The Power of Pictures

In the course of goal setting, when we decide what it is that we want to have, or be, or do, we could also describe the process as 'setting our minds' on something. But how do we 'set our minds'? What can we do to ensure that we keep the focus on our aims?

One of my favorite ways is to reinforce the mental picture of my goal with real pictures, real experiences and real sensations. It is important to stimulate as many of our senses as possible in order to fully engage the mind. Here are some ideas to help:

I have three main goals that I am working towards as I write this article. One is to support myself and my family entirely from my freelance work. Another is to write my first novel and the third is to own a Bentley Continental.

So that I never forget why I am putting in this effort, I have surrounded my workstation, the place where these things will be achieved, with images that support those goals. On the right are three pictures of the car of my dreams, in the colour that I want with an interior shot showing exactly the leather and trim combination I'm after and I've even mocked up a personal license plate with my initials on it. This is not just a picture of a Bentley; this is a picture of my car.

Above my computer screen is a mocked-up check made out to me in the sum of $50,000 and dated exactly one year from the date that I started this goal. This is the check I will receive when I do what I need to do.

Finally, at the left I have the jacket from the book that I am writing. It is a professional design bearing my name as author and the title of the book in bold letters.

I look at these inspirations every day before I start work and they help to get me focused, but my visualization doesn't stop there.

Nest week, I am visiting a local Bentley dealership and have booked a test drive. No, I can't afford that car yet but I want to know exactly how it feels to sit in it, start the engine and cruise down the road in its sumptuous leather. I want to hold those memories so I can run them again and again.

Every few days I take down the check, put it in an envelope and mail it to myself, so that I get used to the idea and experience of receiving large checks through the mail. I love the moment when I open it and see the figures once again. It sounds crazy, but it makes me smile every single time.

I also imagine my book jacket on the shelves of my local store and in my mind I watch people pick it up and carry it to the register.

Whenever I can, I run these scenarios through my mind and each time make them just a little more vivid and clear so that now, I can recall them at will and feel the positive sensations as if they were real and happening right now.

After such powerful manifestations, all I have to do is keep on taking daily action and I know that at the appointed time those things and more, will all be mine.

 
  • About

    headshot: David Beroff in St. ThomasDavid Beroff started writing software at the age of 11, and was teaching Computer Science at Rutgers University by the time he was 18. After designing software for two decades, he started his own Internet marketing firm in '95; one of his company's earliest successes was Freedback.com, a free feedback-form service that was later sold to Wondermill.

    Beroff had bought and sold four million voluntary, opt-in email leads generated with properties like LeadFactory and SuperTAF before the business failed in '07. He is the author of the book, Turn Funny Email into CASH!, and is currently developing a new social media site, AboutTh.is.

    He has two grown children, and now lives outside of Scranton with his girlfriend and five cats.

  • Contact

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