The Power of the Subconscious Mind: Napoleon Hill’s Visualization Exercise

Have you ever wondered where brilliant ideas come from?

In 3 steps, this 8-minute video will teach you one of the most powerful and notorious visualization exercises – Napoleon Hill’s “Invisible Counselors” Visualization Technique.

Source: MindValley Blog

Watch this quick clip or read the transcript of the video (below) to access this powerful manifesting tool…


How do the world’s most prolific artists, business people, thinkers and inventors get the inspiration for their ideas, creations and achievements? Was it their upbringing? Are they just really lucky? Were they blessed with a gift most of us can only dream of? Or is there something else at work?

Back in 1937, personal development pioneer Napoleon Hill published ‘Think And Grow Rich’, a book that would soon go on to become one of the most influential publications of ALL time. The book was packed with techniques and instructions on how to develop a wealth mindset, and achieve success beyond your wildest dreams.

Its contents were so powerful that to this day, ‘Think And Grow Rich’ is widely regarded as a benchmark of all other books of its kind. You’ve probably read it yourself.

But there was one particular technique in the book that shocked readers . It was so controversial, in fact, that Hill himself was initially hesitant to even reveal it at all.

That technique was called… The Invisible Counselors Visualization Exercise

In the book Hill claimed this was his ultimate technique for sourcing skills, ideas and inspiration.

This is how you do it…

Step 1:

Just before going to sleep at night, close your eyes, and see, in your imagination, a group of people seated with you around a Council Table. Remember, you can invite anyone you like to sit at the Council Table.

And when I say anyone, I mean anyone. They could be in another part of the world. They could be celebrities or famous politicians. They could even be alive or dead. Now, not only do you have the opportunity to sit among those you consider to be great, but you can actually dominate the group, by serving as the Chairman. This is what Hill did.

Step 2:

Have a DEFINITIVE PURPOSE for holding these nightly Council Meetings.

Hill explains his definitive purpose was “to rebuild my own character so it would represent a composite of the characters of my imaginary counselors.” Your “Definitive Purpose” can be ANYTHING you want to change about yourself or your life. Since all this is going on in your mind, your imagination is the only limit!

Step 3:

Call on the Council Members for the knowledge you wish each to contribute.

The idea here is to start a discussion with these people on any topic of your choice.

So if you want to discuss leadership, you could invite Abraham Lincoln…

If you want to discuss financial success, you could bring in Warren Buffet…

If you’re looking for enlightenment, you could always invite Gandhi…

If you’re looking for ideas to grow your business and make your mark on the world, go ahead and call on Richard Branson…

And if you need some advice on how to improve your life and relationships… maybe ask Oprah a thing or two.

Hill had originally meant for the Invisible Counselors to be an imaginary exercise. You imagine you’re talking to successful people, and you imagine them giving you advice. Nothing much to it right?

But here’s where it gets really interesting. After a few times of trying out the Imaginary Counselors exercise, Hill found it to be more profound, more REAL than he ever thought possible.

He reported that after a while, each of the characters he imagined actually took on a life of their own. For example, he mentions that Abraham Lincoln was always late and never smiled. Hill even recalled an occasion where two counselors in the boardroom actually got into an argument over a topic that left Hill mystified…

And on numerous occasions, the people he had invited would often give him advice and information that he could never have known by himself.

But how was this possible? If all this was just going on inside Hill’s head, how could he be picturing, hearing and learning things outside of his own comprehension? What was going on here? Was Hill really communicating with these people on some other plane of existence? Or did he just have an overactive imagination?

Before you jump to any conclusions, consider this…

Napoleon Hill was not alone.

For centuries, some of the world’s most successful and influential people have reported experiencing similar inexplicable flashes of inspiration.

Miraculously, he’d wake up from these naps not with a headache, but with dozens of new ideas and inspirations for how to proceed with his research.

Interestingly, Edison has been quoted as saying, “Ideas come from space. It’s hard to believe but it’s true. Ideas come from out of space.”

And then there was Elias Howe, the inventor of the sewing machine. You may not know this, but Elias got the inspiration to create the sewing machine from a dream. Here’s how he explains the dream…

“I was in Africa and was being chased by wild cannibals. They caught me and placed me in a huge pot. I kept trying to get out but they kept forcing me back in with spears.”

The spears Howe saw in his dream had holes in the tips. It was this bit of information that gave him the idea for the sewing machine needle.

Walt Disney also had his own unusual method of coming up with powerful ideas.

Whenever he had an idea, Disney would run it through a meticulous 3-step process to guarantee his idea always turned out unique, powerful and feasible.

So what was the first step? Did he analyze market conditions? Study the competition? Plan his budget?

No. He would simply close his eyes, and dream.

All these highly successful people have one thing in common…

…they had discovered how to tap into a force beyond the confines of their minds, and draw from it infinite amounts of wisdom, inspiration and success.