The potential behind visualization
written by Vanessa Herrera Santiago, an ellement collective™ teen intern & founding member
Have you ever imagined accomplishing something before you even started? And if you have, can you remember how amazing it felt? Well, every time you imagined yourself finishing something, you were developing your visualization skills, and with these you increased little by little your self-confidence. Personally, I can't remember how many times I have used visualization as a stimulus to try new things and get out of my comfort zone as I understood the incredible power behind it and therefore started practicing it whenever I wanted to achieve something. out of the ordinary. I have used it in both simple tasks and difficult tasks, but one thing never changes: If you can see yourself doing or achieving something, then it means that it is possible
Now here comes the best part and you may be asking yourself, what should I do to develop and put this skill into practice? For me, there are three stages to the whole process of visualization and each step has its own benefits, as well as personal challenges. In the first stage, everything seems impossible and very difficult to complete, but it is at this point that you have to put your visualization skills to maximum practice by imagining yourself completing what currently seems impossible. Some tips I can give you are to imagine both the tangible and intangible outcomes you will obtain from putting so much effort right now (for example, reflect on how good you will feel, how much you will enjoy this personal victory, how much you will learn from this experience, what physical benefits you’ll receive, among other things).
The second stage of the process can be considered the middle ground, as it becomes relevant once you begin your task, but you start to face obstacles. Believe me, everyone runs into difficulties at some point, and the easy way out is quitting. However, only those who see the real benefits of moving forward are the ones who will overcome the obstacles until they achieve what they imagined since the beginning. When you get to this part of the process, stop for a moment and think about why you started in the first place, as you will realize that you never thought it would be easy, but you thought it would be worth it. Therefore, you’ll gain strength and motivation to keep moving forward because…
“The greater the obstacle, the greater the glory in overcoming it.”
The third and final stage can be everyone's favorite, or at least mine, because it involves you experiencing the last things before successfully completing what you proposed at the beginning. What was first a vision has now become the new reality and you feel on top of the world. Now imagine doing this process every day for the rest of your life. Some days will be good, some will be bad, some will be worse, and it goes on and on. The key is to stick with the goals you want to achieve, rather than focusing on the obstacles you will face.
“Don’t let the fear of losing be greater than the excitement of winning”
It may seem simple, this personal 3-step process, but I can assure you that it is not that easy to follow because it requires persistence, commitment, resilience, and responsibility. So not everyone will be willing to move on, but I know you will as you are demonstrating right now, by reading this, that you want to develop more soft skills. I invite you to change your perspective towards goal setting and begin to visualize yourself achieving them. Only then can you show that you have everything you need to complete that impossible goal.
Try to include your 5 senses in your visualization process
Vanessa Herrera Santiago
{ellement collective™ teen intern & founding member}
I am Vanessa, I am 19 years old and I live in Monterrey, Mexico. I love being a Girl Guide and I am passionate about learning and developing professionally. My goal is to make a significant difference in the world through social actions.
