We all know someone who works long hours, is committed to their work, and finds great joy in what they do. These people we label passionate. We also know people that work late, are fully committed to what they do, but find no joy in what they do. These people we label stressed. It is a thin thin line between passion and stress. It usually comes down to the actual work or vision the individual is pursuing.The passionate person feels fulfilled and works tirelessly to, in Simon Sinek’s words; “advance the vision they have adopted or created”. The stressed individual is toiling away and isn’t grounded in something they truly believe in. They have lost their inspiration.

Let’s define vision. Vision can be described as your ideal state (for your life, business, career, etc.) in 3, 5, 10, 20 years and beyond. You should be able to picture this vision with absolute clarity and describe it with precise details. The more clarity you have with your vision, the more motivation you will have in your life.

Finding a vision, isn’t an easy endeavor often, it is trial and error. Simnon Sinek (author of the best selling book, Start with Why) recommends that you be present and invest time in finding what vision you can serve with your skills and knowledge. Listen, read and watch all kinds of material and dive into finding that vision that moves you to action.

How do we create a clear vision from scratch? Arnold Schwarzenegger in his latest book “Be Useful – Seven Tools for LIfe”, believes that there are two ways to do it.  You can start small and build out until a big, clear picture reveals itself to you.  Or you can start very broad and then, like a lens on a camera, zoom in until a clear picture snaps into focus.  In his book he explains that he did the latter.  His vision was living in America, nothing more than that to start.  The way to get there opened up to him over time, being a body builder, winning the Mr. Universe competition brought him to his vision.

Having this clear vision will help you determine what you must do today in order to achieve what you want tomorrow. Once you have established a clear vision, it’s now imperative to develop the goals that will help you achieve that vision. While vision is the destination, goals are the short and long-term milestones along the path that get you closer and closer to achieving your ultimate vision.

Here is a simple and effective process for setting goals:

1. Decide exactly what you want. Be specific and write it down on paper. The very act of  writing down a goal significantly increases the likelihood that you will achieve it.

2. Make your goals measurable. Your goals should have clear metrics for their achievement. For example, a goal to “become the best salesperson” is a nice goal, but how do you measure “best”? To make this goal measurable, it could be restated in the following way, “I will achieve £1,000,000 in gross sales revenue, helping me reach the top sales position in the company.”

3. Set a deadline for your goals. This will help you overcome the human tendency to procrastinate and will exert some pressure for you to stay on task.

4. Make a list.Write down everything you must do to achieve each goal, including any activities, strategies, decisions, milestones, etc.

5. Finally, develop an action plan from the list of activities and immediately take action on your plan.

Resolve to do something every day to get you closer to your goals. Clearly  written goals will have a powerful effect on your thinking and will motivate you into action and closer to your Vision!

Good luck finding your vision if you don’t already have it.