More on Creative Visualization
"I do believe, and I have seen in my own life, that Creative Visualization works!"
- Oprah Winfrey
I can't say it any better than Oprah! - I do believe and I have seen it in my own life, that Creative Visualization works!In a previous post - "Who was your teacher" - I talked about the first time I read Shakti Gawain's wonderful book Creative Visualization. But even before I read that book, before I did my work and moved beyond my Woundology, before all of that, I was using Creative Visualization unconsciously. Gawain explains that:
"Creative visualization is the technique of using your imagination to create what you want in your life. There is nothing new, strange or unusual about creative visualization. You are already using it every day, every minute in fact . . . whether or not you are aware of it."
I remember the first time that I was actually aware that I had used visualization. It was at my 10 year high school reunion. As I mentioned above, this was way before I did any of the work around personal growth. The reason I became aware of it is that before the reunion, I thought to myself, it would be really cool to get ready with a group or my friends, have a few drinks around a pool somewhere and laugh and get dressed and put on make up together. I saw the picture really clearly in my mind, I could picture a group of us laughing and having fun prior to the actual reunion - all sitting in the sun around a pool. The problem was, I was picturing this from Japan where I was working at the time, and I had lost contact with most of my friends from high school. When I went home for the reunion, I called my old high school friend Carol (whom I had not seen in almost 10 years) and she offered - how about if we all get ready over at my house, and we made a plan. I had never been to the house that she now shared with her partner. Carol called a few old friends and we met at her house in the afternoon before the reunion. And when I walked through her house and get to the back yard, there in front of me was the vision I had pictured - four other friends from HS, all sitting around the pool, drinking cocktails and laughing. It was exactly as I had pictured it from Japan! It was eerie! But it was incredibly powerful, and luckily, I paid attention. Several years later when I first read Gawain's book, I got chills and thought - yes! That's what happened! And again luckily, I paid attention. That's an important piece - paying attention.It happens so frequently to me now that I have come to expect it and it doesn't have as chilling effect on me as when I first saw the scene around the pool. But I still pay attention, I still acknowledge the process and express gratitude when it does happen. Gratitude is another important piece. I am very conscious of the advice in Gawain's book:
"When you achieve a goal, be sure to acknowledge consciously to yourself that it has been completed. Often we achieve things which we have been desiring and visualizing and we forget to even notice that we have succeeded. So give yourself some appreciation . . . and be sure to thank the universe."
In her book, Gawain describes the four basic steps for effective Creative Visualizaion:
- Set Your Goal
- Create a Clear Picture or Idea of the Goal
- Focus on it Often
- Give it Positive Energy
I have added a fun, light video to illustrate these four steps. Visualizing is not hard, but it does require making a concerted effort and paying attention. And the really cool thing is, the more it works in your life, the more you expect it to work, so the more it works![youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SPo6KCbE4w] Please write and let me know some of your experiences with Creative Visualization. I love hearing stories about how it has worked in people's lives.As always thank you for taking the time to visit, I appreciate it.