A vision statement is just a way to help clarify what you really want to accomplish. It’s a statement of purpose that helps you stay on course. Plus, you can change it whenever you want as your goal becomes clearer or changes. No need to stress over it or overthink it. Without sounding too hokey, just spend 10 minutes on it.
If your goal is to “Save for College” your vision may be, “Make monthly deposits into college savings plan so that 50% of my children’s college tuition is paid for.” If your goal is to “Eat healthier” your vision statement may be, “Prepare healthy yet tasty meals that bring family together and enhance both mind and body.”
Why not go lofty? While that “healthy meals” one may sound a bit much, it’s really what I’d like to do – I’d love to prepare a meal that my children will actually eat, not flee from the table for a peanut-butter and jelly sandwich, and actually stay long enough for us to talk and catch up on the day.
And you can always revise your statement as you get into the work. That one about saving for college? As you get going, you’ll see how much college will cost in the year 20-it’s-coming-too-soon and maybe revise your goal. So put a stake in the ground and go from there.
If you want to read more about vision statements, there’s plenty out there. I liked both of these overviews –they’re both brief and helpful:
So grab your notebook and take a few minutes on each of the goals you selected. Write your Vision Statement below each Goal you’ve already written down from Step 1.
Vision Statement #1: _____________________________________________________________
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Vision Statement #2: _____________________________________________________________
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Vision Statement #3: _____________________________________________________________
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Vision Statement #4: _____________________________________________________________
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Vision Statement #5: _____________________________________________________________
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Done? OK…