Tuesday

Quote of the Week -Duane Michals


"I believe in the imagination. 
What I cannot see is infinitely more important than what I can see." 
-Duane Michals


Practice Seeing. Not with your eyes, but with your mind. Take a moment this week and exercise your imagination. Focus in on the possibilities, not on your reality. Close your eyes and envision yourself living in your dream house, vacationing on a beautiful island, accepting the award for a praised accomplishment, driving in your dream car. How does it feel? What is going on around you? What are you wearing? When you add the details it makes it more real and you are able to get a clearer picture of how it will feel when you get there. Being able to see yourself as you want to be is as important as preparing to get there. If you are not able to see it in your mind first, the likelihood you will get there is slim. 

As we get older and have more responsibilities, the simple pleasure of taking the time out of our hectic days and busy schedules to daydream and imagine ourselves outside of our current circumstances becomes almost impossible. However, if you think about it for a moment, where you are right now in life comes out of a previous thought, vision or dream. When you were younger, you saw yourself exactly as you wanted to be when you grew up. You knew what you would do, where you would live, what kind of car you would drive and so on because you imagined it as if it were real then.

I attended an event over the summer, where former NFL great Isaac Bruce spoke on the importance of practicing seeing. He told a story of how when he was younger he would catch a football, make a touch down, do a victory dance all as if he was already playing in the NFL. So when he made it to the NFL, it wasn't new, it was him living what he already saw and practiced so many times before, first in his mind. He practiced in the mirror for interviews and award speeches way before he was in a position to receive the opportunity.

His speech was beyond inspiring and now I have adopted some of those habits myself. I practice the way I envision my name being called on a talk show when they introduce me for an interview. I practice the acceptance speech for winning my first NAACP Image Award, I practice seeing myself as I envision me in the future. I might not be there yet, but when I get there, it will be natural because I have been there so many times before in my mind. It takes the anxiety and nervousness out of it and makes me feel as if I belong there. One step at a time and one well completed book at a time, but the time will come because I am able to see myself there already.


Resources: http://lifebydesign.hubpages.com/hub/Visualization---I-cant-visualize--How-can-I-learn_1 

How often do you take the time to practice seeing yourself as you want to be, where you want to be? Have you lost your imagination or ability to dream? Let me know your thoughts!

~C. Nzingha

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