Definition
Visualization is a technique you can use that may help you reach your goals and improve your quality of life.
How to Do It
Visualization is a highly individual experience that you tailor to your specific preferences.
- Choose a professional or personal goal to visualize.
- Visualize achievement of this goal.
- Repeat when and where you see fit
Benefits
- Increases motivation
- Improves goal outcomes
- Improves mental health and confidence
- Improves confidence
Time Commitment
Dependent on the individual but can be as small as a minute a day.
Why it works
- By repeatedly visualizing a goal, your motivation to achieve it may increase as you start to familiarize yourself with the idea and believe that success is possible. Studies have shown that meditation techniques can improve attention through positive changes to key neural signatures of attentional control [1].
- Studies have shown that repeat visualization meditation can lead to a real improvement in the visualized goal. One study, focusing on increasing student performance through visualization, found that students who participated in the visualization meditation group scored higher than students in the control group [2].
- Meditation techniques like visualization have real-world effects on the brain that result in increased motivation, results, and mental health. One study reviewed fMRI scans of people while they were performing visualization meditation. The results suggested activation patterns in areas of the brain that are congruent with the aims of visualization [3].
- Research has shown that the successful completion of goals can result in enhanced positive emotions and reduced negative ones, especially if the goal involves satisfying an intrinsic psychological need [4].
- Mental health may also be improved by visualization as a study found that meditative techniques are conducive to mental health and general well-being, while also counteracting stress [5].
Suggested Frequency
At least 5-10 minutes per day
Supporting Studies and Articles
Side Effects
Confidence and mental health could decline if the visualized goal isn't achieved.
Gurus/Celebrities/Doing it
Jim Carey
Oprah Winfrey
Suggested time of day
Any
Notes
- Trial and error is the key to finding the best visualization technique for you.
- It may be easier to start visualization meditation when you are alone if you are a beginner. Try to free yourself from distractions when you practice visualization.
- Try watching mind movies on Youtube. They provide visual imagery
- You can hang up vision boards or pictures of what you want to create visual imagery.
- When visualizing really focus on the feeling of accomplishing your goal
