People often say that it’s easier to dream a dream than it is to actually live it. By ‘living’ the dream we mean putting in hard work consistently towards something you want to see manifest in your life. The master plan you came up with won’t accomplish itself now, will it?
When you do have a plan, whatever it might be, the real difficulty is only yet to arise and it’s in the why’s. Why should I do this or do that? Why should I try my absolute hardest to achieve X or Y? I just don’t see myself in this.
This is precisely where the straw breaks, and it is the locus of division between the strong and the weak… or is it a debate between those creative and a bit less creative?
Strength = creativity
Here’s our point. The strong here are those who have a vision. Visualization plays an important role in every possible scenario of goal setting. Period. Almost all highly successful people are creative in one way or another. Picturing yourself where you want to be even though you’re quite freaking far from it is a form of creativity!
What the most motivated people who simply won’t take no for an answer do is visualize. They play games with themselves because they know very well that the biggest opponent they could possibly face is their own voice telling them stuff. Besides, isn’t self-doubt is the serial killer of all dreams?
Not imagining yourself having achieved the goals you so much desire is a big setback. Imagine if you had 40 pounds less. Imagine if you could lift above your PR. Imagine if you were the champion, the winner, the one who made it…
Emotion as a fuel
Can you see it now or can you feel it? How does that make you feel inside? Powerful, fulfilling, fun, exciting? A mix of all those? Why not have those amazing feelings fueling your drive towards whatever your goal might be. Use that upswing of emotions to propel your efforts even when you feel vulnerable, incapable, or lost.
It isn’t silly to pretend that you’ve already made your goal come true. It seems so much closer and tangible once you’re ‘already there’ in your mind. Human beings operate differently when they have a burning desire inside of them, governing their thoughts and actions.
You will find new ways of approaching whatever might be temporarily holding you back. Sometimes, all that you need is a tiny reminder of what you wanted to achieve in the first place. People often drop the ball once they feel as if their efforts are futile. Remember the voices we’ve mentioned?
Truth be told, it will feel like you’re stagnating most of the time. The big changes and signs of improvement are not frequent in any case. Most of the time it’s a matter of repetition, learning, and most of all pain. Pain is ever-lasting. However, toughness was never bred in a comfortable environment.
The extra mile
Regardless of the obstacle, go the extra mile! Victory only arrives after that one extra mile. Yes, tomorrow is a new race and you have to run an extra mile again, but that is our disposition as the ones who always want to succeed.
Visualize yourself winning the race, imagine how it feels again and again. Repetition has to become your best friend. As David Goggins likes to say: “This is what we do now”.
What you do now is imagine yourself in the best shape possible. Get familiar with the feelings that image in your mind produces, use it to your advantage, and get to work. This is how you use visualization as a motivating element in reaching higher grounds.
Thank you for your time!
