What’s your Vision?
Port Aransas Beach in TX
There’s a show I was watching (Joseph Rosendo’s Travelscope), and the host was in what we would consider a country where people don't have the same resources that we do. While in this country, the host was doing a tour of a school with the headmaster. The host asked the child what they want to do when they grow up, and the way that the headmaster translated it was, "What's your vision?"
Okay, let that sink in for just a little bit… Here in the United States, we don't typically ask children questions like that. We say, "What do you want to do when you grow up?” Or “What do you want to be when you grow up?" Just like the host did. Yet, when translated to this child, who's in a place where maybe we would think that the resources aren't as abundant, the outlook was different. That child sees everything the exact opposite. The answers these children gave were beautiful.
"What's your vision?" was the way the question was translated. We can ask the same question to our children in the United States. "What's your vision?” “What do you see for yourself?" It's not limiting. There are no set expectations with that question. They don’t think "I have to be…this type of person.” Or “I have to have this career”. When the question is asked that way, it’s much more empowering!!! The world is your oyster, right?!
And I can speak from experience. I’ve had a variety of different positions in my working life. I’ve worn lots of hats, traveled to many different places, and I’ve enjoyed aspects of every place. But I feel like that's really powerful to chat with our children about, right? Because we're the ones who are nurturing them for what they can do as well. This is a great example.
But it's very powerful to also understand that children have many different places that they can get resources, ideas or feedback from, and especially at home, if we're fostering things like that, that's fantastic! If they have specific things that they appear interested in, ask their teacher if they do things like that as well in the classroom. I’ve had multiple times where my son has said he wants to be this, this, and this (3 or 4 things), and I say, "That's fantastic. I’m excited for you!” Or “Show me what you would do, tell me about that."
As a mom I want to help foster those opportunities for my kids. Even though my son says 3 or 4 completely different things, that’s what he says he wants to do. I encourage it because I don't want him to think of a vision with a limiting belief. Because, who knows, in the future there may be something that's all of those combined to create exactly what he wants to do! Same with my daughter. She has a longer list of what she likes…. Everybody has an opportunity to share their vision, let’s encourage one another. Especially as moms, we too need to have a clear vision for ourselves as well.
And so they built a life they loved sign by Jimmy Don Holmes
It's so much easier to live happily, and that's what I’m extremely passionate about. The above sign hangs in our bedroom as a constant reminder for me. You need to do this for yourself as well, so your kids see you as an example, but it's also the cup analogy, right? Or the pitcher. When your pitcher is full, it's easy to pour into our family members cups. So, if you haven't done this for yourself, then definitely sit down and think about it. There are some people who, if they are told to sit down and write things out, it's a little bit more of a challenge, but I really urge you to write it down.
There is a connection in your brain when you physically handwrite things down. And if you just spend five minutes doing it, that’s fantastic. There's another thing that you can do as well if you're somebody who is used to talking like I am. I get it. You can always do the talk-to-record audio on your phone. It will transcribe all the words up for you as well. So, if it's easier for you to speak, then, write down a few things, then do that. But the most important step is to handwrite your ideas on paper.
That's part of what's going to affect your vision as well, right? It's much easier for us to explain things to our kids when we're doing it too, have done it, or we understand the task ourselves. It's like when my son is bringing me math homework. At some point I’m going to start sending him to my husband for homework. My son loves complicated math, and I haven’t done some problems that he’s asking about, so he will need to learn from someone else. Or I may get outside of my comfort zone and learn a few complicated math equations myself. Who knows, that would be a win-win for everyone, right?
Asking questions, just like this translation, in the correct way can be powerful. Learning from other cultures and places brings us knowledge, helps guide us, and shows the beautiful opportunities we have.
Everyone's vision looks different, and that's what's so beautiful about this process. There's not going to be a canned response, but once you have it written down, it gives you an understanding of what you really want. Then, your next step is to figure out how you are going to implement that. What steps will you take to achieve your beautiful vision? How will you plan out and guide your goals?
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