There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that's your own self.
— Aldous Huxley, Writer and Philosopher
About this Activity
The Imagining Your Best Possible Self Activity is focused on developing a well-defined sense of just who you imagine your best possible self to be. To do this, you’ll select one day of the week in which to return to this application for a simple exercise that is centered around, well, just seriously imagining your best possible self and writing about who this person is.
This activity consists of taking time to imagine your best possible self. You will begin this activity by taking some time to imagine your best possible self and briefly writing about your thoughts. Research has shown that even such a simple exercise as this can help to increase your well-being. After completing this first exercise, you can complete an (optional) reflection entry. We find it helps to write down your expectations of what you want from this experience. This entry can serve as a useful comparison point when you have finished the activity.
The Practice
Getting Started
The first thing that we recommend is to select the day (or days) of the week on which you want to do this activity. It's best to write down the days or add them to your calendar. A core aspect of these activities is writting down your thoughts. If you are doing the activity in the app, we provide forms to write and save your thoughts. If you are doing the exercise on your own, it is best to have a notebook or word document dedicated to this activity.
Instructions
Over the course of the next six weeks you'll work on improving your flourishing by doing a simple activity that involves imagining your best possible self. Each week you’ll set aside one day to do the simple exercise of sitting down, imagining your best possible self, and then writing about who that person is. You'll have a chance to do this for the first time in just a moment below. After completing this first exercise, you can then complete an (optional) reflection entry.
First Entry
Think about your life in the future. Imagine that everything has gone as well as it possibly could. You have worked hard and succeeded at accomplishing all of your life goals. Think of this as the realization of all of your life dreams. Now, write about what you imagined.
Weekly Practice
You've committed to the practice of imagining your best possible self once a week for six weeks. You've scheduled today to return to this app and complete this weekly short writing exercise. Please take a few moments to clear your mind. When you are ready, think about your life in the future. Imagine that everything has gone as well as it possibly could. You have worked hard and succeeded at accomplishing all of your life goals. Think of this as the realization of all of your life dreams. Now, write about what you imagined.
The Science
This exercise is grounded in research on cognitive well-being. Regular practice has been shown to increase positive emotion, enhance resilience, and deepen your sense of connection.
Key References
- King, L. A. (2001). The health benefits of writing about life goals.Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 27,798-807.
- Malouff, J. M. & Schutte, N. S. (2017). Can psychological interventions increase optimism? A meta-analysis. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 12(6),594-604.