Have you ever found yourself trying to visualize a more vibrant lifestyle, only to frustratingly stop because it feels untrue, impossible, and downright crazy?
If you can relate, you have unknowingly resisted the heart and soul of visualization.
Seeing yourself already living your dream lifestyle, feeling into it, and believing it is occurring before any tangible evidence of it exists is the heart and soul of visualization.
This is far from lying to yourself or some “fake it until you make it” trick. It is, however, the key that can unlock a vibrant new lifestyle after 60.
This article, and the accompanying video, is the beginning of a new, 12-part exclusive series for Sixty and Me readers titled “Visualize a Vibrant New Lifestyle After 60.”
Did You Know You Have “Crystalized Intelligence”?
Contrary to limiting beliefs that our cognitive abilities decrease as we age, recent neuroscience studies have proven that life after 60 is ideal for transformation.
A Harvard study led by Dr. Sara Lazar showed that meditation and visualization practices actually increase gray matter density in the hippocampus, crucial for learning and memory.
Numerous clinical studies have also proven that when adults who are 50 and over engage in visualization practices, they utilize what researchers call “crystallized intelligence.” This speaks directly to accumulated knowledge and skills that make their mental imagery more detailed, emotionally rich, and neurologically impactful.
What does all of this mean for you?
It means you have decades of deeply immersive experiences to draw on for enhanced visualization experiences that younger adults simply have not yet had.
See It, Believe It and Achieve It
To successfully visualize your desired lifestyle before you have any concrete proof of it in your physical life, you will want to go beyond just thinking good-feeling thoughts.
To embody the heart and soul of visualization, you will want to imagine the vivid details, bask in the euphoric emotions, and explore the immersive experiences associated with your new, vibrant lifestyle.
This is where my “See It, Believe It & Achieve It” framework comes in as a scientifically proven and incredibly valuable method for visualizing your dream life and rewriting your lifestyle script.
The “See It” part works because: Your visual cortex has more reference points than it did in your youth.
The “Believe It” part works because: Your emotional wisdom makes your beliefs deeper and more powerful than it did in your youth.
The “Achieve It” part works because: Your life’s experience have shown you what matters most to you.
With the “See It, Believe It & Achieve It” method, you’re not working against biology, you’re leveraging it to create your ideal dream life.
But don’t just take my word for it.
The research of Dr. Becca Levy, a professor of epidemiology and psychology at Yale, indicates that 75% of aging is determined by environmental and psychological factors (such as age beliefs) rather than genetics.
World-renowned neuropsychologist, Dr. Mario Martinez, who studies culture and belief systems, and how they affect longevity and well-being was quoted as saying:
“Cultural beliefs about aging create what I call ‘cultural portals’ – expected life transitions that become self-fulfilling. When we change our beliefs about what’s possible as we age, we literally change our biology.”
The Power of Your Childhood Imagination
When it comes to visualizing your ideal lifestyle, you will want to see it, believe it, and then you can achieve it. The power of your childhood imagination helps with all three.
Your childhood imagination is filled with curiosity, wonder, and an infinite reservoir of creative power. It allows you to feel the excitement and fulfillment of your dreams before they materialize in the physical world.
Your childhood imagination can reverse the negativity of limiting beliefs. It also realigns you with the joy you naturally and playfully accessed with ease and flow as a child.
6 Powerful “I Am” Affirmations
To open yourself up to reconnecting with your childhood imagination, overwrite limiting beliefs, and embody the heart and soul of visualization, you will want to make positive changes to how you speak to yourself.
Here are six powerful “I am” affirmations to help you build an unshakable foundation for visualizing your new, vibrant lifestyle.
- I am effortlessly attracting everything I need to make my dreams a reality.
- I am committed to my dreams and trust the universe supports me at every step.
- I am embodying the confidence, joy, and success of the person I aspire to be.
- I am partnering with my childhood imagination to create my desired lifestyle.
- I am grateful for the life I am creating and the infinite possibilities before me.
- I am worthy of living a life that excites, inspires, and fulfills me.
Next Steps
Next in our series, I will introduce you to a five-step inspired action plan to undo limiting beliefs about aging, most often found in a Fixed Mindset, and how to use these steps to embrace your dream lifestyle.
I invite you to join me in the video, where I will share with you five immediate benefits for reigniting the playful mindset of your childhood imagination. I will also guide you through five journal prompts to help you integrate what you are learning.
Let’s Have a Conversation:
What are your dreams for your life after 60? Do you know what it is that you want to accomplish? Have limiting beliefs about aging hindered you from progressing with your dreams?