My Personal Vision
A couple of years ago, during the height of the COVID19 pandemic, my employer hired a mindset training company to lead us through their program. The one thing that stands out more than any other is the personal vision statement they encouraged us to create. Here’s mine:
Consume Wisely. Live Mindfully. Share Abundantly.
Pithy. Evocative. A bit pretentious. But also aspirational, and an invitation to align my actions with my values. It’s a reminder to myself of the way I want to live in and interact with the world.
Consume Wisely
We consume a lot every day: calories, fossil fuels, media, and on. We consume facts and opinions. If we’re not careful, we consume lies sometimes, too. For goodness’ sake, I remember President George Bush’s call to action to Americans after September 11, 2001 to go out and consume to fuel the economy, as though consuming was the best thing any of us could do for the country.
This part of my vision statement is a reminder to consume less of almost everything, and only that which will make me better. When I wrote it, I was thinking of two things in particular: the liquids and solids I take into my body, and the thoughts and ideas I take into my mind. For example, like a donut, a self-critical thought might taste self-deflatingly good going down, but it isn’t ultimately worth the calories.
Live Mindfully
Mindfulness is all about presence and accepting the actuality of your experiences. I’m an on-again, off-again mindfulness meditator – most recently off-again. (I love the niche meditation joke “if you don’t have time to meditate for 10 minutes, you’d better make it 20”.) I’m not particularly skilled in the practice, but I’ve learned some valuable lessons from people like Tara Brach and Thomas McConkie.
One of my favorite pieces of wisdom: suffering comes from resisting or denying what is. I learned this for myself one cold winter morning. I was out for a long mental health walk and stopped to sit on a metal park bench to meditate. The bench was very cold and I shivered as I sat. But as I became aware of the feeling of cold and accepted it for what it was, my shivering stopped and I was comfortable being cold.
Share Abundantly
God has poured out his blessings on me. I was raised by good parents who cared for me and gave me security, love, and all kinds of opportunities. I got a great education at a reasonably-priced state school (do those even exist anymore?). I’ve always had a job and have been able to care for myself and my family. I’m surrounded by good people who exert their positive influence on me. With this part of my vision statement, I remind myself to share from the abundance I enjoy.
I can share temporal blessings, such as money or other materials; social blessings, like friendship, compassion, and time; and professional blessings, like loyalty, collaboration, and good feedback.
Like I said at the outset, this personal vision statement is aspirational. It is an invitation to live in the world in a way that’s aligned with my values. Sometimes I do better than others, but even then, my vision statement calls me out and draws me up.