Deliberately Designing a Vision for the Next 12 Months and Beyond

Do you have a vision?  Sarah Hughes, the Olympic gold medal ice skater, had hers at age six. Joseph Campbell, the folklore author, found his after visiting the Museum of History in New York City.  Oprah Winfrey remembers, at age four, watching her grandmother washing clothes by boiling them—Oprah “knew” then that her life would be different.  They all found something that raised their inner vibrations and passion and created a vision.

People who live their visions always seem to have time to do the things they want to do.  We often call them “go-getters!”  They’re focused, they make decisions easily, and they smile often.  And they’re flexible—they don’t get “stuck” in their vision and miss better opportunities.

Joseph Campbell said, “We must be willing to get rid of the life we’ve planned to have the life that is waiting for us.”  I strongly agree; however, I also believe that we must always be open to what life brings us because it could be better than we ever envisioned!

And you’re not limited to just one vision.  People are living full lives into their 80s and 90s, something unheard of just a few generations ago. With continued opportunities to grow and evolve, we can create several visions over a lifetime.  Here’s an example … I loved working on a trading desk on Wall Street and couldn’t see myself doing anything else.

Twenty years later, I’ve found another passion—coaching. Perhaps in another 20 years, another passion will be calling to me.  I can’t wait!

How to Create Your Vision

If you want to live in a way that empowers and motivates you, it’s time to create a vision.  Make it simple but remember that the hallmark of a vision is that it promotes action. You must get it out of your head, onto paper, and into your life!  Here are some ways to create a vision:

• Create a theme for the year.  Make it specific and based on your goals for the next twelve months.  Choose one to four words that will motivate you, for example: “Simply Wealthy,” “Big Leaps of Faith,” or “Be Present, Present Be.” Write your words on index cards or create a banner with your theme on it! 

• Design a dream board (or treasure map).  This is a collage of images depicting what you’d love to have in your life.  Why not host a dream board party and ask your friends to bring magazines from which everyone can cut pictures? 

• Make a mind map. Originated in the late 1960s by Tony Buzan, millions of people use mind maps for the purpose of visioning.  Draw a circle the size of a quarter in the middle of a sheet of paper and write “YOU” in the middle. Then draw a line coming out of the circle for each area of your life:  Relationships, Family, Romance, Friends, Professional, Personal/Spiritual, Finance & Money, Physical Environment, Health, Play & Recreation. These lines can be short or long, straight, or squiggly, and you can use as many colors as you like!  Out of each of the primary lines, create more lines with ideas, or draw pictures.  A mind map’s purpose is to help you illustrate what’s important to you, define why those items are important, and to create a plan to help you reach your goals.

Create a Business Vision

• Construct a Vision Statement.  In the late 1970s, I learned about a great acronym for setting SMART goals.  Today, using SMARTER is a much better goal-setting system!

S (pecific)
M (easurable)
A (chievable)
R (ealistic)
T (ime-framed)
E (xecutable)
R (eviewed)

• Create your business vision in a few sentences.  Include:
  • The name of your company
  • Your position in the company
  • A time frame for the vision
  • An adjective that best describes your business
  • The type of business you’re in
  • Who are your ideal clients
  • Where your clients are located
  • A general description of your products/services and, of course,
  • How much profit you want to generate—net or gross, your choice

Create your today during a free Masterclass.  Sign up now.

Use your vision daily to retain focus.  If an opportunity comes your way, look at it in terms of your vision and decide if the opportunity is in line with (or better than) what you want, or if it’s really something to say “no” to.

Finally, update your vision or theme yearly; the beginning of the New Year is a great time to do it!  Your vision can be much more powerful and last longer than a list of resolutions.

Remember that vision statements are dreams with a well thought-out, deliberately created plan behind them.  Read your vision daily and fly!

For more information on goal setting, here’s an article I like:
SMART(ER) Goals | GUTS Tip – Greater University Tutoring Service – UW–Madison (wisc.edu)

©2009, Updated 2022 Elevating Your Business