I’ve worked with a lot of young, ambitious entrepreneurs in my time as a business coach and mentor. They are a diverse group, from tech savvy Silicon Valley insiders to CEOs of major blue chip companies. They’ve wanted a lot of different things, from more press to a better corporate culture. But underneath it all, they’ve all really wanted the same thing: to make more money.
It’s a universal desire, and one that I can help them achieve. But to get there, they have to prepare for fast growth. And they’ll never get there without a detailed vision of their future.
This is why I am such a proponent of creating a Vivid Vision. A Vivid Vision, is a detailed, three to four page document that lays out a clear, logical vision of what your company will look like in three years.
When completed, it’s meant to be woven into your company’s culture, guiding your employees decision making and giving all involved clear goals to strive for.
Usually, creating Vivid Visions is a very involved process that can take as long as six months to get right. There’s a lot of back and forth between my clients and me. Unfortunately, I don’t have the time to spend with each of you as you put together your own, but I can offer these tips that will help you get started down the right path in creating the very best Vivid Vision possible. I can also introduce you to the writers and designers all my clients are using to nail theirs. email me at Cameron@CameronHerold.com for intros.
It’s important not to get caught up in the ‘how’ of things. Instead, dream big and worry about the ‘how’ later
You’ll need to be free of the day-to-day worries of running your business. You need freedom to visualize your future
Get out of your office and go somewhere inspiring where you can let your mind wander (I wrote the Vivid Vision for my business from the hammock in my backyard).
Turn off your computer. No matter how much willpower you have, the temptation of email or web surfing will be a distraction
Get out of your comfort zone, think out side the box—choose whatever cliché works for you. Just be creative, even outlandish. You’ll be amazed at what you can come up with. It’s a sure fire way to create a fun, dynamic vision you and your employees will love to strive for.
I’ve helped with hundreds of Vivid Visions in my career, and the ones that really stand out in my mind share a few common traits. They forgo all the mind-numbing corporate double speak and restrictive, creativity-killing metrics and get right to the heart of the exercise:
“What is really possible for my company?”
Check out these DVDs where I talk in more detail about certain aspects of the Vivid Vision process. You can also find a copy of my own Vivid Vision online at CameronHerold.com, To some, it is just a four page document. But to you, it very well may be the most important four pages you ever write. email me at Cameron@CameronHerold.com for coaching around doing your own.
Have you ever observed an athlete right before a competition? The next time you watch the Olympics take a look at the high jumpers. You’ll see many of them standing very still just before they start running to the bar. Then they’ll close their eyes and you’ll see their head bobbing up and down as they imagine running up to the bar—but they haven’t even moved. Sometimes they even throw their head backwards a bit as they jump over the bar in their mind. Then they open their eyes, stare at the bar intently, and begin to recreate in real time what they just visualized. Downhill skiers do this too–they’ll use their gloved hand to pretend to ski the entire course (some imagine it quite realistically in their minds, and you’ll see them respond physically to imagined obstacles on the hill). Whatever the sport, these athletes are using visualization to achieve their desired results, and by imagining the obstacles they might face, they prepare themselves mentally and physically for the challenge. In fact, they have such a vivid vision of themselves performing, that it becomes completely instinctual.
