I Wrote About My Trip Before It Happened… and Then It Happened
Spoiler: It unfolded almost exactly as I’d written in my future casting journal.
I wasn’t exactly counting down the days to my trip to Los Angeles earlier this year. In fact, “mild dread” might be the most generous way to describe how I felt about flying across the country. I was going to participate in a memorial service. Make no mistake, I was proud and willing to do so to honor my sister-in-law. However, it was weighty and daunting on top of an already devastating loss. That’s where the future casting journal came in handy, offering a sense of calm.
I’d been doing some reading about future-casting — really, mental rehearsal — on and off for a few years. I couldn’t think of a better time to try it out, especially noting the effectiveness of documenting in a future casting journal. I’d already started rehearsing the hard parts in my head. These included emotional hugs, heavy conversations, and the feeling of grief hanging in the air like a thick fog. Not exactly the kind of event you pop into your calendar with a smiley face emoji.
But a few weeks before my flight, I sat down with The Possible: Starring Me! journal — my go-to space for a little future-casting. Think of it as writing about a future event like it’s already happened. The smells, the conversations, the feelings, the whole scene in living color are captured. It’s not woo-woo magic (though I won’t argue if you call it that). It’s more like tricking your brain into expecting the best so it can stop doing its favorite hobby: imagining disaster.
I wrote about it three times in The Possible. Each entry was from the perspective of boarding the plane back home to Chicago and nestling into my seat. From that vantage point, I recalled the day from beginning to end. I imagined seeing family and friends, and the cadence at which I stood up at the dais and told my story–both touching and humorous. I wrote about the people I would make a point to talk to and hug. I also noted the compliments I accepted for my story, and how my mind was reeling in the long Uber ride to the airport. But back in the airplane seat, I reflected on how proud I felt of not just myself, but the entire family. These are the moments in life that count.
I didn’t hold back — I made it specific, vivid, and honest about how I wanted it to feel after such an important life event.
Fast forward: I went to L.A., attended the service, stood at the dais and told my story. I spent time with family and old friends, and somehow, it all felt exactly as I had written it. When I got back home, I opened my journal to that last entry before the trip. I had one of those eerie, chills-up-the-spine moments. It wasn’t just similar — it was almost word-for-word what had happened.
Did I manifest it? Maybe. Did I simply train my brain to focus on connection and peace instead of dread? Probably. Either way, I’ll take it.
That’s why I’m such a believer in future-casting. It’s not about pretending bad things don’t happen. It’s about walking into the unknown with a blueprint for how you want to feel. It’s rather than a worst-case-scenario screenplay your brain has been running on loop.
So next time you’ve got something coming up — a job interview, a big trip, even a difficult conversation — grab your The Possible: Starring Me! journal and write about it like it’s already happened… exactly the way you’d want it to. Writing in a future casting journal might help you find yourself living the script you wrote.
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