How to Overcome Your Fears Through Visualization
Be realistic., Try visualizing your success gradually., Visualize your success., Go into detail., Provide yourself with physical reminders.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Be realistic.
Visualization is powerful.
The brain's response to imagined scenarios is often on par to its response to real life success and failure.If you want to overcome a fear, it can be helpful to make a point of habitually visualizing yourself succeeding.
However, try to keep your scenario realistic.
Imagine yourself overcoming your fear in a manner that could actually happen.
Say you're afraid of public speaking but need to speak at a seminar for work.
Avoid seeing yourself give an impassioned, bombastic speech and being met with a standing ovation.
While your presentation might go over well, such a response is unlikely.Instead, imagine things going reasonably well.
Picture yourself staying calm and collected while in front of the room.
Imagine your heart rate remaining relatively stable and remaining calm.
Picture yourself not stumbling over the words and answering questions as they come without too much hesitance. -
Step 2: Try visualizing your success gradually.
If visualizing the end result (such as giving a presentation at a seminar) itself is still terribly overwhelming, break down your visualizations to follow your preparation.
In this way, giving a successful presentation will be much easier to envision, because you have already completed so many steps successfully that will help you get prepared and be successful.
For instance, visualize yourself completing all your research and preparing your notes.
Once you have completed this step successfully in real life, visualize yourself delivering the presentation to an empty room, and then do so.
Move on to visualizing a strong presentation in front of a trusted friend or colleague, someone who is supportive and will give constructive feedback on things you can work on to improve your speech.
Then go ahead and do this step in real life.
Finally, visualize giving the presentation successfully at work, starting a day or two before the presentation if possible.
Using this method, you work up to the final result, increasing your confidence along the way. , When you have to deal with something that frightens you, try to visualize regularly.
Close your eyes and imagine success.
Take 10 to 15 minutes before bed each night to visualize yourself overcoming your fear.
You may find yourself becoming more calm in real life if you regularly face your fears in your mind.
For example, you may speak more calmly at regular work meetings.Again, you may wish to start small, starting by visualizing yourself contributing a comment during a work meeting or perhaps speaking up to support someone else's contribution.
Once you have accomplished that, you may move on to visualizing something more assertive, such as acknowledge what others have said in the meeting in a sentence or two, then following it up with a question.
In this way, you will build up to the greater goal of contributing calmly and regularly to the meetings.
Choose a location free of distractions.
It will be easier to concentrate on your imagination without outside noise.
Sit or lie down in a comfortable position.
You want to make sure there are no aches and pains distracting you from your mind's eye.
Close your eyes and begin imagining.Some people find it helpful to write down their visualizations before or after the process.
This can help you nail down concrete details and better imagine your success scenarios.You might want to play some soft music or light a candle.
It might be easier to visual in a relaxing atmosphere.
Make sure your breath is slow and steady as you visualize your success., The more detail you use in a visualization, the better.
When you encounter the actual scenario, you'll be more calm if the moment closely matches your imagination.
Try to engage with all your senses, including sight, smell, sound, touch, and taste.Sight is probably the easiest thing to visualize.
Returning to the presentation example, you can easily visualize what a conference room might look like.
You might even want to Google image the place where the presentation will take place to help you better imagine success.
Smell and taste may be slightly harder to visualize in certain scenarios.
However, try your best.
A conference room, for example, may smell of cleaning products.
If you usually have a cup of coffee before speaking, you may have the aftertaste in your mouth.
Engage with sound and touch as well.
You may feel your papers in your hand as you move through your notes.
You might hear the sound of people coughing, shifting in their seats, fiddling with their phones, and even the occasional whisper. , Many people make use of physical reminders to aid in the visualization process.
It can be helpful to have a bulletin board in your bedroom where you keep images of people succeeding in areas that frighten you.
This can inspire you to overcome your own fears.
If you're afraid of heights, for example, have a poster of someone rock climbing hanging over your bed. -
Step 3: Visualize your success.
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Step 4: Go into detail.
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Step 5: Provide yourself with physical reminders.
Detailed Guide
Visualization is powerful.
The brain's response to imagined scenarios is often on par to its response to real life success and failure.If you want to overcome a fear, it can be helpful to make a point of habitually visualizing yourself succeeding.
However, try to keep your scenario realistic.
Imagine yourself overcoming your fear in a manner that could actually happen.
Say you're afraid of public speaking but need to speak at a seminar for work.
Avoid seeing yourself give an impassioned, bombastic speech and being met with a standing ovation.
While your presentation might go over well, such a response is unlikely.Instead, imagine things going reasonably well.
Picture yourself staying calm and collected while in front of the room.
Imagine your heart rate remaining relatively stable and remaining calm.
Picture yourself not stumbling over the words and answering questions as they come without too much hesitance.
If visualizing the end result (such as giving a presentation at a seminar) itself is still terribly overwhelming, break down your visualizations to follow your preparation.
In this way, giving a successful presentation will be much easier to envision, because you have already completed so many steps successfully that will help you get prepared and be successful.
For instance, visualize yourself completing all your research and preparing your notes.
Once you have completed this step successfully in real life, visualize yourself delivering the presentation to an empty room, and then do so.
Move on to visualizing a strong presentation in front of a trusted friend or colleague, someone who is supportive and will give constructive feedback on things you can work on to improve your speech.
Then go ahead and do this step in real life.
Finally, visualize giving the presentation successfully at work, starting a day or two before the presentation if possible.
Using this method, you work up to the final result, increasing your confidence along the way. , When you have to deal with something that frightens you, try to visualize regularly.
Close your eyes and imagine success.
Take 10 to 15 minutes before bed each night to visualize yourself overcoming your fear.
You may find yourself becoming more calm in real life if you regularly face your fears in your mind.
For example, you may speak more calmly at regular work meetings.Again, you may wish to start small, starting by visualizing yourself contributing a comment during a work meeting or perhaps speaking up to support someone else's contribution.
Once you have accomplished that, you may move on to visualizing something more assertive, such as acknowledge what others have said in the meeting in a sentence or two, then following it up with a question.
In this way, you will build up to the greater goal of contributing calmly and regularly to the meetings.
Choose a location free of distractions.
It will be easier to concentrate on your imagination without outside noise.
Sit or lie down in a comfortable position.
You want to make sure there are no aches and pains distracting you from your mind's eye.
Close your eyes and begin imagining.Some people find it helpful to write down their visualizations before or after the process.
This can help you nail down concrete details and better imagine your success scenarios.You might want to play some soft music or light a candle.
It might be easier to visual in a relaxing atmosphere.
Make sure your breath is slow and steady as you visualize your success., The more detail you use in a visualization, the better.
When you encounter the actual scenario, you'll be more calm if the moment closely matches your imagination.
Try to engage with all your senses, including sight, smell, sound, touch, and taste.Sight is probably the easiest thing to visualize.
Returning to the presentation example, you can easily visualize what a conference room might look like.
You might even want to Google image the place where the presentation will take place to help you better imagine success.
Smell and taste may be slightly harder to visualize in certain scenarios.
However, try your best.
A conference room, for example, may smell of cleaning products.
If you usually have a cup of coffee before speaking, you may have the aftertaste in your mouth.
Engage with sound and touch as well.
You may feel your papers in your hand as you move through your notes.
You might hear the sound of people coughing, shifting in their seats, fiddling with their phones, and even the occasional whisper. , Many people make use of physical reminders to aid in the visualization process.
It can be helpful to have a bulletin board in your bedroom where you keep images of people succeeding in areas that frighten you.
This can inspire you to overcome your own fears.
If you're afraid of heights, for example, have a poster of someone rock climbing hanging over your bed.
About the Author
Thomas Gray
A passionate writer with expertise in creative arts topics. Loves sharing practical knowledge.
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