We’ve discussed several aspects of vision so far and now we’re turning the corner towards the home stretch to really expose vision for it’s greatest characteristic; that of creativity. You see people need that special creative spark of innovation to persist and continue to see projects through to the end. Yes the end in and of itself is a huge motivational focus point but today in order to maintain focus we need to be constantly reminded of relevance as we have fun doing even the mundane tasks assigned to us. Creativity gives real teeth to vision so much so that not only does it spark movement, it keeps us pushing forward for the long haul. We can tap into our highest sense of self and our ultimate possibilities with various forms of creative thinking.

Creativity can and should be measured quite often in four key ways. In fact, it can be defined as a new way to:

1. Design inventions

2. Solve complex problems

3. Produce relevant art

4. Develop meaningful ideas

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If Vision is our sense of destiny, a sacred understanding of where we are going then purpose is its more meaningful partner. Like yen and yang these two ideas are each others greatest compliment. Neither can stand alone very well without the benefit of the other. Of course you can have vision with no purpose but there won’t be meaningful results. We need to have a compelling reason to engage in any change of behavior. Purpose is most often defined as the anticipated result that guides decision making. That’s right, when you are moving with purpose; you are simultaneously anticipating a outcome. You’re thinking about your end game with some reasonable expectation. Your results can be either positive or negative but the results are inevitable.

Purpose quite often has two characteristics: it provides meaning and at the same time answers the question “why”. It’s easy to decide on a destination that you want to reach in life. The hard part is providing a sense of contextual meaning or reason to that destination. Without a good compelling reason it’s harder to accomplish anything. Yes, often find ourselves engaging in thoughtless activity simply because someone in whom we have a great amount of respect for asked that we do so. I would submit that keeping up with this course of action, never having a clue as to why your mother for example wanted you to bath five times a day would be difficult. Eventually you’ll have an understanding of how other people behave and begin to question why they can get away with only one or two cleanings a day! You may even begin to resent your mother as you use up more and more body soap in your quest for absolute germ free cleanliness. Anger and disappointment will soon give way to rage and disgust until you simply cease to comply. Read The Rest Of This Entry

We’ve said a lot about vision and its importance to human beings and achieving their potential as individuals as well as within organizations. Nothing however is more important to people than motivation. It just so happens that when done well, vision represents the very soul of motivation without which, our efforts would be hollow and lifeless. Let’s take a look at motivation first.

Motivation is a complex labyrinth of stimuli then response. In some cases the response itself is the very motivation to provide continuous stimulus and then yet again, an additional response. This cycle continues for most of our lives and is in fact the fundamental building block of all human behavior. When we accidentally touch something extremely hot we immediately snatch our hand away to protect ourselves. This is the classic stimulus response example that behavioral scientists have studied for years. Read The Rest Of This Entry

About decision making

Decision making is the most critical cognitive skill that we all have. Our ability to reason and make informed conclusions help us decide how, if and when we are to act on anything. In fact, decision making by definition contains the ability for us to make a purposeful selections from amidst a set of alternatives. We have to constantly negotiate mental objects and concepts to arrive at our process of living. Our ability to do this and do it well affects us on every level; personally, within our relationships and as leaders of organizations. Without well honed decision making skills there is no accurate planning or coordinating, no ability to control situations as we experience them. It’s like being adrift on a stormy sea with no sail or rudder. Read The Rest Of This Entry

Personally speaking, there is nothing worse than reaching for opportunities that don’t really exist or striving to work hard on strategies and concepts that have no real chance of ever being implemented. Nothing really happens when you don’t know where you are going. Actually a lot happens. The vision of other people happens to you.

Finding your real vision can be extremely easy or painfully difficult. The choice is yours. Creating your own vision gives you the gift of inspired change. This gift is a continuous source of motivation and encouragement. You never have to worry about where you should aim your career or personal life. You’ll understand without a doubt where you are going and why you believe you should get there. Your vision is at once an effort of destiny that has to be found and simultaneously an exercise of creation that emerges only with real focus and practice. Read The Rest Of This Entry