Developing a Vision

the vision

Some few weeks ago, I called a friend of mine to congratulate him on a new role he has picked up in the church. At age 25, his passion for the Lord and love for the flocks our Lord God has left in our charge has seen his elevation to be part of the new elected Elders of the Church. As we kept on talking; he drew my attention on the possibility of me taking over as the leader of the youth ministry in church because he may have to resign that position to make time for a higher calling.

After the conversation, I kept on thinking of how I am going to lead the Lord’s people if the mantle is handed to me. “How do I develop, carry and spread this vision to the people I would be put in charge of? “, I kept asking myself. One of the major challenges in the world today is the challenge of leadership; as one great speaker puts it, if you think you are leading, look behind you, you may only just be taking a walk.

In this post, I intend sharing with you bits and pieces of how you can develop a vision for the future.

What every leader must do.

The one quality that every leader must have is to have a clear and exciting vision for the future. Excellent leaders take time to think through and come out with a clear picture of where the organization would be in one, two, three and five years to come. The leader does not have the challenge of only developing the vision, but is faced with the challenge of communicating the vision to the followers. Come to think of it, of what use is a vision if people cannot buy into it?

Motivating the people to buy into the vision

The vision of future possibilities, of what can be, arouses motivation for people to give of their best. People only buy into visions if they have a clear picture of that vision, get the people involved in creating the vision; if they can see themselves in the vision, they would own it and run with it even in your absence. To encourage others and instil confidence in them you need to lead by example. Become enthusiastic of where the company or institution is heading, talk about the vision everywhere you meet your colleagues and let them give input into the vision. It could simply be like this, “So what do you think of us acquiring that piece of property as a new office complex? You would have a better office area to work in ”  Once the person sees himself in the vision , the fire sparks within and in no time , the whole office has caught up with these new wave of change in attitude and belief.

What next?

Project forward 3-5 years and imagine your ideal future vision, what does it look like? What steps can you take immediately to begin turning your future vision into your current reality?

CREATING THE VISION

Do you have A VISION? Are you struggling to understand what your vision in life is? Worry no more!
Life has a way of pushing all of us around but a clear vision fulfills the purpose of life.Without a clear vision of life,everything around seems blur.I intend sharing with you some tips on vision creation and development so you can live ,learn,love and leave a legacy that outlives you.

WHAT IS  A VISION?

Vision is a documented,detailed,distinct , and unique view of what you want to accomplish in life.It is the act or power of anticipating that which will or may come to be.Vision is what you see, and what you see is what you get, it can also be said to be the product of  a documented purpose.

The VISION DEVELOPMENT.

The most important aspect of  every vision is the documentation and development of the vision.The Bible recommends us to write the vision and make it plain upon tablets .Vision is never a finished product so it must be documented and reviewed on a daily basis.
Developing and documentation of your vision is a process of learning about yourself ,and what you would love to do with the life God has gifted you with.It involves a general overview of how you want life to be for you and taking the necessary steps in fulfilling it.Sometimes the vision becomes blur and seems like impossible, this is however a strong indication that you need to take the necessary steps if you want the vision to materialize.I suggest writing the broader picture first- an over view of what you want life to be for you and then gradually and thoughtfully filling in the details.
Joining the dots would give you a clear picture of the vision.So first get the broader picture and put in the details.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE VISION

Every vision should be

• Caputered: Grab hold of the vision you have ,get a clear view of the vision this then becomes more of a goal

• Simplified: The vision should not be too broad so that you don’t lose focus, try simplifying the vision you have 
• Documented:Writing the vision would always give you the momentum to achieve them,seeing the vision each day reminds you of the effort to put in ,to achieving it 
• Communicated: Say the vision to yourself, recite it each day till it reside in your subconscious mind. 
• Evaluated and Create Priorities; As you proceed in life , the vision becomes more precise and so it needs to evaluated to see what can be added or removed from it.

Achieving the vision

Five reasons people do not achieve their visions

Everybody wakes up with a dream but not everybody acts on the dream.Many people have visions of what they would love to do, but do all achieve the vision? After carefully studying few of my colleagues who claim to have visions but never achieving those vision,I am convicted to share with you some reasons people do not achieve their visions.

I hope after reading this ,you would begin to work on achieving those visions.Let me not bore you and go straight to the 5 reasons people do not achieve their visions.Are you ready?

1.       Failure to define clearly exactly what one wants: There is a saying that, if you do not know where you are going every road would lead you somewhere.One reasons people do not achieve their vision is that ,they do not have one, they are just in life and get blown and tossed by the wind.Let me ask a question,What do you want in life?,Where would you want to be in 10 years time? Unfortunately so many are in a hurry going somewhere , without pausing to find out where exactly they are going.Do not be like them, live a life with a vision, a life with a purpose ,all successful people have dreams.If you want to be successful, get a pen on paper and draw you road map to your destination. Read my article on Goal Setting , it may help you.

2.       Procrastination: Procrastination has always being and would forever remain the thief of time. Why put aside tomorrow what can be done today? People do not achieve their visions because they always procrastinate what has to be done.Procrastination is the daughter of laziness and lazy people do not realize their dreams and visions because they would always expect someone to act on their dreams and visions for them. Procrastination would kill your  vision, stop giving those excuses and find alternative method of getting the work done.If you have something to do,that would help you reach the vision, go and do it immediately.But remember to finish reading the other points ok!

3.       Habits of neglecting to move on ideas ,or to grasp opportunity: Yes, it is a habit, no wonder you are still in the dreaming stage, the world is full of opportunities that would present themselves at your doorstep, but if you are lazy you would never welcome them in, it is true that opportunities come disguised as hard work, but you need to grasp them if you want to achieve the vision.When an idea comes to you, write it down and work on it immediately ,develop a positive habit of utilizing every single opportunity that presents itself ,it is the only way to reach the vision faster.

4.       Lack on interest in acquiring specialized knowledge: Have you ever heard of a pilot who did not go to piloting school? Or a medical doctor who never step his two feet into a medical school? If you do not acquire a specific kind of knowledge you would wonder around trying to reach the vision.Pay the price know, seek for knowledge, go to school,register for courses that would help you achieve the vision ,no matter what the price is ,pay the price and you would one day get the prize of fulfillment and satisfaction.Develop the interest in learning and knowing more about your dream,some may come at no cost, but you need to be interested in it , before you can reach those dreams

5.       Wishing instead of willing: If wishes were horses ,beggars would ride. We are no longer in the world of Aladdin, where you would have a magic lamb to wish for anything from the great Gene.Wishes never made anybody successful you need to be willing to go for the vision and work it out daily.Remember like a muscle builder, your first step is to get into the gym and work your self out, before the big muscles would appear.You can’t wish for bigger muscle, you can’t wish for the vision ,be willing to work it out.

What Next?

Thank you for your attention, now  that you know why you have not yet reached those dreams, start to work on the weaknesses, procrastination would rob you of your joy ,if you do not act know.Start and don’t forget to ask for help when you need it, I would be right here.Share this on facebook and twitter it would help some one achieve those visions.

goal setting

Have you ever met any successful person without a goal? Unfortunately many people want to climb the ladder of success by jumping the law of goal setting.Every bit of human progress- every discovery in science and engineering and every business success did not just happen they were visualized before they became realities. It has become clear that goal setting is as essential to success as air is to life , no one ever stumbles into success without a goal.
What then is A GOAL?
A goal is more than a dream it is a dream being acted upon,no forward accomplishment is achieved without goals ,without setting goals for yourself you would just be wondering through life. You may have a vision or a dream but you need goals to help you achieve those visions.
In this article I would be sharing with you five success building tips to help you get closer to your dreams.
I believe you are ready to learn? Let's get going.
1. Get a clear fix on where you want to go: Have you ever being to a bus terminal and sat in the bus, paid for the fare without knowing where the bus was headed for?, Certainly, you are bound to head in the wrong direction.If you know where you are heading for then you would have the zeal to create an image of yourself 10 years from now, ask your self these questions;” Where would I be 10 years from now”, “What would I be doing 10 years from now”. If you were able to answer these questions you are in the right bus headed for the indented destination.However, if you are finding it difficult answering these questions ,it is a starting point in achieving your dream , do not be discouraged you are the right place.

2. Write out the 10 year plan: The next step in achieving your dream is to write out the plans for realizing those dreams, your life is too precious to be left to chance, write down the vision and make it plain, it is not enough to think about the 10 year plan , write in on a paper, put in a place you would always see, so that you would be motivated to achieve those dreams. A plan is not really a plan unless it is written down,it then becomes the road map to fulfilling the dream.

3. Let your goals absorb You: In becoming successful , you need to be absorbed by your goals,you then begin to make the right decisions in reaching those goals.When you get absorbed by your goals, it becomes the dominant thought that rules your life, and circumstances begin to make way for you to achieve those dreams.As I said, a goal is more than a dream, it is dream being acted upon.My goal is to make impact in your life and so i am obsessed in bringing you information that would make you more better than you were. If you begin to act on your dream,the world would make room for you to achieve your dream, because you know where you are going.Let your goals be full in your Heart.

4. Achieve your goals one step at a time: Success does not happen over night, do not wait for your dream to find you, take a step to achieve those dreams, regard each task you perform no matter how small it is as a step in reaching your dreams, a journey of thousand miles would always begin with a step.If you believe in your dreams , start right now to take a step in reaching those dreams, do not be frightened by the size of the dream, as you take that single step you get closer to the vision and the vision would be more visible to you.

5. Invest in your self: Normally, when the word invested is mention, many peoples mind shift to stocks, real estate or some other types of property, but the greatest and most rewarding form of investment is self investment. Purchase tapes, that would help you achieve your dreams, go to seminars you are interested in it would help you reach your dream faster.Take courses that would make you more effective and would bring you closer to your dreams.One fine way to achieve the vision is to pay the price now , if you want to get the prize tomorrow.

What Next?

Act now, it is not enough to be motivated work on what you have learnt, and don’t forget to leave me with a comment if you need any help or the information has being helpful. You may also share this timely information with your facebook and twitter friends. Thank You