The Art of Visualization

VISUALIZATION

• The human brain doesn’t know the difference between something you vividly imagine and something that’s real. Have you ever had an intense dream that wakes you up — your heart is beating out of your chest or you have trouble breathing? That’s because the mind doesn’t know the difference.
• Researchers will have a subject look at a dog that comes into a laboratory, to see which parts of their brain light up. Then, they will take the dog out and tell the subject to visualize (imagine) a dog coming back into the laboratory. They observe that the same parts of the subject’s brain light up when using imagination.
• A study at the University of Chicago took three groups of people and put them on a basketball court to see how many points they would score shooting free-throws. Afterward, they gave Groups A, B, and C different instructions. Group A was told to practice shooting free-throws for 1-hour per day for 30 days. Group B was told to practice every day for 1-hour, except they were told to stay away from the basketball court and avoid touching a ball. They should only visualize themselves successfully making free-throws. Group C was told not to practice at all. They should not touch or even think about basketball.
• Researchers followed up 30 days later. Group A improved 24% — because practice makes progress. Group C did not make any progress — no practice no progress. Group B had striking results. They improved 23% — this is evidence that your mind is powerful.
• Great athletes don’t just do physical training, they mentally train themselves to see the result in advance.

PRACTICE

• Practice the art of visualization. Imagine the perfect day. What would a limitless day be like for you — from the moment you get up to when you go to bed? If you can see it in your mind, you can create it outside of your mind. What you vividly imagine, you are rehearsing.
• One of the challenges is, a lot of people use their visualization to get the results they don’t want in life. By visualizing it over and over again, they are actually preparing and rehearsing for failure.
• “A coward dies a thousand deaths, but a hero only dies once.” The coward mentally rehearses failure. Visualization is potent.
• A study that became known as “counterclockwise” study by Ellen Langer out of Harvard University, took eight guys out of a senior center and put them into a monastery in 1979. She decorated the monastery as if it was 1959. For example, the television was black and white and had 1959 television programming. She even took all of the mirrors out of the monastery so the subjects could not see their own reflection. She did an audit and assessment about where they were before they visited the monastery. She tested their physical strength, sense of hearing, and sight. She also tested their cognitive abilities, focus, and memory. She told them to pretend and live for 1 week as if it was 1959, not 1979.
• After one week of being in that environment, the men’s strength improved, as well as their sense of hearing and sight. Their cognitive ability, focus, and memory were also enhanced. They even looked noticeably younger after the experiment.
• The “counterclockwise” study is a testament to the power of belief, imagination, and visualization.
• Here is the lesson: as you construct and rehearse your limitless day, your attention goes there — remember that your feelings are the language of your body and your thoughts are the language of your mind.
• My goal for you to become limitless is to imagine your perfect day, your perfect moments —imagine it, visualize it, see it, feel it, believe in it, and then work daily for it — that’s the success formula.
• Here’s your assignment: in the comments, share with our community — What does a perfect day look like for you? What is your limitless life? Why are you a part of this program? What do you see and hear and want to feel more of as you are going through this book and in this program?
• In the next session, we will be talking about the second “M” to becoming limitless, which is your motivation. How do you overcome procrastination and how do you provide yourself with energy to be able to learn and reach your goals?

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• Check out my book at limitlessbook.com