The answer to this question is different for every individual. You may choose to focus your vision and goals on:

• Lifestyle
• Business accomplishments
• An amount of money or income level
• Professional recognition
• Feelings and emotions
• Personal accomplishments
• Volunteer work

When working with my clients, I recommend looking at all of the areas listed above because they are all interconnected and affect each other. The key is to prioritize the areas that are the most important to you and find a balance that fits your goals and dreams. You also need to remember to THINK BIG and open your mind and heart to the possibilities that lay ahead for you.

Whether your vision is personal, professional, or a combination of both, your vision should be viewed as the ultimate guidebook and road map for your journey into your future. When used the right way, it can help you stay focused and on track.

Here are just two examples of simple ways your vision guide book or road map can help you:

• When trying to decide if you should accept an invitation to speak at an event, partner with someone, or give something of yourself, first take a moment to review your vision road map. Ask yourself, “Does this fit in with my plan? Will it help me progress toward my ultimate goals?” If the answer is no, you know that saying no is the best choice.
• When deciding if you should launch a new venture, write a book, develop a product, or offer a new service, use your vision road map to help you evaluate the idea. Ask yourself, “How is this going to help me get closer to making my vision a reality? What name, topic, or theme would best fit in with, support, and help build my brand and my vision? Is the amount of progress I am going to make toward my vision worth the time and monetary investment required?”

Do you have a big vision road map for yourself and your business? What did you include? How does it help you?

About a year ago a very smart business woman asked me, “How are you going to get where you want to go if you don’t know where that is?” That question has stuck with me and now is one of the very first questions I ask my clients when working with them on creating and mapping out their Big Vision Road Map.

After all, how will you know what actions to take if you don’t have a clear vision of what you want to accomplish?

How do you know your short-term goals will help you move forward and toward your big, long-term goals?

The answer to all of these questions starts with the exploration and creation of your Big Vision Road Map, which not only outlines where your journey will end, but how you are going to get there and what possible stops you may make along the way.

A highly effective road map has three levels of information and guidance:

1. The High-level Overview
   This is your overall big vision of who you want to be, where you want to be, what you want to have achieved, what you will be doing, how you will be known, etc. When working with my clients on this phase, we look not only at the surface elements, but at the behind-the-scenes motivators and drivers of each element.
2. The Mid-level Process Map
   This is the comprehensive breakdown of your high-level vision into tangible actions and achievable goals. These are incremental progress steps, that when accomplished, move you closer and closer toward making your high-level vision a reality.
3. The Micro-level Action Plan
   This is the further breakdown of your mid-level goals into individual smaller objectives you need to achieve on your journey to your big vision.

Remember, like any journey you take, the is the possibility you will hit construction, traffic, delays, detours, and maybe even a flat tire or two. The key is to keep making progress, even if it just baby steps, to get back on course and moving toward your big vision.

The answer to all of these questions starts with your Big Vision Road Map.

Your big vision isn’t just a guide to knowing when to say to say no, make a change, or say yes. It is also a fantastic tool to help you stay motivated and track your continual progress.

Simply breaking your high-level vision down into several smaller, incremental steps, can help you change your mindset from “How am I ever going to accomplish all that?” to “I can totally do that!”

Think of it like the game of Sorry.

With Sorry, your objective is to get all of your pieces to your home base first. So when playing the game, you strategize and plan, making a little progress toward your goal on each turn. Eventually, one at a time, you get each piece to your home base and accomplish your objective.

With your big vision, your objective is to achieve all of your individual tasks and goals to make your vision a reality. So when working on your business, you strategize and plan, making a little progress toward your goal each time you achieve something or complete a task. Eventually, step-by-step, all the pieces are moved into place and your big vision becomes a reality.

Want to know one more similarity between making your big vision a reality and playing a game?

THEY BOTH ARE FUN! While both do require strategy, planning, and evaluating the competition and beating them to the next move, they both also can be very rewarding and fun.

Here are a few of my secrets to keeping the journey to my big vision fun:

• Break down your big vision into several smaller parts so it isn’t so overwhelming
• Assign progressive tasks and goals to each of the smaller parts, laying out a plan of action
• Acknowledge the big vision, but focus on getting the smaller tasks and goals done one at a time
• Check each small accomplishment off my big vision to-do list, showing myself the progress I am making
• Celebrate the completion of each and every task and goal to reward myself for the hard work and make the journey more fun
• Invite others to join in your journey as accountability partners and help you celebrate your goals

Do you have any tips to make the journey toward our big visions more fun and rewarding? If so, please leave a comment. I’d love to hear about it!