CHAPTER 2: PUT A PIN IN IT

What Excites You Most? What Does Success Look Like One Year from Now?

A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within. . . . Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string. . . . Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind.

—Ralph Waldo Emerson, “Self-Reliance”

MOST PEOPLE—INCLUDING OUR CLOSEST FAMILY AND FRIENDS—DO NOT ASK US the big questions on a regular basis, if ever. They don’t typically start end-of-day debriefs with: What is working best in your life right now? What are you most excited about? What does smashing success look like one year from now? Casual conversations more often hover around stories and daily drama: This is what happened to me this week. This is how I felt about it. This is what is bugging me. Although we sometimes share the most exhilarating moments, we lean toward discussing what troubles us because that’s what is top of mind.

If your values are your compass, your vision is your desired destination. Once you know where you are going, the Pivot process can take you there—but first, you need to pinpoint where you want to end up. Your vision attaches a specific future-based form to your values. Both will help you course-correct as you experiment throughout your pivot, while you steer toward a motivating future. Impacters are highly resourceful; once they are clear on where they want to end up, they are quite creative about making their vision happen.

The more captivating your vision, the more it will recharge you during uncertain times. It is the difference between a vague sweeping statement such as, “I value travel and teaching” to an alluring invitation from your future self like, “One year from now I am living in London, working from a coffee shop as I prepare for a class I am teaching on international business law.” Your vision, though it may shift as you gain more clarity and information, keeps you focused when making big decisions.

When it comes to crafting a powerful vision, I hate the question, “Where do you see yourself in five years?” It is based on an outdated paradigm and halts rather than generates conversation. Who knows?! New job fields are emerging at breakneck speed. The iPhone launched in 2007. Do you think that in 2006, the founders of Instagram or Snapchat would have said, “In five years, I would like to have created an app—for an app store and technology that doesn’t exist yet—that will be valued at billions of dollars”? No! So we should not expect to know exactly what job or even industry we will want to pursue in five years.

Even if we could guess, we would probably sell ourselves short. Studies show that we are quite ineffective at predicting what is going to make us happy in the future. As poet David Whyte puts it, “What you can plan is too small for you to live.”

John Hill has been a chief information officer for twenty-two years. As a specialist in emerging technologies, John’s career vision is to help lead large organizations through systems upgrades that allow them to stay current, while continually learning and challenging himself. But he can never predict too far out what that might look like, given that the specific technology solutions are frequently changing.

John could sense this conundrum early on, so he adopted the following motto when choosing his college major: “What I want to do doesn’t exist yet.” This has remained true for most of his career. John never knows exactly what technologies will emerge, but he has become skilled at learning and staying ahead of the curve. His vision carries him forward even when he is uncertain about what his day-to-day work will entail years from now.

Given that so much of what impacters may end up doing in five years does not yet exist, it is most effective to focus vision planning on a shorter time frame and consider what success looks like even just one year from now. Most people have an easier time focusing on a one- or two-year vision than on creating a specific five-year plan. If you happen to have a clear longer-term vision, that is welcome, though not necessary.

The exercises in this chapter will help you articulate how you want your life and career to unfold in the near term.

AVOID THE TYRANNY OF THE HOWS

One common mistake I see among people tackling a big decision is jumping straight into the how. This is a surefire way to send yourself into panic mode. One of my first coaches, Jeff Jacobson, called this the “tyranny of the hows.”

The problem-solving spiral tends to go something like this: “I am unhappy at work. How will I tell my manager? How could I find a new role within the company? How should I look for a job at another company while I am still here? If I decide to work for myself, how will I earn money? How will I ensure this all works out? What if things don’t go as planned? Will I have regrets? What if I end up in a van down by the river?!”

Can you see how quickly the how questions sent our fictional friend into a frenzy? How is a dangerous word to ask too early in the Pivot process. You do not have to know the whole how just yet, or even if what you want will be possible. I will provide guidance for the hows when it is time, primarily during the Pilot and Launch stages. At this point in the process, resist the urge to solve how before you know what your vision is.

Creating a compelling one-year vision can be intimidating because as soon as you identify something truly exciting that you want to pursue, your fear gremlins may rush through the door, sounding alarms that you are an impostor this and you are doomed to fail that.

Our impulse is to tuck our tail between our legs and turn away. Or stuff the dreams down and pretend we never had them in the first place. But the fears that ride in on the coattails of an invigorating vision are a good sign. They signal that you are approaching something meaty enough to challenge you, and that you are squarely in your stretch zone.

Avoid focusing too much on your fear, your dislike, what is missing, or what you don’t want. Operating solely on an avoidance of fear or dislike creates a blind spot: you know what you are running from but cannot see what you are running toward. Fear does not put fuel in your tank. Your career will remain stalled until you examine what positive outcomes will motivate you into action and sustain you through the inevitable and unnerving dips in the Pivot process.

As one Cherokee legend goes, a man tells his grandson that we all have two wolves fighting inside of us: good and evil, or joy and fear. When the grandson asks which one lives, his elder replies, “The one we feed.” Your one-year vision works the same way. You have enormous creative brainpower, so feed the outcome you seek, not the one you fear.

VISION CLOUDY? START SOMEWHERE.

People often come to me when they feel stuck and their vision feels too distant to describe, a far cry from where they are now. Or they might not know precisely what they want. Both are normal, and to be expected. But as I tell them, it is still important to start somewhere.

I never accept “I don’t know” as an answer. Because every time (and I do mean every time) I follow up with: “Guess. Just take a stab at it, even if you don’t know specifics,” answers start pouring out. I don’t know quickly dissolves after further inquiry.

Crafting a vision can start with a sweeping exploration, one as broad as how you want to feel one year from now. If you currently feel stuck, stagnant, or stressed, what is the alternative? If you are an impacter, it is likely that you want to feel more engaged, balanced, and healthy, and to know that you are making a positive difference in the world.

My sister-in-law, Gillian, graduated from law school and took the bar exam, but quickly realized her one-year vision did not include sitting at a desk every day working on legal briefs. Her one-year vision was to be engaged in a flexible work environment that would keep her physically active, surrounded by like-minded people, and provide stepping-stones toward a career that was conducive to starting a family and running a business with her husband.

After taking the bar exam, Gillian completed CorePower Yoga Teacher Training as a side project and reward to herself for finishing law school. Even though she hadn’t planned to do much with it at the time, practicing yoga became an important element of her happiness formula.

A few months later, when she found out that she did pass the bar exam, Gillian decided to teach at a yoga studio rather than continue at the law firm where she was interning. She committed to learning the business side of yoga. Earning her yoga teaching certification, combined with her business and legal acumen, helped her pivot in a new direction that was more aligned with her vision. Gil was quickly promoted to a management role within the yoga studio, bolstered by her aptitude and unique background.

Broad One-Year Vision Brainstorm

Coming up with a clear vision is like shaping a block of clay. Staring at a big square block can be intimidating, so it is best to start broad, then refine the details of your vision later. Your vision may sound like your values at first, then becomes differentiated as you specify the activities that your vision encompasses one year from now.

Here are some common broad one-year vision statements:

After you come up with broad vision statements like the ones above, continue shaping what each item might look like one year from now. What kind of work are you doing? What impact are you having? How much are you earning? Where are you living? What are your health routines? Who are you surrounded by? How do you feel?

I encourage my clients to express a safe, nice-to-have version of their vision at first. But what I am really digging for is the excited disbelief of “What?! I can ask for that?! Is that really even possible?!” Ultimately, your one-year vision should be so riveting that the thought sends a rush of adrenaline through your body and gets your idea synapses firing.

Define Success One Year from Now

Now that you have started a broad vision outline, apply the Give-Receive-Achieve framework below to further shape what success looks like in the coming year. This is a shortcut I developed to assess how you want to contribute, what you want to experience in return, and what specific results or milestones will indicate that you are on the right track.

Give: Impact on Others
Receive: What You Want to Experience
Achieve: Specific Results
“Sliding Doors” Careers

As we move from a broad outline to one-year Give-Receive-Achieve aims, next is time to creatively explore what elements might still be missing.

In the movie Sliding Doors, the story of Gwyneth Paltrow’s character plays out in two parallel universes based on whether or not she catches a certain London train. Imagine you get to live in an alternate reality, one parallel to the one you are living in now, one in which you get to pursue any type of work you want. What would you do?

Maybe you will never pursue your “Sliding Doors” career, letting it live only in your imagination as a path you could have taken if circumstances were different. Or maybe you try this career for a year or take a few related classes as a hobby.

The key is giving yourself permission to explore: If time, money, skills, or judgment from others were not an issue, what would you do for work? How would you spend your time? Which of your values could be more fully expressed? What do you daydream about?

I have seen people list Sliding Doors vocations like professional chef, magazine magnate, talk-show host, schoolteacher, bed-and-breakfast owner, and photographer, among many others. Even if they never intended to pursue these careers, the lists offered valuable insight into their vision. The lists might indicate they were interested in working with their hands, creating artistic experiences for others, sparking conversation, and working with people—probably not all in one role, but you never know! These attributes may not have been on their radar after completing the more straightforward exercises; coming from a creative angle sparks new ideas and reveals hidden interests.

Jot down a few notes about what entices you about each item on your Sliding Doors list, then identify any repeating themes that cut across all the roles you listed to reveal elements that are important for your vision as you move forward.

CLARIFY YOUR VISION STATEMENT

Now that you have done some expansive exploration, it is time to narrow down to a concise vision statement, a vivid call to action.

The clearer your vision, the easier it will be to decide what next steps to take and the stronger your instincts will become along the way. Remember, your vision does not need to address how to achieve anything, or if it is possible—at this point it shouldn’t—but rather what success looks like, written in the present tense.

You are going to exit your comfort zone to pivot for a reason, so now it is time to state, as best you can, what that reason is. Challenge yourself. This may not come easily, but make your best guess, then adjust and fill in the blanks as you work through subsequent Pivot stages.

Write a One-Year Vision Statement

Draw upon your values and the vision exercises you have completed so far to write a cohesive one-year vision statement, written as if it is already happening, that will guide your Pivot strategy and brainstorming.

Part one: Imagine that it is one year from today and you have achieved wild success. Describe in the present tense what you are doing, how you are feeling, and what you are proud of. Be as detailed and creative as you can. In 2012, my big, hairy, scary dream was to be a thought leader—an author and speaker—like Daniel Pink and Malcolm Gladwell. I wrote this one-year vision statement at the time:

I am contributing innovative ideas and frameworks to society by bringing disparate fields together in a unique way. I am earning a healthy living through speaking, writing, and coaching. I have more work than I can handle, which allows me to build a scalable business of workshops and courses. I feel engaged, inspired, and like I am helping people improve their lives in a meaningful way.

One of my coaching clients, Julien Pham, a physician and entrepreneur, identified his one-year vision as follows:

I am comfortable and confident in my hybrid role of being a physician and an entrepreneur. My start-up, RubiconMD, has acquired funding and is experiencing explosive growth, and I am leading a thriving team. I have a strong network of colleagues who have influence in both medicine and entrepreneurship, and a fine-tuned personal mission, something I can express with more clarity at an event like TED. I help inspire the new generation of aspiring clinician-entrepreneurs who learn from my wins and my losses, and try to contribute to making something better in society around technology and medicine, while getting feedback from others. My website, Startup Clinic, has launched, and serves as a virtual headquarters where physicians can learn about start-ups and connect with each other. I am happy, healthy, in a great relationship, and thinking of starting a family.

Part two: What parts of your vision are already present in your life, even a little bit? In what ways is this vision statement already true? Regarding what I wrote in 2012, I had already been focusing on writing, coaching, and speaking full time, with an aim to continue growing my speaking platform. I was involved in activities similar to those of the people I admired, though on a much smaller scale. I hadn’t yet landed on my next big idea, but now, four years later, you are holding it in your hands.

Julien had already been playing dual roles as physician and entrepreneur for several years. He cofounded RubiconMD, and started hosting informal dinners with other physicians, which became the beginnings of Startup Clinic. Together we clarified his core philosophy for guiding other physicians and medical institutions—to simplify and amplify—and outlined a speech he could deliver when asked to speak at conferences.

As Julien put it when reflecting on this exercise, his vision did not seem out of reach when he viewed it as an existing work in progress. “I have done versions of what is in my one-year vision successfully in the past,” he said. “Now it is just a matter of enhancing my skills in the present to build into where I want to be in the future.” By the time this book went to press, Julien was signing the term sheet for RubiconMD to receive Series A funding, just six months after he wrote his vision statement.

Clarifying your one-year vision can also be done as a mind map on an ongoing basis. Write the current year in the center with spokes for different life areas—such as career, creative projects, money, social, health, learning, hobbies, and relationships—then brainstorm a handful of desired outcomes across each area. I do one of these at the start of every year instead of more traditional New Year’s resolutions.

SUMMARIZE KNOWNS AND UNKNOWNS

During my biggest dips of self-employment, one thing remained clear: New York City was my home. No matter how expensive, how noisy, how crowded, I knew it was where I belonged. That was a core “yes,” or known variable. From there, it was up to me to get creative about how to support that decision with my business model, an unknown at the time in terms of exactly what form it should take.

When Brooke Snow reached a point of boredom and burnout with her online business, she started planning her pivot by getting clear on her knowns and unknowns. After launching five successful online photography courses over five years, Brooke realized that she wanted to teach subjects that were more personal, such as work-life balance and creativity. Her known variables and strengths were in teaching, curriculum development, and running online courses. Her unknown variables were how to set up the new business and what to do with the old one.

Brooke applied her strengths in course and community building to shift her focus into classes related to personal growth. She brought on a partner with a complementary skill set who helped rejuvenate her work, an unexpected boost. Soon after, she rebranded her website with a new tagline that was a better fit for her vision: “Living and documenting the thriving life.”

Take a moment to summarize your knowns (your must-haves) and your unknowns (elements you are still uncertain about) in your one-year vision. List knowns and unknowns across categories, such as location, finances, projects, people, results, and lifestyle.

______

In clarifying your vision, you plugged your destination into a maps app. Ping! Pin placed. But what is your mode of transport? How can you get there most efficiently? What potholes, traffic jams, and road closures should you avoid? What shortcuts are available to you and only you?