Tag Archives: Take Action

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Create a Bigger Vision

Create a Bigger Vision

Bigger Vision


“You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand”. — Woodrow Wilson

Sometimes it feels like we do not know where we are headed. We just seem to be going through the motions. Where are we going? Where do we go from here? Is this all there is? How many times have you felt this way or asked yourself these questions? I know I have more often than I care to admit.

When this happens it just may be possible that we need a bigger vision. Perhaps a bigger vision of who we are, what we want to accomplish or where we are headed. Without a firm picture of where we want to be, we will wander aimlessly from one challenge or crisis to another with limited energy and enthusiasm.

According to Dictionary.com, vision is defined as: the act or power of anticipating that which will or may come to be. By creating a picture in our mind of what we want the future to look like, we are establishing a multidimensional impression that can energize our thoughts and actions toward a specific outcome. The bigger and more clearly focused the mental image is the more we are able to channel our energy into moving in that direction.

A bigger vision allows us to put more energy into what we do to get to a better place. It also offers more room for creativity and innovation. The bigger vision allows us to consider possibilities that we might not have ever considered and opens creativity that leads us in a different direction to a more satisfying outcome.

We need to see ourselves as part of something bigger. When we just focus on ourselves we are missing out on how we interact with the rest of our environment. As we examine our wants, needs and motivations, we are likely to find that it is the connection to other people, through family and/or work organizations that drives our satisfaction. Being part of something bigger can help give a larger meaning to our lives. In order to expand, we have to be willing to explore the ways we limit our lives.

So how do we go about creating a larger vision? Here are some practical suggestions.

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Time Out to Increase Productivity

Time Out to Increase Productivity

Time Out to Increase Productivity

I need a break! I can’t take any more of this! I’m so tired I can’t do this again! I am worn down and have lost my energy! My productivity is way down! Does this sound familiar? It did to me. I can relate in every way, how about you?

Recently, I was fortunate to be able to take a week-long vacation and completely unplug from everything. I really needed it. I found that I was feeling really stressed and repeating the statements above on a regular basis and I knew in my heart that these thoughts were not the real me. I am typically an optimistic and encouraging person. Not overly energetic, but engaged, thoughtful and usually looking forward to tomorrow. I found myself just worn out, physically, mentally and spiritually. It has been a challenging and rewarding year, but life and work events had robbed me of my perspective and productivity.

Fortunately, my wife and I plan a cruise for every November which provides an opportunity to unplug from the world and strengthen our connection to each other. This year the timing could not have been better as I was to the point of needing a life raft for every aspect of my being. On the cruise we are able to leave our day-to-day challenges behind, simplify our lives to eating, sleeping, being entertained and time for processing. We have been able to resist the growing trend of staying connected to the world through electronic and social media by turning off our phones and not purchasing Wi-Fi connectivity. We just unplug.

What a difference that get away time makes. While it took less than an hour to unpack our suitcases, it took days to unpack my stress. But after a few days I was fully unpacked and able to start processing and regaining my perspective. There was a lot to process.

As I reclaimed the real me, it reminded me that it is as important to schedule rest as it is to schedule the next event. Without rest and processing time we are risking our health, energy, perspective and productivity. The unlikely paradox is that we actually need to occasionally pause to be more productive.

According to Business Insider, saving your vacation time can do more harm than good. They reported that “in 2013, a whopping 42% of working Americans reported that they didn’t take a single vacation day.” Additionally they found “Based on a survey of 1,214 adults living in US households where someone receives paid time off, 85% of respondents said people who fail to use time off are losing out on quality time with their significant other and their children”.

Interestingly, Health Net reports that “The professional services firm Ernst & Young conducted an internal study of its employees and found that, for each additional 10 hours of vacation employees took, their year-end performance ratings improved 8 percent, and frequent vacationers also were significantly less likely to leave the firm.”

So what should we do? Here are some practical next steps:

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Let Go to Move Forward

Let Go to Move Forward

“Oh, yesterdays are over my shoulder, So I can’t look back for too long. There’s just too much to see waiting in front of me, and I know that I just can’t go wrong” — Jimmy Buffett

Recently, one of my readers posed an interesting question, ” …you have to let go of now before you can pickup something new, how do you free yourself to take the leap?” How many times have we hesitated on moving forward because we were afraid to take the next step? How often have we complained about our current situation and even had an idea for the solution or wanted to make a significant change, but sat on the sidelines because it was seemed more secure? I know I certainly have.

As I reflect on my personal hesitations, I often find that I was living with the false belief that my present situation was secure and that it was a risk to move forward. Over the years I have come to discover that security is really an illusion. There is no more certainty that tomorrow will be the same as today as there is likelihood that it will be different. We could be so fortunate as to win the lottery or inherit a great wealth or so unfortunate as to lose our health or employment.

To quote Helen Keller, “Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.”

So what do we do? How do we live with that reality and how do we let go of today to get to a better tomorrow? There are a couple of previous Blog posts we can take a look at that may offer us some guidance and structure.

In the Change Formula blog we discussed that our motivation for moving forward (change) was a product of our level of dissatisfaction with the current situation, a strong vision of the future, and practical next steps. The formula theorized that if all of these things were strong we would be motivated to move forward (change).

In the Be Bold blog we discussed that being bold to move forward was not an act of taking a foolish risk, but about putting together a well thought out plan, being confident in our abilities, gaining the knowledge needed and then taking action. In other words moving from careless risk to prudent risk with a high likelihood of success.

So what can we do? Let’s take a look at the issue we are hesitating about and figure out how to move forward.

Here are some practical steps:

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Be Bold

Be Bold

Go ahead, you can do it. Be Bold, take the next step. Take a chance and try it or better yet do it. Sometimes these words are easier said than done. It is advice we hear all of the time and yet it is so hard to do. Why is that and what can we do?

Our hesitation to step forward stems from fear, mostly fear of failure and it is called Atychiphobia. Phobia Source defines Atychiphobia as “a persistent, abnormal, and unwarranted worry of failure.” While for some people this could be a serious disorder, for most of us it is just a nagging insecurity (but at least it has a name!).

Sometimes it just feels easier to play it safe or stay in the background and let things happen, even when we know we have a better solution. Interestingly enough, Hellen Keller is quoted as saying “Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold.”

Being Bold is not about being a hero. You may end up being a hero, but that is an outcome not a motivation. Being Bold is about taking a prudent risk and moving forward. In fact we should not risk everything or be foolish, but after due thought and consideration take the next step and move forward.

After all what is the alternative? If we are timid and do not move forward we are going to suffer the consequences of inaction. It is better to move forward and and learn, even if our action does not succeed than to hide in the corner and watch things unfold. It is more likely that our effort will succeed than fail anyway.

For me, I have to occasionally remind myself that If I am going to lose sleep over something it is better to lose sleep over having taken action than worrying about what might happen. Better to take action than be a victim. After all, worrying and complaining does not change anything. Put that energy into change.

Often times what keeps us from Being Bold or taking action is fear of how others will judge us. But in reality, we need to recognize that there will always be skeptics and spectators that have an opinion, but they were not bold enough to take action. Ignore their criticisms, after all they did not risk anything or enact a better solution.

Here is an interesting comparison of terms. Which are likely to produce better results? Being adventurous, audacious, courageous, daring, or being afraid, cautious, cowardly, or fearful?

So how can we go about Being Bold? Here are six steps to help us along the way: