Your Vision of the Future
I see you over there… All this growing and changing you’re doing. You’re putting in the work, you’ve been consistent in your efforts, and now, you’ve reached a new level of achievement.
Congrats!
But how do you prevent the dreaded slide-back? That fear of losing what you’ve been working so hard for– it’s not an uncommon one.
You see, we have to understand that contrary to popular belief, growth is not a straight line…
If anything, it's more like a roller coaster.
What we think growth looks like
What growth actually looks like
The reality of the matter is that growth doesn’t always occur how we want or expect it to. It’s not linear and can feel like a tortured path to get to the heights you’re targeting.
The thing is, internal growth isn’t usually reflected externally. Accomplish something great today, look in the mirror tomorrow, and you look the same as you had yesterday.
This can be both confusing and disheartening to our self-image.
The reflection we have of ourselves– both figuratively and literally– is distorted.
Our self-image doesn’t always match our actual capabilities or accomplishments. In fact, it rarely does.
Ever heard of Imposter Syndrome? Well, this is one way it manifests.
So, what do you actually see when you look in the mirror? Which version of yourself? Are you seeing what you were before or after that great accomplishment?
For many of us, our self-image lags behind our actual accomplishments.
How can we overcome this?
How can you get better at updating your self-image in correspondence to all the great achievements you’ve made?
Accomplishments are great. But in order to fully embody the “accomplished person” we strive to be, there must be ongoing practices in place.
How to Prevent the “slide-back”
It’s easy for people to fall off the wagon of growth, especially when you don’t notice yourself progressing as quickly as you might have seen initially.
Consistency is how you build momentum, and momentum keeps us moving forward and achieving.
So how do I help my clients grapple with the roller coaster that is growth and improvement?
Consistent Accomplishment Reviews
I start by having my clients enact weekly, monthly, and yearly reviews of all accomplishments and wins.
This looks like taking the time at the end of each week, month, and year to journal your responses to these key questions:
What happened? What notable events have occurred in that time frame? This is a simple reflection without judgment. What surprises most people is to discover how much they actually did upon reflection..
What are the 3 to 5 biggest wins for the period? Acknowledging and rewarding achievements creates a virtuous feedback loop.
How is your life different today for having accomplished this?
It’s important to reward and celebrate all achievements! For small victories, you can grant yourself a small reward, and for larger achievements, a big reward.
End-of-Year Completion Exercise
As the year comes to an end, there is an opportunity to review and renew vision and goals for the future. I take each of my clients through this process of getting complete and looking forward. I also hold workshops every year for others to join in as well.
You can learn more about all upcoming Vision 2023 workshops here.
Embracing Being
We are not fixed entities. We get to choose the person we want to be and design actions toward becoming that person.
I find the best way to discover who you want to be is through vision exercises and coaching. The vision exercises clarify who we want to be in the future and once you’ve generated this new, desired way of being that aligns with your vision – you get to start practicing embodying that new way of being!
You can do this by answering these questions:
How did you achieve that envisioned future? (i.e. actions, thoughts, feelings, etc.)
How does this way of being feel in your body? (posture, movement, etc.)
What thoughts or emotions are provoked?
Write about the experience of this way of being. Acknowledge and celebrate this new alignment. This will also give you a chance to notice when you’re not aligned with your vision.
Be Weary Of The Slide-Back
Who are you being when you feel out of alignment? Did you fall back into an old way of being? Or something else?
Take the time to ask yourself and journal–
How did this happen?
What did I leave out?
What’s missing from here?
What techniques will help me get back to my aligned way of being?
This can look like anything from prioritizing some more self-care, to simply taking the time to review your vision.
It’s highly crucial that you also take note of the language that you're using. Are your thoughts criticizing and negative? Are you actually congratulating yourself for your wins? Or only focusing on what’s still left to be done?
It takes a conscious effort to shift the language you’re using. But in doing so, you will greatly expedite your ability to make positive change and progress in your life!
The New You
Embodying the best version of yourself is no easy feat, but it both starts and ends with YOU!
You hold all the necessary potential for growth, expansion, and greatness… and consistent acknowledgment and effort ensure any slide-back is temporary and short-lived.
Imposter Syndrome and self-doubt are easy to fall into. It’s even harder to grapple with after working so hard to get to the place you are today. Facing your insecurities takes acknowledging them; to acknowledge them, means you have to be vulnerable.
You are in and of yourself the necessary catalyst for change. Surrounding yourself with people who are privy to your goals and growth, will only expedite that progress.
This is why I see so much success when working with my clients. They benefit from having someone like myself as an agent for accountability both to keep them in line with their goals, but almost more importantly, to keep them acknowledging their successes! Both large and small.
This is precisely why I created the Accountability Circle. It’s a monthly meeting for support and inspiration, where like-minded people who are focused on growth can work together to help achieve and hold themselves accountable to their goals!
If this sounds like something you are interested in, please feel free to shoot me an email and I will get you the Zoom link for our next meeting on November 28th!
As always, don’t hesitate to schedule a call with me so we can start creating your future, today!
You have to take risks in order to leap from the person you “were” over to the person you aim to be. Meaning that you have to resolve yourself to both making mistakes, and continuing to persevere even after the fact.
As I said, growth isn’t linear. You fall seven times, and you have to get up eight. That’s how we keep ourselves accountable to growth. That’s how we implement real change.