The Dark (And Light) Side of Imagination
Posted on January 14, 2011 by Sean Vosler in Inspiration, Productivity“I reject your reality and substitute it for my own.”
- Adam Savage (Mythbusters)
Whats the first thing that comes to mind when you think of imagination? No really, take a second and give some thought to what images and perceptions you have about imagination. Many people view it as something that should be admired in children, as something creative people use to do creative things. Its just not practical for me, they might say. They are correct about it being used by children and creative people, but just limiting imagination to ‘those kinds of people’ can lead to missing out on one of the most important tools any human has. But there is a dark side that most of us use every day, it holds us back and completely stops us in our tracks.
What is imagination?
Its good to have a base definition of what we’re talking about here, according to our friend Wikipedia imagination is in the simplest of terms:
“Imagination, also called the faculty of imagining, is the ability of forming mental images, sensations and concepts, in a moment when they are not perceived through sight, hearing or other senses. Imagination is the work of the mind that helps create.”
With that in mind, in what ways can we use our imagination? Also, in what ways are we turning our imagination against us?
What ways do you use your imagination?
There are three main ways we use our imagination, and trust me its pretty common since stuff – but its worth examining. By understanding what we use our imagination for, we can try and use it to do good, not to hold us back.
The Light Side
Escapism – Get past a motivational funk.
The gift that keeps on giving.
If you’re like me, you probably spend a lot of time in the car thinking about your current lot in life. Considering what big decisions need to be made, what phone calls and emails need to be sent, and what daunting task is still on my to-do-list that I just can’t bring myself to finish. I start to fantasize about a life with no responsibilities, perhaps on a nice beach somewhere, living without a care in the world. Before I know it, I’m not so much worried about what needs to be done as I am about how many bay windows my beach house should have. This is called Escapism, and it in itself is not a terrible thing.
Many demonize escapism as a terrible thing, how many times have you been told to ‘come back to reality’ or ‘get your head out of the clouds’? Sure it can be detrimental if all we do is fantasize about things that we want, that can lead to living a life of dreaming instead of living a life of your dreams. In the right amounts though, escapism or ‘day dreaming’ can really help us get motivated.
How to use escapism to help you get motivated.
Perhaps you found this article on ‘Stumbleupon’, a bookmarking site that sends you to random stuff on the internet, chances are you’re looking for a way to distract yourself from a work project or homework that you just simply don’t want to do. You’re successfully escaping the stress of working, but you’re also not being very successful when it comes to your work are you? Escapism shouldn’t be confused with procrastination, when its used correctly it can be well worth the time spent exercising this part of your imagination.
Instead of refreshing your Facebook to pass the time next time you’re really in a motivational funk, try this:
- Acknowledge that you are just not enjoying what you’re working on, be honest with yourself… For most people putting together a sales presentation or the like is not their idea of ‘fun’.
- Turn off all distractions, if your on the computer, close all windows except what your working on- then minimize your project for the next 15 minutes.
- For 5 minutes close your eyes, lean back in your chair, and try to calm your mind. Just relax, as they say.
- For the next 5 minutes use your imagination to explore something you really enjoy- perhaps relive a roller-coaster ride in your mind, or sharing some drinks with friends. Keep it positive and focus on the positive feelings you remember.
- For the last 5 minutes, use your imagination to look into the future. Imagine the last line on your homework, or last slide of your presentation being completed and you moving the mouse button up to File and hitting save. Focus for a moment on the feeling you get when you’ve finished, clearly its a good feeling. Much better than having it in the back of your mind bothering you through the whole day.
- Now open your eyes and do your best to keep that feeling of successfully finishing in your mind, focus your thoughts on this not specifically on the task your trying to complete (most of the time its something you could probably do in your sleep anyways right?). Try this, and you’ll be surprised how much longer your attention span will last, after trying this simple technique I’ve spent 4 hours straight zoned out on a single project till it was completed… Not even A.D.D. medications can do that!
Lets be honest, if it we’re this easy surely everyone would just do this when ever they we’re distracted or unmotivated right? Wrong, in the next article we’ll talk about what most people do when faced with a problem, and ways you can keep yourself from doing it.
