It is. Think about it. Everything. This doesn’t just apply to people who create something from nothing. This applies to everyone. That includes you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
There’s no job that you can mention that doesn’t do this – bricklayer, marketing exec, race car driver, CEO, artist, writer, stay at home mom. You have to think about what you are going to do before you do it. Even if your job is repetitive. The bricklayer checks the weather and has to make sure the humidity or rain isn’t too much. He envisions the road being muddy. The marketing exec composes an ad and then imagines people clicking on it, and the numbers it generates. The race car driver imagines the pull of the g’s in the turn, the lack of vision from the helmet, etc. Everything is first imagined and then realized<\/strong>. And yes, sometimes it’s not realized, often it is realized differently than it was imagined, and sometimes it comes to fruition exactly as imagined. For a creative, those are the weirdest times. Trust me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is because of time that fantasy becomes reality. You think it, you imagine it, and then it happens. Sometimes it happens differently and you adjust, and learn and then fantasize differently. There is no escaping this. Even if in the middle of raking leaves you drop the rake, run inside and decide to make a pizza you are still walking through (fantasizing) about how the stuff is going to mix, and even how it will smell. Time creates this. Time enables this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So now what? Listen to the podcast and find out…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Transcript<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Hey there, welcome back. But this applies to everyone<\/strong>, not just writers. Whatever your job or role is \u2014 bricklayer, stay-at-home parent \u2014 you still run scenarios in your head. You plan. You imagine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s the point: It\u2019s all fantasy until it\u2019s reality.<\/strong> Even if you\u2019ve done something a thousand times, you still visualize it \u2014 like building a wall or laying bricks. The weather forecast is a perfect example: pure fantasy until it either rains or it doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You\u2019re constantly visualizing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even something simple, like deciding to make a pizza, includes a mental walkthrough \u2014 what ingredients you\u2019ll use, how it\u2019ll taste, how you\u2019ll prepare it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019re told to \u201cstay in the moment,\u201d but that\u2019s hard \u2014 the moment is always fleeting. But fantasy is a useful<\/strong> engine. It’s not just dreaming \u2014 it’s preparation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Raise your hand if you\u2019ve rehearsed a conversation in your head \u2014 with your boss, your spouse, a client \u2014 and imagined it going badly. So what now?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Studies show that mentally rehearsing a physical task improves your actual performance. If you mentally<\/em> go through it with energy and intention, your reality will better match your fantasy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This applies to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Writers and coders know the terror of a blank page or screen. That fantasy \u2014 imagining the process, the results \u2014 drives<\/strong> action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You\u2019ve never heard it framed this way because people avoid calling it what it is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n But it\u2019s all the same: Fantasy shaping reality.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Everything is fantasy until it becomes reality.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Thanks for listening \u2014 your feedback means a lot.<\/p>\nTime<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The takeaways<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nYou’re listening to the Mark Bradford Alchemy for Life podcast<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
Creating Something from Nothing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Today\u2019s chat is from the perspective of someone who creates fiction \u2014 something from nothing, something that doesn\u2019t exist and likely never will.<\/p>\n\n\n\nFantasy Until Reality<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s how our brains work. That\u2019s how time<\/strong> works.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Role of Imagination<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Forced Mindfulness & the Flow of Time<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Mindfulness says:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
Conversation Rehearsals and Dread<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
We do this to prepare<\/strong>, though it often turns into dread<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat To Do With This Awareness<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Mental Rehearsal = Better Performance<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Whether it\u2019s:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
Applying This to Your Life<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The Hidden Power of Fantasy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Closing Thoughts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n