One night in the summer of 2016, it struck me that my husband Jon and I had been filling in the moments, juggling a busy family life with stressful, unfulfilling work. For years we’d drifted off course from our original vision.
Partly living and partly existing would be a more accurate description. Regularly getting home late from work, physically, mentally, emotionally drained, we had missed out on precious time with the children again. Time we’d never get back. Many opportunities we had missed out on that would never arise again.
I had a vision for our new lifestyle and it took me three years to lay down the foundations for the lifestyle that we now live and love with the flexibility and freedom to travel whenever we choose. Our lifestyle has completely changed and it's all been possible through conscious lifestyle design having a clear vision of what we want.
‘Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens.’ Carl Jung
When you know what you want and have a clear vision, you can then form a plan and which road to choose will become clear for you. Refuse to allow others or your past to dictate your life path. Hone in on what you love as your inspiration will give you clarity of direction. In Focus on WHY episode 174 Spring into Leadership with Demetria Hill Sloan, she quoted American futurist Joel Barker who said, ‘Vision without action is merely a dream. An action without vision just passes the time, but action with vision can change the world. And so you have to be able to take action, meaningful action.’
Dare to dream but take action! Be true to yourself, stay authentic, honour your thoughts, activate your superpowers and values to empower you to travel more confidently in the direction of your dreams. Your decisions determine your direction and shape your destiny. Remember you can always change direction. Change lies within you and your decisions. Your direction is led by your purpose. Know your destination and have a plan to reach it.
Your purposeful path involves clarity of vision, the creation of a plan, setting specific goals or milestones, taking daily action and being flexible enough to adjust along the way. You may need to develop new skills, pick yourself back up and learn from your failures, and push yourself out of your comfort zone to achieve your goals.
Lisa Gill said in Focus on WHY episode 63 The Rocket and the Compass, ‘don't wait until you think you have the purpose, the perfect vision or the perfect compass to really start making a change and making a positive impact.’ Sometimes you can create what you desire with images instead of words.
Create a vision board or a visual representation of your ideal life aligned with your purpose. Reflect on all the images, colours or symbols that resonate with you and evoke a sense of meaning and fulfilment. Add in any inspirational words or quotations if you desire.
Place your vision board in a visible location and spend a few minutes each day connecting with all that is on it. Identify one single action you can take each day that aligns with your vision no matter how small.
‘When your vision becomes more powerful than your memory, your future becomes more powerful than your past.’ Paul Dunn, Focus on WHY episode 333 The Gift of Sight
How about you? Are you happy with your current lifestyle? What changes might you choose to make today to achieve your desired vision?
Focus on Vision!
Focus on WHY!
Amy
Action Point: Take meaningful action to activate your vision today!