UBC January 2025 - Vision Board 2025 and beyond

Welcome to another day in paradise, I mean of blogging for the UBC. With the Holidays definitely behind us, let's focus on the new year. 

As part of a a further training series at work, we were asked to think about our visions. Where do we want to be in 10 years' time in the areas of career, family, health and so on.

Napoleon Hill, a self-help author, - not to be confused with Napoleon Bonaparte, the French Emperor - was convinced that "Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve."

Others felt the same, and they worded it as follows:

"If you build it, they will come" from the 1989 movie Field of Dreams, based on W.P. Kinsella's novel Shoeless Joe. 

"If you can dream it, you can do it" attributed to Walt Disney.

I don't consider myself a visionary person, nor am I particularly “strategically inclined”. I have felt this in the past when it came to issues where this was expected of me in management. Tell me what you want me to tackle today and tomorrow on an operational basis and I'll do everything I can to achieve it. 

I also find it difficult to dream big, because life usually has other plans and you have to adapt to new circumstances. And now the course instructor wants me to come up with really exaggerated visions? 

Here's my try:

- Relationship: our vision at the wedding was to one day “sitting together on the bench without any pending matters” 😉

- “Make it happen” applies to all the small and big things that bring joy and about which you say “I want to / should do that one day”. But if you don't tackle it, it never happens. To paraphrase NIKE: Just do it! 

- Career: making a difference with the skills and passions that I really enjoy: writing, photography, making videos, organizing events. Achieving a good work/life balance. 

- Friendships: Recently, a (Canadian) colleague I met when she was living in Switzerland told me that she was in Zurich for a few days without contacting any of our colleagues. She came to say goodbye to a friend who is ill and will die soon. They drank Prosecco, ate cake, cried and laughed. I want to have friends like that when the time comes to leave this world. And of course also in the time in between. However, the give and take should be balanced in these friendships. 

- Health: In 2024, I worked hard to reduce my weight and blood pressure. I want to stay on this path. 

- Finances: Being able to live in such a way that we are allowed to do a lot and have to do little, e.g. travel: in recent years, especially during and after the pandemic of course, we have cut back in favor of business. That has to change. There are still many destinations, and people in some of these places that I want to see (again)!

- Relaxing through the (pre-)Christmas season and really enjoying it, every year.

- Generating “spark”: Bringing people together, e.g. class gatherings, advent windows. Inspire others with my ideas and activities. 

- Family: Enjoying my parents for a long time to come, continuing to accompany Colin's journey, hopefully becoming a grandmother! 

How's that for my vision?

In the meantime I had a call with our coach, and he gave me more difficult homework to do. Let me know if you're interested to hear about them.

What are your big ticket items in life?