1st Jan 2018. Yet another year unfolds. New Year’s day is special for me. On this day, every year I create a vision for myself. How do I see myself in the new year? I find creating a vision more impactful than setting goals for the year. A vision is limitless, knows no bounds and provides a direction, while a goal has boundaries; it considers targets to achieve given some assumptions. When I write my vision, I focus on the why, I focus on which direction I would like my life to go this year. I don’t want to worry about how I am going to achieve it at this stage. I know that given the planner that I am, once I have clarity on the vision for the year, I will be able to articulate it into achievable goals. But if I set the goals, without creating the vision, the goals that I create might be hollow.
For me the process of creating a vision for the year typically begins in the last week of December. Here is how I go about the process:
- Reflect: In the last week of each year, I find some quiet time to reflect on the year gone by. I take stock of the entire year and how close I got to my vision. What did I do to get close to the vision? How did my friends and family help me in the process? What was my general state of mind during the year? I identify my successes during the year and make a note of things that did not go well.
- Thank: For successes, I make sure that I thank people who helped me be successful if I haven’t thanked them already. There are times when people have come back to me and said, “That was a small thing that I did for you, and you have already thanked me for it three times”. My answer to them is, “It might be a small thing for you, but it helped me get closer to my vision”. I have also found that when I show gratitude, more good things come to me. More people are willing to help me if I need.
- Detox: For me, it is very hard to forget if someone or something has caused me emotional hurt. When I let these feelings “sit” inside me, I have noticed that they generate energy that negatively impacts me and my loved ones. So, I try to detox my mind and heart. It is important for me to process the “hurt” and accept it before I move on to the next year. Once I accept the hurt, I can move past it and turn my energy into positive energy.
- Create Vision for the new year: Once, I have gone through the stages of reflection, expressing gratitude, and detoxing, it is time for me to write my vision for the new year. I normally start by being thankful for all things last year and then write how I see my life and the world around me in the new year. I typically write it in present continuous tense. I envisage myself being in the world of my vision as I write it. Also, when I write the vision I assume that there are no barriers. I believe the power of positivity will provide me guidance during the year to remove any barriers that come my way in achieving my vision.
Once I write my vision, I read it aloud to myself, again envisaging that I am living my vision. It helps my subconscious mind to absorb it. Then I put this “vision document” somewhere where I can see it every day and all my actions during the year are guided by this vision. I have been following this process of creating a vision and working towards it for about 7 years now and have noticed that every year I get significantly closer to my vision. Some things that did not happen last year get carried forward to next year while others that are no longer part of my vision get dropped.
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