12: Is Your Imagination Using You...Or Are You Using It?
In this episode, Amy explores one of the most overlooked powers in sports and life… imagination. It’s the invisible force that shapes your confidence, your fears, and your results, whether you realize it or not.
Amy breaks down how imagination can either hold you back or move you forward, depending on who’s giving it orders, your unconscious mind (which keeps you safe and the same) or your conscious mind (which leads you toward growth and goals).
If you’ve ever caught yourself replaying mistakes, imagining failure before it happens, or feeling stuck in “what-ifs,” this episode will help you flip the script and start using your imagination as a tool for performance and confidence, not self-sabotage.
Whether you’re an athlete stepping into a big moment, a coach guiding a team through pressure, or a parent trying to help your athlete believe again, you’ll walk away with a new understanding of how to train your imagination to work for you instead of against you.
Key Takeaways:
- Imagination is always working, the question is: who’s it working for?
- When imagination works for the unconscious mind, it builds fear-based movies designed to keep you safe, stuck, and the same.
- When imagination works for the conscious mind, it becomes your inner practice field, strengthening belief, confidence, and focus.
- The brain doesn’t know the difference between real and imagined experiences, what you visualize repeatedly becomes familiar to your nervous system.
- You can retrain your imagination by noticing when it’s working against you and consciously giving it a new mission that aligns with your goals.
In This Episode:
Opening
Amy introduces the “superhero” of this episode, imagination and how it can either limit or launch your performance depending on who’s in charge.
When Imagination Works for the Unconscious
How your brain’s survival system recruits imagination to keep you the same, and why resistance, doubt, and “you’re tired” thoughts are signs that your mind is just trying to protect you from change.
The Science Behind It
Amy explains why the brain reacts the same way to imagined experiences as it does to real ones and how elite athletes use visualization to make success feel familiar before it ever happens.
When Imagination Works for the Conscious Mind
What happens when you intentionally direct your imagination toward what you want instead of what you fear. Amy shares how visualization becomes a mental rehearsal that fires the same neural pathways as physical practice.
Real-Life Example
A powerful story of a volleyball athlete who learned to flip her imagination from fear to focus and how that simple shift changed her game and her confidence.
The Challenge
Amy leaves listeners with a challenge: notice when imagination is working for the wrong boss, then take it back. You get to decide what story your mind is rehearsing, one of fear or one of faith, one of survival and one of success.
Connect with Amy:
Website: www.amysuiter.com
Instagram: @asuiter25
Facebook: Amy Suiter
Don’t Forget:
If this episode inspired you, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a coach, athlete, or parent who’s ready to grow their mindset and use imagination as a tool for success.
