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Why I Don’t Visualize Success — And How It’s Helped Me Build Companies Differently

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I don’t picture success before it happens — and that’s become a hidden strength in how I build businesses. Here’s why.

The night before the biggest pitch of my startup journey — raising my first round of funding — I texted my best friend: “Big day tmr, wish me luck!!” She replied, “Are you lying awake picturing a thousand things that could go wrong?

I paused, then told I wasn’t picturing anything at all.

Later, she asked me if I ever imagined future scenarios — like walking into a panel, delivering my pitch, or celebrating the win. And I realised I never had. No mental cinema. No vivid play-by-play. Just quiet.

That’s when it hit me, my mind works differently. And it’s quietly shaped the way I build companies.

While most stories about entrepreneurship celebrate imagination and the ability to “see” the future, mine’s been a little different.

I don’t have a mind’s eye.

I have aphantasia, the inability to form mental images. And over the years, I’ve come to see how much that’s shaped not just how I think, but how I lead.

I Don’t See Pictures, I See Patterns

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The Startup
The Startup

Published in The Startup

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Natalie Yap
Natalie Yap

Written by Natalie Yap

I write about how we can optimize our lives, start our self-improvement journey and be better entrepreneurs. Email: wordsbynat[at]gmail[dot]com

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