Get Clear on Your Desired Future

I once spoke to a group of franchise owners in St. John’s Newfoundland, which resulted in treating the weekend like any other day of the week. I know some people that, like myself, would have no problem traveling and working on the weekend; comparatively however I know some people that would never invest any of their personal time doing anything that relates to work.

Managing our time boils down to making decisions based on our priorities, both personal and professional. For me, for example, the reason I am quite happy to travel and work on a weekend is because I place a higher priority on my professional objectives (which is to serve my clients). I believe if I serve my clients well, it will in turn serve my personal objectives which is to support my family. Interestingly however, if there was a special event or circumstance that impacted my family, my priority of objectives might reverse.

[Tweet “We are in a constant state of prioritizing personal and professional objectives.”]

In prioritizing our objectives we can all face conflicts. When does a personal priority override a professional priority that may on the surface have equal or greater influence? The answer exists in being clear on our own desired future state.

What does your vision of your future look like?

Setting goals is a good way to set objectives, but deciding upon what and where you intend to be in 3 to 5 years time is a more powerful component to ensuring you are making the right decisions at the right time.

Here are some questions to reflect upon in order to formulate your own personal vision:

• Where do you intend to be personally in 5 years time (i.e. family, lifestyle)?
• Where do you intend to be in your career in 5 years time (i.e. position, entrepreneur)?
• Where do you intend to be financially in 5 years (i.e. discretionary cash, retirement)?
• How much free time do you want to have in 5 years (i.e. family time, hobbies)?

With the answers to these questions, consider what your life will look like. What does that ideal future look like? How much time will your chosen profession or pursuit provide you?

Forming a clear vision of where you expect to be will provide clarity, minimizing conflicts between your business and personal objectives and allowing for more rapid and robust decision-making. On the other hand you can avoid giving your future any thought and leave it up to fate?

Question: What is your vision for your future? How will this vision support the lifestyle that you desire?

© Shawn Casemore 2014. All rights reserved.