Visualization works because the human brain can’t differentiate between what’s actually happening and what’s being imagined in a very accurate and detailed way using all of the senses. This effectively means that, if you can picture it in your head with as many realistic details as possible, you can make it a reality!

There have been so many studies on visualization and so much anecdotal evidence by famous and successful people who have utilized it for years that there are proven steps that will work every time. Here they are below:

Your subconscious mind processes everything only in the present tense and only literally, so when addressing it – as you do with visualization – you need to speak its language. Be clear and specific when you communicate using your imagination. This means that simply using words repeated over and over as a mantra or affirmation will not work, because the goal is to create neuro-pathways that will teach you how to accomplish the task in real life. Positive thinking is definitely a step in the right direction, but it’s only half of the equation.

A great way to utilize positive language in a way that will work, however, is to make sure you turn every statement regarding your dreams into an affirmative one. Instead of saying “I want to get out of debt” say “I’m financially independent!”. This is because your mind will only respond to the word “debt” and the negative feelings you’ve already associated with it. Not to mention, if you word the affirmation in the future tense, you’re basically telling your brain that you are not already financially independent and so any visualization you perform after that will be perceived as a fantasy, instead of a reality.

Relax your body and your mind, to make it easier to contact your powerful subconscious. Make sure you’re in a quiet place, free of noise, disruptions and distractions. This will help you quiet your mind and end its anxious chatter. Learning to meditate can make this easier, so if you’re interested, click here. The easiest way to eliminate random thoughts is to accept that you can’t eliminate them at all – simply accept that they will come, notice what they are as they do and then let them slip away naturally without judging their meaning or significance.

Once you’re ready to concentrate on the thing you wish to visualize, make a note of all the important details regarding your visualization. It’s important that you are as particular as possible about what you want to achieve, become or attain. It would be easier if you made a note of all these details before your visualization session, perhaps the night before or soon after waking up, if you’re a morning person. Read through these details every day to memorize them. Then when you’re ready to visualize, they will come effortlessly to you.

The important thing here is to utilize all your senses while visualizing. An ideal mental image would include what you hear around you, what you smell, what the temperature is like, what your mouth tastes like or feels like, what actions you can see and feel your body perform and what you’re thinking as it all happens. Who are you with? What are you wearing? Just because it’s called visualization, doesn’t mean it’s all about the visuals. The more vivid the experience, the stronger the results will be. Remember to call upon a powerful emotion of happiness, excitement and gratitude as if what you desire has already been given to you. Paint the mental and emotional picture as though you were achieving it in real time.

Meanwhile, tackle any doubts that show up. This is where most people fail, because they get concerned with all the ways their dream might fall apart. They get overwhelmed and overthink it. Then their fears creep into their visualization and hijack it. This effectively means they’re using the power of this practise to make sure their fears come true. To beat this and make sure it doesn’t happen to you, make your visualizations realistic by imagining little hiccups appearing along the way. But then make sure to imagine (with as much detail as possible) exactly how you will overcome these difficulties in a calm and collected manner, without fear or panic.

Make sure to add visualization into your daily routine. It doesn’t matter if you do it first thing in the morning, just before bed or somewhere in between. As long as you don’t get lazy with it. It’s easy to fall back into old habits and you can’t expect visualization to become one of those habits, if you don’t practise it on a daily basis. Even if you’re just writing down your visualization in a notebook that you can read during your lunch break or recording yourself narrate it so you can listen to it during your commute, they all serve as gentle reminders that you are powerful enough to make your dreams come true.

A popular way to solidify your visualizations is to create a vision board that you can look at regularly during the day. It’s basically a mosaic of cut out images and words that match your dreams and desires clued, taped or stapled to a piece of poster board. This can be hung up over your office, next to your bed, in your living room or anywhere you will come across it and have a chance to visualize yourself already in possession of what you want. Again, don't forget to add in strong emotions of gratitude and happiness. It’s the most important part!

Try out these tips and if you’re still finding this advice hard to implement, ask for help in the comments below, send me a message, or book a FREE breakthrough session to see how I can help you through Skype.

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Until next time, remember: Happiness doesn’t require energy. It requires Strategy.