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Visioning – what a fun topic! Visioning can sound a lot like daydreaming – where everything has turned out exactly like we imagined – with no twists, turns, or roadblocks – just perfect! This year we’re all experiencing how some of our visions have been blown away in the winds of change. But don’t get discouraged!
We can continue to achieve our goals and be even more effective by learning some new techniques. This is a great time to revisit and rethink our goals.
This year, we were encouraged to create vision boards - lively cut and actually pasted illustrations of our dream state. They are often Insta-worthy images of dream homes, vacations, and more.
How do you leverage our visions and give them every chance to become reality? Let’s look at the science behind visioning.
I’ve talked before about fixed mindset vs. a growth mindset. With a growth mindset, you achieve more when you focus and give more energy to the process than to the result. That is, focus on the activities that lead to your goal.
Let’s apply this to visioning and unpack this further. Psychotherapist and author Amy Morin has seen patients whose vision boards actually stunted their growth. Rather than working toward a goal, some people stop and wait for the vision to happen.
A study from the University of California that illustrates this:
One group of students was asked to visualize getting a great grade on a mid-term test.
Group 2 was asked to visualize themselves putting more time into studying and making themselves ready for the test. Ultimately the 2nd group scored much better on the mid-term.
So let’s apply this to your visioning process.
If you’re dieting, visualize yourself shopping for healthy foods, prepping healthy meals, enjoying adding exercise to your day.
If it’s getting more clients in your business, visualize prospecting, calling on clients, open houses, practicing dialogues with a coach or buddy. Of course, visualize yourself at closings!
Let’s go back to the idea of a vision board. It can be a great tool! Refine your vision, using what we’ve just learned about the growth mindset – loving the process and visualizing the process - as much as the result. And let’s go even further to leverage this to your unique learning style.
However you visualize yourself – just be sure to visualize yourself performing the action that leads to the result as well as the result itself. Then you’ll be setting yourself for super success in working your business plan in 2020!