Sometimes, witching can be frustrating and downright demoralizing. That’s never more true than when you put all your precious time and energy into a spell and then … nothing. We’re left frustrated and wondering why spells fail.
You might be thinking, “Maybe I’m not really a witch” or “I knew it. Magic is a hoax!”
Don’t despair. Every witch out there has had a spell or ten totally bomb. Spells that don’t work happen to us all. It doesn’t mean you can’t be a witch or perform magic. Also, it doesn’t mean all your spells will fail. Most likely, your spell just needs a bit of tweaking to get results.
Mistakes and failures, after all, help us learn and grow. But only if we’re willing to learn from them.
Let’s look at some of the most common reasons why spells fail and what you can do about it to get better results as you grow and learn!
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In the movies, witches wave their wands or speak and incantation with a flourish of their hand and POOF! Magic happens. Sadly, the reality of witchcraft isn’t so glamourous.
Even super effective spells don’t usually work in the blink of an eye. Magic needs time to manifest results. Sometimes that means days, but more often, you’re looking at weeks, months, or possibly even years.
I once cast myself a little piece of sympathetic magic that took 6 agonizing months (and a bit of conventional medicine…) to manifest. That same working stayed active even after I forgot about it and decided to wake back up and hit me again 4 years after I had cast that spell.
How Do I Fix It?
Yeah, I know. Ain’t nobody got time for that. Except you because you know this one’s an easy fix! You know that spells need time and patience, and you’re going to give your spell some breathing room.
The best way to avoid this reason why spells fail is to take a nice, deep, calming breath and remind yourself to be patient. Give your spell time to achieve results. Bonus – this fix requires you to do absolutely nothing. Talk about a time saver.
2. You Were Too Specific
If you’ve studied witchcraft in any capacity, you’ve probably learned that you need to be specific with your intention to avoid unwanted consequences. And that’s true. If you want that bonus income to find you via your side hustle and not an inheritance, you want to specify that.
Here’s where specificity can get you, though. Magic is a lot like energy. Well, it’s exactly energy… And energy takes the path of least resistance. It gets where it’s going via the simplest path it can find. When you cast a spell, that energy starts looking for ways to get you the thing you want.
If you want to find love and cast a spell to help you find a partner with all the qualities you value, you’re leaving lots of pathways for that love to find you via any of the potential right partners who tick those boxes.
If, instead, you cast a spell to run into Chris Hemsworth at your local coffee shop, and he finds you so charming that he falls madly in love with you, and you get married in three months… well, there’s pretty much only one pathway for that energy to follow. A whole lot of stuff is going to get in the way of your spell, and let’s be real, you won’t be tying the knot with the God of Thunder.
How Do I Fix it?
You have a couple of options here. If you’re still learning the basics, you can seek out prewritten spells from trusted sources that are proven to work. This comes with its own challenges, but if you’re brand new, one of the best ways to cast successful spells is to start with tried and tested spells that work.
If you prefer to create your own spells, consider sitting down with yourself and really figuring out what you want. Then consider whether that outcome can find you in more than one way. If you can think of lots of possible ways your magic might manifest, that’s a good sign. Don’t get hung up on how, just make sure how is possible.
3. It Actually Did Work But You Didn't Notice
Okay, now I know it feels like I’m just being mean, but hear me out. Successful spell work is a bit of a delicate balance. In order to get what you want, you have to tell that energy what you want. You have to want your desire enough to be able to feel the success of your outcome but without being so rigid that your magic sputters out.
Often, newer witches make the mistake of being too vague in their intentions. What happens is often not actually a spell failure but an unintended outcome.
Let me show you what I mean. You’re struggling to pay the bills, so you cast yourself an abundance spell for more money. A few days later, you find $10 in an old jacket you had forgotten about. Friend, your money spell worked. The path of least resistance for that spell was the forgotten cash in your jacket pocket.
That energy didn’t know that what you actually mean was that you wanted your company to authorize a 15% pay raise or that you wanted to bring more paying clients to your business. You gotta tell it that!
How Do I Fix It?
Think about what you really need and where you’re willing to compromise. Do you need to pay off your credit card? Cast a money spell for the specific amount you need, but let the energy decide the path of least resistance, or generally express that you want to get that money through a bonus of some kind.
If you did cast a vague spell or you’re just testing the waters, journal everything. Write down what you did, how you felt, and every little thing that could be related to your spell. You might find that you got exactly what you asked for, and that’s vital information that’ll help your next spell.
4. Your Mindset is Sabotaging Your Spellwork
The words, tools, and ingredients are truly the least important parts of your spell. Success comes primarily from two elements – intention and mindset. In fact, those pieces of the puzzle are so important that you can literally cast spells with only those two things and still have great success.
A sabotaging mindset can influence your workings in a few different ways;
- You don’t actually want the thing you’re casting for.
- You don’t believe you deserve the thing you’re casting for.
- You don’t believe your spell will actually work.
- You’re obsessed with the outcome of your spell and can’t stop thinking about it.
- You’re not “feeling it” when you perform your spell.
How Do I Fix It?
Successful magic requires a whole lot of focus and a little bit of faith. You’ve got to trust yourself and your working in order to get results. If you don’t really want it, don’t think you deserve it, or don’t believe you can achieve it, you’re not going to put in the energy required to get it.
The solution to this reason why spells fail requires looking inward and getting to the root of why you believe you’re unworthy of what you actually want. Shadow work, journaling, and meditation can help.
It’s the same when you cast spells even though you don’t really feel like it. Maybe you’re sick, exhausted, or mentally checked out. But by golly, tonight’s a full moon, and you’re casting that spell even though the whole ritual feels like a complete beating… Why would you expect great outcomes from that?
Give yourself permission to not be in he mood. Learn about methods that consume less energy if you want to hold space for a ritual but don’t have your whole heart, mind, or body in it.
Then there’s the opposite end of the spectrum. You cast a spell for something you are obsessed with achieving. Like to the point where it consumes your thoughts and wears you down. It’s virtually impossible to manifest anything while focusing on lack. Obsession with an outcome places all your focus on how much it sucks to NOT have the thing.
A great way to overcome this problem is to actively practice gratitude. Start a journal and write down something you’re grateful for every single day.
5. Your Spell Seeks an Impossible Outcome
Magic won’t defy the laws of physics. Let me say that louder for the people in the back.
MAGIC WON’T DEFY THE LAWS OF PHYSICS!!!
You can invoke the energy of a mermaid, but much to the dismay of my little witchlings, you can’t literally make yourself transform into a mermaid. Similarly, witchcraft isn’t going to make you immortal or give you godlike superpowers. You’re not going to learn pyrokinesis or levitation through magic.
If you’re looking to break the laws of physics, I’m afraid I can’t help you there.
How Do I Fix It?
You’re gonna have to hang out with the rest of us on the mortal plane for this one.
Are there people out there who possess the ability to work outside of the foundational laws that we use to understand our Universe? I don’t know, maybe. Far be it from me to tell somebody they can’t move stuff with their minds if they say they can. Witchcraft isn’t what gets you there, though.
If you want your spells to work, make sure that the outcomes of those spells are possible.
6. Your Spell Seeks a Highly Unlikely Outcome
Some spells are theoretically possible, but the odds of success are so small that it may as well be impossible.
Winning the lottery comes to mind here. Yes, you could win the big one. Your odds are about 1 in 300 million, and everyone else also wants to win, too. That makes for a very narrow path and a lot of splintered energy. By all means, give it a try, but don’t feel like a failure if that spell can’t do the job.
The same thing goes for healing spells. I’ve seen them do some incredible things, but you can’t always fix every illness with magic or keep someone alive indefinitely with spell work.
How Do I Fix It?
Think about how likely your outcome would be without magic. If the odds are against you, don’t feel too bad if your spells fail.
You could also consider alternate spells you can cast that have a higher likelihood of success. Instead of winning the lotto, manifest the cash you need to pay off your debts. Instead of keeping someone alive even though they would simply suffer, do workings to give all parties involved peace and acceptance of the outcome.
7. You Didn't Do the Mundane Work to Make Your Outcome Possible
We’ve already talked about how spell work needs to be possible and likely to succeed. You’ve also learned that magic takes the path of least resistance when finding its way to you. The more ways your spell has to succeed, the more likely you’ll get the desired outcome.
That means there’s a little foot work to do on your part. You need to put in the mundane steps that will create pathways for your magic to succeed.
You won’t find that job you cast a spell for if you don’t fill out applications. Nobody’s going to be hitting you up for dates if you avoid all human contact. That weight loss spell won’t work if you’re mainlining cheeseburgers and sleeping 15 hours a day.
How Do I Fix It?
Sadly, the only way to fix this reason why spells fail is to take the everyday steps that would make your desired outcome possible.
Magic isn’t a quick fix. It helps you determine what you really want and gives you better odds as you pursue those goals. But you have to put forth the effort to actually claim them.
8. You're Just Not Great at Certain Spells
It’s okay not to be an expert at everything! In witchcraft, it’s basically a given. That’s why approximately ten million types of witches and varieties of spells exist. Your job is to figure out which ones work for you.
For instance, I’m pretty good at magic involving money, financial abundance, healing, and banishing. I suck at luck spells and love spells, even the self love variety. My jar spells have a great track record, while my cord magic flops almost every time. Certain crystals do nothing for me. Others throw me into a deep fit of anxiety. The smell of geranium makes me gag. I don’t even care about its correspondences.
You’re not going to be good at everything! Embrace it.
How Do I Fix It?
The only way to discover your strengths and weaknesses in magic is through trial and error. You’re going to have to try stuff, journal about the results, look for patterns, and adjust accordingly.
You can improve your odds of success with practice, of course. Ultimately, though, you just have to figure out what works best for you and run with it.
9. You Used the Wrong Stuff
Earlier, I said that you don’t need tools to cast successful spells, and that’s true. At some point, though, especially if you’re still learning, you’re going to try out a spell that requires something besides pure energy.
Sometimes the reason why spells fail is because witches might use tools or types of spells that get in the way of their intention. You might discover over time that certain crystals or candles don’t work well for you. If you keep using them, you’ll keep struggling.
Similarly, if you’re casting a type of spell that conflicts with your intention, you’ll struggle to succeed. A sweetening spell won’t do much good if you’re hexing someone. Cord cutting spells won’t help if you’re trying to draw something to you. Burying a spell in the earth won’t help if you want your spell to work super fast.
How Do I Fix It?
Learning all the different spell types, materials, and correspondences can feel super overwhelming. To make things more manageable, I like to think about correspondences like metaphors. Everything actually represents something else.
Lots of people associate green with money or growing plants, so green crystals and candles are often well suited to spells involving money, growth, and abundance. Fire is a speedy and destructive force, so it’s a great element to use if you want to banish something right away.
Think about your own preconceptions and relationships between your tools and your intent. The more you practice this, the better you’ll become at intuitively choosing the perfect tools.
A word of caution, though. Please don’t let the fear of “doing it wrong” prevent you from practicing. I promise, the Universe is not sitting there nitpicking every syllable and movement along the way. Trip ups and mistakes won’t stop a spell dead in its tracks, and source is not out to get you for messing up.
10. Something Else is Getting in Your Way
Call it what you want it … God, spirit, the Universe, your angels … Whatever resonates with you. Sometimes, an outcome simply isn’t meant to be.
Maybe there’s something better waiting for you. It could be that you haven’t done the work to truly embrace accepting your desire. Maybe that outcome just isn’t supposed to happen.
How Do I Fix It?
To address this reason why spells fail, you have to look inward a little bit. Ask yourself if this is really what you want, if there’s something you need to accomplish first, or if this intent just might not be what’s best for you.
If you’re a tarot person, you can use tarot or oracle cards to help you figure out why your spell is failing and what you need to adjust to see success.
There Are Many Reasons Why Spells Fail
When your spells fail, it can make you feel like you’re not a good enough or strong enough witch. It can leave you doubting your abilities and debating whether magic is real at all.
Rest assured that failure is a totally normal and expected part of the process of learning witchcraft. If you’re not failing, you’re not learning!
The next time one of your spells doesn’t manifest, don’t give up. Come back to this list and think about the reason why.
What was your biggest spell work dud? Did you figure out what went wrong? Let me know in the comments!
