When you reflect on the year soon to pass, is there
anything that you should've, could've or would've
done differently? Many of us suffer from these
missed opportunities, both in our business and in our
personal lives.
There are those things that we should've done
differently or could've done a better job if we used a
wee bit more effort. Just think of how much more
successful we would've been.
While we pursue greatness in our profession and our
lives, we don’t always start with a plan, an image or
vision of what we really want or need to do to
achieve our goal or to accomplish a particular task.
We have no standard, no blueprint to measure our
actions against.
Analogies and metaphors are one way to create this
image or vision of how you wish to promote yourself.
Consider the invention of Velcro for a moment. The
sandburs that we find so unpleasantly stuck to our
trousers after a walk in the woods created the vision
for the inventor who eventually developed the
fastener. Velcro has revolutionized the fastener
business for shoes, clothing and even the space
industry.
In creating a vision for ourselves and our careers, we
can define and redefine our plans for the future.
Visioning, in effect, is the process of creating new
linkages or bonds with the future. The vision we
imagine is like an umbilical cord, a feeding and
nurturing mechanism that gives us strength and
sustenance for, and against, the adversity and
blockages to our professional goals, hopes, dreams
and aspirations.
Our vision then calls forth those beliefs, attitudes
and values that drive us toward our goals and the
ultimate achievement and accomplishment. At the
heart of our personal and professional vision are a
number of skills many of us put away as we become
adults. It may sound a bit weird or curious to you,
but perhaps the best way to come in touch with the
articulation of our vision is to reintroduce ourselves
to the child within each of us.
If you reflect on your own childhood, or you simply
observe children up to the age of 10, you will
reacquaint yourself with curious, uninhibited risk-
takers, hero-worshippers and speakers of truth.
They are ready and fully capable of unabashedly
seeking out the truth by letting you know what they
think and value, and by sharing their hopes, dreams
and aspirations. At that point, although perhaps
naively, they apparently are willing to lay it on the
line and live out their vision of being a firefighter,
ballplayer or whatever it is they want to be. The
fact is they are almost all consumed with that vision
and they live it out in act, word and deed to the
best of their ability.
When was the last time you risked, took a stand, laid
it on the line, talked your talk and walked your walk?
When was the last time you asked yourself, “What is
my personal and professional vision for the future?”
Are you willing and able to unabashedly articulate it
for others to understand?
As you prepare to embark on a new year, don't allow
any should've, could've or would've thoughts to slow
you down. Capitalize on the momentum of each new
day and focus your efforts on your next step, your
next move, your next satisfied client, your next
smile, your next referral, your next thank you...
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays to you and your
family. Thank you for taking the time to read and
share our newsletter each month. We will see you
next year!
