Beyond Goals

Turbocharge Your Life with a Clear, Personal Vision

Goals? I'm your guy! As a teen, a favorite gift (don't laugh) was a new planner - I'd spend hours writing out goals to kick off the year. Early in our marriage, a spreadsheet of goals hung on the mirror over my bathroom sink, allowing daily checks of progress (yes - Suzanna likely rolled her eyes). Patient goals were central to my career as a physical therapist but it went further. In spite of zero talent as a speaker, the rehab company I worked for had me travel nationally to regularly speak on the subject and then the American Physical Therapy Association asked me to write a column (that turned out continuing 20 years) often integrating the concepts. The launch of Catalyst Coaching in ‘07 took this to another level. Goals were essentially my strategy, my identity and my livelihood.

Fast forward to today. Goals? No thanks. I'm no longer a fan and rarely, if ever, utilize them. Why? I discovered a far better approach: Creating a clear, personal vision for the coming year. Sure - goals can still play a secondary, supporting role. However, for those looking to make the most out of both their personal and professional lives, the vision is the powerful step forward. Interestingly, if the vision is clear, any potential goals will essentially achieve themselves.

Hamlet's "To be or not to be" is, indeed, the question. Our answer to the ultimate question - "Will I courageously choose to be?" - must be driven intrinsically.

Let’s step back and get some broader perspective. Hamlet's "To be or not to be" is, indeed, the question. Who am I? Who am I becoming? Am I fully living? Or, am I simply busying myself checking boxes? Our answer to the ultimate question - "Will I courageously choose to be?" - must be driven intrinsically. We can neither force it upon others nor find it by following the "shoulds" imposed by those around us. And yet - seemingly around every corner (especially as New Year's approaches), we've settled on a completely different question, asking: "To do or not to do..." In the process, we focus on goals, resolutions and that long list of shoulds rather than the intentional act of living the courageously creative life.

Goals are often a dressed up in a list of the aforementioned "shoulds." What if this year we set aside the goals and resolutions (the "what") and instead leaned into creating a clear, personal vision (the "who")? Great - but where do we even start? We're so conditioned around goals and resolutions. A vision? Sounds complicated! Nope - I'll walk you through the steps. Of course it does involve going beneath goal-setting’s superficial approach (doesn’t anything of value??), but it is well worth it. In doing so, we not only land on a practical version of our North Star, we also learn some interesting things about ourselves along the way! Paul Tillich, in one of my all-time favs, The Courage to Be, clarifies what is at stake: "The self which has become a matter of calculation and management has ceased to be a self. It has become a thing. You must participate... and by participating you change it." Goals focus on the first. A clear vision creates the second. If you’re feeling hesitant, realize you've done this before, perhaps when going house/apartment shopping, considering a vacation destination, or planning a wedding. We create a clear vision in our head of what could be. The process of doing so with our broader lives rather than a singular event or pursuit is exceedingly more valuable. What are we waiting for? Let's get started! To keep it simple, we'll follow these four steps:

1. Reflect/Collect/Digest

   1. Invest time in reflection

   2. Tune into, and then capture, the sparks and glimpses

2. Identify & Play

   1. Note the patterns that come through the time of reflection

   2. Jot down phrases or sketch ideas, doing so in a manner that fits you

3. Simmer, Tweak, Rinse & Repeat

   1. Let it sit

   2. Make adjustments over time

   3. Rinse and repeat as desired

4. Live out the vision!

"For many, the big choices in life aren't really choices; they are quicksand. You just sink into the place you happen to be standing." (David Brooks)

"For many, the big choices in life aren't really choices; they are quicksand. You just sink into the place you happen to be standing." Author David Brooks penned those words, but we all know the feeling of living them out. We move through each day, allowing the quicksand to draw us in as the days, weeks, months, and eventually years pass us by. Dreams fade out of sight; regrets accumulate and eventually we feel stuck. Creating a clear, personal vision lifts us out of the muck, creating a participatory, personalized path toward a future aligned with our unique self. Now onto the four steps…

1 - Reflect/Collect/Digest

This phase of the process sets the stage for all the others. There is no "right" way to go about this except for the need to create space. Suzanna and I have scheduled an time away from work and internet the past decade for this very purpose (personally, but also our marriage, family and business). While this has become a valuable rhythm in our lives, reflection can take place on a hike, a park bench, paddle board or anyplace that allows you to create the space to reflect deeply on who you are and who you are becoming.

The becoming element engages our recognition of the heart sparks, the glimpse or precious moments when we find ourselves saying "this... this... this" (a powerful moment filling our heart). Purposeful time of reflection momentarily moves us outside the ongoing pressures, constant time-fillers and distractions (e.g., social media), and the background noise that create the soundtrack of the busy life. Noticing - and then collecting these onto the pages of a journal, notepad or digital recorder - creates the palatte of colors from which our vision will come to life. Avoid the temptation to rush this stage, allowing the thoughts, words, and related visual representations to come together over time.

If struggling with this part of the process, integrating the F5 as a simplified manner of scanning the key areas of life can provide a valuable prompt to spark some potential initial thoughts for reflection.

The definition and role of each varies by the individual. Most of these are self-explanatory, with the exception of Field of Play. This component references our work and hobbies, those fields on which we’ve chosen to step. It is a reminder that (with few exceptions), we chose to walk onto that field and we can also choose, with proper planning in the case of our work, to step off that field and onto a new one.

2 - Identify patterns and create rough visual

As you look over your list of words, phrases, song lyrics, verses, or sketches, what patterns emerge? Which ones initially resonated but have since faded in the light of the others? Maybe you land on a single theme or maybe there are a range of concepts that support one another. Maybe you land on a singular phrase or perhaps you have some fun creating a picture that represents your initial (very rough draft) vision. Here’s an initial version of some scribbled thoughts from my own journal as I’m moving through the process this year.

3 - Simmer, Tweak, Rinse & Repeat

With your notes, sketch or scribbles beginning to come to life on paper, consider taking the additional step of creating something that begins to come to life, using whichever tools with which you are comfortable. While nobody will ever confuse me for an artist, I gradually started using Powerpoint and Canva to create more of a visual representation of the vision. This year, I also tapped into an AI image generator to initiate some ideas on which I could build.

Once you have your rough draft, print out a copy and let it simmer. Glance it over for a few days and make any tweaks that come to mind. Rinse and repeat until you look at it and say "That's it!" Often I'll "think" it's dialed in a few weeks early. But by giving it time to simmer, little tweaks (and occasionally critical additions!) bubble to the surface.

Remember this is JUST FOR YOU. While you may choose to share it with others, the goal is to create something that resonates with you. Here is my very first vision from back in 2012, sketched in a few minutes by our daughter Danielle on a tablet. Nothing fancy. No graphics. A straightforward reminder of the vision that would play a key role for me in the year that followed.

Over time, the integration of some of the tools mentioned above resulted in the ability to bring together a variety of elements on a single page. Here’s the current version of my 2025 personal vision, which will likely go through a few more tweaks before I tie a ribbon on it. The specifics won’t make sense to anyone except me and this is certainly not intended to be treated as “the” example as it’s unique to me. However, it provides an example of how the initial words drive the rough sketch you saw up above, and eventually creating the personalized North Star for our journey forward.

Live it out - realizing the value already gleaned

It’s a good feeling seeing your unique, personal vision come into focus. Now you can put it to use, placing a copy of the vision where you'll regularly see it. I use it as the wallpaper on my phone and place a framed copy (inserted over the previous year’s so I can easily look back) on the shelf, just over my computer screen. However, before you even start to live it out, tune into the value of the process you’ve moved through. As noted, this is my 13th year of creating a personal vision, and each year I’m reminded the most significant growth that occurs through the reflection and development pieces - not simply once it is finalized.

And now, while others are discussing their resolutions (around New Year's) and goals (remainder of the year), you can smile, picture your vision, and know any potential goals are organically coming to fruition in the wave of your clear, personal vision. You, my friend, have discovered the courage, not simply to do (goals) but to truly be (vision).