These are shaky times financially for many people, as the economy continues to reel from the events that began in 2008 as the U.S. stock market crashed and the real estate bubble burst, sending retirement accounts and savings into a long downward slide.

Many people are struggling with mortgage problems and job losses. It’s a situation that can lead to feelings of hopelessness, especially for those who are unable to get their heads above water in this difficult economy. Yet there are those folks who seem to float above financial problems, even as others are sinking. What’s their secret?

Some people see money as an “idea” more than just an actual physical object that rules us. Though it is perhaps an unusual way of seeing wealth, the idea of creative, positive visualization as a key to attaining, or ‘attracting’ wealth has caught on in recent years.

Many of these classic ideas about ‘attraction’ were popularized in the book and DVD, ‘The Secret,’ which was written by Australian television producer Rhonda Byrnes. The book and DVD have become hugely popular bestsellers, all of which speaks to the public’s need for a positive message and a means for attaining a stable life that includes a sense of abundance.

The message of ‘The Secret’ is not new—it builds on ideas put forth by Norman Vincent Peale in his book ‘The Power of Positive Thinking,’ which was published in 1952.  What all these books draw on is an attitude of consciousness regarding our outlook on life; a philosophy that says what we think and visualize is what we manifest in reality.

Can all this make us rich? Who knows? Some swear by this philosophy, others are wary. Yet a positive attitude certainly can help us stay energized as we weather job searches and ways to negotiate lower interest rates on our mortgages and credit card bills.

Is staying positive worth it? Why not? It’s free—and it certainly can’t hurt us.