had purchased that course, apologizing for the delay and granting them lifetime access.
The moment I hit “send,” a profound feeling of lightness washed over me. The internal knot of conflict was gone. The work was done. I had cleaned up my side of the street. I had aligned my 3D reality with my new assumption of integrity. I completely forgot about the yoga studio.
The next day, I checked my messages on autopilot. There it was. A new email from the studio.
They apologized for the “confusion,” stated they valued me as a potential future member, and had processed a full refund.
My jaw dropped. “Oh my god, it actually happened?”
This wasn’t the Universe rewarding me for being “good.” It was the natural, inevitable result of a change in consciousness. As Neville says:
“If this assumption is persisted in until it becomes your dominant feeling, the attainment of your ideal is inevitable.”
I had shifted my dominant feeling from “aggrieved customer” to “integrity-driven business owner,” and the 3D world had no choice but to reflect it back.
The One Practical Takeaway You Can Use Today
The secret isn’t just thinking “I am” thoughts. It’s taking 100% responsibility for the reality those thoughts create.
If you’re facing a recurring problem — a lack of clients, difficult relationships, financial strain — ask yourself this powerful question:
“What have I done in the past that is the essence of what is happening to me now?”
Then, go fix it.
Can you deliver on that forgotten promise?
Can you pay that small, overlooked debt?
Can you offer a genuine apology where one is due?
If you can’t reach the original person, perform a symbolic act. Find someone else in a similar situation and help them. Dedicate the deed to healing the original karmic seed.
This is how you “assume the feeling of the wish fulfilled.” You become the person of integrity, and the world of integrity finds you.
This path of Identity Shifting is the most powerful thing you will ever do, but let’s be real: it can also be the most challenging. The concept of 100% responsibility is a massive pill to swallow, especially when you’re just starting out.
You don’t have to do it alone.
If this story resonated with you, if you’re ready to be encouraged and held accountable as you step into your most powerful self, come and join our free Skool community, Shift Your Identity (SYI).
It’s a supportive space where we move beyond theory and into practice, helping each other clean up our 3D realities and consciously create the lives we’re meant to live. No prior knowledge or understanding required.
Click here to join Shift Your Identity (SYI) for free.
The power to assume a new life is your birthright. Let’s claim it, together.