“I have an idea of who I want to be, I have a vision of my own success.” Wiz Khalifa
When I started speaking at events professionally, my first talk was titled: Do You Have 2020 Vision?
I was asking the audience to picture their life 3 years from that day.
I first asking the audience what the difference was between Newspapers, Albert Einstein and Miley Cyrus?
We learn valuable lessons from each of these.
In 2006, the Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily was purchased for $515 Million. In 2012, it sold for $55 Million. You don’t have to be a wiz at Math to figure out that this doesn’t add up.
Rupert Murdoch once called classified advertising “Rivers of Gold.”
He later said: “Sometimes rivers dry up.”
Where at one time, people would get their news, sports, classifieds from Newspapers, the Internet came and just with Craig’s List…a major source of revenue dried up.
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein is quoted as saying:
“Definition of Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result.”
As for Miley Cyrus (love her or hate her), she re-invented herself from a child TV star to a POP star.
Just like newspapers, the music industry has completely changed over the last years. Yes, the days of Napster are now in the past, but it was a major blow to the industry.
Labels who used to have their own rivers of gold from music sales, have seen their rivers dry up as well.
I spoke with Emily Haines of Metric during their 2016 tour with Death Cab for Cutie. Both bands owned the rights to their music, so their streaming income was quite impressive.
Emily Haines
This brings me to Albert Einstein. Bands like Metric broke out of the trap of “insanity” and are finding ways to do things differently.
During Emily’s solo tour with her band Soft Skeleton, she even had her own branded perfume which was only available in limited quantities at the show.
Like Miley Cyrus, the whole industry has to transform. The old tricks no longer work.
For a band, this might seem as daunting as climbing Everest. Those that success in climbing the mountain put in a lot of hard work, and they all have one thing in common. They have a vision.
Yes, for a climber to put themselves in danger and go through the rigorous exercise of making summit, they have to have that vision of themselves on top. It becomes their focus.
Discover Your Super Power
Something magical happens when you put your vision down on paper. It unlocks a super power called: The Reticular Activator.
What the heck is that? Let’s say you are about to buy a certain brand of car. A few months ago, I decided on getting a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid. I went to the dealer, signed the lease and went home as they prepared my new car.
What do you think I started noticing on my way back home? I started seeing RAV4s all over the place. Was this a prank? I’ve never seen so many on the road!
The Reticular Activator is like a bouncer for your brain. We are bombarded with millions of bits of information every minute, so our brains filters most of it out.
When we have a vision, it’s a sign for our brain bouncer to let that in. So, that drive back from the dealership, my bouncer was letting me notice this particular model of car.
The Power of Vision
Therein lies the power of a vision. When you establish a clear vision, opportunities that might have been there all along will suddenly jump out at you. It is like the universe is conspiring to help you.
I interviewed a new band in Montreal called Wolves at Midnight. What I found interesting is that one of the first things they did as a band was write down a list of goals on paper.
While they are just beginning their journey, they are hitting milestones much faster than usual. I believe it is because they are using that super power.
So, how do you go about creating a vision? I have prepare a worksheet that will guide you through a simple, yet powerful exercise to unleash that same super power into your career.
Do you have 2020 Vision? Where will you be in 2 years? Do the exercise and find out.
