Without sounding like a broken record, it is important to have a vision for your life, your family, your church, your business, or any organization you lead or are a part of. But how do you contextualize whats in your heart and mind to paper to bring the vision to fruition. Great vision without a plan is just words on a piece of paper or a screen. I want to share how to write a vision statement that will walk.

1. Find A Quiet Place

This is essential! You need to be somewhere where you can think, write, and process in peace and solitude. I would suggest that you take books with you that have inspired you and get the creative juices flowing. It doesn’t matter if the place you go is in your home, backyard, or a cabin in the woods, just find a place of quiet. I would suggest an entire day for this initial process as you will refine the vision statement over the upcoming days. The task at hand is to develop the core thought and idea of the vision statement. Personally, regardless if the vision statement is personal, for my church, or for a business, I always use the Bible and start with Proverbs 29:18, “Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint.”

2. Start With A Blank Sheet Of Paper

Paper? In the digital age that we are in? I want to challenge you to not being your laptop or iPad and perform this task by using a good old pen and paper. Why pen and paper? There is something creative about putting ideas on paper as you can refer back to a hardcopy in your own handwriting. You will be adding and deleting thoughts, possibly drawing diagrams and putting down what it is you believe you are called to do as your vision.

3. The Components Of A Vision Statement

 
I believe there are three components of a vision statement that need to be used in this process. Just to let you know that this is a step toward the finished statement and is not the finished statement. It may be long at first, but you will continue to refine it and shorten it in order to communicate it.

• Who is the vision statement is about. Is this a personal vision statement, one for a church or other NPO, or for a business? Answers the “who” of the vision that has been called out.
• What is the vision? What is it you feel led to accomplish? This is the dreaming stage or the “what if” of vision. What if you were able to do what it is you feel called or compelled to do? This might be the lengthy part, so do not feel you need to try to cram everything into one sentence, at least not now. When you are writing, always keep in the back of your mind where you are now and where you want to be – THIS IS KEY! Answers how will the vision be fleshed out?
• How will you know you have accomplished the vision? Again, the vision will be words on paper until it is happening and has been or is in the process of being fulfilled. Answers what does the vision look like in action? How will the vision be lived out?

This is where you start writing. Writing down these three components on paper and re-writing them several times until it captures exactly what you feel in your heart that you are called to do. This is not a finished or polished product. It is raw and it is you!

Part Two will be posted tomorrow.