One of the keys to setting and achieving your goals is understanding who you are becoming in order to achieve those goals. I want to introduce you to one of my favorite visualization exercises. It’s one that I do often and one I do with all of my coaching clients.

This is called the Future You visualization.

In this self-reflective visualization, I invite you to think about the future version of yourself. It’s an invitation to step into the version of you that has accomplished all that you are currently dreaming of.

Scientific studies show that when we shift our identity — who we think we are — we are capable of following through on the things that we truly desire to achieve.

In this visualization, we are stepping into the future version of ourselves just 1 year into the future.

This is a visualization that you can do anywhere, as long as you feel comfortable to self-reflect wherever you are.

Let’s get into it.

Imagine that it is one year into the future. One year from this very moment. Now, imagine Future You on this day.

This Future You has done all of the things you desired to this past year. Future You has:

• committed to the feelings

• created the Sweet Spot Goals

• worked through the fear

• dreamed audaciously

• and has done the damn thing!

Now, ask yourself the following self reflection prompts:

• When you think of Future You, what do they prioritize? What is their biggest priority?

• What have they let go of?

• What are they doing that is different from what you do today?

• How are they thinking that is different from how you think today?

• What do they believe that is different from what you believe today?

• How are they feeling that is different from what you are feeling today?

• If they had 1 piece of advice or wisdom to give you, what would they say?

Now, reflect on whatever has come up for you.

If you choose to listen to the podcast recording (which I highly recommend!), you may choose to pause throughout the episode to give yourself time to really think on these questions, on how Future You is different than who you are today.

In this Future You visualization, I’m inviting you to really step into your future self not because I want you to wait another 12 months to become this person, but because this is how you begin to embody the version of yourself who has achieved your goals. This is how you understand what your future self believed to get to where you want to be.

In the first podcast episode of this goals series, 139 | Setting Goals for What You Really Want, we talked about setting goals based on how we want to feel. In this final episode of the series, we’re now focusing on who you need to become to get there, love.

With that, perhaps you can see the shift from the perspective that says:

“One year from now, I want to have more boundaries”

to the embodied perspective that says

“I am someone who has nourishing boundaries.”

Or “I want to take care of my financial health,” to “I am someone who prioritizes and takes care of my financial health.”

Do you sense the difference?

These statements are centered around the same goal and intention, but one of them holds so much more power. It’s the one that shifts our identitiy so we become what we desire most.

And if the “I” statements aren’t working for you, shift it to a third-person “You” statement.

“Hey Shirin, you are someone who prioritizes your wellbeing! You are someone who takes really good care of themselves.”

This visualization is about shifting who we are and what we believe about ourselves.

I want to challenge you to try out this visualization this week. I encourage you to do it for a full month. Visualize Future You.

Revisit these prompts, replay the episode, and really connect with the version of yourself that has already done the damn thing understanding what they prioritize, what they believe, what they think. Step into their presence, feel their energy, and really remind yourself of who you truly are.

There’s no need to wait until another new year, love. You can be the person who believes in themself right now. Future You is present you.

I want to leave you with a quote by one of my favoritie human beings, Tracee Ellis Ross:

I am learning every day to allow the space between where I am and where I want to be to inspire me and not terrify me.

If you enjoyed this, you’ll love the rest of this goals-focused series:

139 | Setting Goals for What You Really Want : It’s a new year, love! And you know what that means: a new set of goals to go after. It’s also a time where you may start to feel some guilt and shame around what you didn’t do last year. Maybe you’re wondering how to set goals and actually achieve them. Well, that’s exactly what we’re talking about today.

140 | The 1 Word that Keeps us from our Goals : What stops you from achieving your biggest goals? Today, we’re going to talk about the one word that stops us from achieving our goals. It’s the 1 word I no longer use when it comes to my biggest goals and my wildest dreams. Then, I’m going to show you the antidote to help you get back to those initial feelings to fuel your way so you can actually go after those big, wild dreams.

141 | A better way to set goals (and achieve them) : Are you tired of setting big goals and not achieving them? In this episode, I want to share with you the ultimate game changer that will teach you the 2 most important elements of setting goals for your biggest dreams and actually achieving them.

142 | How to Dream Audaciously! : Do you remember how it felt to really dream? To dream big, to dream daringly, to dream like you did when you were an imaginative child? I believe so much in the power of dreaming and it is our wildest dreams that have the power to truly change our lives and the world around us. In this post, I want to help you get back to dreaming your biggest, wildest dreams that speak to your true desires with a super simple exercise that will help bring you back to dreaming audaciously.

Did you know that each podcast episode comes with free guided journal prompts?

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About your host, Shirin Eskandani