New year, new you? How to make 2023 your best year yet with visualisation – interview with Damian Hughes

With the New Year now behind us, it’s the perfect time to look forward to 2023 and start visualising the upcoming year. The use of visualisation can’t be underestimated in helping you to achieve your goals, especially in high pressure environments.  

In a recent episode of gunnercooke’s Inspiring Leadership Podcast, Founder and host Darryl Cooke interviews Damian Hughes. Damian is an international speaker and best-selling author who focuses on helping organisations and teams to create a high performing culture.  

When talking about visualisation, Damian encourages you to work backwards. He suggests starting with the end goal and slowly working your way back – think about the final result that you want and all the different components that go into it. If you were a footballer, think about the ball going into the net, then work all the way back to the specific technique you were using in your foot. 

When talking about visualisation, Damian says: “It’s an incredibly powerful skill and I think it’s best harnessed for particular moments. If I was in a corporate setting then it might be a pitch for a new bit of business, it might be a meeting with a new client for the first time, it might be a certain negotiation. You can harness the power of visualisation and imagine how you show up, rather than try and control other outcomes.” 

He further explains that you should visualise and look at what you do want, and not what you don’t. That you should focus on the things that you can control, such as how you engage with your work and clients.  

If you’re not sure on what to visualise for 2023, look back at your career and think about your highlights so far. Was there a particular deal that you’ve done, an outstanding client relationship or an award win. Think about what went into those key moments and what made them successful. There will be consistent patterns there that can then be mimicked.  

Damian goes on to say: “Going back to successful times is really powerful because then it gives you the confidence to carry on because it’s built on evidence.” 

The conversation also leads on to the importance of mindset and how that can help you in business. 

Previous guests of the Inspiring Leadership Podcast have included Vikas Shah, Hassan Damluji, Sir John Timpson and Roger Lane Smith, who discuss how to have integrity in business, the balance of process and innovation, and how CSR drives a business forward. 

Darryl is welcoming inspiring leaders who are making a difference in their business or community to join him for future episodes. Get in touch to recommend a guest. 

To listen to the podcast visit Spotify or Apple Podcasts.