Real Leaders

7 Fun Ways to Create an Extraordinary Vision

Taking intentional time to nourish vision is vital. It’s amazing what can happen when you make space for it, rather than waiting for it to fit itself into your life.

It’s also helpful to take yourself out of the goal mindset, as it can be limiting and invites pressure to think in terms of deliverables or specific outcomes, which is not necessarily helpful at this stage. Instead, consider the idea of receiving whatever comes along without any effort.

We are often so caught up in the idea of being productive without really being aware of it. What I mean by a “vision quest” is intentionally taking time out of your regular routine to open yourself up to receiving, or going deeper with, your vision. Here are some general tips for a mini vision quest.

Read old journals, blog posts, letters, or other pieces of writing that you have created. Do something unusual for you. This could be anything that is off your normal beaten path — basically, just trying something different. Examples could be a language or music class, exercise, meditation, drawing, or even writing with your non-dominant hand.

Explore a part of your community where you don’t normally spend time.

Go away somewhere with the intention of letting go of old ideas and being intentionally open to new ones.

Write a letter to your future self.

Draw a picture or create a mind map of what you’re seeing and feeling. This can be as simple as putting down a bunch of words or doodles that reflect whatever comes into your head. Indicate any relationships between the images or words. Let it be messy and don’t worry if it’s not linear. Imagine this as a cool, random road trip.

Tell someone about what you experienced and invite them to ask questions to tease out details.

Visit a domain registry site and search URLs that come to mind. This is one of my favorite activities, and it can ground your vision with a very meaningful yet practical step.  

This  is an extract from Madeleine Shaw’s new book The Greater Good