Visualize Your Validation
You’re only halfway to success if hard work is all you do
Just a quick special note about our high school girls cross country team. They qualified for UIL Regionals this past week in one of the most competitive districts in Texas! I’m extremely proud of their hard work as they’ve been applying some of these Come ALIVE principles. I hope to update you on their run at State in the next week. So, stay tuned!
So far in our journey to Come ALIVE, we've activated with appreciation, listened with love, and internalized our intentions. Now, it's time to visualize yourself executing greatness.
Visualization is like extra reps in practice. Tom Brady, Kobe Bryant, and many other great athletes used visualization practices to help them shape their success. Let's study how five-time NBA champion Kobe Bryant thought of and used visualization to bolster his success.
First, you must have the courage to use your imagination and curiosity. As we grow up, we grow less ideological and imaginative. Other "grown-ups" demand we think "realistically." We lose courage and grow comfortable in our insecurities as we think realistically. Instead of dreaming big, we sit around waiting for everyone else to validate our greatness. But as my Peloton instructor, Alex Toussaint, says, "Validate your own damn greatness." Instead of validating our greatness, every perceived failure blows our confidence to Come ALIVE and live purposefully. But Kobe Bryant embraced his imagination and curiosity early in his life.
"When I was about 11 years old," Kobe wrote for the National Council of Youth Sports, "I was able to look past my own insecurities and take the chances needed to become my best self because my father provided me the safe space to do so – he told me he loved me regardless of how many points I put on the board." Falling short of a desired outcome does not have to crush your ability to visualize your mission. For Kobe, "My failures became critical building blocks to my success and provided me with an unwavering belief in my own abilities."
Secondly, once you've internalized your intention, you must make visualization a foundational practice in your pursuit of excellence. It's a way to validate the work we've put in that's prepared us for big moments. When Kobe Bryant started coaching his daughter's basketball team, he encouraged them "to focus on visualization just as much as athleticism." Think about that. As athletes and coaches, we spend almost all our time executing drills, techniques, and effort. But how much time do we spend on visualization practices? You may think it's silly, but many of the greatest athletes say visualization is just as important as the work we put in at practice. When the big moments arise, they're not intimidated by them because they've spent the time validating their work with practice, visualizing what they can and will accomplish.
Here's how Kobe breaks down the importance of visualization:
"Visualization combines concentration, imagination, and belief. Concentration is the ability to think about a single thing or task without internal or external interruption; imagination is the creative ability to see yourself in a wide range of situations and envision how you'd navigate them; belief is unshakable confidence in your own abilities. These qualities are crucial to success in sports."
So, how much time have you spent visualizing your goal? Do you prioritize visualizing just as much as your training? If you can't see yourself doing or accomplishing something great, why should you expect any different outcome?
So, let's take some time to practice visualization now. Everyone visualizes differently, especially in how boys and girls visualize themselves doing something or remembering an event, so it's essential to remember this.1
Visualization Practices
We can use many sports, but I will use running for our visualization practice examples. It's the most universal athletic exercise, but substitute your sport of choice (or event) for your visualization practice.
With your eyes closed, imagine yourself running your race. (Pro tip: set a timer for the time you want to run and visualize for that amount of time. Your mind will try to zip you straight to the finish line, but bring it back and visualize every turn, dip, and weather scenario imaginable.)
Visualize yourself running the course with perfect form, passing your competitors around every bend and turn, and breathing correctly.
Visualize running across the line at a time faster than you've ever run.
Watch a hype video. Maybe your favorite athlete has a highlight video on YouTube that energizes you for your competition. My personal favorite is Baltimore Ravens legend Ray Lewis. He gets me excited just to make a run to the grocery store.
Focus on a spot on the ground. As you stare, soak in your space, take in the sounds of your environment, and allow yourself to get lost in your imagination and belief in your abilities.
Remember, if we can't see ourselves doing something great—if we can't concentrate, imagine, and believe it for ourselves—why should we expect anyone else to see or believe it? Incorporate visualization practices to help you Come ALIVE and prepare for the final part of our fall series.
Regarding visualization, I have unverified and unsubstantiated personal observations in my coaching experience about how boys visualize versus how girls do. Boys typically see or remember an experience through a first-person, in-body point of view. Girls see themselves from a third-person, out-of-body perspective. The result is that boys cannot see what they're doing incorrectly, but they have no problem diving headlong into attempting something. Girls, however, can see or remember themselves doing something improperly and will try to fix it. Still, they can be hesitant about putting forth total effort for fear of doing the activity incorrectly.