Jack Nicklaus was on the 17th green in 1986 about to win his record 6th Masters at the age of 46 as he was blazing around the back nine. He had a twelve footer down the hill with a slight break to the right. The pressure was intense and this birdie could clinch it. He struck the putt and about a foot from the hole he raised his putter as it dropped. The crowds roared as that did indeed carry him to a back nine 30 and another green jacket and his 18th Major Championship.
1. Vision
2. Visualization
3. Passion
4. Clear Direction & Focus
5. Symbolic Reasoning
6. Defined Action Steps
7. Review
See it… and you can be it… Many of the greatest athletes visualize their performance before they perform it. Like seeing in the future. By seeing it in the mind’s eye, it breeds confidence because when you step up to actually perform it, you have already done it… or at least your mind thinks it has. After the round, a reporter asked Jack about the back nine. He said he didn’t really feel the pressure. He was having fun. He was seeing the shots go in before he even hit them as if he had already done it. Déjà vu… Your mind is incredibly powerful and an incredible tool.
It is more than just seeing it… It is actually feeling it as well. There is two types of visualization. You are performing like you are watching yourself in a movie. This is a more passive viewing. Good but not as intense. The better but more difficult visualization is actually in first person. Looking out of your own eyes. You feel the elements. Wind on your face, the pressure in your hands in arms and the sounds in your ears. It is as if you are actually performing the action.
Think about things you want to do and accomplish… Close your eyes and visualize it. Think about what it would feel like to do those things. Imagine yourself and how you would walk and carry yourself. How would you talk to people or how would they talk to you.
This can be hard for some people… Here are two things that can help jumpstart this process for you. The first thing is to cut out pictures of those things that symbolize what you are trying to accomplish. The second thing, I tell people to start thinking about those people who they admire and want to be like. Think how they would do it. Fake it until you make it. After time you will be able to do it with yourself with those same characteristics of the traits you admire. Become who and what you want to become.
Create your own Déjà vu.
Check out the first two articles that got this started.
Goal Setting & The Black Hole
Setting Goals With Eagle Eye Vision
Does Your Strategy Have 2020 Vision
We are on our 7 Week Journey Through Goal Setting. We are going to start with the 30,000 foot view…
1. Vision
2. Visualization
3. Passion
4. Clear Direction & Focus
5. Symbolic Reasoning
6. Defined Action Steps
7. Review
You can read the first article about Goal Setting & the Black Hole
We have talked about Vision before in Does Your Strategy Have 20/20 Vision - I want to take a different approach to vision right now.
The bald eagle… a symbol of our country and represents power, freedom, and transcendence. These larger than life birds of prey, the way the soar… inspires us. The eagle is really known for its vision. When you hear someone reference Eagle Eye, you know they are referring to powerful, all seeing vision.
The eagle has a few distinct features. Its eye is very large in relation to the size of the head. It has 5x the light sensors humans do. The have two fovea’s (the funnel shape of the retina) where humans only have one. It is important because we see basically three colors and eagles can see five to help them locate well-camouflaged prey. Eagles can see rabbit size objects from two miles away. Pretty impressive huh…
We can all take away something from this majestic animal… The eagle is known for soaring at great altitudes and will fly for 50 miles scouring for the perfect target. Our vision needs to start from the 30,000 foot view and decide an overall direction and see the entire landscape. We do not have to look for the details yet, just the opportunities that we might want to engage.
Your vision then needs to narrow… Eagles take in all the light possible to help them see everything. We need to take in more info. Be inquisitive. ask questions, seek counsel from top people in that niche. Do not just think the tip of the iceberg is it, go under and penetrate 3 or 4 levels deeper. You have to have the whole playing field. You have to know how the score is kept. The one with the best information set…will win.
The best visionaries have ability to see where the past has brought them, where the future will lead them tomorrow and the intuition and guts to believe in it and act upon it.
Aim Small, Miss Small… Small Details Matter… An eagle being able to see five colors instead of three is the difference from not seeing the hidden details and not eating. Look from every possible angle & every shade of color. You have to take in bad info with the good and decipher which is which.
Your vision must have a dominant thought process… Don’t think about fear and failure. Be aware of the obstacles but don’t focus on them. You make your own future. The next step will be seeing what you want to see through visualization.
Become a Visionary Today.
I get a lot of people asking where they can hear me speak. I am speaking a couple of times in the next couple of weeks.
This Thursday Jan 21st Maggiano’s in Buckhead for lunch with the Business Marketing Association. Get more details at http://bmaatlanta.com
Next Wednesday January 27th at Frazier Deeter in the Bank of America Building for breakfast with the Atlanta Accounting Marketing. Get more details at: http://www.accountingmarketing.org or email bonnie@bbrmarketing.com
The topics will be similar but tailored to the groups. Will share greatest learnings from 2009. Then everything else will be taking a look forward at the digital world. Social Media & where it should fit into your 2010 strategy. We will talk a little about standing out in a very crowded digital universe. We will take a small glimpse forward in what to expect as Web 3.0 takes the stage.
So grab a chair & a pen and let’s write a script on where we want to go and be in this exciting digital universe.
We all have well intentions at the beginning of the year. It feels like we get to start over. I am sure you are like me and come up with your goals and resolutions for the year. Only 18% actually work toward those goals throughout the year. Even though about 12% actually accomplish the goals, only a handful of those review the goals they made last year to see if they actually accomplished it or not.
What does that mean? We love to dream and think where we want to go, but it is just a shell of an idea with nothing at the core.
The biggest issues that keep us from our goals… there is no action tied to the intention. We have all been in meetings where goals, objectives and intentions are set, but no action steps are put in place and no one to champion it and lead it to the promised land.
So the goals are deemed passive… We hope they get done, but we don’t have a set of instructions that outline how they will get done and no one held accountable. Hope will never be a strategy.
Many people will be looking for jobs this year… The goal cannot be just to get a job. It has to be much more drilled down with mini goals & action steps. You set clear steps, which might be to create a resume, buy a suit, join networking groups, have coffee with 3 different influencers a week, get new or addl training etc, etc… These are small attainable things you do each day & each week so you can check them off. Some are one time occurrences and others will need to be repeatable until the goal is accomplished.
The difference is this is not only proactive, but it is progressive… It keeps you moving forward toward your ultimate goal.
So it takes several things to make sure your goals are attained. Over the next seven weeks we will take a look at each of them.
1. Vision
2. Visualization
3. Passion
4. Clear Direction & Focus
5. Symbolic Reasoning
6. Defined Action Steps
7. Review & Update
Related Article - Does Your Strategy Have 2020 Vision? http://bit.ly/8NdV4v
