@cyhmie,
Manifesting has another name:
Wishful thinking.
When we search for patterns in life, we find them. And then we believe in them due to something called
confirmation bias.
You want it to mean something, so you spin and stretch the smallest thing into something that you feel has meaning.
You saw someone who lives in your city or town. Because this person is striking to you, you notice them when you spot anyone even remotely like them, hoping that the person you're seeing is him.
When it turns out to be him, you congratulate yourself on being right. And for the times when you're incorrect, you justify it by saying you weren't doing the manifesting perfectly correctly.
And so your confirmation bias is bolstered.
Human beings are creatures of habit. We go to the same grocery stores, gyms, parks, restaurants, houses of worship, clubs, etc. All. The. Time.
You do, and so does he. As do the other people in your town or city. You never see many of those people because they don't cross your path at all. For example, unless you work at or volunteer at a home for the aged, or you have a family member in one, you are not likely to meet people in their 90s. They exist in your city, but you never see them.
So, you're picking him out from fewer people than actually live in your area. In a decent sized city or town where there are choices, you are just plain going to coexist with people who you never see.
You're not looking at the women. Age plays a part as well. If you're in your 20s, the only people you know who are in their 50s are likely to be parents and other family members of that generation, and the people at work who are in middle and upper management.
As a straight woman in your 20s, you're probably not noticing any men over the age of about 40. At least, you're not looking for them. You're also not looking for kids.
If you're deliberately seeking him out, walking down the streets where you've seen him, etc., then your thumb is on the scale and you're upping the odds of a person walking down the street turning out to be him.
You aren't manifesting anything because manifesting doesn't exist.
You are, rather, seeing patterns in your everyday life, increasing the odds of seeing this guy (who you know nothing about, apart from his looks) by going to the places where you've seen him, and amping your confirmation bias up to 11.
It's the same principle that "psychics" use to convince people. Familiarity and odds.
My suggestion -- go back to school and take a statistics class so that you, too, can see what kind of utter bullshit manifesting is. And meet and talk to the men in your class. I can pretty much guarantee you that spending time with men, talking to them, and not just wishing and hoping, will be a more fruitful use of your time.
If you want a relationship with anyone, then you have to open your mouth and actually talk to them.