Everybody knows that one of the first things you need to define when starting to build your personal brand is your Vision, which is basically a long term goal, or the answer to the question "what do you want to be when you grow up?"
I used to think I was the only one having trouble finding an answer to this question.
But after a few conversations with friends I discovered I wasn't alone.
But after a few conversations with friends I discovered I wasn't alone.
photo credit: johnnyvintage via photopin cc
I was particularly surprised with the dazed and confused look I got from students, when I asked them what they wanted to be when they left college. I thought they would have the answer at the tip of their tongues!
Apparently the problem is more widespread than I originally thought.
Apparently the problem is more widespread than I originally thought.
So I decided to share my experience, despite all the doubts and questions in my mind.
You will not find a magic formula nor an easy-to follow recipe to solve all the problems in the world.
You will find some pitfalls we should all try to avoid in order to make answering this question an easier and more tranquil process.
What is a "Vision"?
A vision is a long term goal (it is not seeing Jesus on a piece of toast).
In the corporate world it's how you envision your ideal world and companies usually set this futuristic scenery in order to keep the whole team motivated and moving in the same - the right - direction.
So even for companies this is more an imagination exercise than something that comes out of market research.
In the corporate world it's how you envision your ideal world and companies usually set this futuristic scenery in order to keep the whole team motivated and moving in the same - the right - direction.
So even for companies this is more an imagination exercise than something that comes out of market research.
When talking about personal brands, your Vision is how you see yourself in the future.
What are you doing? How are you doing it? Who are you doing it with? ...
Even though this is an important step, I find it also is one of the hardest steps.
Especially when you are constantly changing your mind and if you feel like there are many different things you could do/be.
A Vision is not a job...
It's more of a general notion of where you want to reach, what kind of life you imagine yourself having, more than just "I will be a Chef" or "I want to be a singer".
It's an exercise of your imagination, a guided visualization.
Sometimes, it may even be contrary to what you thought you wanted to do...
What are you doing? How are you doing it? Who are you doing it with? ...
Even though this is an important step, I find it also is one of the hardest steps.
Especially when you are constantly changing your mind and if you feel like there are many different things you could do/be.
A Vision is not a job...
It's more of a general notion of where you want to reach, what kind of life you imagine yourself having, more than just "I will be a Chef" or "I want to be a singer".
It's an exercise of your imagination, a guided visualization.
Sometimes, it may even be contrary to what you thought you wanted to do...
False preconceived ideas you should not believe in
1. Your Vision has to be for 10 to 20 years in the future
This could be true if you wanted to be a doctor or some other profession with a long and clearly defined academic path to be followed.
If you are damned with the curse of too many choices, this will not work for you.
Maybe you're more comfortable imagining the following year or the next 6 months.
You're trying to define a direction, not your entire life.
2. Vision exists only in our head
Remember what I mentioned before, about sometimes the lifestyle you want to have is contrary to the job you thought you wanted?
Doing something and thinking about it are two completely different things and the only way to know if you are actually passionate about cooking is to try and do it. Skin a duck, bake cakes for a whole week, intern at the nearest butcher. Just do it!
We have to try out our dreams so that we can evaluate how we feel when experiencing it and, if necessary, move on. to the next one.
Remember what I mentioned before, about sometimes the lifestyle you want to have is contrary to the job you thought you wanted?
Doing something and thinking about it are two completely different things and the only way to know if you are actually passionate about cooking is to try and do it. Skin a duck, bake cakes for a whole week, intern at the nearest butcher. Just do it!
We have to try out our dreams so that we can evaluate how we feel when experiencing it and, if necessary, move on. to the next one.
3. You cannot change your mind
Not everybody knows what they want to be when from the time they are children.
We are always changing and evolving. Even companies change ideas, course and image and nobody considers them weak when they o that.
So changing your mind about who you want to be or what you want to do is not a sign of weakness, is not giving up. It just means you are evolving and changing as humans usually do.
We have a brain and we're supposed to use it to think about what we want.
It’s always easier to follow somebody else's Vision,
the path somebody else created for you.
Because if you fail, then it’s not your fault. It was somebody else's dream.
Not everybody knows what they want to be when from the time they are children.
We are always changing and evolving. Even companies change ideas, course and image and nobody considers them weak when they o that.
So changing your mind about who you want to be or what you want to do is not a sign of weakness, is not giving up. It just means you are evolving and changing as humans usually do.
We have a brain and we're supposed to use it to think about what we want.
It’s always easier to follow somebody else's Vision,
the path somebody else created for you.
Because if you fail, then it’s not your fault. It was somebody else's dream.
So use your brain: ask question, question assumptions and preconceived ideas, have doubts, find answers, change your mind.
In Conclusion:
We have to
- Dream
- Do
- Evolve
- Think
- Don’t stop
- Don’t despair
Why is this
work important?
If we don’t
think about what we want, we risk wasting our time, never leaving the same spot and following
a road that is not our own.
We risk waking up at
70 years old and realizing we lived somebody else's life and there’s no more time to do
anything else.
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