One way to sabotage success is by mentally imagining failure, thereby setting yourself up to fail before you even getting started. For example, some of us “practice” failing a test by telling ourselves, “I’ll never pass that test, I should have studied more.” When we take the test our mind freezes in anxiety and we prove ourselves right. We fail. When we daydream failure, we are engaging in negative self-talk and negative self-imaging.

Changing your self-image can help you move closer to the life you desire. When you imagine a well-received speech, a compatible date or a stress-free exam in rich, vivid detail, you’re gearing your mind and body for success instead of failure.

Begin practicing positive imagery by setting aside quiet time to visualize success. Close your eyes, take a deep breath and imagine what success feels like. If you felt completely successful, how would you carry yourself? What would you feel like?

Imagine a specific time when you felt completely successful. What was the weather like? What were you wearing? Who else was with you? What did your surroundings look, smell, or sound like? Once you’ve practiced visualizing past successes, take a moment to think about a goal you’d like to attain. Fast forward in time and imagine in vivid detail that you’ve already achieved this goal. Transfer your feelings regarding past successes onto this new scenario. After you open your eyes, carry that feeling of success with you into the rest of the day.

There are other ways to use visualization besides mental imagery. Advertisers spend billions of dollars strategically placing billboards, bus signs and magazine ads in the right places so we’ll want to purchase the products we see advertised. We can utilize the power of a multi-million dollar ad campaign and decide for ourselves what we want to “buy.”

One way to do this is with a beneficial billboard. This is a collage that contains words, phrases and pictures that remind you of your goals and dreams. To begin, you’ll need a poster board and a stack of magazines. Set aside time to sort through the magazines and cut out words and pictures that represent your goals.

If you want to travel to Hawaii, cut out pictures of Hawaii, the word Hawaii, pictures of people eating, swimming, snorkeling or sunbathing in Hawaii, anything that represents a Hawaiian vacation. If you want to lose weight, cut out pictures of thin, tone, healthy people and words that are motivating and positive.

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