A lot happens at one of our Power of Vision Weekend Intensives. If you haven’t been to one yet…what are you waiting for? I’m not going to go into all the details right now, but suffice it to say, most people find it to be a very powerful experience. Grizzled veterans usually bring to the program some aspect of life they’re looking to train or tune up, while the newbies navigate their way through a little wide-eyed but eager to learn. But whether you’re a first-timer or a seasoned pro, there comes the part in every program when people start to give me the side eye that says, You mean, I actually need to DO stuff, Joey? Yes! Yes you do. And you won't know exactly what the right things to do are fresh out of the gate. Yup. That's the deal. Let's recap...
We've gotten the good vibes flowing and named our vision. We’ve set some benchmarks that let us know we're moving in the direction of vision. That’s the fun part, right? Letting our imagination flow, seeing the possibilities for a life of our own design, and not just seeing it, but starting to believe it’s actually attainable! But taking those ideas out of our heads and bringing them to life in the real world is going to require some work. What are the steps we need to take to make sure we hit those benchmarks and stay on the path toward vision? So we need to do some brainstorming. And guess what? Brainstorming is fun too! If you’re not quite there yet, just hear me out.
So you’ve got your benchmarks laid out. If you’ve done it right, they should form a sort of roadmap leading to your destination. Like when you ask the guy at the gas station how to get back to the Interstate and he says, take a left at the Dairy Queen, keep going past the used car lot with the hot air balloon out front, turn right at the Episcopal church, under the overpass, and the onramp will be on your left. (If you need a little tuneup on benchmarking and how it works, check out last week’s blog, Vision Strategies :: Benchmarking.
Now that we have an idea of where we’re going, it’s time to create an action plan that will get us there. This is where a little overwhelm can start to creep in. You may have multiple benchmarks relating to multiple aspects of life. When you look at those benchmarks all piled on top of each other, it’s easy to start having thoughts like, How am I possibly supposed to do all this stuff? But look at it this way: When you wake up in the morning you don’t try to put on all your clothes at once, right? And you don’t put on your shoes before your socks. Yet we all manage to get out the door with our clothes in all the right places. (Most of us do, anyway! Unless you have a teenager - teenagers often loosely interpret the direction to ‘get dressed’ - but I digress.)
So let’s start at the start, as they say, by getting hyper-focused on our very first mark. And that’s it. The others will be there waiting for us when we’re ready to get to them. Let’s say we’re working with a vision for health & vitality that includes strength and vibrancy in the body with 10/10 energy well into our sunset years. And let's say to get there we’ve set a 1 year benchmark to weigh 135 lbs, down from our current weight of 165. Okay. FIRST, and I can't emphasize this enough, you've got to light up your vision and your Why. Staying connected to your Why is like keeping your car full of gas. It’s the fuel that keeps you moving forward.
So, why are you doing all of this in the first place? Because I want to be able to play with the grandkids and trek all over Europe every April well into my 80s. Fabulous! Now, close your eyes and connect to that reality: You're playing your 5th consecutive game of hide and seek and there's no way little Jimmy's finding you this time; Smell the bread baking in your favorite boulangerie on the left bank in Paris; See the human chess game in Marostica. You're there! Now, make a list of anything and everything you can do to hit that very first mark (135 lbs). I can walk 20 minutes each day; I can hire a qualified personal trainer; I can cut my hair (I mean, hair weighs something, right?); I can replace dessert with berries 6 days per week; I can work with a qualified nutritionist; I can read books on metabolism; I can take 3 laps around the kitchen island every time I go in for a coffee; I can stand on my head for 3 minutes a day; I can drink 100 oz of water each day.... I could seriously go on and on.
This is the fun, free, creative part – just let the ideas flow. There will be good ones, bad ones, silly ones, fun ones, and preposterous ones. The point is, just make a good long list. Go for a minimum of 10-25 ideas. Once they're all down on paper and you've had a laugh, you can ask yourself: What are the top 3 ideas I think will be the most meaningful in getting me to that first mark? Once you narrow it to the top 3, sit back and ask: Which of these three, if I accomplish it, will make the rest of them even more possible/probable? Pick one, and then calendar it. It should be an action that you take on a daily or weekly basis. Literally, right then and there, get out your calendar and put that sucker on it. Start with the first one, and commit to it. You can move on to other great ideas in time.
Having a vision for the life you want to create is key. Having a strong Why for achieving vision provides the fuel to keep moving forward. And benchmarks provide the road map for getting there. But without a proper action plan, the rest is purely hypothetical. It’s the action plan that brings the benchmarks, and eventually the vision to life. The example I used above refers to an action plan around health & vitality, but the same ideas apply to every aspect of life. Your career, your finances, your relationships. Laying down benchmarks and then creating an action plan to realize each one is the surest way to achieving a vision for life that you probably never dreamed was possible.
Listen, I could go on and on with examples of benchmarks and action plans, how to name Vision and get in tune with your Why. I’ve worked with thousands of people and could tell you thousands of stories. But there comes a time when you’ve gotta stop talking and get to work. That’s your cue to start getting busy. Not sure how to do that? How about we start with a benchmark?
Benchmark: Attend a Power Series Weekend Intensive.
Okay, bitchen. Now, how are we going to make that happen?
Action plan: (1) Call up your Community Care Advisor (CCA), or if you’re already working with one of our Certified Trainers, get them on the phone. (2) Pick a program date and put it on the calendar. (3) Arrange with work and family to be gone for a few days. (4) Book an airline ticket and hotel room. (5) Pack a bag. (6) Get ready to create a life you didn’t think was possible!
Click HERE to learn more about the Power Series. We’ll provide you with the tools, techniques, and strategies for honing in on a vision for the life of your dreams, laying out the benchmarks that will guide the way, and creating the action plans that will get you there. So let’s stop dreaming, and start doing! Book your spot at a Power Series Weekend Intensive today!