This week, you’ve clarified your values, created your goals, and fleshed out action steps to help you achieve them. Now that you have the main pieces in front of you, it’s to put some energy behind them by creating a personal vision.
What is a Personal Vision?
A personal vision or life vision is a snapshot of what your ideal life might look and feel like. It stems from a combination of the following:
- Your values (see lesson two of phase 3)
- The goals you’d like to achieve (from lesson one of phase 3) and
- What you’ve learned from your lived experience.
In the field of career development, the practice of creating a BIG VISION has become wildly popular. As I mentioned in your email, a vision not only helps you see the full picture of what’s possible for your life. It can also help you discern what elements are worth pursuing and create a felt sense of what it would be like if you were to achieve your most important goals. The big vision in most literature has been largely focused on career advancement and the building of financial wealth to the detriment of health, fitness, and spiritual wellness. Today, we’re going to flip the script and build a big vision that starts with a foundation that prioritizes your health and happiness.
The Big Vision Exercise
Take out a piece of paper or open up a document on your computer to write out your big vision. Although the process can look different depending on your goals and priorities, here’s how I like to approach mine. I like to think about it as writing the story of my ideal life or a love letter to my partner that shares how I want us to spend our days (both solo and together time). If you choose this route, include the following:
- Start with “In an ideal world, I envision myself…” or “In the most holistic version of my life, I envision myself…”If these don’t feel right, find an opening phrase that helps you enter into the world of your vision in a way that is vivid and lifelike.
- Flesh out desired feelings. In your ideal or most holistic life, how do you want to feel most of the time? We can’t always control what feelings arise or obstacles that cause us to react, but we can arrange our lives in ways that create space for a our most desired emotional experiences. Write those desired feelings and emotions into your letter or story.
- Expand with qualities. How do you see yourself? What qualities and personality traits do you have? What values do you uphold? Write those in.
- Hone in on actions/habits. Based on your feelings, personality, and values, what types of habits do you incorporate into your daily life? Feel free to refer to the list of actions or habits you created yesterday.
As you write down your vision, remember to prioritize your health. As I mentioned above, most of us tend to prioritize our careers. Others focus on appearance, material possessions, social clout, etc. None of those are bad things, but the thing is… it’s difficult to enjoy these other aspects of life when our health and well-being are ignored. That’s they must come first. Good luck.
Share Your Big Vision
Well, that’s it for today! Once you complete today’s objectives, check the boxes below to mark your lesson as DONE!