how to grow a vision: a cyclical path of unfolding

🗺️ a continuation of my writings on world-building.
🌸 this a new series on growing a vision.

the journey of growing your vision is not unlike growing any other creative seed, except that instead of letting it growth, ripen and release into the world as singular projects, your vision is that underlying thread which connects everything. as you nurture it, you’ll watch your vision grow, expand, and change form.

your vision is the core purpose that you keep tending to it over a period of years. decades. an entire lifetime. it could be a singular creative practice (a vision for your art) or, a vision for your business, or, your entire body of work.

in my last post, I wrote about why your vision is your power — and how your vision is a potent combination of the tactical (goals, plans), with the creative (ideas, dreams), and the soul (mission and purpose). your vision is the fire that lights the way.

today, I’ll outline the phases of a vision, from the very beginning, and suggestions how to care for each phase of the vision.

1. the mysterious origins | sensing & listening

at the beginning, you start only with a vague feeling. maybe it feels like a longing, an inkling, a rustling inside your soul. an unidentifiable desire. a call. a gentle tug. something alive, stirring inside of you, giving off a bit of electricity. it’s mysterious, nebulous, tentative. it has yet to find a shape, or form.

what to do: listen to it, intently. make ample space for it. converse with your vision — by journaling on paper, audio journaling. speaking with the closest people in your life. where does it come from? what does it desire? what about it scares you? what excites you? think of it like a tentative, tender child that needs to feel safe within you — before it can fully express itself, and play. don’t force it to be certain, or consistent, or clear. allow it to whisper to you in the nooks and crannies of your day. cultivate the practice of listening. holding. incubating. as an act of love.

2. the formation of a seed | finding its shape

at some point, the vision settles into a shape. it might tell you how it wants to be expressed — in what medium or form. it has a sense of its own intention. it starts to carry a life of its own. it suggests possibilities and paths. sometimes, it gets carried away into its own grandiose dreams (there is danger of paralysis here).

when your vision solidifies into a seed shape, it becomes harder and harder to ignore. when you’re unsatisifed with all the other things in your life, this vision feels like a magic portal into something else — a different life. a different you.

what to do: commit. commit to yourself — on the page. if you need, commit, outloud, to someone close to you.

3. planted & germinating | give it a vessel

after you commit to your vision, you have to plant it somewhere. this means giving it a vessel to live in and grow in, and allowing it to take up space in a place that is outside of your own head. it could be something small, physical or digital: a dedicated notebook. a stack of index cards. a notion dashboard. an email account. a writing program. the very beginnings of a website-world.

the key is to find a place that gives you a feeling of safety and spaciousness, rather than a sense of pressure or need to prove. this will be the very first home to hold your vision.

what to do: plant and nourish. planting is to create space for it. then, nourish it with things that inspire you. inspiration. creative guidance. museums. books. podcasts. give it the best fertilizer that you can find. seek out the sources that feed your vision.

4. sprouting | the daily practice of tending

once you’ve committed to your vision and given it a vessel to take up space, you have to start the daily work.

recently, I wrote about tending in this cyclical guide to world-building.

four years ago, I first described it as building your dream castle, brick by brick. it doesn’t have to be daily — as long as it’s a personal rhythm that is intertwined with your days.

first, define what the practice of “tending” looks like to you. what does it mean to BE in your vision or practice? is it to write XX number of words a day? to practice for XX amount of time? to draw one thing a day?

what to do: nurture a regular (daily, if possible) practice. tend and water. no matter how grandiose or big your vision is, sit down and brainstorm the smallest iteration, or unit of measurement task — and do it. divide your vision into simple, small, repeatable tasks that you can roll, like kneading dough, into rituals that give form and nourishment to your days.

5. growing | tending & listening

very slowly, over a period of weeks or months or years, you’ll watch your vision grow. it will grow in phases and seasons. it might ripen, and yield fruit. sometimes, you’ll look back and feel so proud of what you’ve gathered. sometimes, you’ll look at it and feel totally lost, and a little inadequate. this is normal.

when you fall off the path — if you’ve neglected your vision for weeks or months — be kind to yourself. your vision will never abandon you, unless you abandon it.

when you get small signs of encouragement from the universe, pay attention. where are these signs leading you to?

when you feel a bit of dissatisfaction, discomfort, or stagnation, pay attention. how does your vision want to change shape, evolve, and grow?

what to do: we return, here, to the practice of listening, sensing, and nourishing. your vision is a living thing. what does it need — in this phase of its growth? does it need rest? does it need to be challenged? does it need nourishment? does it need a weekend staycation, and intimate long talks by the fireplace? does it need the flurry of the world, and stimulating conversations?

(see: 6 visions for your digital world)

6. evolving | surrender to its metamorphosis.

as your vision grows and matures, sometimes, if you pay attention, the next step on the path will unfold before you, like a door cracking opening, calling you to walk through it.

your vision, itself, might change shape. it might morph into something totally unexpected or adjacent, or, become distilled into a deeper and more potent essence of whatever it already (and always) was, at its core.

what to do: surrender, and allow it to show you the way. what does this mean, exactly? hone a practice of listening. tuning into your intuition for guidance as to the next step:

what inspires you, excites you, and gives you a creative spark?
what feels most nourishing?
what feels expansive?
what would it be like to dream big?
what would it be like to do one small thing?

the act of evolving your vision is very much like going back to the beginning — where your vision was only a seed. your vision IS a living spirit that births more seeds.

a few notes to remember

growth will always happen in cycles and seasons
effortless growth = sensing and allowing, not pushing and forcing
create space in your life, day, psyche to allow intuition to guide you.
dream big — but focus on the tiny, daily tasks to carry you forwards, one step at a time.

what phase of growth is your vision in, right now?
what does your vision need from you, right now?

I write a weekly newsletter on creative process & digital ecosystems called guide.notes. I also have a weekly podcast, botanical studies.

creative practice, growing a businessKening ZhuFebruary 19, 2024visions, world-building