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ans Serif">Pretend that you've just been granted unlimited wishes to design how you want your life to be.

ans Serif">What would you wish for? Take a couple of minutes now to write down what you want. Doing so could mean the difference between this being something that is a 'good idea' versus something that actually alters the quality of your life. Start your list with everything you need to get out of basic survival mode, for example, 'I'm debt-free, earning $1000 a week, sleeping well and have great friends' Once you've done that you'll have the room to work out what you really want beyond that.

ans Serif">Get started on your

quest
Starting this process is akin to setting out on a quest. Quests are dangerous things, they require courage. This is really the first test, facing the fear of not knowing how and plunging ahead, being courageous. Trust that the journey itself will call forth what is needed. President Kennedy did this when he declared: "we will put a man on the moon in ten years". He did not know how to do it. His advisors and top scientists at NASA certainly didn't.

ans Serif">We all have big dreams. We all want our lives to matter and to make a difference. You may have given up on those dreams and buried them under the daily noise of doing. What can stop you getting in touch with them is knowing that once you get in touch with the dream there is really no going back. By choosing to follow your dream you become responsible for it. George Bernard Shaw said, "Liberty means responsibility. That is why most people dread it."

ans Serif">So that's the first step, taking the call to arms. You will know you have done this when the world occurs differently for you. The more precisely you speak your goal and are present to its importance the more power you will have. My quest is: to transform society by building businesses that excel at making a difference and that inspire and transform their owners, staff and clients. That's my version of putting a man on the moon in ten years - my company's 'strategic vision'. Once you have done that it is time for the next key - Merlin.

ans Serif">Go backwards, not forwards
Merlin moves backwards through time. He starts at the end and moves backwards towards the beginning. This is a useful way to planning your route, especially where you can't see how you can accomplish the outcome with your current resources. Stand at the endpoint, the date is (day/month/year), you've fulfilled your quest. What does that look like? Be specific. For example, by Dec 20, 2005: New Zealand's business competitiveness is ranked 5th or higher in the world; we have successfully fulfilled 10,000 business development projects; and we have 100 qualified business coaches working full time on fulfilling the strategic vision.