Vision Board: turn ideas into reality
My favorite book tells me to write the vision down and make it plain. But, speaking from personal experience, it is really hard to write down my goals on paper (or board.) I always question myself as to why that concept is soooo difficult for me. I've written several business plans and presentations for several start-ups and businesses, many of whom are now very successful. However, when it comes to simply writing down my vision and goals for the year, my mind seems to disconnect from my writing hand. I have a couple of reasons as to why this is happening and (as with any engineer) solutions on how to solve each issue.
1. Fear of Failure
Yes, THAT fear of failure. We as humans have an innate fear of failure when trying new things or making changes in our lives, whether big or small. In fact, engineers like myself seem to over-analyze our decisions before we pull the proverbial trigger. We over think big decisions such as purchasing a car (or house) to very small decisions such as changing our hair style. And don't even think about asking us to quit our full-time job to open a small business or start-up firm (which I just so happen to have done myself.) In some ways, we are afraid to write down our vision or goals because of that fear of failure.
Solution: Just write the vision and goals down anyway. The first step to overcoming fear is to ACT. Acting starts with making a vision board or paper.
2. Solidarity
Loneliness is difficult when trying to achieve important goals. We sometimes feel overwhelmed with achieving our goals by ourselves. After all, no man is an island.
Solution: Host a vision board party! Invite your friends over and enjoy a night of visioning, brainstorming, food, and alcohol. It has been my experience that a couple of beers or cocktails seem to help me solve a lot of problems... oh and the friends are great help too! :-) In this way, you can help others vision their potential while you feel less lonely in reaching yours. Also, form partnerships with one or two friends to hold each other accountable in making the necessary changes to achieve those goals.
3. Failure to Launch
I don't know about you, but I personally loved in the movie, "Failure to Launch" SJP's dedication to helping Matthew McConnaughey get out of his parents' home and achieve his goals. However, most of us do not have the finances to hire a fabulous (and very stylish) life coach like Sarah Jessica Parker to assist us in launching ourselves head first into our goals. So this is where planning comes in.
Solution: Start with an actionable plan and schedule for achieving your goals and your ultimate vision. If your vision is to start a business, write a business plan and a schedule of activities to achieve that vision. Take online business courses (Harvard Business School offers many of them for free). If you have an idea for a needed technology in the world, draft it down on paper or powerpoint. Then draft a plan of action to turn your drawings into prototypes, then into a functional product. Baby steps are the key when planning. Don't expect to accomplish everything overnight. Give yourself time and do not give up.
Well, I hope this helps!
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TMC