Aphantasia and visualizing the lock

[CanoePick]

Nothing new has been brought up since 2010 in this forum about visualization and in all my reading about Lockpicking I’ve never heard mention of a fairly recently “discovered” cognitive difference (right word?) called aphantasia.

Lemme ‘splain it to you. Up until a few years ago I thought “imagine this” and “visualize” were metaphors. I have zero visualization abikity. Now that doesn’t mean I can’t navigate, or read a map and get where I’m going or remember what a thing looks like. It just means I don’t get the mental images most people describe. For example I “know” what a star looks like. I don’t see a star, the word star, or hear star described or anything like that. I just “know” what a star looks like. It’s kind of hard to explain if you don’t also have aphantasia. Best one I’ve come up with is math problems. 2 + 2 = ?, you didn’t visualize the question and maybe not the answer most likely but some people do. If you visualize that much I don’t know how you stay sane.

For me I pick up a lock I’ve picked or looked into enough and I “know” where I am supposed to place the pick etc., but everyone talks about visualizing the inside of the lock. For me that’s like asking me a blind man to look at the note you’re holding up. In some respects I don’t think I’m at a disadvantage because I have no mental image just knowledge I’ve absorbed from either experience or observation. But I do wonder what I may be missing by not being able to visualize.

All that being said, does anyone else have experience with this or ideas? Perhaps tell me what you gain from visualization that is different from just knowing where the pins are and an idea of how far each stack should be pushed? someone will learn something new hopefully.

Trent

[Kenneth_V]

This is me as well. It is just they way that your brain works and you do not need to change for the "visualization" process to be effective.

Many people who fall into this category will think that visualization doesn't work, is stupid or will just pretend to see pictures.

There is a segment of the population, that are described as having aphantasia, that do not see pictures in their mind. By that I mean where most people if asked to close their eyes and "visualize" a tropical beach, with a palm tree and white sand and waves rolling in will not see that picture in their mind. The number of people who do not see that picture vary from 1-10% of the population depending on the literature that you read.

I've taught mental practice (visualization) techniques to hundreds and hundreds of people. When I teach this, I always find out if the person is visual in that sense by testing them with the above beach scenario. I tell them about how my mind works and that I do not see pictures in my mind. Some people do some people do not. I describe the beach to them and ask "can you actually see that picture of the beach in your mind or, like me, do you just know what the beach is like?"

If they can see the picture, i refer to it as visualization .
If they do not see the picture I refer to it as mentally imagine or mentally practice.

The process is the same and is effective whether you see pictures or do not. You just have to do it in the way that your mind works!

Visualize or mentally imagine.

[CanoePick]

This is me as well. It is just they way that your brain works and you do not need to change for the "visualization" process to be effective.

Many people who fall into this category will think that visualization doesn't work, is stupid or will just pretend to see pictures.

There is a segment of the population, that are described as having aphantasia, that do not see pictures in their mind. By that I mean where most people if asked to close their eyes and "visualize" a tropical beach, with a palm tree and white sand and waves rolling in will not see that picture in their mind. The number of people who do not see that picture vary from 1-10% of the population depending on the literature that you read.

I've taught mental practice (visualization) techniques to hundreds and hundreds of people. When I teach this, I always find out if the person is visual in that sense by testing them with the above beach scenario. I tell them about how my mind works and that I do not see pictures in my mind. Some people do some people do not. I describe the beach to them and ask "can you actually see that picture of the beach in your mind or, like me, do you just know what the beach is like?"

If they can see the picture, i refer to it as visualization .
If they do not see the picture I refer to it as mentally imagine or mentally practice.

The process is the same and is effective whether you see pictures or do not. You just have to do it in the way that your mind works!

Visualize or mentally imagine.

I swear I’ve seen almost this exact paragraph in r/aphantasia! Lol good to hear that it doesn’t seem to have any effect.

Hopefully some people that can visualize which pitch in as well so I can get more ideas on what they’re visualizing vs the way our brains work.

[Kenneth_V]

That was the way it was taught to me a few years ago in a course that I took and I have done it this way ever since.

It has worked great. Many people miss out on the benefits of using "visualization" techniques to their advantage because they think there is something wrong with them when they can't see the pictures. They spend tons of time trying to adapt their brain to see pictures when all they need to do is approach the technique in a different way.

Imagine instead of visualize. When you are reading about visualization, just change the word visualize to imagine and things will change for you.

If you are wanting to utilize it for lockpicking, or any other task, there is an understanding that you must have the knowledge to do it and do it correctly before imagining doing it. Kind of like imagining a beach if you have never been to, seen or experienced a beach.

So imagine what is happening inside the lock as you go through the process. Your brain will reference past experience or even a youtube video in your memory as you go through the process even without pictures. Applying the right tension, pins binding, lifting pins, the serrations on a serrated pin as each one passes the shear line.....

[CanoePick]

That was the way it was taught to me a few years ago in a course that I took and I have done it this way ever since.

It has worked great. Many people miss out on the benefits of using "visualization" techniques to their advantage because they think there is something wrong with them when they can't see the pictures. They spend tons of time trying to adapt their brain to see pictures when all they need to do is approach the technique in a different way.

Imagine instead of visualize. When you are reading about visualization, just change the word visualize to imagine and things will change for you.

If you are wanting to utilize it for lockpicking, or any other task, there is an understanding that you must have the knowledge to do it and do it correctly before imagining doing it. Kind of like imagining a beach if you have never been to, seen or experienced a beach.

So imagine what is happening inside the lock as you go through the process. Your brain will reference past experience or even a youtube video in your memory as you go through the process even without pictures. Applying the right tension, pins binding, lifting pins, the serrations on a serrated pin as each one passes the shear line.....

Definitely like the way you look at it. Just ignore the parts that don’t match in the phrasing. It doesn’t matter do it how it works for you. That thought process on how to imagine can be applied to anything in life. Well said.

[Kenneth_V]

Exactly!

I've taught this way of "visualization" to professional athletes, business people, military personnel, youth athletes and average joes!!