Why is there power in writing your goals down?

So, I will be honest, my inner geek had real fun researching this one after a question surfaced from a business program for EFT Practitioners.  And the question was timely asked to, as I had just read an intriguing article by Author, David Hamilton P.h.D. The question was “do we have to write our goals down or is knowing / thinking them enough? Actually there is a super power in writing down our goals and dreams that we want to manifest and actualise. I will explain below. 

So why is it better to write things down?

There are more and more studies substantiating that learning increases, as does the realisation of goals through the physical act of writing things down.

A study by a professor at the Dominican University of California found that people who wrote their goals down and shared then with others were 33% more likely to achieve them versus those who did not write down their goals.

So, for those of you who, like me, enjoy knowing ‘Why’, here’s the sciencey bit…….

There are a bunch of wonderfully powerful cells at the base of our brain. These super awesome cells work in conjunction with the Law of Attraction. In fact, some reports indicate that the Law of Attraction may not work without these cells. These cells have the name of the Reticular Activating System or RAS for short. The RAS is responsible for sensing things around us and sorting them out for us. This system helps us in every part of our daily life. It is also responsible for filtering out what is important and so if you have focused your thoughts then this gives the RAS the heads up that it is important to you.

Now by the act of writing, you are focusing your thoughts, increasing your concentration and making a physical action with your hand. You are focusing on the words and time is taken. Through this many parts of your brain are being activated at the same time. Including the RAS, which would then deem this writing important. This could be why writing has more potency than typing.

The science behind why, is explained by Author Henriette Anne Lauser in her book ‘Write It Down, Make It Happen’. She states that “Writing triggers the RAS, which in turn sends a signal to the cerebral cortex: Wake Up! Pay attention! Don’t miss a detail! Once you write down a goal your brain will be working overtime to see you get it, and alert you to all the signs and signals that were there all along.

There are also studies that show that writing aids the long term memory. Not the short term memory. Which could be why we can write down a goal and years later we achieve it. Although we may have thought that we had forgotten all about it. No, the RAS has still been working on it.

The RAS goes on overdrive when connected with visualisation connected to dreams and goals … ok, ‘overdrive’ may be a little exaggerated, but it will program itself to look for the possibilities and opportunities to make it happen.

So if you have a goal or dream you wish to realise then write it down. Supercharge those super little sexy cells who will, in turn, work on achieving it for you.