Stanford Business School's Michael Ray believes the key to accessing deeper sources of creativity can be found in two questions: Who is my Self? (your higher self, your divinity, your highest future potential) and What is my Work? (the purpose of your existence, what you're meant to be) (From page 101 of Presence, by Peter Senge, C. Otto Scharmer, Joseph Jaworski, and Betty Sue Flowers.)
Who is your Self? What is your Work?
Write your answer
to each question as if it's already happening:
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VISION: What is your Work? What happens when you're giving your greatest gift to the world? How are people different as a consequence of having been in your presence? See this as an image. Use present tense.Answer these questions from Bill O'Hanlon:
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What gives you a sense of aliveness, that feels "just right"?
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What do you dream about; what holds you spellbound?
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What are blessings you could give back to the world?
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Whose work or life inspires you?
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What would you talk about if given an hour of prime time TV to influence the nation or the world?
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What makes you angry enough to correct in the world?
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What contribution of yours will be more profound than others doing something similar?
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MISSION: Who is your Self? What about you (attributes, experience, skills, knowledge, passion) makes your vision possible? This will also inform your logo/image, marketing/funding, etc.
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STRATEGIES/GOALS/PARAMETERS: How do you carry out your mission and vision?
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What strategies will accomplish your vision? Identify 4-5 goals within each strategy.
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What internal and external forces surround each goal--those that encourage and those that may discourage your vision?
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What first steps can you take to accomplish your vision?
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How can you increase encouraging forces, both internal and external?
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How can you overcome internal/external discouraging forces?
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When you're uncertain about priorities among strategies, hold them against your mission and vision, and you'll know which ones are most likely to ensure your contribution in the world.
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As you ponder these questions and your
intention becomes clear, your vision may appear to you
spontaneously, possibly as a metaphor. When thinking about my
true work, I suddenly saw my clients stepping out of a
box. And I knew the box was each person's unique
programming or conditioning.
