Joe Rogan has made major news again, and this time, it is for taking aim at a widespread celebrity belief: that thinking or visualizing might help you achieve your goals. While many believe in the law of attraction, the UFC commentator has questioned its exaggerated claims, disputing the notion that thinking alone causes success.

And while his take sparks a rare clash between practical realism and the manifestation mindset endorsed by the likes of Conor McGregor and Will Smith, it surely is one worth listening to.

Joe Rogan challenges ‘manifestation’ in celebrity culture

Joe Rogan‘s perspective on manifestation is rooted in practical realism. On his podcast, he stated that, while there is some benefit to setting intentions and believing in positive results, the idea that one can “wish their life into existence” is oversimplified. For the JRE host, manifestation is really a minor component of a much broader puzzle, not a miraculous formula for success.

He made parallels with health and fitness, stating that getting meaningful results needs a combination of factors, including good nutrition, consistent exercise, rest, hydration, and avoiding reckless habits. Just as a single action cannot make someone healthy, envisioning goals does not immediately make them a reality.

Many celebrities see manifestation as a key to their success. Fighters like Conor McGregor attribute their success in the sport to visualization and keeping a “bulletproof mindset,” and actors like Will Smith emphasize the idea that people influence their reality through intention and clarity about their goals.

So, while Joe Rogan recognized the motivational potential of such methods, he emphasized that people frequently misunderstand them, treating them as the primary driver of results rather than a component of a wider system. He said on JRE #2389 with guest Sal Vulcano, “I think that is a part of things—that putting something into your head is a part of things. But I don’t think it’s the whole thing.”

Belief can guide action, he said, but it cannot replace the planning, preparation, and constant work required to generate visible results. He further added, “Things don’t happen exactly as randomly as we want to believe that they do. There’s a lot of examples of it. It’s a weird one to believe in because I feel like it’s ‘an’ element to life, and the problem is people are always looking for it to be ‘the’ element.”

Rogan’s criticism is perfectly logical. Yet, there are examples of success that maintain the power of manifestation, like McGregor and Smith.

When Conor McGregor manifested his success against all odds

“If you can see it, and you have the courage enough to speak it, it will happen,” an elated Conor McGregor said after his UFC 194 victory over Jose Aldo. Everyone and their mother had written off McGregor against the unrelenting Jose Aldo the time. The Brazilian was on an 18-fight win streak and undefeated for over a decade across two promotions.

McGregor took all but thirteen seconds to find the shot that put him down. The most surprising part? He was drilling the same move backstage during his warm-up. The Irishman’s explanation was simple. During one of their face-offs, he spotted Aldo’s right hand twitching. After all the mental warfare and trash talk, Aldo could not wait to get his hands on McGregor.

So, ‘Mystic Mac’ visualised him rushing in with that right hand, and practised a picture-perfect step-back left cross. The same one that put him down on fight night. Joe Rogan was cage-side and his jaw dropped at the spectacle.

Similar is the case for Will Smith. Rogan may have a bone to pick with him over the Chris Rock slapping incident. But Smith still remains one of the biggest actors, an Academy Award winner, and a global celebrity. “A certain amount of delusion that is necessary to achieve things that haven’t been achieved before… You have to have a certain diluted certainty in your magical abilities,” he says.

There are plenty of more examples of people visualising their success from Rogan’s beloved sport of MMA. From Khamzat Chimaev chanting ‘I am the champion’ while skipping rope, to Ilia Topuria changing his social media bios with fight results long before he’s won them. But Rogan is right on one count.

None of the above examples allowed someone to outwork them easily. Yes, they visualised their success, but that was not a substitute for the time and effort they put in. So that question is, can hard work alone guarantee success? Don’t you need the see your success ahead to keep pushing yourself? How does it work for you? Let us know in the comments.