Many of us have heard of the concept of visualization, but we found out about it quite late into our adult life. Quite a few people have used this to their advantage, while many of us are still figuring out how to do so. Using visualization to build positivity can be a great way of building your child's character and life.
Using the art of visualization correctly can result in an absolute change in approach towards positivity and life. More than anything, teaching this to your child at a young age can result in life-altering changes.
It is a known fact that teaching children habits while they are young goes a long way and is easier to build than shaping up practices into your adult life.
Incorporating visualization from a young age will create a positive attitude subconsciously in your children, resulting in high self-esteem and positivity. But before we get into talking about visualization, let us talk about the basics, shall we?
What exactly is visualization?
First of all, it is essential to understand that a part of this concept of visualization of positivity has been blown out of proportion by several self-help gurus who claim that if you constantly think about something, it will "magically" happen.
NO. That is not how this works. Let us simplify this.
Leading research says that if you run an idea of what you want clearly in your mind long enough and religiously, your mind will automatically respond as if your goal is actual reality. Automatically makes you highly attentive to situations and opportunities around you and pushes you to take steps towards your goal.
While this concept is also referred to as "manifestation" or "subconscious reprogramming," the main point of visualization is to trick your subconscious mind into believing that you are confident and positive enough to achieve all of your goals.
It results in your mind automatically turning on the "go get" mode of your body. In this mode, you are fuelled by clarity, motivation, and perseverance, which are the main things required to achieve any goal.
This is pure science and logic on how the brain works and how to use this concept effectively to subconsciously push you to take steps to make your goals happen. So be assured that there is no involvement of "magic" or "daydreaming" in here.
Is there a catch involved?
You need to know that the brain is the only organ in the body that processes billions and trillions of information every second. With every passing fraction of time, your mind is learning and adding more and more information into its library, which in turn shapes your life and future.
After a point, when a memory or an event has not been played enough in your mind, it is then considered as waste and then sent into your brain's "trash can" or "recycle bin." This is why we do not remember many of our early childhood memories as clearly as the memories of our teenage or early adolescent years. The biggest catch here is that this concept needs to be practiced every day.
Imagine this, you take up guitar classes and practice playing it daily for about three weeks. You now know a couple of popular chords, and you can play the hook of some of your favorite songs too. Suddenly your practice reduces to a point where it rarely happens. What would follow?
You would start forgetting slowly and steadily, to a point where you need to begin again. The same logic applies to visualization and positivity. Missing a few days is normal, but you will need to start again if you stop abruptly.
Is this safe for my child?
This technique has nothing called "negative side effects." It is a brilliant way to teach your child from a very young age to take charge and shape their path. This will not only push your child to achieve things, but it will also help build good mental health.
As mentioned earlier, many of us got introduced to the science of visualization well into our adult years, and the benefits were only known recently. But now, we have the choice of teaching this art to our children from a very young age. By the time your child turns into an adult, he or she would be a professional at practicing this and will thank you for it.
How do I teach my child visualization?
Children operate with fun. They are the most attentive when you use creativity to teach them anything. Be it a math equation or eating their veggies, you want to make this fun for your child to wake up wanting to do this every day.
Here is how you could go about it:
1) Start small.
Even though goals are usually big and ambitious, it is essential to start small with your kid. Start by asking them what they think about themselves.
Then start framing sentences about their qualities. You must let your kid build these sentences while you slightly pitch in whenever necessary.
Try to encourage them to create sentences that have the word 'I' in them, such as:
"I am a strong girl/boy."
"I am an intelligent girl/boy."
"I do my homework very easily."
"I always get good grades."
"I am important."
"I decide who I want to be."
"I am loved by my friends."
As your child makes these statements, ask them to visualize themselves and create their movie in their minds by being in situations where they are strong, getting compliments from teachers, efficiently dealing with examinations, and a lot more.
Ask your child to share what they imagine with you and try to make the story as fun as possible, so your child feels like doing this again.
2) Practice every day.
Your child must practice this every single day. Practicing this twice a day would be ideal.
The perfect habit of merging this with would be when your child brushes their teeth. It is usually the first and last thing kids do during their day.
Asking your kid to do this before the day begins ensures that they start their day on a positive and focused note.
By doing this before they sleep, it makes this the last thing they talk about. This then processes in their minds as they sleep, which is highly crucial. The actual change in approach happens when you fall asleep with these thoughts and let them work with your subconscious mind.
3) Ask about their role models.
Children always have someone they want to be like. It could be a cartoon character, a natural person, or even a fictional person. Ask them to visualize themselves as their role models, dealing with situations in life several times a day.
You can then go ahead and even create background stories of how strong and focused their role models became through visualization and how they can become the same if they follow this every day.
4) Be an example by practicing yourself.
Children mimic what they see. Children look up to their parents, and if they see you not following this yourself, they are bound to feel like this is not essential. You will need to set an example for your child for the first few months by doing this yourself at a fixed time.
Whether you incorporate this while brushing or perhaps while saying your prayers is entirely on you. You can include "I" statements for your baby while you practice by writing down a list of the things you hope for your child.
Saying these statements out loud while you picture your child being successful will play on your subconscious mind, too, and you will start noticing yourself take steps to make this a reality for your child.
5) Keep your child's emotions in check.
While using this technique will help develop a positive attitude, this does not mean that your child will not have low moments. It is mainly during these moments that you need to be there for your child and remind them of who they are.
Do not tell them not to be sad. Let them talk, vent, or even cry if they feel like it. But use these moments to run through all of your "I" statements, so they do not forget that they are valued and essential. Go ahead and then ask them to visualize a happier situation with you.
Conclusion
There might be instances as your child grows up where there will be moments of self-doubt or perhaps situations where they have felt unimportant or sad due to factors beyond anyone's control. However, developing visualization as a habit from a young age will make it easier for them to deal with such situations.
After doing their share of complaining or being hurt, the subconscious mind will automatically fuel them out of negative feelings towards creating a better reality. It would have become a strong habit by now.
There will come a point in your life where your kid would thank you for having instilled this in them, or you might even catch them explaining this to someone else and perhaps changing their life too.
Now that teaching visualization of positivity to your child is on your list, why not try to make it more fun by incorporating something extra? Since visualization is about envisioning your goal in as detailed manner as possible, you can even ask your kid to imagine the clothes they wear as they achieve their dreams. Check out a variety of our cute and fun baby clothes for inspiration!
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