"What are my next steps"?
Coming from a client's mouth, these words, although heard often, give me pause. Truly, any question aimed at me rife with expectation that I hold the answer to a riddle that is not mine, gives me pause. I usually respond with a question back.
"What ARE the next steps? What do you think?"
Just because I ask it back doesn't mean the answer is immediate, but it does surface eventually. It is their answer, not mine. However, more important is what blocks people from seeing what their next steps are. Sometimes, it is a lack of knowledge. Most often, I find, it's a lack of vision. People can't see (in their mind's eye) where they are and what they need to do to achieve their goals. The landscape of time and space is too vast.
What does it mean if you can't "see"?
Generally speaking, we all have vision, but we have it in relative degrees. Those we call "visionary" tend to be able to imagine (see) far beyond the rest of us and conjure products or ideas that can change the landscape of commerce or society for the better and forever.
Others have what I'll call mid-range vision. They can imagine and "see" what they want to create for themselves, their families, their work, or their company.
Those whose vision is just a few feet in front of them will feel more limited in their ability to decide on next steps or choose a direction, and yet they may be extraordinary at executing tactical strategies that require discipline and attention to detail. Finally, those who claim they have no vision at all are blocked. I'll get into why that might be shortly, but for now, know that it can be remedied.
In my observation, we are not limited to any one of these levels of vision. We might be able to operate across all of them in different contexts of our life. We also may be functioning in one and not in another. For example, Einstein could mentally "see" his way to solve huge problems and prove theories, but he needed an assistant to find his keys and run the minutiae in his life. His vision was huge in one area and insufficient in organizing his own life. It can happen to the best of us.
Black-and-white, highly analytical thinkers like lawyers, engineers, scientists or those who use rational and logical thinking to feel safe tend to have a harder time with vision. Their minds are well trained to look for certainty and proof, and they will find it hard to jump over to the right brain to let imagination take over. If it's unproven, it will be hard to accept.
Those who have experienced more than their fair share of trauma or emotional scarring in their past may struggle to trust the process of envisioning, dreaming or projecting oneself into the future. It was not safe to let down their guard in their younger years so it's hard to imagine how it could be a good idea now.
How do we enhance our vision, then? What will let us see our next steps?
I can tell you that finding a way to seeing more clearly could mean some hard work ahead of you. Less than stellar emotional, physical, mental, or environmental factors in your life greatly diminish your ability to "see." Everyone wants the big 'ah-ha,' but it's the small victories that bring us into a clear vista with a longer view.
Rising above the pain and strife of daily life brings clarity, whether that's clearing up unfinished professional or personal communication or delegating tasks that take up time and energy but don't play to your strengths.
Is there a faster way to get unstuck? Yes, I think so. Get into nature. Be a tiny spec amongst the grandeur of nature and notice the vastness surrounding you. Take that awareness back to your life and you may discover the bigger thinking and action required to move out of a stuck place. The hard work of cleaning up your life will likely persist. However, with this new perspective, you may be able to approach it without getting hooked by what really doesn't matter. The bigger vision that's brewing within you will inspire you to move forward.
The key is renegotiating your place in relation to all that goes on around you. You have to be above it to see it. If you are climbing a mountain and you can only see the climb, you're limited, and you will struggle. However, when you face out, away from the mountain, and take in the view, you'll draw more energy from the perspective. The view only gets better the higher you get.
You can see and you will see but you must create the circumstances to make it possible. Now go! Climb on!
Originally posted as a blog post on www.nowwhatcoaching.com. Watch Laura's TED TALK