Using Our Imaginations

When we were kids, we had great imaginations.  We could imagine dragons, monsters, and castles with Kings and Queens. We could imagine that we had super powers and were battling the bad guys to save the world.  We imagined magical lands and trips to outer space.  Then somewhere along the line, as we grew older, our imaginations changed.

Some say we lose our imaginations as adults, but actually they’re still very powerful. It’s just that now, we tend to imagine worse case scenarios and all the things that could go wrong. In fact, our imaginations are so vivid that we can get ourselves worked up with anxiety, frustration, or anger about something that’s never even happened. For example, as winter fast approaches, I can become stressed when I imagine getting stuck in the snow and missing a meeting or talk I’m scheduled to give.

What if we ALSO imagined the best possibilities such as a great future with amazing success?  What if we imagined the world was out to do us good and that everyone had the best of intentions?  How might this change how we approach our day?  I’ve been trying this as I get ready to launch a new set of products designed to help people be happier at work.  Instead of imagining that people don’t like them or that no one ever uses them (depressing!), I’m intentionally imagining these products having a huge impact on many people’s lives and becoming very popular.  Which approach do you think gives me more motivation and enthusiasm for getting them done?

This can be a great practice to do at bedtime or first thing when we wake up.   Just take a few moments and imagine wonderful things happening in your life.

Tina Hallis, Ph.D., is founder and owner of The Positive Edge, a company dedicated to helping individuals and organizations increase their positivity to improve the quality of people’s work lives and the quality of company cultures.