All humans think in images and symbols. When we recall information or an experience it is normally pictures or movies that we see. These may well have a soundtrack associated with them and will definitely conjure up emotions …

when we daydream we can see images of our future as we want it to be

If you think for a second about a piece of music that really takes you back to a special time or place, take note of the location of the memory. What you are seeing in your minds eye, what sounds can you recall and how does that piece of music makes you feel?

I bet you were able to see quite clearly images from your past. If you are like me, you will be able to see the haircut you had and the clothes you were wearing that at the time seemed like the height of fashion. Think about your first car. Can you see the garage you bought it from? Can you see it parked outside your house? How about the first time you drove it? Do you see how cool you looked?

All you are doing is using your imagination to create images and pictures to individualise and visualise. Your mind is expert at doing this as it is the natural way it works. When you hear people recall a story and describe a set of circumstances, it will be created through imagination, with a number of images and pictures that give it meaning and relevance.

As no two people will experience the same event in the same way it stands to reason that your own memories will not always be the same as some else, even if they experienced the same event at the same time. Our own internal filters will have enhanced, altered and changed the experience as it was being stored in our long term memory. Sometimes, key facts are even deleted and the individuals perception will change how they ‘feel’ about a particular experience. Terrified of heights? Go up the Eiffel Tower with someone who isn’t and see how different your memories of the experience are when you get home!

However, our future thinking is pure imagination. Even if our memories are unintentionally distorted then when we see images of our future we can deliberately distort what we see and can mould it and change it any way we like. You could simply call it ‘daydreaming’ however by learning to use our imagination in a guided way, we can propel ourselves to achieve our goals and find success in every aspect of our lives.

Using your imagination to visualise and experience a future event, Edge NLP can help you to place this into your timeline as a future goal. You can learn more about this at one of our regular NLP taster days, or call us on +44 (0) 2032 450698 to find out more.

Be excellent …