The Power of Visualization and Taking Action
I am not much for self-help writing; however, mindset is everything when transitioning into a new lifestyle or career. Lifestyle design, as Tim Ferris calls it, takes courage, faith and action. In this post, I will discuss the power of visualization combined with action and how it can serve you in achieving your dream location independent lifestyle.
Law of attraction
Say what you want about the law of attraction, popularised by Rhonda Byrne’s The Secret, but I know it has helped me towards the lifestyle I desire. Not manifesting myself a Ferrari kind of way, but achieving realistic goals, I have set for myself.
In short, the idea behind the secret consists of three steps:
Ask – what you want
Believe – that you will get it (or already have it)
Receive – the universe will deliver
Your thoughts shape your reality
The things we believe to be true shape our reality. This is why it’s essential to take a moment and examine our thoughts and beliefs to make sure they are serving us well. Thoughts are things you may have heard. This knowledge dates back to the Bible and has been rehashed throughout the ages, most recently by The Secret.
“If you believe you can, you probably can.” – Mary Kay Ash
Your beliefs about how the world works will shape your reality because they will determine what your life looks like. If you strongly believe that something is impossible, for example, then it’ll be difficult for you to get anywhere close to that goal. Conversely, feed your subconscious mind with positive beliefs, and you will move closer to your goals.
Power of setting goals
Therefore, when you embark on a new mission, it is vital to know what you want. In this case, quitting your wage-slave job to go out on your own as a freelancer, entrepreneur or start-up business owner, write down exactly what it is you want to achieve.
Where do you see yourself in one year, five years from now?
What does your ideal day look like?
How many clients do you want?
How much money do you want to make?
Where are you working from? Home office, inner-city co-working space? The beach?
The power of goal setting is well known and is continually written about, yet it’s incredible how little people do it.
“The reason people don’t get what they want is because they don’t know what they want.” T. Harv Ecker – Secrets of the Millionaire Mind: Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth.
Visualize your future
Visualization is like goal setting, but you visualize it in your mind instead of writing it down. You can use visual aids to help you, like vision boards. The power of visualization, once you master it, is like a personal superpower.
A vision board is a collage of pictures of everything you want. Your dream home, car, office, holiday, spouse, etc. You can print photographs and stick them on a corkboard or create a digital vision board using Canva. The important thing is to keep it somewhere you will see it every day to keep the images front of mind. I keep one near my closet where I get dressed every morning and a digital version as the background on my computer.
Practice daily gratitude
Gratitude is powerful; there’s no doubt about it. In fact, I primarily have the power of appreciation to thank for turning my life around at one point.
Gratitude helps generate happiness and general well-being and improve attention, social relationships, and self-esteem.
Experiments have confirmed that grateful people are also more likely to volunteer in their communities. They are more likely to report a sense of purpose and meaning in life. Gratitude also provides a buffer against the negative effects of stress and depression.
Gratitude will serve the new freelancer, entrepreneur or new business owner when the going gets tough. And it will. When you find you are up against the ropes and not where you will like to be, practice writing down ten things you are grateful for. You will be amazed at how much it helps.
Feed the mind healthy content
Just like your body will love you for feeding it healthy foods, so to will your mind for providing it with healthy ideas. Do this through reading. Besides the books I have already mentioned, so many more excellent books will serve your mindset as you strive for a better life. There’s too many to list, so I’ll just pick out a few more of my favorites here:
As a Man Thinketh by Denis Waitley
The Secret of the Ages by Robert Collier
The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
The Success Principles by Jack Canfield
The Power of your Subconscious Mind by Joseph Murphy
The Four Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris
Digital Nomad by Tsugio Makimoto and David Manners
Focus on what matters and take action today
Your life gets better as you focus on what matters most to you. You become happier, and your career will be more successful if you take action today.
When working towards your own location independent lifestyle, try practicing the following:
-
Plan what needs to be done – plan your day and week ahead of time
-
Start the day with a clear goal
-
Focus on one task at a time without switching between tasks
If you want to be a successful freelancer or solopreneur, you need to put in the work. You should not rely on luck or other people for your success. The power of visualization will help you know what you want, believe you can get it, and enjoy the process of achieving your goals.
You got this.