8 Steps to Creating a LifeVision

As you move through life, you discover more about yourself and the life you truly want to live. You will find that as you implement the things you write in your first LifeVision, those things will come to fruition, your goals will be reached and your dreams will be granted. You will find that you want to create more abundance and dream even bigger. Your first LifeVision is only the beginning of a life-long refining process that allows you to live on path and live on purpose.

The key to discovering your ideal life is to get the process in motion.  Create your initial LifeVision as quickly as possible, set a goal to finish writing your LifeVision and record it within a month. The sooner you finish the sooner you will be able to start using it to generate the incredible results in your life you have been waiting for.

Don’t worry that what you created it is not good enough, or that you shouldn’t have put this or that into it. Don’t let doubt or fear creep into your thoughts. Don’t be tempted to short change yourself. Just get the ball rolling by beginning and continue to make steady progress. Keep these things in mind as you envision your happiest and most fulfilled life.

I am Worthy ~  I am Capable

I am Deserving ~ I Trust Myself

Step #1 – Identify Your Goals

Decide which area of life you would like to focus on first.  Many find that starting with the area that will be the most comfortable or the easiest to write is the best area to begin with. As you become familiar with the process of writing each section, the harder areas of your life will not seem as daunting or overwhelming.

Sometimes there can be some baggage attached with one of the areas of your life, perhaps in the areas of finance or relationships. You may feel stuck with a health issue such as weight challenges. You may find these seemingly impenetrable blockades prohibit forward thinking or forward motion causing our brain to temporarily shut down. It would then be helpful to pick an area that doesn’t carry with it baggage, guilt, or shame. Those things you can work out later. For now it is time for you to get excited about what you can start working on right now.

Now, start to brainstorm about how you would like your life to look like in the area that you have chosen. You can use the Questions to Ponder section in found in each of the areas to help spark and identify what you truly want to create. Remember this is your LifeVision created by only you.

Now create a list of things in each of the 5 Key Areas of Your Life that you would like to develop or improve upon. These are your initial thoughts about each area of your life; there are no right or wrong answers. This list doesn’t need to be perfect or even in complete sentences. Bullet points work just fine for this activity. Complete a list for each of The 5 Key Areas of Your Life.

Your Spiritual LifeVision

Your Relationships LifeVision

Your Health and Physical LifeVision

Your Professional and Financial LifeVision

Your Personal Development LifeVision

Here are some examples for Health and Physical area of your life.

Health and Physical:

• make healthier eating choices
• wear a size 8
• participate in a triathlon
• stop smoking
• upgrade my wardrobe
• drink more water
• use better products on my skin
• exercise daily
• lift weights
• get regular check ups
• drink more water
• learn to cook healthy meals
• get enough sleep
• eliminate caffeine
• stop eating sugar
• sign up for a dance class
• have a flat stomach

Step #2 – Dig Deeper

Look at your list and ask yourself about each of the things you have listed… “What do I mean by that?”  Make the answer clear enough that you know exactly what you mean.  Keep asking yourself questions…”What else do I mean by that?” Keep asking the same question until you have answered all you can and can go no further.

Here is an example using the bullet point – learn to play the harp listed in the Personal Development area.

• learn to play the harp

Ask Yourself: How am I going to learn to play the harp?

Answer: Take lessons from Cynthia Douglas

Ask Yourself: Where will I get a harp?

Answer: Rent a harp from Lyon and Healy for 6 months while I save the money to buy a harp in December

Ask Yourself: How much time can I dedicate to practicing?

Answer: Practice everyday for 1 hour

Ask Yourself: Would I like to perform with my harp?

Answer: I would like to play in church

Ask Yourself: What would I like to learn to play?

Answer: Learn 15 songs from memory including 3 songs from Phantom of the Opera

Step #3 – Turn the Expanded Details Into Sentences.

In this step, take your answers to “What do I mean by that?” and turn them into sentences.  These sentences should reflect exactly what you want to accomplish and should be a visualization of the ideal you. Your brain cannot lock onto a goal unless the goal is clear and specific. Your brain thinks in pictures.

Example

I take weekly lessons from the renowned Cynthia Douglas and love the sound of my new Troubador rental.  I can’t wait to practice every morning at 10:00 am.  I practice each song 3 times along with my scales.  By July I am ready to play in church!  I have learned 15 songs from memory by August.  For Christmas I purchase my dream Celtic harp.  

Step #4 – Find Your Motive

Sprinkled throughout your expanded sentences or paragraph should be your motive. Simply put, your motive is “WHY” you want what you have just written.  Typically your motive is how it will feel to accomplish that particular goal.

Visualize yourself as if you have already reached your goal and describe how you feel having already attained it. This exercise is crucial in the success of your LifeVision. Your motive or “WHY” is the real power in your LifeVision. You are reprogramming your expectations and this takes powerful, emotional motives to accomplish.  If you can’t identify a powerful motive, then your goal is either not stated clearly enough, or it is not as important as you thought.

Ask these questions…

• ”Why do I want this?”
• “ How will I feel when I have accomplished this?”
• “Why is this important to me?”

Dig deep enough to find your real and true desire for wanting to accomplish this goal. The authentic reason for wanting to accomplish a specific goal may take some deliberate and honest heartfelt thinking to discover. Take the time to find out your “Why” is, it will make all the difference in the world.

Here is a sentence example using again the bullet point  –learn to play the harp. The “Why” or Motives are highlighted.

Example

I love being a harpist.  I take weekly lesson from the renowned Cynthia Douglas and love the sound of my new Troubador rental.  The harp is an amazing instrument.  The strings resonate within my heart creating peace and healing.  I can’t wait to practice every morning at 10:00 am.  I practice each song 3 times along with my scales.  By July I am ready to play in church!  I have learned 15 songs from memory by August.  For Christmas I purchase my dream Celtic harp.  The peaceful songs bring a calming influence into my home.

Step #5 – Check For Negative Statements 

• In my relationship with others, I am never critical.
• I avoid gossip and being judgmental.
• I have given up smoking.  I never eat processed foods or white sugar.  Because I exercise, I don’t have love handles anymore and my joints don’t hurt.

Your brain sees in pictures, in this example all your brain sees is …smoking, processed foods, white sugar, love handles, and joints that hurt!

Be careful with your word choices. You do not want to attract what you don’t want.  Attract what you do want into your life by choosing your words consciously. Replace any negatives words or phrases with a positive words and phrases such as:  “I always” “I do” “I am committed to” Mind/Brain science clearly shows that we are far more motivated by a powerfully positive reward or outcome than avoiding a negative one.

Example

I love myself so I am careful about what I put into my body. I remember to take my vitamins daily and recognize the benefits of supplementing my body properly.  Each morning I enjoy a green drink with protein powder and fresh fruits and greens.  I enjoy many fresh fruits and vegetables throughout the day as well.  I have discovered new salads and ways to season my vegetables to liven them up. I eat a variety of foods high in protein including small amounts of meat and whole grains.  I drink plenty of water.  I always carry a water bottle with me so that I can stay hydrated.

Step #6 – Write In The First-Person

Your LifeVision is your map or guide for your own ideal life.  No one else will be looking at it, reading it or listening to it so there is no reason for it to contain instructions for anyone else. Unfortunately, you cannot control the actions of others or rely on them to make your goals and ideals a reality. However, you can change your own reactions and responses to any given situation or person.  By declaring how you will view or treat another person, regardless of the way they treat you, the outcome and ripple effect can be powerful enough to instigate the change you desire.

Example

Instead of writing:  “My husband treats his family with respect.”

Substitute:  “By showing respect to my husband, he likewise shows respect for others.”

The difference between the sentences is your connection and involvement.  Your LifeVision is about you and the variation in the second sentence makes that connection.

Step #7 – Develop Your Action Plan 

Some goals require a “Where” “When” “By When” or “How” to fully achieve that goal. While your goal and your motives are particularly important, the action plans details, the “How” “Where” and “When” will be needed to add to the visualization. These actions are essential to the accomplishment of your goals and aspirations. When your actions are in alignment with your intentions, results will happen.

Here is an example using a bullet point from the Health and Physical life area:

• participate in a triathlon

This is the Action Plan of this particular goal:

I participate in 3 triathlons in this summer: Echo, Jordanelle, and Ogden.  I medal in at least 2 of them.  My times are allunder 3 hours. From May 1 to Sept 15 I spend a minimum of 12 hours per week training.  I work out 6 days a week from 6:00 am until 8:00 am. I have a detailed workout that I have designed and I keep a log of my progress.   I love to push my body.  I am kind to it and it serves me during competitions.   M-W-F I swim 1 mile and run 6.5 miles.  T-Th-S I ride my bike 25 miles and then run 30 minutes with the goal of increasing my distance each week. I love training and love the feeling of accomplishment I get when I cross the finish line.   I feel very athletic. 

Sometimes you don’t know the particular “How” something will occur.  An example of this may be that you are planning to land a job in the communications industry.  You know that you want to be a reporter for a news station, but you’re not exactly sure which station, or even what city.  All you know is that it’s really important to you.  In this case you would just be very specific about the details of what you love about your job as well as the motive or “Why”.  Affirm it in the present tense, as if it were already accomplished and let the Universe line up the rest.

Another note: Be careful not to overload your LifeVision with too many “How” “Where” “When” “By” .  Be selective in including action steps and calendaring activities. There are a variety of task managers available that can assist you in creating the “Where” “When” and “By” of any goal you wish to reach.

Step #8 – Write In The Present Tense

Check your LifeVision sentences and statements to make sure they are written in the present tense.  It’s quite common to slip into writing in the past or future.   Review your final version and look for any sentences or phrases that are not written in the present tense and change them for maximum effectiveness.

Example

Instead of writing: “I will make $100,000 by December 31.”

Substitute: “I make $100,000 by December 31.”

Instead of writing: “We went to the Bahamas in March.” or “We are going to the Bahamas in March.”

Substitute: “We go to the Bahamas in March.”