THE POWER IN IMAGINATION
“The real voyage of
discovery consists not in exploring new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”
What would you like to have more, or less of in your life? There is good news.
You can actually have it by using your imagination. Wally Amos will assert that
“imagination is the workshop of the mind.”
Life without imagination is an impossibility, suggests Amos. “Imagination, that vibrant, exciting dimension of the human mind is definitely one of the most important human faculties.” Your imagination takes thoughts, ideas, plans, and conceptualizes them into a game plan, which begins the journey towards transforming them into material substance.
Imagination is the power of the mind to form a mental image of something neither real nor present; the ability to confront and shape reality using creative power of the mind, the formation of mental images, or mental representations of objects or ideas. Whatever you materialize in your life must first be pictured in your mind by your imagination.
Most of us tend to associate the use of imagination only with the artistic world. It is true that an artist uses imagination to create art. However, the same is true for anyone, no matter what work they perform. The manager of a supermarket must use imagination in displaying merchandise, motivating employees, and dealing with customers. The store manager uses imagination as much as an artist.
Actors and actresses use their imagination to portray characters they have never met who do not exist. How well they do their job, pretending to be someone different, depends on a lot of factors, one of which is how strongly they use their imagination. An audience watching a good performer will forget that they are watching someone who is imagining he is someone else. That is how real a good dramatic performer can seem. Without imagination, that level of realism would be impossible to achieve.
A musician hears notes in his mind, imagines them, before composing a musical score (a document showing all the notes of a piece of the music). The author mentally weaves a cast of characters and plots before writing. Similarly, a business executive thinks in terms of materials, products, and services. “A mind without imagination is a mind that cannot really be functioning. Imagination is an essential part of what we are.”
Dr. Wayne Dyer believes that one of the factors that
Imagination is a valuable faculty because it helps you visualize what you want, making it possible to act on your desires based on what you have seen in your mind. One of the greatest stimulants for your imagination is an emotional involvement with your task. “You have got to live whatever it is you are doing.”
It is really possible to take an idea right out of your mind and make it become real. The word “realize” comes from the imagination process, it means to make real. And what do you make real? What do you realize? That which you have conjured up in your mind with your imagination.
By keeping your imagination in check you reduce the ability to realize your goals. “It cripples your mind, limiting your potential to form your mind, limiting your potential to form your own world and reality. Without a game plan, the ability to accomplish even the simplest tasks disappears. No imagination, no game plan. So you become a weaker individual who must operate by within the boundaries or reality created by someone else. You are controlled when you do not use your imagination.”
Many doctors and patient too, now believe the mind plays a powerful role in curing or preventing some illnesses. That makes intuitive sense, because we know the mind controls the body, not the other way round. Weak minds relinquish control of either their own bodies or to other individuals. But a weak mind, like any weak muscle, can be strengthened. The first step is to let the mind know that it can take control. It is been said we are what we eat. We are also what think. Reference to the power of mind can be found even in the Bible. “As a man thinketh, so is he.” A man makes himself because he thinks.
The expression, “It is all in your mind” usually indicates doubts as to the reality (or believability) of a certain issue. Well, as you gain more understanding and appreciation you will start to understand that everything begins in your mind.
The use of imagination is nothing more than examining facts, concepts and ideas and then creating new combinations and plans. To bring new life and vitality to an old idea, to an old plan or method takes imagination. “A voyage of discovery can be an exploration of new landscapes. But it can also be the exploration of landscapes with new eyes.” Your imagination then becomes the medium with which you develop new eyes.
How can you realize more of your potential by using your imagination? Nothing sticks with you more than things you practice. You can practice using your imagination by thinking of a new way to do something you have done the same way for years. Begin those things that are safe or things that have already been done. That is using your imagination. When we are obsessed with living a safe, secure existence we miss the meaning of life. Security is all a matter of perception. Your mind brought you to the point where you feel secure. Your house, car and job are all material possessions obtained for you by your mind. “Your sense of security should not rest upon material things, but rather on the force that created them for you – your mind with its imaginations.” When you begin to examine life more by taking the time to see and feel what is happening, your imagination will begin to expand.
IMAGINATION IN RELATIONSHIPS
How can you use your imagination to improve yourself as an individual in your relationships? Imagine yourself as something and you will begin to become that something. Remember “as a man thinketh, so is he.” You can change any aspect of your existence. Just imagine that change in your mind and it will happen in your life. You have got to ask yourself truthfully. “What am I contributing to this relationship?” Evaluate those areas that need improving. Replay them over and over in your mind. See yourself as a different person in each situation. See yourself giving more love. See yourself as more patient individual, as more considerate person. Understand you are not here to change the other person; you are working on improving your contribution to the relationship. By practicing daily imaging and seeing a change in your actions, and ultimately the other person will begin to respond to the new you. It is really important to remember; whatever you see in your mind will materialize in your life. Napoleon Hill in “Think and Grow Rich” created a formula that says C+B=A: what you Conceive, if you Believe, you will Achieve. The same principles will work for getting a job, a new home or realizing any of your life goals.
Visualize your dream over and over again. The process is just like rehearsing a speech before you deliver it to an audience. You practice at home in front of a mirror; you say it to yourself countless times. Then, when you go before the audience you are a big hit.
Imagination creates all the joy and goodness, all the material things, whatever it is you want in your life. It also creates fear, guilt, and other things you do not want in your life. So if you first see it in your mind, you can be sure it will be reproduced in your world. “Let your imagination run wild, and it will act as a funnel for the power in you.”
