In 1976 I saw a breathtaking photograph on the cover of a flying magazine. The picture was an aerial photo of Tikal, the lost city of the Maya, deep in the Yucatan jungle of Guatemala.
Although I was just out of college, flat broke, living in a closet-size apartment, I felt compelled to make this Indiana Jones journey to Tikal via private airplane. I absolutely had to get that low-altitude rooftop shot of the Temple of the Great Jaguar.
Initially, it all seemed like a pipe dream. But as I put the plan to paper, I soon found the expedition expanding into the deeper reaches of the Amazon.
At first glance, the whole idea was ludicrous. A private airplane expedition would cost tens of thousands of dollars. I barely had money to pay the rent, let alone buzz jungle archives in a rented Cessna. But I did have a twenty-year-old Frigidaire in the kitchen. That scuffed up, off-white icebox would help serve as a “mechanism” to keep the dream alive. The process involved two steps that rivaled grade school simplicity.
First, I took a clean sheet of paper and in big felt pen letters, wrote out a single word:
AMAZON. Second, I taped the sign at eye-level on the door. Because the refrigerator was visited countless times day and night, it became an in-your-face reminder.
Nothing new, right? Yet it worked wonders. This pathetically simple sign was the only item slapped against the refrigerator door. Nothing else competed for its attention. With that incessantly viewed word, the project became more of a reality, day by day. The Amazon, and Tikal in particular, were burned indelibly in my mind.
To breath life into this expedition, I would “armchair fly” the route, seeing in my mind’s eye, vast expanses of jungle, mile-wide rivers and even make simulated low passes over the Temple of the Great Jaguar, the granddaddy temple of Tikal. For all practical purposes I was already flying over the Guatemalan rain forest, as I sat in my dinky apartment back in Sacramento. Thank you Frigidaire.
Here’s the point: The most effective tools you can use to stay on target is the power of the written word. It’s one thing to visualize, armchair fly and simulate, but the written word serves as an undeniably effective mechanism that keeps the destination in your face. Unfortunately, less than five percent of us write out our “destination”. But those who do commit to a written record have a high probability of making that goal a reality.
Yes, mental magic occurs when you put your plan to paper. You can’t see it, but your goal begins to transpire in multiple unnoticed forms. With clarity as your compass, your subconscious mind takes over and steers toward the fulfillment of whatever target you provide it. What’s more, it works 24/7 on target acquisition!
So let’s put this “lesson from the cockpit” into action. Beginning today, stop the wishing and start the writing. You want to go high? Commit your flight plan to writing!
For example, do you want to go on vacation to Maui or some exotic destination this year? Is there a chance you had that same “wish” last year. What happened? Why didn’t you go? You didn’t commit, clarify or record the plan. This year, don’t just talk about the vacation, record the departure date in your day planner.
Instead of fantasizing about a business from your home, design it on paper. Sit down and pencil out a rudimentary business plan. Describe the product or service, the target market, the amount of money you intend to generate and the time frame you intend to begin each step. Establish a mechanism to constantly remind yourself of your objective. Then move toward a daily, progressive realization of that goal.
You’ll find if you write it, see it and be it, in the now, you will discover an almost magical mechanism that “teleports” you to extraordinary destinations, adventures and goals you had only “wished for” in the past.
This process is simple. Almost too simple. But if you write it and then relentlessly focus, things will begin to happen…big time.
Our expedition, tag-named Espiritu de las Americas, came through as planned. That beat up, old refrigerator helped us bag a 13,000 mile expedition though eleven countries, and come in on budget at an incredible (but recorded goal) of six dollars a day.
And although it didn’t make the cover of National Geographic, we got that aerial shot of Tikal as we skimmed the top of Temple of the Great Jaguar from 500 feet overhead.
Therefore, dream a little…then grab some paper and pen your pathway to success. Adventure and profound personal freedom are waiting.
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