A crystal clear vision for a happy life in 2020 (step 1)

Thank you so much for all your wishes. It has now been 3 years since I dared to transform my dreams into a fulfilling career and for the last few weeks, I have seen numerous messages from my network wishing me all the best and congratulating me on my work anniversary. I would like to thank every single one of you ??

Now let me be 100% honest. Today I can finally say that I celebrate my success, but it has not always been the case. For as long as I can remember, I tried to set SMART life and career goals but could never get to a place of heartfelt satisfaction and content. What was I doing wrong?

One day, part of my daily spiritual practice, I opened my bible to Proverb 29:18. This scripture completely changed my life. It says: ? Without a vision, people perish ?. Plain and simple. This verse really intrigued me, so I wondered: Do I have a clear vision for my career, my business or even for my life? Could my dreams be dying because of a lack of clarity in my own vision? I had goals but did I have a vision? Exploring this thought was fascinating to me so I decided to dig deeper. We tend to overlook some very crucial guidelines when it comes to mapping the life or career of our dream. I would like to share with you a few breakthroughs that really helped me in my journey and that I still use today for myself and in my coaching practice.

1.    Vision Vs Goals

First, we need to understand the meaning behind both words. A goal is the end toward which effort is directed. A vision is an experience through which one sees things that do not exist physically. So, goals give us direction and vision is about creating a picture or experience of something that is yet to happen. A vision will force you to create a mental picture of your truest desires and consequently move you closer to your ideal self. You probably heard of the rule of setting SMART goals for guaranteed success (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound). Something extremely important is missing here. The word Personal. To bring the right level of consistency, drive and commitment, a goal needs to be attached to a reason, an intrinsic motivation, a desire that comes from within. Work on your vision first to make sure that you set goals that will be rewarding when achieved.

2.    Identify your whys

Identifying the drivers behind your vision is a crucial step that will help you use the power of your desires to achieve your objectives, especially in difficult times when chasing your goals will no longer inspire you and you will feel like giving up. This is the difference between reaching your goals to satisfy your inner needs or trying to appeal to society or any other external influence. This differentiation is incredibly important because it focuses on intend and heart-centred intention, rather than status or acceptance. A clear vision will help you pursue your dreams and open your mind to the endless possibilities of the future. It will help mould your actions. When lacks and inadequacies get in the way and make you feel stuck, your goals alone will not be able to hold you and lift you up. Getting a clear vision and seeing your dreams as already complete will motivate you, force you to do the work, overcome your fears and keep you moving forward.

So I invite you to start asking yourself these questions: ? what motivates me to pursue my career in this field or in this position? what are my life goals? ? ? what are my whys? ?, ? what do I see when I picture myself accomplished and successful? ?, ? where do I see myself? ? ? what do I see myself doing? ?, ? Do my goals come from my inner desires or am I trying to comply with the norm or to fit into what is expected of me? ?.

3.    Create your big vision across 7 areas of your life

For far too long I made the terrible mistake of isolating my dreams and priorities into compartments. Investing in one dream at a time… one dream at a time… that was my way of doing things. I did not want to chase too many goals at once. One dream at a time… so what happens when the only dream I invest so much energy does not come true? Or if it does but I still feel empty? Where do I find joy and satisfaction? How do I deal with the failure, the frustration, the anger? I was so focused on my career that I could not see anything else. And I felt stuck in a career that did not make me happy anymore although I started to see a positive outcome, nothing was good enough unless I would reach the goals that I set to myself. I sacrificed everything at the expense of my well-being. What about self-care? what about family? relationships? health? In my little world, it will wait. I had a successful career to build. I would catch up with the rest later. And then started to unfold a cascade of disappointments, emotional fatigue, health complications. Quality time with my children was time-bound because mummy has work to do. And to make things worst, now Miss Procrastination invites herself into the mix. Because I am trying so hard to attain my goals, I lose sight of what’s important. I start losing my confidence and do not feel secure in my own ability anymore. The more I want to do, the less I do. The less I do, the more guilty I feel. The more guilty I feel, the less worthy I feel. The less worthy I feel, the less I do, and the cycle continues and never ends. I am trying so hard to succeed that I sit down for hours watching YouTube videos and following tutorials from people who seem to be doing so much better than me. And it obviously makes me feel worst. So, the first step for me was to PAUSE, STOP, REFLECT and FOCUS ON ME. I had to intentionally create this big vision for MY life and MY career, without comparison. MY NEEDS, MY WANTS, MY VISION. A vision that encompasses my family, finances, spirituality, career, friends, personal growth, health and nutrition. In this vision everything matters. Everything is important and nothing is compromised.

Ideas for Action: I invite you to write down your vision in 7 areas of your life.

1. Spirituality/ Personal Growth

2. Family

3. Relationship

4. Career

5. Finance

6. Health

7. Nutrition.

Picture yourself in 5, 10 and 40 years from now. Ask yourself:

·        What rituals do I have in place to stay spiritually connected, balanced and grounded?

·        What values do I carry with me?

·        What are my beliefs? What do I want to have achieved in my 80 years of existence?

·        Do I have/want a family?

·        What moments do I want to create with my family?

·        What memories do I want to have with my friends and family members?

·        How do I want to serve others? What are my gifts?

·        How do I want to use my gifts to serve humanity?

·        How much do I need to pay for my happiness?

·        What lifestyle do I want to live?

·        How fit should I be to fully enjoy my life?

·        Does my diet help me sustain a healthy body, a clear mind and connected soul?

Try to answer these questions and start this powerful conversation with yourself. This will be tremendously helpful to prepare for your vision.

In my next post, I will share with you how meditation and my spiritual practice helped me get into the most hidden places and how I used positive affirmation and a clear action plan to reprogram my subconscious mind, get untuck and find happiness in my career and in my life again.

I wish you all to live a fulfilled life and career. Trust you Self. Trust your inner voice.

For a free consultation on how to find a meaningful career, get in touch by adding a comment or connecting via private message!