Vision of Success – Mapping your Life
For many,
success is more important than the gains they get, either financial, titles or
degrees. Therefore, they should plan for their success and for doing this; they
should map out all the aspects of their life. The following details, origin,
destination, backpack, landmarks, route, destination, vehicle etc., should be
defined, just as it is done in the maps found in the Atlas.
Origin: Who you are
A map has a
starting point. Your origin is who you are right now. Most people when asked to
introduce themselves would say, “Hi, I’m Jean and I am a 17-year old, senior
highschool student.” It does not tell you about who Jean is; it only tells you
her present preoccupation. To gain insights about yourself, you need to look
closely at your beliefs, values, and principles aside from your economic,
professional, cultural, and civil status. Moreover, you can also reflect on
your experiences to give you insights on your good and not-so-good traits,
skills, knowledge, strengths, and weaknesses. Upon introspection, Jean realized
that she was highly motivated, generous, service-oriented, but impatient. Her
inclination was in the biological-medical field. Furthermore, she believed that
life must serve a purpose, and that wars were destructive to human dignity.
Destination: A
vision of who you want to be
“Who do want to
be?” this is your vision. Now it is important that you know yourself so that
you would have a clearer idea of who you want to be; and the things you want to
change whether they are attitudes, habits, or points of view. If you hardly
know yourself, then your vision and targets for the future would also be
unclear. Your destination should cover all the aspects of your being: the
physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual. Continuing Jean’s story,
after she defined her beliefs, values, and principles in life, she decided that
she wanted to have a life dedicated in serving her fellowmen.
Vehicle: Your
Mission
A vehicle is the
means by which you can reach your destination. It can be analogized to your
mission or vocation in life. To a great extent, your mission would depend on
what you know about yourself. Bases on Jean’s self-assessment, she decided that
she was suited to become a doctor, and that she wanted to become one. Her
chosen vocation was a medical doctor. Describing her vision-mission fully: it
was to live a life dedicated to serving her fellowmen as a doctor in
conflict-areas.
Travel Bag: Your
knowledge, skills, and attitude
Food, drinks,
medicines, and other travelling necessities are contained in a bag. Applying
this concept to your life map, you also bring with you certain knowledge,
skills, and attitudes. These determine your competence and help you in
attaining your vision. Given such, there is a need for you to assess what
knowledge, skills, and attitudes you have at present and what you need to gain
along the way. This two-fold assessment will give you insights on your
landmarks or measures of success. Jean realized that she needed to gain
professional knowledge and skills on medicine so that she could become a
doctor. She knew that she was a bit impatient with people so she realized that
this was something she wanted to change.
Landmarks and
Route: S.M.A.R.T. objectives
Landmarks
confirm if you are on the right track while the route determines the travel
time. Thus, in planning out your life, you also need to have landmarks and a
route. These landmarks are your measures of success. These measures must be
specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time bound. Thus you cannot
set two major landmarks such as earning a master’s degree and a doctorate
degree within a period of three years, since the minimum number of years to complete
a master’s degree is two years. Going back to Jean as an example, she
identified the following landmarks in her life map: completing a bachelor’s
degree in biology by the age of 21; completing medicine by the age of 27;
earning her specialization in infectious diseases by the age of 30; getting
deployed in local public hospitals of their town by the age of 32; and serving
as doctor in war-torn areas by the age of 35.
Anticipate
Turns, Detours, and Potholes
The purpose of
your life map is to minimize hasty and spur-of-the-moment decisions that can
make you lose your way. But oftentimes our plans are modified along the way due
to some inconveniences, delays, and other situations beyond our control. Like
in any path, there are turns, detours, and potholes thus; we must anticipate
them and adjust accordingly.
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