As children, we all had this natural power to anticipate wonderful things. We saw the best in things, felt the best about things, and enjoyed the best in moments. We still have that power. For many of us, it just needs to be reawakened.
This power reawakened in me as a result of an epiphany I had while traveling to my favorite place to be on earth, wherever there are mountains. The feeling of anticipation has always been profoundly present whenever I headed to a mountainous retreat, no matter where that final magical vista-rich destination may have been.
While driving to one of my favorite local mountain areas for a long weekend, I could not wait to turn that bend where the first peaks could be seen. I knew that the minute I saw that incredible view, a feeling would wash over me of peace, joy, and all-knowing that I was entering into true bliss in every moment spent there. As I thought about this, even before reaching that “view,” that very feeling washed over me. I could see and feel it even before physically seeing it or being there. And that was my “aha”!
As I thought of all the vacations or long weekends I have been blessed to enjoy all of these years, I realized that part of the reason the mountains were my favorite is because I could anticipate them well before arriving, merely because they could be seen long before actually reaching my destination. Through seeing them, I would begin to visualize all the great things I would be doing, foods I would be tasting, nature I would be touching, and times I would be enjoying with people I love to be with.
I tested this on another trip, heading to the beach, where in the past, I never felt the same anticipation I felt when headed to the mountains, because you couldn’t see the beach until you were physically there. There was a 70% chance of rain, and yet, I focused on the 30% chance of sunshine. In the four-hour drive to the coast, I imagined cloudy, yet rain-free fun dining out on a terrace, walking barefoot in the sand, the waves washing up the most beautiful sand dollars and shells, and the sun making appearances here and there throughout the weekend with rays like fingers reaching down from the sky toward the ocean.
That weekend at the beach is now among one of my favorites. The friend I was with was simply amazed at how it was as if I had summoned the weather to change or shift. No, of course I hadn’t, however, it was magical in how the weekend continued to unfold exactly as I had envisioned.
It’s been several years since that beach trip, which affirmed my own power to visualize and actualize through anticipation. Here is what I now put into practice with anything I hope to realize in my life. It has made a profound difference, and I know it will for you too.
1. Anticipate what’s possible.
No matter how grim a situation may seem at the time, there is a positive alternative if you just allow yourself to think it, see it, and embrace it as truly possible. Allow your imagination to swell with the possibilities of richness, goodness, joy, accomplishment, or overcoming the odds.
2. Anticipate how you will feel.
Our feelings are truly the power behind anticipation’s magic. When you can truly feel, before actually even being where you want to be, it is like a lightning rod to the Universe that you are ready to receive. Share how you will feel with others to get them excited, too. Express your feelings of anticipation with your words as well as your facial expressions and how you carry yourself.
3. Anticipate what you will see.
Paint a picture in your head of everything you will see in details that will further engage your feelings to an even higher level of anticipation. We have been blessed with sight to take in all the wonder of the world around us. However, we have been blessed with vision to anticipate and bring wonder to us.
4. Anticipate what you will experience.
Explore and learn all you can about what you are setting out to do, so you can imagine your entire experience along the way. Sure there will be twists and turns, and even imagine those as well and how you will navigate them with ease. It’s not as much about figuring out how, as it is about being able to experience the “wow” in every moment along the journey.
5. Anticipate the best outcomes.
Believing, seeing, feeling, and experiencing all collide together into a beautiful manifestation when you also anticipate the very best outcomes as well. Don’t settle or limit yourself to one ideal outcome, but allow yourself to imagine many possible outcomes that would thrill and delight you. When you leave yourself open to the Universe’s interpretation, you open the floodgates to outcomes that exceed what you could have possibly anticipated.
Too often, when people anticipate, it is focused on the worst that could happen instead of the best. Worry and other distracting thoughts get in the way. Rewire your thinking to anticipate the best, and you will visualize better, manifest better, and actualize better. Guaranteed.
