What We Want To See

“We see best only that which we want to see...”

This morning on CBS This Morning with Charlie Rose, Nora O'Donnell, and Gail King, a female Olympic Skier, Lindsey Vonn, was interviewed regarding what she thinks might give her the edge over her competition when “running the course” since her times are so incredibly fast; is it knowing how fast she can go through the turns or angling her body in such a way that it minimizes wind resistance? Her comment was that both were accurate but her true piece of wisdom, knowledge, leverage (whatever it is called) is the fact that she knows the course better than anyone else...

And, while I understand that comment for various but obviously different reasons, I am not sure that the general public fully understood (but if they did) nor did they fully appreciate the significance of her comment.

What Lindsey Vonn is doing is a “time honored” concept called VISUALIZATION which she later mentioned in her comments, but there is still more to it that just that... There are about 15 or so visualization concepts that can be used depending upon what one is trying to accomplish; one of which is creative visualization.

Creative visualization (sports visualization) refers to the practice of seeking to affect the outer world by changing one's thoughts and expectations. Creative visualization is the basic technique underlying positive thinking and is frequently used by athletes to enhance their performance.

The concept originally arose in the US with the nineteenth century New Thought movement. One of the first Americans to practice the technique of creative visualization was Wallace Wattles (1860–1911), who wrote The Science of Getting Rich.

In this book, Wattles advocates creative visualization as the main technique for realizing one's goals; a practice that stems from the Hindu Monistic theory of the Universe that is subscribed to by the book.

Visualization works something like this: Creative visualization is the technique of using one's imagination to visualize specific behaviors or events occurring in one's life. Advocates suggest creating a detailed schema of what one desires and then visualizing it over and over again with all of the senses:

• what do you see?
• what do you feel?
• what do you hear?
• what does it smell like?

For example, in sports a golfer may visualize the perfect stroke over and over again to mentally train muscle memory.

Now, one might be thinking to one's self and saying: “self, don't all athletes know about this shit?” And, the answer would be yes they do... but, here is the difference, some put the visualization process to better use than others... pure and simple... For those kinds of athletes/people who can do this better, they see “things” that are overlooked by others... and, they may see specifics where others only see generalizations... and, these unique ones who can visualize the best may spend 2-3 more time visualizing than their competition.

And, in my opinion, this is where Lindsey Vonn has the competitive advantage...

All the pilots of the Blue Angels use this technique as well and they will sit together for hours in a room visualizing their routines with each one articulating exactly what they are doing at each precise moment in the cockpit... after so many hours of training your mind to see this, once you get in the air, the pilots are flying their air crafts in part by mental preprogramming.

Have you ever experienced driving home from work and whether it is 30, 60, or 90 minutes, when you arrive home you are not sure how you got there exactly because your mind had been thinking about something else all the time? Well, you had driven that route so many times and in the same way that it became pre-programmed into you mental and subconscious awareness.

This type of technique can be used in business as well as by artists who have designed a painting in their heads long before putting the first brush stoke to the canvas or by writers who have imagined an entire novel unfolding in their heads before they write or type the first word.


When I am designing a new course curriculum (for the first time or one that has not been used for a while), I imagine mentally how my ideas might unfold inside the classroom, based upon student interactions or lack thereof and what I might need to do to stimulate them. Sometimes, I can work out all the “bugs” in my mind, but other times, I have to teach the class once or twice before I can appreciate what flow is required.


At other times in my life and not always after moving into a new house but whenever the desire arises to create a home office and after the location is determined, I will spend hours thinking through in my head, exactly where I want what before I lift a finger... and, if and when that is done properly then I change very little if anything around once I start setting up that office physically.


I have also used this technique successfully, when I have visualized the scenarios as to how my termination meeting will unfold and what my “judges” will ask me or what they may not ask me so that when they do ask me these question(s), I have already formulated an answer; however, there is also the likelihood (which took place in my last termination) that I simply refused to defend my actions because if they really wanted me there these people would not have had this type of meeting called in the first place.


So, the “real visualization,” took place after the termination in terms of what I wanted to do with my life from that point... simply retire and be done with all this garbage... or, work somewhere else transferring knowledge to students?


But, in going through that visualization exercise, I was at ease and mentally prepared because I had thought pretty much everything through and if there were any surprises, then those surprises would not be anything more than a fizzling 4^th of July Day sparkler which might force me to put my sunglasses back on as I walked out the door...


REMEMBER: Mental Visualization is a muscle that must be exercised regularly if it is to work properly when needed.