How I Came Across "Working Visions"
Yar, I've realized a lot about formulating goals and I wrote some of it down in my prior blog post:
http://mkbnett.livejournal.com/53503.html
You can see examples of my real life personal "Ideal Journeys" or "Working Visions" at:
http://www.43things.com/person/mkbnett
(I just innovated all this stuff, heh, upgraded and built upon a solid foundation "Ideal Scenes")
How I came across this, and how I realized my priorities for these goals was through an email to Nan, my grandmother. I was responding to her question, "what are your plans for this summer?"
It was the perfect question to get me thinking. I quickly wrote about how I was intending to work with Fernbrook Farms education center, develop mutually beneficial relationships with the Permaculturalists and Regenerative designers in NJ and visit their sites, and get to know all the local wildlife and geology of the region through trips with the Fernbrook Farms classes, and with Dave, and the Ghoul Crew. Then in a separate paragraph I briefly noted that I'd like to "make music with Dave and other folks, make furniture with Zac, make a few films with the Ghoulstock Collective, and hang out with you [Nan] as much as possible," almost as an afterthought.
Having sent the email, I realized it would be a good idea to write down these intentions on my 43things site as a way to strengthen them and allow me to check in on these goals.
I typed them into the site in the same order that I had written them in the email. Now, since 43things automatically adds new goals to the end of your prioritized list, it put those goals for making music & films with friends and spending time with family at the bottom of my list.
This shed some light on how I had been prioritizing my goals, and therefore, my life. Heh, I'm so glad that it did.
Immediately, I went about rearranging my goals to put family first, then friends, then good actions for the summer, then all my old goals. (Later, I put my personal goals first, since without them, I cannot truly receive or give gifts to others). Looking at what I had up there, now with a more critical eye, it dawned on me that they were all written in a style that described an ideal scene: a static, dead, lifeless state of being. I thought of what it would like to cross that threshold into one of those states, and realized that I would quickly leave it behind and move into something else, with no celebration included in my goals.
Also, I realized that my goals didn't include how I would feel as I was accomplishing them. The Process was entirely absent. This is a problem I've had in general with my goals. I'm focused and intent on getting to the goal, often not enjoying myself too much in the moment (except for brief fiery glorious moments), and then when I get to goal, I'm often like, "Oh... Okay... Well, NOW what happens...?"
With this under my belt, I set to task reformatting all of my goals to include the Process and what it would feel like and what I would do (ie: feel blessed to be laughing while I am doing some goal).
Then once I'd done that, I put them all in the present progressive tense, so I could start into them immediately and start to reap the benefits of the enjoyable processes that I had envisioned.
My life has literally been a wonderful blessing the past couple of weeks, heh - not every single moment of every single day, but holy shit I have experienced so much amazing, spirited, spontaneous joy and personal growth recently that for days following these prolonged moments I have felt truly blessed, like these experiences were gifts from the world, heh. Absolutely, and totally thankful that I have been aware enough to see them and acknowledge them for what they are, and to be open enough to be able to receive them, as well.
http://mkbnett.livejournal.com/53503.html
You can see examples of my real life personal "Ideal Journeys" or "Working Visions" at:
http://www.43things.com/person/mkbnett
(I just innovated all this stuff, heh, upgraded and built upon a solid foundation "Ideal Scenes")
How I came across this, and how I realized my priorities for these goals was through an email to Nan, my grandmother. I was responding to her question, "what are your plans for this summer?"
It was the perfect question to get me thinking. I quickly wrote about how I was intending to work with Fernbrook Farms education center, develop mutually beneficial relationships with the Permaculturalists and Regenerative designers in NJ and visit their sites, and get to know all the local wildlife and geology of the region through trips with the Fernbrook Farms classes, and with Dave, and the Ghoul Crew. Then in a separate paragraph I briefly noted that I'd like to "make music with Dave and other folks, make furniture with Zac, make a few films with the Ghoulstock Collective, and hang out with you [Nan] as much as possible," almost as an afterthought.
Having sent the email, I realized it would be a good idea to write down these intentions on my 43things site as a way to strengthen them and allow me to check in on these goals.
I typed them into the site in the same order that I had written them in the email. Now, since 43things automatically adds new goals to the end of your prioritized list, it put those goals for making music & films with friends and spending time with family at the bottom of my list.
This shed some light on how I had been prioritizing my goals, and therefore, my life. Heh, I'm so glad that it did.
Immediately, I went about rearranging my goals to put family first, then friends, then good actions for the summer, then all my old goals. (Later, I put my personal goals first, since without them, I cannot truly receive or give gifts to others). Looking at what I had up there, now with a more critical eye, it dawned on me that they were all written in a style that described an ideal scene: a static, dead, lifeless state of being. I thought of what it would like to cross that threshold into one of those states, and realized that I would quickly leave it behind and move into something else, with no celebration included in my goals.
Also, I realized that my goals didn't include how I would feel as I was accomplishing them. The Process was entirely absent. This is a problem I've had in general with my goals. I'm focused and intent on getting to the goal, often not enjoying myself too much in the moment (except for brief fiery glorious moments), and then when I get to goal, I'm often like, "Oh... Okay... Well, NOW what happens...?"
With this under my belt, I set to task reformatting all of my goals to include the Process and what it would feel like and what I would do (ie: feel blessed to be laughing while I am doing some goal).
Then once I'd done that, I put them all in the present progressive tense, so I could start into them immediately and start to reap the benefits of the enjoyable processes that I had envisioned.
My life has literally been a wonderful blessing the past couple of weeks, heh - not every single moment of every single day, but holy shit I have experienced so much amazing, spirited, spontaneous joy and personal growth recently that for days following these prolonged moments I have felt truly blessed, like these experiences were gifts from the world, heh. Absolutely, and totally thankful that I have been aware enough to see them and acknowledge them for what they are, and to be open enough to be able to receive them, as well.