Are you Visionary?

“To understand the heart and mind of a person, look not at what he has already achieved, but at what he aspires to do.” - Kahil Gibran (1883-1931)

So, let me ask you?  Do you know where you want to be in 3 years?  5 years? 10 years?

That can be a very challenging question in today's ever changing environment.  As seen in Did You Know 2008.  A world like this requires Visionary people and Visionary Leadership.

If you have ever worked at an organization that was lead by reactionary leaders who were always deciding their next move based of the past instead of where they want to be in the future, then you understand how detrimental it is.

But, let's look at this on a personal level for a moment.  

• What do you want your life to look like in 5 years?
• In 3 years?
• In 18 months to a year?

Sadly, it's a fact that more people spend time planning a 2 week vacation than they do their life or their business.  This is sad because that means life is simply just happening to a majority of people instead of them taking ownership and definitive action towards the life, love, friendships, and successes they really want.

So, what do you want?  Where would you like to travel?  What would you like to see?  Who would you like to become?  What would you like to accomplish?  What type of friend, spouse, sibling, spiritual person would you like to be.  The first step is dreaming about these questions.

Build a list of at least 50 (a hundred would be better) and write them down.   For some it is much more difficult then it sounds, but everyone enjoys it.

I encourage all my clients to have an on-going dream list that they can add to, and see accomplished.  A simple exercise with often huge results.

Take this study from Yale for example:

There is a famous study involving graduates of Yale University from the class of 1953. The students involved in this study were asked if they had a clear, specific set of goals for their future, and if they were written down with a plan for achieving them. Only three percent of those interviewed said that they did.

Twenty years later the researchers went back and interviewed the surviving members of that class. They discovered that the 3 percent with specific written goals had achieved more in financial terms than the entire other 97 percent put together. They also seemed to be happier and more “together” in every way.

Pretty amazing right?  After you build a dream list and write it down you may realize it's not as amazing as you once thought.  Do you know where your going?  Do you know WHO you want to become?  Is it written down?

It is far less productive in life to focus on where you have been than it is to focus on where you are going.  As you discover your future aspirations, you may even discover something about your own heart and passions.

Enjoy the journey!

-Jon Bohm