Touching Reality

CM
CM
Jul 25, 2017 · 4 min read

Day 85 of 100

Visualization.

It’s one of the main practices the top athletes and business people use. Michael Phelps especially, has a “videotape” that he replays in his head day and night of the perfect swim. He envisions each stroke cutting across the water, every breath devoured and the cathartic FEEL when his head popped up out of the water to see VICTORY and WORLD RECORD with a cheering audience at completion.

That is victory.

In The Book of Habits, it is said that Phelps had won the game, before he even made it into the pool. His sincere belief that he would win brewed a confidence that would keep him cool and collected in the pool. His practice regiment, that had become second nature to his body had seen every instance before.

Belief and Effort supposedly, is what separates Michael Phelps from ourselves.

I do believe in visualization. Or more so, I believe in the feeling. I think there’s a difference between “wanting” something to happen and “believing in something”.

I remember one night in college, my sophomore year laying in my dorm room. I had recently spent the past two or three weeks locked in the documentary film lab, teaching myself to edit and cut together over three months of footage from a road trip across the film. I had finished it just in time for The Knickerbocker Film Festival in Albany.

I lay in bed and I imagined what it felt like to win.

It was like electric jolts through my body, up and down, and when I did win — a few weeks again, I thought back to that night and felt a similar tingle down my back. I wondered, if somehow, my belief and tangible feeling that night had any affect on today’s win?

I wondered.

Today, I am so excited to share that I was featured on a tech blog called Alleywatch.

The past 85 days have seen progress, plateau, personal growth and change. Originally within the first 30 days, I simply wanted to see what would happen with my website. What types of efforts would I be able to make?

Within the first 30 days, I was able to pin down an incredible founder at a startup event, and exchange contacts with him. He asked me what I was working on, and on day 30 — he told me that I had a great idea and he invited me to come meet his business development team at an accelerator he ran.

I was stoked. Within 30 days of effort, I was able to get some sort of validation from my dream mentor and potentially work with him. I continued more down the road.

As the weeks continued, I ran my idea back and forth. Changing and practicing, switching and going — and finally I feel as if I am landing on some solid ground. Mostly though, the change has come from within myself.

So much of my stagnancy has come from feeling like I’m not ready.

I’m not ready with my experience, I’m not ready with my content, I’m not ready, I’m not ready, I’m not ready.

Today, was a jarring day at first.

I was excited to be featured, but at the same time — I’m not ready. The website’s not ready, the social media etc etc etc.

The feeling of being somewhat closer to my reality though was way more powerful. It was tangible. Today, walking — none of my other problems mattered to me. I’m leaning on a high where I will figure it out, and do anything I need to, to make this happen.

I wonder now with the visualization- is not that we are delusional about where or what we want to do, but we get addicted or enjoy that feeling of what it is like to become the person, win the victory or live that lifestyle that we want to.

Once we know what that feels like, we do everything in our power to get back to that feeling. So, my goal today — is to keep coming back to this feeling. Hope to change the world, and for anyone else who is wondering how the fuck to get to where they want or who they want to be — is simply to start with your imagination and visualize it. Write it. Print out a picture.

It’s not silly to do — everything we do as adults is merely a nuanced version of what we did as children. It’s a more complicated set of skills and dreams and desires from our youth. Passports are adult stamp collections. Working out and going for runs is structured Tag.

So, go enjoy and start changing your life. Understand that there are ups and downs — truly. But if you can imagine the ups more than the downs, maybe you will get further. It’s true I read it in a fortune cookie once. Ha. Just kidding.

Be good.

    CM

    Written by

    CM

    Writer. Traveler. Brooklyn, born and raised. A new article every day for 365 Days about starting a travel magazine.

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