3 Steps into the Future by Dorothy Enriquez of @Dot_Magazine

by Dorothy Enriquez

I sat on a sidewalk bench Saturday afternoon staring at an Einstein’s Bagel across the street. Random, I know. There I was on the mental cross streets of miserable and over it. I contemplated questions like: does it get better than this, have the seeds of ungratefulness taken root or did I just make some bad decisions and a few wrong turns?

My mind was racing. I felt trapped in my own life. Have you ever felt trapped? It feels like you’re drowning in Lake Michigan and no one is around to hear you scream. It is unhinging how feelings of impending doom can weigh you down and have you second guessing just about everything.

Sometimes, you want to take a break from your own life to regroup and then return when you feel better. I jokingly, but half serious say things like, I wish someone could just be me for a week so I can go sit somewhere and think about my life. And yet, no one has volunteered.

Choose to Decide

I made an executive decision. Since I had been nominated as pilot of Dorothy’s Destiny I needed to hop on the good foot. I don’t know what the future holds, so I deliberately designed one I could get excited about living. I began to visualize the potential of my life three years from Saturday.

There are studies indicating that the parts of your brain which activate when you visualize are the same parts of your brain that are stimulated when you’re actually doing the activity. Moreover, the brain is such a mystery, it can’t tell the difference between the visualizations you construct in your mind versus reality. Therefore, you are empowered to recreate your future and your brain and the universe have no choice but to bring to fruition.

End of Your Rope

But, what about when you’re at the end of your rope and you don’t feel like it? You don’t feel like creating a vision board, you don’t feel like phoning a friend. You feel like no one gets it anyway. You just want to pitch a tent and climb into your sorrow room and sob quietly between bites of chips and dip. That’s okay too. When you’re done though…what’s next?

When the pity party tears have dried and you have just enough energy to make one more decision. What will you do? I choose to hope—to daydream on purpose where the possibilities are endless. This isn’t the first time I’ve been at a crossroads and it certainly won’t be the last. So I choose to give myself permission to construct a life that I can be proud of and help people while I learn and grow. So how did I do it?

Create High Definition Daydreams

1. Imagine yourself one week from today. What are you doing? Who are you with? Where are you? What do you look like? How do you feel? Allow yourself to feel the energy in your vision. Try to become a fly on the wall in your vision and start to slowly insert yourself into your life. You may need to have some music on or be outdoors to get in the zone.

2. Picture a month from today and ask yourself the same questions. The goal is to allow your brain to look farther and farther ahead until it feels real. It’s easy enough to look out a couple weeks because you can tie it to previous experiences and past behavior. This will help your brain practice the activity and become comfortable with targeted daydreaming.

3. Next, visualize 6 months from today and keep going until you get to your desired end point. It could be a year, two or three.

Thirty minutes later, I found a more encouraged Dorothy sitting on the sidewalk bench. My brain helped to lift up my spirit. I had gone into the future and came back armed with knowledge, hope and a plan. You and I have all of the tools we need right between our ears. Unlock your destiny and take others along for the ride. #Cheerstothefuture

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Dorothy Enriquez is a writer, speaker and self-development training expert with a passion for inspiring women to achieve their dreams. She created Dorothy Writes, a writing consulting firm for small businesses and writing looking to improve. She is also the Editor in Chief of DOT Magazine, Always on Point.

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