#DesignYourDestiny | Your Vision, Your Life – By Henry Ukazu

“Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others” – Jonathan Swift 

We all have vision. Whether you are a student, businessman/woman, teacher/professor, art man/woman, politician, leader or even a family-oriented person, you have an idea of the kind of life you will like to live and how you will like the future to look like depending on your interest. One of the most reliable ways of making your dreams come true is having your vision at the back of your mind. Ben Carson, a neurosurgeon, in his book: The Big Picture, painted a picture about finding a vision for your own life that can reframe your priorities, energize your efforts, and inspire you to change the world around you.

Vision is what separates an ordinary mind from an extra-ordinary mind. Vision differentiates one company/organization from the other. Vision can be regarded as the fuel and energy of life. This is because, without vision, passion dies.

When you have a vision, you’ll definitely have the modus operandi (mission) to carry it out. The mission is the process or instrument which anchors the vision. Vision is necessary for growth. It is the vision every rational being considers to decipher the mindset and concert of any person or organization.

There’s nothing bad in aspiring for greater opportunities in life. The only major obstacle for anyone with a plan to succeed in life is having the courage to pursue his/her dreams when the desired plans don’t add up.

In understanding vision, let’s consider a group of students who just got admission into a reputable university or a group of employees who just got hired. These set of individuals will normally be excited because of the opportunities staring at them. But on a cursory look, if you ask each person their career plans, you may be surprised to know that they all have different visions and understanding towards life. Some just to get the certificate, some just want to get a job and pay bills, while some have the mindset of – this is just the beginning of an enterprising journey for me. This being might have plans of acquiring more degrees and certificates in order to move up the ladder of success. This is simply how vision works.

To put words in proper perspective, we all look at the same thing but don’t see the same thing; we all sit in the classroom but don’t understand the same thing, we all walk through life but get a different taste to life. Just like we all have tongues but have different taste buds. Even in business, the pattern of Mr. A is quite different from B. So, what vision do you have in life?

It’s interesting to know that your life’s vision defines who you want to be, what you want to be known for and the set of experiences and accomplishments you aim for. Your vision helps define your goals by giving you a framework to evaluate those goals. Your vision helps to define your why. You can say, your vision becomes your why.

 Most notably, a vision is about your future and who you want to be, whilst the mission statement focuses on today and what you do through your actions and behavior.

To know about the vision of any company or human being, ask the person or management of the company, where they plan to be in five to ten years and ask why they do what they do. This will give you an idea about how their mindset works.

Vision is what drives a company’s success. Vision is what propels a human being to desire change in any established organization, society or learning environment. Vison needs to be properly communicated so that all interested persons can be in the loop. This helps to create understanding and enables rational minds to make an informed decision if they will like to key in into the idea.

Your vision might be too large for little minds to comprehend, however, it’s not up to you to lower your standards or values in life to accommodate little minds.

In order to determine one’s vision, you’ll have to determine the values and what matters in the person’s life. It can be health, relationship, youths, women empowerment, leadership, family values, education, religion or even politics

For each of your categories, write down what you want or need from each. Think about the things you want to accomplish or experience, and look at the loopholes you’ll like to address.

Discovering Your Vision

Each of us is put here on earth for a purpose. We want to achieve and accomplish certain things during our lifetime, and for most of us, the passion we feel deep down ignites us and brings our hopes and dreams to the surface. In understanding vision, let’s take into consideration the following point:

What are you deeply passionate about?

What type of work do you find engaging and truly enjoy?

If someone were to describe you, what words would you want them to use?

At the end of your life, what will be the greatest accomplishment?

According to Thomas Edison, “Having a vision for what you want is not enough…Vision without execution is hallucination.” Therefore it is imperatively important to key into action when you discover your purpose and vision in life.

The first thing we must realize is that our vision will never become a reality if we sit back and wait for it to happen. Like all things in life, talking about our vision is not enough, we must get busy and work towards our goals.

According to a school of thought, the  A,B,C of defining your vision can be classified as:

·         A — Assess where you currently are. Look at all aspects of your life; physically, financially, spiritually, and emotionally. By knowing where you now, will cause you to see where you need to go and what you need to do to get there.

·         B — Begin to move forward. No matter how small it may seem, one step closer towards your vision will help you in reaching your vision.

·         C- Create a vision statement. A written statement can encourage you when feelings of doubt creep in. Describe what you want to accomplish, how you plan to get there and include a timeline for tracking your progress.

·         D- Determination is critical. One of the biggest discouragements you may face is the obstacles that most certainly will come your way. There will be doubters that feel the need to share their unsolicited opinion. There may be financial or physical limits, but the determination to persevere can be the difference between failure and accomplishment.

·         E- Enlist the help of others. Alternatively, you can seek the help of others in actualizing your vision.

·         F — Finish Lines aren’t the end. Having a vision or dream is an ongoing process. You will find that as long as there is breath inside you, there is no finish line

Just like we are all wired to do different things. We weren’t born to do everything, but you were born to make an impact in this world. By discovering your vision, you have the extraordinary ability to contribute to this world making it a better place.

I will conclude with great quotes from great minds to keep us inspired when we decide to pursue our vision.

“The only thing worse that being blind is having no vision – Helen Keller

“Vision is the picture of the future that produces passion -Bill Hybels

Vision is the ability to see what others over -Rick Warren.

Chase the vision not the money, the money will end up following you- Tony Hsieh.

Where there’s no vison there’s no hope- George Washington.

In summary, what’s your vision in life?

Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the author of the acclaimed book Design Your Destiny – Actualizing Your Birthright To Success. He can be reached via henrous@gmail.com