It has been said over and over that if you are able to visualize your goals and believe them, then over time you will achieve them. After all, man becomes what he thinks.

Visualization has many favors. You can find a quiet place and basically day dream about what you want. Or, you can journal a desired set of events as if they already took place. Likewise, you can put together a vision board.

Visualization With the 5 Senses
In order for a visualization exercise to be effective, you have to use all five senses. As you envision your dreams already achieved and a life now fulfilled, you should be able to see, touch, hear, feel, and taste everything. When you put your mind through that level of visualization, it lives in the moment. The constructs of past, present, and future disappear. You mind can only experience things in the here and now. Think about something that either happened in the past or in the future, and your brain thinks it is taking place now.

That is the idea of visualizing a future of your dreams. You are living in that moment. It simply makes you feel good that you have what you want. Because you feel about about having what you want, you are in essence tricking your brain. Now, whenever you have an idea that you would once upon time have hesitated taking action upon, you will now be taking inspired action. In other words, because you feel good you start going after what you want.

Visualization also helps remove some of the uncertainty and doubt that creeps in whenever you encounter a new or unfamiliar situation. By playing the foreign scenario in your mind, you also build up new data points to cause yourself to act confidently when the situation arises. You should of course also visualize yourself failing or going through rejection so that you know how to rebound quickly and keep moving. As Winston Churchill said, â€œIf youâ€™re in hell, keep going.â€

The other way of visualizing is to journal it as if it already happened and you are merely recording the events of the day for prosperityâ€™s sake. You may find journaling a more effective tool than day dreaming. I know I did. As you compose your journal entries, provide as many details as possible. What do you see? How does it feel? What does it smell like? What does it taste like? What sounds does it make? Engage all five senses for the best possible periphery. You mind thinks you are living in that very same moment, even if you are just making it up in your mind and transferring it to paper.

Vision Board
You should take the exercise a bit further and construct yourself a vision board. A vision board contains pictorial representations of the things, relationships, ideology, and achievements you would like in your life. Want a particular house or sports car? Find a pictorial representation closest to it. Look at you vision board every day, preferably just after awakening or when you are about to go to bed, for a least 5 minutes each time. The reason for this is when you first wake up or are about to go to sleep, your brain produces more theta waves, which has been associated with high levels of relaxation and also for accessing the subconscious part of your brain. As you go through each image on your vision board, start forming stories around them. Again, engage the five senses.

Which Should I Use?
Which of the three visualization methods you should employ as part of your self-improvement techniques depends on the type of person you are. For instance, if you are a visual person then you would probably want to use the day dreaming and the vision board methods. If you love to write (like me), then you would lean more towards the journaling and vision board methods. Take notice that I included the vision board method in both cases. You should employ the vision board method always because having an actual physical representation of your dreamsâ€”something you look at everydayâ€”will remind you to keep day dreaming or keep journaling. The goal here is to make visualization an every day habit so that you feel good about yourself, even when you are in the doodrums, seemingly getting nowhere. At the very least, during these times you keep persisting towards achieving your goals. After all, successful people failed many times in their lives before finally accomplishing their goals.

Author's Bio: 

Benson offers techniques and stategies for men regarding topics such as attracting women, gaining muscle, job skills, hobbies, and gaining confidence. Visit for your free copy of 14 Ways to Boost Your Confidence.