Tag: goal setting

How To Write Your Vision Statement

In my last blog, I explained what vision casting is and how to use it to guide your life path. In this post, I’ll share exactly how to create that vision statement and what the process takes.

As I mentioned before, this is a pretty creative process. Writing a vision statement takes reflection, brainstorming, and a lot of critical thinking. If this isn’t something you’re used to doing, then it may feel a little uncomfortable at times.

Be willing to take a risk with your vision statement. Step outside of your comfort zone and really dig deep for what it is you want out of your life. So, as you get started, preparing to write your vision out, be sure to think about the basics of a vision.

I’ll write these out in question form so you can come back and ask yourself these questions along the way.

  1. What are the emotions and sentiments you would like to feel about your life and your journey? ie. “I am proud” or “I am amazed“
  2. What impact do you want to make on the world?
  3. Where do you imagine yourself being and who are you surrounded by?
  4. Is there a certain thing you want people to remember you for?
  5. What is life like for you in 15 – 20 years?

The Steps of Vision Casting

To vision cast properly, you need to be prepared to look beyond your present situation. Remember, that a vision is something you aspire to create. It’s a place you want to be, not something you already have achieved. That’s what so magical about a vision. You have to believe that anything is possible.

To think through your personal vision, there are three simple steps. Each step in your vision process can be done throughout your day, or at an optimal time when you feel you have the most peace.

The important part of this is being sure that you have time to clearly think through what you actually want. You need to be able to spend time with yourself in an uninterrupted space, even if it’s just for 10 – 15 minutes.

  1. Let Your Creativity Flow
  2. Let Your Ideas Settle
  3. Write it Down and Reflect

Let’s dive deeper into each step.

The First Step of Vision Casting

The first step to crafting the perfect vision is the exploration phase. Some people consider this brainstorming or ideation, but it doesn’t matter what you call it. The only important part of this phase is that you write down every possibility of what you want for your future.

You see, most people don’t really know what they want. They want everything. Sure, it all sounds good. But, that’s not realistic. You need your version of the best possible outcome, so that it’s clear in your life path.

If you’re uncomfortable writing statements, or don’t have a lot of experience writing, then just bullet point out your answers. Be as specific as possible and write every single idea down, even if at the moment you know it’s not right. You’ll have time to sort that out later.

The Second Step of Vision Casting

After you’ve written down all your thoughts, the next step is let it all sit for a while. Yes, that means leave all your thoughts on that piece of paper or notepad or document on your laptop and move on for a bit. The most critical thing you can do in your process is to allow your brain to really process it all.

Processing your vision will give your brain time and space to clarify. I highly recommend meditating on the ideas that you brainstormed. Take time to sit in a quiet space, close your eyes, and reflect on the ideas you have for your future.

The Third Step of Vision Casting

it’s time to start writing your statement out. Keep in mind that your vision statement can change. You can evolve.

The structure of a vision statement is pretty simple. It’s your end state, your impact, your surroundings, and finally your time frame.

In most vision statements, the time frame is not really mentioned, but I really believe a personal vision statement should have an understanding of when it’s occurring. As you get older, you’ll create new vision statements for further in your life. It’s essential to always have a goal for where you want to go.

As you write out your vision statement, make sure it’s clear. Write it down on paper and put it somewhere where you can reference it maybe once a week or if you’re feeling committed, every day. I wrote my vision statement in my goals and gratitude journal. It’s a simple journal where I write my gratitudes and thoughts each day and I have my vision statement bookmarked to reference.

Enjoy the process!

How to Achieve Your Goals

Well, I had a meltdown this week thinking about my life path and whether I’ve been accomplishing goals. Has anyone else had these moments? Ok, I can’t see you raising your hand or nodding in agreement, but I know you have. I know you connect with this.

So, I decided to break out my journal where I keep most of my current projects and goals. I opened up page one and found something AMAZING!

There I found goals that I set in 2018 with a little note scribbled above them that says, “Review my goals daily.” Underneath that note, I wrote down six goals for that year, three goals to accomplish in two years, and three goals to accomplish in five years.

Guess what?! I basically accomplished all of my goals in 2018, save for one. And after two years, I successfully checked off two of my three goals as of April!

More importantly, as I look to the five year goals I set, I already have accomplished one and the other two, I’m well on track to achieve, as well.

Settings Goals

These are not simple, easy goals. These goals require lifestyle changes. The best types of goals do. They challenge you to be different and do things in a new way.

I decided to set goals that challenged me to be better in many ways and learn new things. For instance, one of my five year goals I set was to get promoted to the Director of the department that I work in currently.

When I set this goal, my career took a forward leap. I started to really apply myself and work hard, and I learned a lot about leadership. My eye was on that goal and it happened! I believed it would, and it happened early than I expected.

Another one of my five year goals is to get an MBA. I’m well on that as well, graduating in 2022.

Forgetting About Goals

The best part about all of this is that I forgot about these goals the last few months. I didn’t review them every day. I set them and for a long time I worked on achieving them, but then I lost my way.

My lesson here is to share and explain that sometimes it’s OK to lose your way. It’s OK to get off track and not really know what direction you’re going in right now. But, find your way back!

Find your way to those goals you set and remind yourself of what you wanted to accomplish when you were on the right path.

It’s incredible how the universe works and how creating habits to achieve your goals carries you through time. I made some important routines to achieve my goals, and because I did that and put in the work, I accomplished my goals despite forgetting I had set them.

The key to this is not to just set a goal and hope that life will carry you to the finish line. Rather, decide what lifestyle changes you have to make to get there in one, two, and five years.

Make those life changes, become better along the way and discover that you will accomplish what you’ve set your mind to. You can do it, but you have to do the work.

If you need a little help starting your goal planning, try this method – Objectives and Key Results. It’s a tried and tested method that is used by companies like Google and the one I work at now, but can definitely be applied to your personal goals. Check out this TED Talk that shares how it’s done.