Recently I was reminded of the role and power of visual imagery as reinforcement to our goals and dreams. I reckon it’s worthy of further exploration.
When we’re considering and planning actions that will move us towards our ideal future, we invariably have strong — though often fleeting — visual images in our mind.
These images may be directly related to aspects of our work or, more frequently, are of a life that has evolved as a consequence of change.
In other words, they may be images of a swanky new office; or of a deckchair on a deserted beach. You get the picture. Pun intended.
In precisely the way an impending holiday helps us plough through work in the weeks immediately prior, clear pictures representing a snapshot of our future provide energy and stimulus when we need it most.
So if our imagination really helps inspire and motivate us, why do these images gradually dissipate? Quite simply, because we expect too much of our imagination.
When we’re buried in some of the mundane and laborious tasks that proliferate our working life, it’s simply too much to expect our creative mind to conveniently pop up with a yummy and inspiring image.
We need to give our imagination a helping hand and to do so is an absolute doddle.
Get yourself a stack of magazines, a pair of scissors and some glue and do what every ad agency, interior designer, graphic designer, fashion designer and research company has been doing for decades … create a storyboard that sells the concept.
The concept is your future and the client is the most important one you’ll ever have — you.
When you’ve completed your storyboard, with a mass of pasted images that have some meaning to you, hang it somewhere prominent or turn it into a digital image and set it as your screen saver.
I’ll show you mine if you show me yours!
