Vision Board or TRUE Vision…

We are well into the first month of 2022. By now the vision boards have been created and big goals/dreams established for the year. The boards are great — I love seeing the creativity that goes into them and the individual expressions that are the final result. The problem is, I think, that sometimes more work goes into the board than the vision itself. But in order for your life to take the direction that you desire, your vision must be greater than the board.

VISION Defined

So what exactly is VISION? What is this concept that dominates thoughts and conversations at the beginning of every year? The King James version of Proverbs 29:18 in the Bible says “where there is no vision, the people perish…” Another translation says where there is no vision, the people “cast off restraint.” They live unrestrained, purposeless lives. Vision is the desired view of your life, current or future state, that should pull you forward and create the boundaries in your life that gives you clear direction. When you know exactly where you are headed, or at least where you want to go, some options are automatically excluded. I think of it as the guard rails for your life that prevent you from going too far to the left or to the right just like the ones we see on the highway.

A vision should be a clear and concise image of an intended direction, accomplishment or end result. Vision is looking forward; in the same way that your natural eyesight works, if your view is obstructed, you won’t be able to see clearly what’s in front of you and your steps, your forward movement, will be hindered. If you fail to eliminate mindset blocks, blind spots and other intangible hinderances, forward progress in your life will be limited, vision board or not! You need as clear a path as possible to follow, obstacle-free, along with a specific plan to get from where you are to where you want to go. THAT is your greatest chance for success!

Two Truths and a Lie

Have you ever played this game? I’ve seen it used as an icebreaker in corporate settings. You come up with three statements to share with other participants that tell parts of your life story. Two of the statements are true and one is a lie. The other participants then try to guess which of the three is which. That is a description of a game but we’re talking real life. What lies do you need to identify? We tell ourselves little lies all the time in order to be “at peace” with ourselves or aspects of our lives. “This relationship isn’t as bad as other ones I’ve seen.” “I don’t work out more because I just don’t have time (as you scroll and click and “like”).” “I’m not even going to try (fill in the blank) because it will never work anyway…” Whatever the lies, until and unless you are able to identify them from real truth, you impact your ability to accomplish whatever you set out to accomplish because any action you take will be framed in falsehood. Ouch! But the good thing is that if you can face it, whatever IT is, you can fix it!

Moving Forward…

At the end of the day, what you need to translate your vision (board) into reality is to determine your desired direction or end result; identify potential impediments or roadblocks and then establish a plan to help you manage the roadblocks and obstacles so when they happen, they don’t keep you stuck or even worse, moving backwards!

While it’s impossible to predict the challenges that life can throw our way, what you CAN do is put measures in place to help keep you from going all the way off the rails if/when something goes awry. A couple of simple(r) suggestions…

1. RESPOND, don’t react. Reacting is off-the-cuff. It’s the “lizard brain” knee-jerk follow-up to the negative or less-than-desired circumstances that make you fly off the handle and say or do things that you may later regret. To respond, however, is to pause and think through next steps. Response is calculated, measured words/actions with thought given to potential consequences. It’s not jumping out of the frying pan into the fire!
2. Be aware of your TENDENCIES. Can you look back and identify any patterns of behavior that have repeatedly worked against you? Like whenever you are upset or sad you tend to overeat… or call “him”… or isolate yourself? It’s important to be aware of your patterns so you can head them off and redirect as necessary. I spoke some time ago about the importance of putting systems in place to accomplish goals. Systems are barriers, guards and boundaries that help keep you on track. You can only activate them, though, when you realize when (and that) you need them.
3. Mind your MINDSET. Mastering your thoughts, especially about yourself, can be one of the greatest hurdles to overcome. Achieving mindset mastery can mean challenging many of the stories you have told yourself or believed ABOUT yourself for years. It’s undoing, untying, disconnecting, rewiring, restructuring — a whole tearing down to build back up process. But YOU CAN DO IT! Becoming anything is a process but getting there is a matter of taking the first step. Start with one or two negative self stories and battle against them with all the self-love, truth and affirmation that you can muster. Continue to repeat the words you need to hear (Biblical ones are the greatest weapon!) until you believe them and then move on to the next until you’re operating from a place of mental strength instead of a deficit.

With the proper plan and execution, you’ll start to see forward movement in no time. Action creates TRACTION! What better motivation is there than that? If you happen to hit any bumps along the way, you don’t have to go it alone. I am here for you and would love to help you with your journey. You can sign up for one of my programs or we can work together one-on-one to make sure you hit your intended target. In the meantime, I am including this link to a new year self-awareness challenge that I did in 2019. Hopefully it helps you increase your self-awareness of potential blockers that can get in the way of you executing your vision.

I am cheering for you!