"The Power of Visualization"

I have been an ardent admirer of “Visualization” for a long time now. . .

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I got introduced to this way of thinking by one of my running coaches. When I was in my nascent days of training as a runner, my coach emphasized on the power of Visualization. To my layman mind it sounded irrelevant. He caught my perplexed look and said, “You need to internalize the outcome that you want to achieve”. Ok, now that sounded interesting considering that I wanted to eventually be able to run marathons.

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After spending a few minutes understanding this concept, I was both excited and scared. Excited because now I had a time-tested tool to set my goal with clarity, train my mind to think about & visualize the outcome, and scared as I was not sure if I would be able to do justice to this new concept I’d learned.

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Visualization is not just about training your mind and soul to see the result. It is a holistic way of thinking – setting “the goal”, internalizing, how would you feel once you have achieved what you set out for, play couple of scenarios in your mind, and at the same time have fun and enjoy as you go along.

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And boy - I did taste the success of Visualization in my first ever full marathon (FM) attempt in 2018 in Mumbai. For days I had visualized how I was going to start, keep the momentum and complete the FM. I worked on different scenarios in my mind (some of them were not that great though given my confidence at that time), but nevertheless I kept Visualizing a positive outcome. Just before the race, I would have in my mind zipped through the route at least 3-4 times. I had thought through on the pre-run diet, hydration, route, pace, and the finish line, the night before.

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Come race day, and I did a bit better than expected. Let me also share how visualization can impede the end result if seen in a negative way. Before the race one thing that was at the back of my mind was what other runners had said or talked about. So around 30-32 Km mark is when you have a tough time (somehow that stayed with me), and that’s when you need to push yourself and try and stay on course. While I was running in rhythm, I slowed down at 31 Km mark and that impacted my pace (tells you the power of visualization).?Eventually I completed my first ever FM and in a decent time – though if the 32Km mark had not played on my mind, I might have managed a better timing.

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To this end, I make a conscious effort to use the Visualization tool in different aspects of my life - personal and professional - Keeping the goal in mind, weigh all scenarios, stay realistic - it works wonders!

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As a practicing Professional and Executive and Life Coach, I invite my Clients to use the tool of Visualization to set the right goals, play different scenarios, and keep visualizing the actualization of their goals. It helps them realize and evaluate where they are and what potential they can achieve. It opens a options to – “what can be”.

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If you have not yet tried it, I invite you to explore the power of Visualization.

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I am a Sales professional and a Executive / Life Coach - I write about Coaching, Life learnings, Sales and Philosophy.

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#coaching #Lifecoaching #Sales #running #Goals