The Beginner and Intermediate’s Guide to Visualizing Success & Making It Happen

In his critically acclaimed book “Think and Grow Rich”, Napoleon Hill said, “whatever your mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” Take a look around and see for yourself. Everything anyone has ever made existed first as an image in their mind. In this context, creating something or producing an outcome that cannot be imagined is impossible. Whatever we see before us, we know for a fact that it started with a simple idea, a vision.

Psychologists, counselors, trainers, coaches, and personal development gurus have been using visual imagery for decades, as a way to enhance performance, boost confidence, improve self-image, reduce self-doubt, create desired outcomes, and achieve life goals. For instance, if you want to learn or improve your dancing skills, your body movements can show considerable progress just by visualizing yourself dancing like a pro. In the same way, visualizing yourself expertly playing an instrument can actually boost your ability to do so. In other words, when you picture yourself performing something in your head, this greatly increases your chances of performing it in real life.

The truth is, you’re already using visualization because your brain is constantly conjuring up images of past or future experiences. But because this is a process that happens so naturally, much like breathing, you’re generally not aware of it. The problem is, being unaware of the power of visualization, you’re also unaware of how your mind is directing the process. This is particularly detrimental if your self-talk is inherently negative, and your visual imagery is pessimistic in nature. With that said, you can learn to best utilize visualization tools and techniques to actively create the future you desire for yourself and achieve the goals that you set for yourself.

Visualization can help you focus on your goals and improve your life for four main reasons. First, it helps you activate your creative subconscious and engages your mind in generating innovative ideas or strategies that will propel you to achieve your goals. So not only are you visualizing the desired outcome, but you’re also visualizing each and every step that will get you there. Second, visualization rewires your brain to adopt a more positive perception of everything around you; this, in turn, allows you to recognize the resources at your disposal that you can use to achieve your dreams. Third, because visualization is deeply rooted in manifestation, it also invokes the law of attraction. So, when you visualize your dreams, you’re also drawing people, resources, and circumstances into your life that are vital elements in reaching your destination. Finally, visualization stimulates your motivation and sparks your inspiration in a way that drives you to take the necessary actions to accomplish what you’re aspiring to.

There are many ways in which you can practice visualization. In this guide, I have compiled some of the best visualization tools, techniques, and exercises to help you better understand what visualization is, how it works, the benefits it offers, and the ways in which you can make it part of your daily routine. Use the visualization exercises at the end of this guide to improve a skill, implement a healthier habit, or enhance your ability to manifest the life you’ve always dreamed of. Just pick a goal, practice, and visualization will work its magic!

 What Is Visualization?

Visualization consists of using your imagination to picture or visualize goals you want to achieve in life. This exercise is also known as mental imagery or mental rehearsal. When used properly and with intention, visualization can be a fantastic way to reprogram your subconscious mind. Because your brain and nervous system are unable to tell the difference between images of a real experience and images of an experience that is vividly imagined, this tricks your mind into thinking that the image invoked is a reality rather than a fantasy. This is why visualization is so powerful and why it works so effectively. So, when you graphically imagine the things you want in your life, your brain and nervous system think that that outcome or those circumstances already exist, and they will act accordingly.

What Are Visualization Techniques for?

Visualization is a tremendously valuable tool when it comes to turning our dreams into a reality. This technique can be applied in almost any context or situation. Here are four ways in which you can use visualization and reap its benefits.

 

Motivation

staying motivated is one of the top concerns for many people. This is particularly difficult with the ubiquitous presence of a large range of distractions. Not only that but stress and burnout can also stifle your drive and inhibit your enthusiasm. Visualization can serve as a vivid reminder of what it is you’re trying to accomplish. It gets you one step closer to your goals, which can also inspire you to persevere in your efforts.

 

Rehearsal

you can use visualization as an exercise to rehearse a given scenario before it unfolds in real life. This is a great way to do a “practice run” prior to the event taking place, which allows you to anticipate and mitigate what could go wrong before it actually does.

Confidence

thinking about that presentation you have to give or that job interview you have to go through can incite a rush of negative emotions, fear, dread, and self-doubt to name but a few. With that said, visualization can help you picture yourself in a successful position where you feel entirely confident in your ability to surmount your fears and courageously navigate the situation at hand.

 

Anxiety Reduction

visualization is also a valuable stress management tool that you can use to attenuate intrusive thoughts and declutter your mind from distractions.

 

 Visualization Exercises

 

  • If you’re a beginner at visualization, then this is the easiest technique you can incorporate to achieve your goals and manifest your desired outcomes. This is, in a way, a reverse meditation practice because instead of mindfully watching your mind wander and bringing your attention back to your breath, you focus on a particular idea, and you amplify it. This includes emotions, thoughts, feelings, and sensations.

    Sit in a quiet space and begin your visualization exercise. Picture yourself succeeding at your goal. This could be closing a great deal, getting promoted, becoming fitter, starting a business, saving up X amount of money, etc. As long as you have clear visual imagery in your mind, you will be able to elicit that confidence and motivation you need to get going. This exercise can help you overcome procrastination and conquer the fear of getting started. It also helps you avoid stagnation so you can move forward with your goals more efficiently.

  • Sometimes, conjuring up vivid imagery of what you want to achieve can be challenging, especially if your mind has a tendency to roam freely and aimlessly. In this case, creating a vision board that is tangible and within reach can be just as important as producing mental imagery of your goals. Doing so prepares your mind to identify all the elements that can help you create the life you want.

    Having a vision board around also allows you to take advantage of selective attention (tuning out what doesn’t matter to focus on what does) and the power of focus it fosters. When you start using your vision board as a way to guide and instruct your visualization, your mind begins to see those accomplishments and successes as if they’ve already happened. As you practice, you are able to train your brain to substantialize your thoughts, and by extension your nervous system to react accordingly. The simple act of creating a mental image of something can deliver the same benefits or consequences of the outcome that you desire. So, make a vision board that contains images and photographs, or representations of your goals and then place it somewhere so that you can see it frequently each day. This works similarly to an analytics dashboard commonly used in business. That which is measured and monitored is improved!

  • This is one of the visualization techniques best applied as a way to mitigate stress and anxiety. If you frequently find yourself overwhelmed or unable to perform when trying to accomplish something, consider coming up with a “happy place” you can visit and use as a method to destress. For some people, a happy place is being isolated on a boat in the middle of an open pool of water. For others, it’s in the middle of a mosh pit at a punk rock concert. It doesn’t matter what your happy place is, so long as thinking about it soothes your negative feelings and eases your racing thoughts.

    Visualization is a powerful tool used by many successful individuals. It’s a technique of focusing and targeting your mind towards what you want. Through visualization, you can create images in your mind to reflect where you want to be in life and what you want to accomplish. When learning how to visualize your goals and dreams, it’s vital that you picture them already being accomplished. You’ve purchased the new car, finished the novel, or earned a promotion at work. These things are done instead of in progress. Viewing a completed accomplishment is the difference between hoping for something to happen and using goal visualization to actually manifest it.

 

May these visualization techniques and exercises help you manifest your DREAMS!