You’ve probably heard the phrase "I’ll believe it when I see it,” but what if you have to believe it before you can see it? Here’s why.
Our vision is like the blueprints for our future. What we see as “possible for ourselves” forms a magnetic image to attract and direct our actions. It’s what our self-talk tells us daily. “I’m not that kind of person…” or “I can do that…” aren’t just throw away phrases. They’re the building blocks we use to make decisions and take actions. More than money or technology or external forces, what we believe drives what we think is:
Possible to achieve.
About a year after the financial crisis, I encountered this chicken-and-egg situation myself: I had just finished downsizing my business, relocating my office and rethinking the work I wanted to do and clients I wanted to work with. I felt my experiences had prepared me to offer more than my reputation as a sales-and-technology-guy. But advertising alone wouldn’t solve the problem. Just saying I could do it wasn’t going to be enough to convince clients to see me that way.
I had to start from within.
One day I was about to suggest to a client I could help with a project I’d not worked on in the past. Before I pressed send, I sat there staring at my signature line. The words didn’t seem to reflect my growing belief that I had become someone able to tackle more. So I took a risk and erased my fifteen-year-old byline that said “Technology Consultant” and replaced it with a new word:
Philosopher.
I pressed send and held my breath. A few moments later the reply arrived with a little note at the end:
“P.S. I see you’ve changed your title….” it said.
“Yes. I hope you don’t think it’s too pretentious?” I replied.
The response didn’t arrive for almost an hour - I started to wonder if my client was thinking of a nice way to say “Don’t be a meathead!” When it finally popped into my inbox, I was amazed:
“I think it’s FREAKIN’ AWESOME! It’s exactly what you do!”
You know the rest of the story. When I started to believe I had what it took - learned, practiced, experienced and prepared - it wasn’t difficult to see myself doing it. Which helped others see it – and support it - too. Change your inner vision of what’s possible and you’ll start seeing it all around you.
Perhaps it’s why many people are stuck today. We’ve all been forced to rethink the vision of ourselves. Everything we “saw ourselves doing” in our lives and careers has been thrown in the air. No wonder some people are pushing back on the littlest of things – because they don’t yet recognize themselves.
Behind the mask in the mirror.
Reality doesn’t have to change before you do. The Wright Brothers believed it before they built it. Amazon saw it before they started it. And remember this one: “People buying and selling houses online? I’ll believe it when I see it.” Good thing nobody believed that!
It’s not easy to rewrite our vision of the future: We’ve spent our entire lives fulfilling the one that got us here. But sometimes you have to throw away the script. A new draft lets your imagination show you a glimpse of what could be even better than before.
To discover the next stage of our success,
We don’t have to wait for what we see:
We can start with what we believe.
And be surprised at what we will achieve!