I personally never made much of a distinction between visualizing and dreaming, when defined in the context of goal setting and goal achievement, until I read Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “My Unbelievably True Life Story (do read it, it’s an incredible biography and primer for success). As I read through his incredible story, it became really obvious just how important and effective this skill was for Arnold. Essentially, the minute he was able to take his goals and make a very clear image or video in his consciousness, showing him how he would look in the future he desired, the Governator became unstoppable in the achievement of that dream.
Please do read the book if you want to get a clear understanding of how he developed this skill, starting with his desire to become the best bodybuilder on the planet, through his desire to become a millionaire so he could afford to pick and choose his acting roles, then the most popular/highest paid actor of his time, and lastly to his two terms as Governor of the richest and most popular city in the world.
These tips will help you push through the mental barriers that get in the way of allowing the dreams in your head to materialize into real-life achievement:
1. Arnold insists that the images and videos that represent your goals must be clear, bright, bold — incredibly vivid in your head before you start to create a plan of attack and take tireless action toward their achievement. Dimmed images don’t have as intense an effect on your nervous system and flat won’t inspire you. If you want to own a Bugatti in two years time, you need to see that picture really clearly.
2. It’s extremely important that you and anyone else you wish to be a part of the goal is in the image too. Arnold visualized many things throughout his life, but when he decided he wanted to be Governor one such scene in his head involved his wife and family with him during his acceptance speech.
3. Don’t allow clear visions of the things you don’t want into your visualization. If the images are bright and vivid, chances are they’ll become (or remain) in your life until you cast them from your mind. The thinking here is that the mind only attracts, it never repels.
4. Focus on trying to see through “your” eyes in the future you in your visualizations. Ever remember a time in your dreams when you were actually there, in the moment seeing through your own eyes rather than observing yourself in a scene? If you want to become a motivational speaker, you would want to visualize yourself looking directly at the audience, talking to them, inspiring them, looking at them looking at you. Don’t be an external observer. See everything in the auditorium — your name emboldened on promotional banners, see the audience members checking their phones, etc.
5. Make sure your visualizations have plenty of self-affirming dialogue. Unless your dreams are to live in a remote wilderness and never speak to man or beast ever again, talking is going to be a part of your future. Imagine yourself talking to Larry King about how you became the wealthy billionaire jet-setter that you are. Imagine people praising you for all the help and advice you’ve given them. Envision your family praising you and telling you what a shock your success has been to the whole family. Listen to your best man or maid of honor telling stories at your future wedding.
6. Don’t visualize yourself doing things in your comfort zone. Goal achievement is rarely a bump-less road and you’ll be required to rise up and do things you normally wouldn’t. Never allow hopelessness or doubt to enter the visualization process, doubt may occasionally plague you when you take action in real life but there’s no place for that in your mind’s eye.
7. Once the picture or video in your mind becomes vivid, you need to feel it on a very deep and emotional level. If you want to win the salesman of the year award that includes a nice 4-figure bonus, you must allow yourself to feel the overwhelming sense of accomplishment that you’ll experience in the scene. If you want to launch a startup that caters to people in a retail setting, you need to visualize how great it’ll feel when you’re featured in the media for being such a breakout success. Feel the rush as you’re the first to cross the finish line at the Boston Marathon. If you don’t have any idea about how you want to feel in your future self, what’s going to drive you forward?
8. To get better at visualization in general, using real life objects is a good practise. Look at an elegant piece of furniture for several minutes, then close your eyes and recreate the exact picture you just observed. Once the picture has formed to what you feel is an exact replica of the furniture item, try to remember as many unique details as you can then open your eyes. Have you missed part of the pattern on the chair? Did your memory fail you about the grain pattern used on the kitchen or living room table you pictured? Take a moment at least once or twice a day to challenge yourself and up the difficulty level as you improve by finding objects with ever-increasing details to remember during the visualizing process.
Have you ever used visualization to achieve your goals?
More important: Have you achieved the impossible without visualizing?
Main image by яғ ★ design
