I recently started to employ slightly outrageous strategy to create new goals, think bigger, create new possibilities, and make abstract goals more concrete. Interested? Read on. Disclaimer: This post may be seen as sacrilegious. Not my intention at all. Much love to all the prophets. But have you ever tried to speak your goals?!
There was a time in my life when I was involved in the Charismatic movement of the Pentecostal church. Speaking in tongues, holy laughter, “slain in the Spirit”… not familiar? Google people like Rodney Howard Brown and Benny Hinn, you’ll get the idea.
One of the regular occurrences in these types of churches is personal prophecy—people who can hear directly from God. Sometimes when they are praying for you, they begin to actually channel the Almighty Himself. It’s one of their “spiritual gifts.”
Hang with me here.
They speak with authority, passion, power. They pronounce what will occur in your life. It’s empowering and daring. They speak about change. New beginnings. Giant obstacles you will overcome. (You see where I’m going…)
It’s actually quite inspiring. And I’m not here to argue religion, beliefs, or which preferences of Christian denomination you adhere to. To each his or her own. This was a lifetime ago for me.
However, recently I had the idea to “prophecy” about a new project I’m working on. To speak confidently and boldly as though the ideas were coming from somewhere else… that the universe was speaking through me. To speak with the voice of a “prophet”, speaking things into existence and declaring what I will accomplish and achieve.
And it was awesome! New ideas came up. New strategies. New concepts. I felt totally inspired and alive. And I didn’t want to keep it to myself, so I’d like to encourage you to give yourself this gift.
GIVE IT A TRY
Here’s the drill:
Get by yourself. (Don’t let anyone see you, you don’t want people to know you’re a weirdo.)
Picture your goal or dream. What are you working on? What would you LIKE to create? If anything were possible, what would you be? Do? Have? If you could just ______… What would you put in the blank?
Now, SPEAK! Speak with passion. Speak with authority. Tell the world boldly and out loud exactly what you are going to do. How you will accomplish it. What’s going to happen. Who is going to know about it? How many lives it’s going to touch. What the outcome will be. How much money you will earn. How much value you will create. Who you will BECOME as a result of accomplishing this dream.
It’s important that you just talk. And don’t stop. Even if it sounds weird (it will), and even if you get flustered (you might), just keep moving those lips. Stream of consciousness, out loud.
And while you are speaking boldly and “prophetically,” something happens. You hear yourself say something you hadn’t thought of. You get inspired by your own passion. A new possibility. A new idea. A new creation. The dream feels more real and concrete. It feels like it’s going to happen. And that feeling motivates you to take the needed action.
Your goals and dreams have to start as an idea. Sometimes those ideas come to you. And sometimes, you can dig those dreams up from within. This is you, digging.
I know it may sound weird. Or strange. Or slightly profane. But is it? We can speak things into existence. Put on your bold hat, channel the prophet inside you, and call forth that new idea. That new solution. That dream. Speak it. Powerfully. Give yourself the gift of encouragement and belief.
And then write it down, as quickly as possible, so you remember what was said. And then, as always, TAKE ACTION.