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At the beginning of a process of making significant changes, it can be difficult to imagine how life will be when the goal is reached. We know that we want to get a degree, change careers, adopt healthy habits, or overcome an addiction, but the specifics of attaining that desire can be as foggy as an Ozark morning.

So many people make resolutions to overhaul their lives that I decided to share an activity I used to do with my wholistic health classes. The great thing about this brain exercise is that you don't need special training or equipment.

You can practice at odd moments when your mind is free to "daydream" for a minute, such as in the shower or during commercials. Do this activity right before bed or first thing upon arising, when your mind is most receptive.

The main things you will need are your imagination, some awareness, and a strong desire to achieve the goal toward which you are working. Living the goal helps you change from the inside out.

If your imagination is like an unused muscle, don't worry. Just as an exercised arm or leg will grow stronger with use, so will your imagination. If your belief in yourself packed its bags in search of a nicer home years ago, do not despair. That, too, can grow over time with a little nurturing.

Experience the Destination

Embarking on a journey of change is a lot like standing at the base of Pike's Peak looking up to the summit, so far above. You wonder how you'll ever get past the enormous boulders and steep paths, and you're sure you'll have to crawl part of the way. But once you ascend and look down from the peak, the obstacles don't look so bad. They're in the past now, not looming large before your eyes.

You'll use your imagination and your powerful mind to live the goal before you've made it happen in "reality."

Experiencing the destination allows your mind to bypass the obstacles and helps quiet the self-defeating messages, or bad programming on your Brain TV, that tend to take over. The first time you .try this, be sure you have at least a few minutes to yourself. Lock the bathroom door or do whatever you need to do to get away from the people, cell phones, and other distractions of life. Once you've done it a time or two, you won't have to separate yourself from life.

Now, take some deep breaths and do your best to let worries, thoughts and fears float through your mind without setting up residence in your awareness. You are going to create a tangible sensation of what achieving your goal will mean to you. Don't worry if you don't get it all the first time. Give it a few minutes here and there, and you'll build a living reality of what it will be like to have your desired end.

How will you look? What will the world around you look and feel like? How will you feel, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually? You have made your desire a reality. What do you say inside your head about your achievement? What do your friends and loved ones say about you? You have overcome all obstacles, and though you might have stumbled along the way, you have met all challenges.

You are building your world, creating your new life. As you work every day to make the external changes necessary to make your goal happen, exercise your imagination and learn what it feels like to have your desired end now.

The brain does not know the difference between rehearsing success in your head and having it "on the outside." Practicing success makes beneficial chemical changes in your body. Even your immune system, which fights diseases, is helped when you rehearse healthy thinking. You may even get some useful insights that will help make the journey easier. After all, you are past the enormous boulders. They will be easier to face in reality once you have felt what life is like from the side of success.