This entry is part of a series, Manage Your Imagination» 
Image Courtsey of H. Koppdelaney's Photostream
All of us imagine all the time. After all, it is our imagination that allows us to play out all the possible scenarios laid out before us and decide on a course of action.
“Without leaps of imagination, or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning.” ~ Gloria Steinman
Our imagination determines for the most part how we react to nearly every situation. Our imagination allows us to take our experiences, and all the things we learn and connect them together in new and meaningful ways. And our imagination allows us to enjoy life more fully.
However, there is a problem…
Imagination is something we do constantly. However, very few of us have been taught how to effectively manage our imagination.
Imagination in school, was for the most part, limited. Even in art classes you were probably were taught that elephants are not pink and that you had to draw houses “this way” if you wanted to do it the “right way.”
As children we were told stop daydreaming and get back on task. But then, suddenly, when the clock hit the magical hour we were told to turn our imagination back on for our creative writing projects.
Throughout our school years we were taught plenty of facts, and then asked to recall those facts. And now we are asked to solve problems based on all the information we learned.
It’s no wonder, that as adults, many people rely primarily our synthetic imagination. Synthetic imagination is based on the images, knowledge, and information we store based on our experiences, our education, and observations.
It allows us to take those pieces and put them together in a new way. It rearranges the existing thought patterns into new patterns. It is through the power of synthetic imagination that new products are developed.
All of us have synthetic imagination, and it’s a good thing we do. If we didn’t we be much like a computer that stores facts, and does nothing with them unless directed to.
The other type of imagine is creative imagination. Creative imagination refers to our ability to develop completely new and different ideas. It’s the ability to take concepts and put them together to solve problems and achieve goals. This type of imagination often manifests itself in the form of hunches and inspiration. And it is creative imagination that is responsible for many of the great breakthroughs in medicine, science, technology, art, music, literature.
Both types of imagination are important, and both types of imagination play a vital role in your life.
The most successful people feed their synthetic imagination on a regular basis, and they deliberately train themselves to tap into their creative imagination.
- So what can you do to broaden your imagination?
- What can you do to increase the power of your imagination?
Stay tuned for tips, insight, and resources on how to manage your imagination…
Perhaps as a child you dreamed of being a ballerina or playing in the world-series. Perhaps you dreamed of traveling to exotic locations, of flying to the moon, or of being in movies. All of us had childhood dreams. And many of us still have the same dreams now as adults.
