This picture was taken right after my marathon tea drinking sessions with tribal elders.
I am hanging out with tribal youth and my trusted Land Rover Defender, a car I know my friend Brian Driggs will enjoy.
Tribes and visions
Defining a clear vision is something I learned with my first outdoor coaching business.
Do you want to build a tribe, a community ?
Forget about social media tools, don’t believe the scammers who want to sell you some a program, focus on your vision.
Do you look ahead into the future?
If you do that’s great, you have a vision.
I was just speaking with a client who shared his company’s vision statement. It was dull and uninspiring.
I congratulated him though because he had one.
Most entrepreneurs go through life living in the mechanics of daily life.
Show up at the office, check emails, answer emails, have coffee, answer calls…
When the work is done, they still have a huge sense of emptiness and being unfulfilled.
Start with you
We don’t have to be looking at the future 24/7. Actually it would be unpractical and inefficient.
I prefer to make sure I do the work and check my heading every so often. The end of the year is my time to Look Back Into the year to come.
What do you believe in?
Your beliefs matter they are your compass, ignore them and you will suffer. You might be successful but you won’t be fulfilled.
What do I believe?
I believe entrepreneurs can find fulfillment in their life.
This doesn’t mean their life will be easy, far from it.
Rather fulfillment comes from facing the unknown, dealing with our fears, discovering new places and looking beyond the current situation.
Expressing my ideas
When I want to express ideas about my future plans I follow two simple rules:
- Use simple words, no big jargon, complicated business jargon or hot air marketing speech. Lets face it, nobody brainstorms or mind maps stuff like “leader, best, top, solution, award winning, premium” blabla bla.
For others to undertand what my plans are for next year they need to first understand what I’m talking about.
Since 60% of us are visual learners, most often drawing a picture will do a much better job than hundreds of words.
- Don’t whine about the current situation. Working in extreme environments where decisions affected the life and death of people taught me one big lesson, complaining, whining and generally singing the self-pity song doesn’t help.
Calling other people names, pointing figures and criticizing other people’s efforts also fall in the same category.
They are all conter productive, this is why self-talk defeats us before we even start to find a solution.
Focus on what I want to achieve, who cares about what the others are doing.
What really matters to find fulfillment next year
As business owners it’s easy to get disconnected from our lives.
This year has been an interesting one, it’s the first time I operate completly online and I noticed a few things I want to do differently next year.
- Less focus on numbers, traffic, and emphasis on improving the lives of entrepreneurs.
I recently decided to start producing more videos, I have hours of footage saved on a hard disk.
Click on the video below to see what is in store next year…
Hi I'm a coach who believes life is an adventure, and entrepreneurs need to cultivate an adventure mindset to succeed.
{ 22 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi John,
I am a strong believer of a having a vision. What is ironic in vision statements is the fact that it is suppose to be a mental picture but yet it is expressed in words and sentence. Don’t you find it ought?
I go with pictures. I try and form vision slides, each picture depicting an exact image of what I want for a particular goal. It is also quite fun coming up with a picture to represent our goals.
Cheers
Jimmy yes that’s why I always start with a big blank sheet of paper and a pen when I start a project. I’m a big believer in mind mapping.
Hi John,
Long time no visit.
I always feel like i take away something important when i read one of your blog posts.
You said in this post
“Rather fulfillment comes from facing the unknown, dealing with our fears, discovering new places and looking beyond the current situation.”
This one idea has been the key to finding fulfillment for me and doing things i never imagined possible.
p.s.
I really love the video. I got goosbumps. Are you using a specific movie editor. I have sony vegas and really like it but it’s a beast to learn.
THanks Annie! I use iMovie the free software which comes with every Mac. It’s quite intuitive and easy to use.
Hi John, I love this. It’s easy get focused on all the numbers and money and forget to be fulfilled. I’m not one of those people who believes money is the root of all evil, but if you earn all the money in the world and you’re still miserable, you’ve missed the point. Thanks for sharing your heart!
Hi Bryan,
That’s true, money isn’t a goal in itself, it’s only one of the results of a process.
I am always amused at people who say money is evil, how can something which has no free-will be evil ?
Hi John,
A vision is important. I’m currently working on a vision for a new college in Norway. And it’s difficult. That’s for sure. But the thing about visions is that they’re not something we are, but something we hustle to accomplish. And I love to hustle to reach a goal.
I currently don’t have a vision myself, but that’s something I’ll be creating in early 2012.
Your plans for 2012 looks awesome.
Hi Jens,
A vision for a center of higher learning like a university is an amazing and exciting project.
What are you thinking about?
This article is a good blend of the Tao and writing
. It’s true. I think your energy and disposition come out in your content, so holding a solid vision of the future and where you want to go will help pave the path towards that goal.
Thanks Jon, I hadn’t looked at it this way but you are absolutely right Tao and writing.
Becoming one with the Tao is definitely a very good way to live.
Thanks for stopping by Jon and pointing out a different and very interesting way to extend the conversation.
That was one awesome video!
And a great post John. It is so easy to get bogged down in minutiae that we lose sight of the vision. It is easy to get enraptured with vision and then freeze up and not take care of getting there.
Great tips here for everyone!
Thanks Howie, I felt like going back to my tribal roots !
Inspiring video John!! Awesome!
I am finally finding a bit more direction in my work and I am pushing to pinpoint it even more. One thing I know is that I need the right tribe. Not just nice people who RT my stuff from time to time or comment politely on my blog, but people who really want to push themselves, share discoveries and ride the same wave as me. But first I need to know my destination so I can find and attract the right people on that journey. This is what I love about your blog, your writing brings little epiphanies to me that help guide me on that path.
The right tribe
This is so important, I often see people wondering why social media doesn’t work for them, it’s simple they are in the wrong tribes.
Yes, it starts with the end, the big vision, then the tribe will come by itself
I really like the video John. Vision is so important. If you can’t picture a future that is bigger, better and greater than now than what do you have to look forward to.
I am a big believer in painting a picture of where I want to go and what I want to do. Once I have that I can figure out how to make it happen.
Thanks Jack, the video is the easy part, now the real work is starting
Funny you mention painting a picture, I always start with an old school pen and a white sheet of paper.
For some reason, a computer screen doesn’t do it for me.
Hi John,
“Start exploring and find fulfillment” is something I’m doing right now. My step one was the blog, now I’m moving to step two (thanks to a big push by you and Marcus
) I’m stepping out of my comfort zone and will be doing much more of that in the coming weeks.
Also, I know there is no such thing as finding the perfect work, life and family balance, but whenever things go too far and it interferes with family life, I’ll change course. I do have a plan, but it’s now one small step at a time.
I concur with Brian … “Never, ever, ever, EVER, give up.” … EVER!!!!
The best is yet to come, indeed!
That video is really something … and it’s only a trailer!
Explore … Discovering the World … Looking for meaning beyond comfort … Uncovering what makes you unique .. Start your quest for fulfillment … Ready to start living? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes!
Okay, really anticipating what you’ll be offering up in 2012!
Thanks Craig, that’s the secret “one small step at a time”
Trust me I am seriously impressed by the big dent you made in the blogosphere !
When is step two starting ?
Working on those baby steps.
It’s started. I might be sending you an email with a few noob questions, if you don’t mind 
Looking forward to reading your mail
YES*ELEVENTY-BILLION, MY FRIEND.
A few minutes ago, I was replying to a thread in a new (to me) LinkedIn group saying *literally* the same thing.
Everything begins with vision. And vision only comes from understanding why what you do do (or want to do) matters so much to you – as a human-friggin’-being – that you’d do it even if they outlawed it.
THAT’S vision. THAT’S high octane intrinsic race fuel for your entrepreneurial engine.
The names and places will change, but it’s vision which enables quick, intelligent decision making on any number of fronts:
+ What tool(s) do I need?
+ Which social network is best?
+ Should we partner with this company?
+ Should we develop this product/service?
+ Could I relocate to the far corner of the world?
Knowing where you want to go is like having your own North Star. No matter the terrain – ain’t no mountain high enough, no valley low enough – you have your bearings and will never be lost.
The only thing we can truly control in this world RIGHT NOW is how we let things affect us. If it is to be, it is up to me.
“Never, ever, ever, EVER, give up.”
The best is yet to come.
Video is badass, John. Can’t wait to see more.
The only thing we can truly control in this world RIGHT NOW is how we let things affect us.
That’s the bottom line, right there.
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