Our minds are creatures of habit. 

They will follow their well-worn pathways to the same dead ends until a new path is sufficiently established.  Generally, most of our mental energy is wasted following old paths, inefficiently diffused among ten thousand worthy, unworthy, and completely counter-productive activities and preoccupations. 

Affirmation and visualization are related techniques that help us mobilize and focus our mental resources on our intended goal, and help bring it into being.

An affirmation is simply a statement, directed towards yourself, that what you want to happen is happening. “My sales are increasing.” “I will finish my program by October 1.”  Write your affirmation down, ten or fifteen times in a row, every day. The repetition of this positive idea, over and over, lets the deepest centers of your brain know that this is to be taken seriously. This is your task, it tells your brain; this is what all available resources should be directed to.

The key here is that your mind is capable of doing some very amazing things when properly directed; when you can truly mobilize its resources to accomplishing a task, you should be prepared for some powerful results.  The technique of writing affirmations can be very useful in overcoming limiting beliefs.  Telling yourself, “I am excellent at writing reports,” or “I feel relaxed and comfortable taking exams,” every morning, gradually establishes this idea in your mind, even when you previously believed the opposite.

In visualization, the object of your desire is pictured in your mind as vividly as possible.  First put yourself in the most relaxed state of mind you can reach. Then spend some time concentrating on your desire and imagining it as if it were already here.  See it in your mind, picture the details: smiling faces, your nameplate on the door, the sounds and smells of your new car on the highway.  Imagine the elation you feel at your moment of triumph and feel it already, right now.  Know that this is, in fact, going to happen.  Combine the process of visualization with your written affirmations and your brain is going to respond.

How does this work?

The visualization and affirmation exercises described above are very simple.  It may seem too obvious to bother with: you already know you want a new car.  Why should you bother to visualize it every day?  What good will writing a daily affirmation do for you?  The truth however, is that the results that they can bring can be nothing short of astounding.  Many people who use these techniques say that they can cause the most amazing 'coincidences' to occur that bring their goals closer by leaps and bounds.

Though it might seem strange at first, with a little experience, it should become clear the huge role that affirmation and visualization can play in helping you to accomplish your goals, and in becoming the kind of person who finds it easy to accomplish goals.  You can use them to overcome any limitations you might have thought you had that keep you from getting what you want from your life. 

But to succeed, you've got to follow through...