Eyes Drive the Effort

We all know that visualization and imagination are powerful tools for goal achievement. But until recently, researchers had not really considered how we use our literal vision in day-to-day goal achievement. In other words - how do our two eyes and field of vision act as superpower tools for goal achievement?

It turns out that across countless high performance endeavors, successful achievers have a similar set of visual habits and strategies that propel them faster and further towards their goals.

Emily Balcetis at NYU is one of the leaders in this nascent field at the intersection of vision and goal setting, and has done some great interviews on the Huberman Labs podcast where she highlights the specific protocols. For example, while visual dream boards are fun to make, they may actually short-circuit your goal achievement motivation because we get so happy and relaxed by looking at the pretty pictures that our blood pressure goes down - dampening our drive to take action!

While not totally discouraging vision boards, Balcetis recommends people employ a toolkit of four visual strategies that top performers consistently use. (We have created a FAST acronym to help you remember these simple but powerful visual tools).

Focus In Shorter Frames
One of Balcetis’ central findings is that top performers are extremely adapt at throwing a spotlight on the next immediate step in their goal progress trajectory. For runners, this means picking a specific object 50 or 100 yards down the road, and concentrating on reaching that spot in the race, and then repeating by selecting a new target down the road. For writers or programmers, it might mean completing the next 2 hour writing session with as much concentration and energy as possible. Almost any goal can be broken down into this series of shorter visual milestones.

Adjust the Scenery
Knowing where to direct your attention and adjust accordingly is a key goal setting skill. Take time to create deliberate visual cues in your environment that will strengthen your propensity to take action - whether it be writing reminder notes, placing of training gear by your bed for that morning run, putting healthy snacks at eye level in the fridge, leaving browser tabs open to cue the start specific work on the computer, etc.

See the Forest
Filmmakers began using VistaVision in the 1940s to give movie goers a wide angle view of an entire scene. Today we take this horizontal movie experience for granted. For goal setters, tuning your eyes to have this same expansive wide-angle attention is a powerful skill for picking up important clues for progress, and also for avoid possible pitfalls. Think of an NFL quarterback who literally must scan for downfield receivers while simultaneously avoiding near field defensive linemen. This visual skill encompasses both an alertness to your surroundings and a curiosity and openess for new opportunities.

Track Your Progress With Clear Actionable Steps
Materializing the specific steps needed for goal achievement is a consistent factor in separating goal achievers from goal failures. Be very concrete and clear eyed about the steps you will need to get from your current state to the your ideal goal state. By focusing your eyes on the key action steps, it dramatically increases your likelihood of actually taking action and then seeing results!

The emerging field of visualization and motivation science is just scratching the surface of how our eyes literally direct our goal achievement. Spend time today reframing and re-seeing your goals from the perspective of these four powerful success lens. Then literally watch what happens!