As You Build Others’ Visions, Be STUBBORN about Yours too.
We hear it all the time. People who have worked for others and sacrificed their whole lives for the establishment of a dream that isn’t necessarily there's. For some, this is perfectly okay especially if their dreams exist within the dreams of the vision bearers that they work for. By all means, they have found their temple and must dwell therein in service to that vision. Good for them!
But if you’re like me, there is a probability that others’ visions are not enough, and that you are on a hunt to establish your own vision, if not now… then eventually. The human soul is built to desire and until a desire is met, satisfaction isn’t a word that fits in its vocabulary. However, the tricky part is that more often than not, the human soul even its position of desire and searching can be lost for a while and forget to fight for what it wants. Many things can cause this; disappointment, timing, a lack of prioritization, discouragement, embarrassment and my personal giant-a lack of confidence in your soul's ability to reinvent and thrive.
This is exactly what happens to millions of people every day who sit down at the end of their ‘productive years and wonder, ‘Did I ever really do what made me happy, made my blood boil, changed the fortunes of my days or added a lease of greatness to the world?’ This is exactly what happens to regular young folk like myself who sit conflicted asking, ‘Is this all that my life or job or relationship has to offer?’
Three years ago, I had this exact question on my mind. Having failed to finish my Masters degree and in a job where I couldn’t move any higher, I had come to the painful reckoning that in the quest of supporting someone else’s vision, my vision had been thrown to the back burner. I was so frustrated because in as much as I believed in the vision of this company and had sacrificed a lot, I was stagnant, and the vision no longer resonated with who I was as a person or what I had envisioned when I first began. And so, I had to revisit myself. I had to revisit my soul and ask it to mine out the visions that were deeply buried under the rubble of asphyxiation. Distress, disappointment, fatigue, conflict and an overall dissatisfaction with myself had cut out the life-giving oxygen for my visions.
This mining revealed the obvious; in the quest of building others’ visions, I had forgotten the primary visions that were mine. And it was killing me because regardless of who did what, it was I who eventually allowed my vision to be buried. And only I could uncover and recover it.
Slowly, I began to reimagine my visions and by God’s sheer grace, support from people that love me and a great stubbornness to fight for what’s mine, I made it to the other side. Two dimensions of my career vision has since been met- I got to finish my Master's degree in a reputable international university and switched to a job that is aligned with the vision that I have for myself in the now. And whilst I haven’t realized the fullness of my vision careerwise, I am one step closer to it everyday. I also cognizant that my vision will continue to evolve overtime and that I must readjust when i need to yet not depart from my life’s mission.
So, what’s the lesson here? Be STUBBORN about what you want. Go mining and recreate your vision as many times as you need to. Convince yourself that it can happen for you, be unapologetic about the steps you will take and set sail. Nobody will do it for you but you. Your boss or company will definitely not do it for you. Your colleagues, family and friends can only support you by the sidelines. Your lover can only stretch as far as you communicate your vision. You must be your №1 fan and be obsessed with what you want to achieve. I preach to you as I preach to myself.
In 2024, BE STUBBORN and STAY STUBBORN
and watch the world realign accordingly!
