A Quick Guide To Achieving Your Dream
You can find a ton of books on how to achieve your dream. But if you want a quick 5-minute guide to how to achieve your dream, here are four steps that can help you.
First, define your vision clearly.
What is it that you want to accomplish? We begin with an end in mind. What does the future look like? What does a day in the life of your future self look like? Define your vision clearly. Be thorough and specific. Your vision is no help if it lacks clarity. Your vision will get clear once you keep asking specific questions. At first, you just have a vague idea of what you want to accomplish in life. But as you grill yourself with different questions over time, your vision will get clearer and clearer.
If you are not so sure what you want to do with your life, find out what makes you happy, sad, angry, or just feel anything. What do you value in life? Who was your childhood hero? Who is your hero now? What impacted you in the past? Define and refine your vision as clearly as possible.
Second, identify required competencies.
Knowing what your future looks like, you can now define the competencies of your future self. Usually, the required competencies are divided into two categories: the professional and the personal.
The professional competencies are the required skills for accomplishing your vision. If your vision is to become a writer, then you’d need to be able to write. You need the skill set for writing and communication.
The personal competencies are one’s sense of morality, emotional and physical health, and character. A writer of your vision has more than just a writing skill. A writer who has a positive impact on his readers has a heart of a servant. He is fit and energetic physically and spiritually. He’s also compassionate and gentle. All of these personal characteristics can be examples of personal competencies.
Brainstorm what kind of professional and personal competencies you need to become the person of your vision.
Third, develop an effective system.
A system can be defined as a deliberate training regimen that is designed to help you improve on a specific skill. A checklist, a training manual, or a habit tracker is a system. Develop a system that will help you grow in the competencies you have identified. You need a system for each competency on your list in order to hone your skills. You don’t need a system that’s too complicated. But a good system measures progress and provides an easy-to-follow guide.
If one of your competencies is an excellent communication skill, then you need to have a system that shows you exactly how to improve the said skill. You don’t have to have the most effective regimen from the get go as long as you have a system to go. It’s much better to have a system that gets you going as soon as possible rather than waiting for the perfect system.
Fourth, evaluate regularly.
You have defined your vision clearly. You know what competencies are required, and you are engaging in a rigorous training system that can make you competent for success.
Now you need to revisit your vision, the competencies, and the system in order to make any adjustments or celebrate any progress. As you keep your vision in mind and writing about your future self, the chances are, your vision will change. You might find yourself wanting something different. Then you need to make changes to your original vision along the way. As you progress, you might find that you need to add, subtract, or change certain competencies. Make the necessary changes. In addition, you want to celebrate any advances you are making toward your vision to keep the morale high. If you discover that there’s a better method or training, then feel free to make changes as you go.
This regular evaluation is such a critical part of making your vision come true.
Conclusion
- What is your vision? Is it clear?
- What are the necessary skills that your future self, who has already accomplished the vision, must possess?
- What do you need to do today that can help you become that future self? Are you evaluating your vision and the system that you’ve developed to achieve your vision on a regular basis?
- What changes are you making along the way? Are you measuring your progress and celebrating wins as you advance toward your vision?
Good luck on your journey. :)
Make a comment below if you resonate with any of the four steps mentioned above. Do you need help with clarifying your vision? Or identifying required competencies? Or developing and evaluating an effective system? Let me know how I can help you with any of these things. I hope to make an impact on your life and empower you to achieve your vision.
