Four Steps to Meaningful Change: Step Two
David Freund, Chief Leadership Officer

Last week I started this four-part series on Meaningful Change. With a new year just ahead of us, we need to make sure we do everything in our power to make it a great year. In last week’s post, we started with awareness because I found myself preoccupied with this quote, “It is far better to know where one is and realize that one does not know than to be certain one is in a place where one is not.” Self-awareness is such a gift, and those who make the most of their potential have very high self-awareness. Without it, they wouldn’t know where to start their path to change and growth. Now on to Step Two – Vision.

Step 2 – Vision

The ancient Hebrew proverb says it so well, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” Once you have done the difficult work of growing in your awareness, it’s time to decide where you want to go. I like to start with values. In my Charting Your Path for Growth program, you start with picking six value words that you believe in. By starting with your values, you build a vision that articulates who you are as a person. This starting point helps you build a plan that is congruent with who you are. When our values and our daily activities are in line, we have greater inner peace. Conversely, if our values and our daily actions are not in line, there will be great stress and tension.

Once you have your values selected, ask yourself what you want to achieve related to this value in 2021? What does that look like? Can you picture it? Can you picture yourself doing it or living it out? Can you describe this to someone in such detail that they can see it almost as well as you do, based on your description? This level of detail is critical for clarifying a vision. You must be able to see it before you can seize it.

Step Two can be challenging. I am asking you to dig deeply into your beliefs and visualize something that may not exist yet. If you would like to hear more about this topic, join Marisa and me as we discuss vision on Episode 185 of The Next Page podcast. Next week, we’ll look at Step Three – Strategy.

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