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Guest post by: Brad Swift Become an Author

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Vision is an integral part of a Life on Purpose. Without vision we can wither on the vine. What is vision? In working as a coach with thousands of people, I've found that vision is a key ingredient of our life purpose. It's what we see to be possible-not only for ourselves, but also for our families, our communities, and indeed for the world. Without it we perish. I've found that helping people reawaken their sense of what's possible is a key component of preparing for your journey to living your life according to your own personal life purpose. This is because the more someone taps into this realm of possibility, the more inspired they will be to take the actions necessary to make it their reality. Through the coaching process you will create a clear vision of a new future for yourself, including what this new reality looks and feels like, what you will be doing in it, and what you will no longer be doing because those actions are no longer consistent with who you are. You want to be able to taste, hear, and fully experience this new future. From the perspective of this new reality, you will look back to your present reality and discover the gap that exists between where you currently are and where you are destined to be. And don’t worry, this gap won’t be a cause for despair. You are accustomed to looking at your entire life from the perspective of the past and present, forward into the future; but through the visionary reality process, this will be reversed-you will stand in the future, in the visionary reality you've created, and look back to the present. The view from the future is profoundly different. You will know that it’s possible to close the gap because you will have already done it! This awareness creates a profound and even life-altering shift in perspective. Here’s an example that will illustrate the point. The View from Mount Everest Imagine that you are sitting in your living room, leafing through a National Geographic magazine, when your eyes fall upon a picture of Mount Everest. You've longed for years to climb this mountain, but in the busyness of life it's been a dream placed on the back burner. Now as you stare at its majestic summit you think, "Wow, wouldn't it be awesome to stand at the top of the tallest mountain in the world?" As you read the article, you begin to speculate about the possibility of climbing it. What is likely to happen in the process of speculating? If you're like the rest of humanity, you’ll dilute the dream with all the reasons why it “can’t” be fulfilled: You're not strong enough-you smoke three packs of cigarettes a day, and climbing a flight of stairs is a major challenge. Besides, your family would never support you in pursuing this dream. On top of which you couldn't possibly take off from work for such a massive undertaking. As you begin to focus on all the reasons you can’t accomplish this dream, you begin to attract more and more negative energy-which will probably result in your dropping the magazine on the coffee table, clicking on the television, and lighting another cigarette as you stroll into the kitchen for another beer. Poof! So much for your dream of climbing Mount Everest. Switch Frames to Your Visionary Reality This time imagine that you're standing on the peak of Mount Everest. Just moments ago you took the last few steps that brought you to the pinnacle of both the mountain and your life. You raise your arms in the air as you gaze over the most majestic view you have ever seen. The sense of satisfaction, fulfillment, and accomplishment is almost more than you can bear. It's so strong that it brings tears of joy to your eyes, and you feel your legs weaken as you fall to your knees in a humble prayer of gratitude for the power that made this moment possible. As you kneel there giving thanks, you take a few moments to reflect back to when the seed of this dream was first planted-that evening in your apartment, when you were leafing through the National Geographic. But this time you're looking back on that moment from the pinnacle of Mount Everest with the goal already accomplished. Can you begin to see how different your perspective would be? You'd be able to see many of the obstacles and roadblocks you had faced and you would know that you had successfully overcome them all. Now imagine doing this for a vision that is a true reflection of your life purpose. How powerful would this be? What effect could it have on your life? What contribution to the world would become possible? That is what is available when we use the power of vision to shape our lives while making a difference for others. What is your vision for the world? Have you been willing to surrender your life to its fulfillment? If not, what are the obstacles and roadblocks that stand in your way? What would allow you to take the realization of that vision to new heights? What resources do you need to attract to support your vision? What are you waiting for? Excerpted with permission from Life on Purpose: Six Passages to an Inspired Life (Elite Books, 2007) by Dr. Brad Swift.

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