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THE EDUCATED RETAILERS' GUIDE ® 1020 VINTAGE AVENUE SAINT HELENA CA 707 967-8500 voice 707 967-8600 fax www.OlivierNapaValley.com Orders@OlivierNapaValley.com OLIVE OIL -TAPENADE-DIPS MUSTARD-VINEGAR-SAUCES Winter Fancy Food Show Booth 5301 • • • • • • Salt Free Kosher Certifed All Natural No MSG GlutenFree High Fiber NEW! "we're more likely to direct the spotlight of attention inward, toward that stream of remote associations emanating from the right (bigpicture–focused) hemisphere of the brain. In contrast, when we are diligently focused, our attention tends to be directed outward, toward the details of the problems we're trying to solve. While this pattern of attention is necessary when solving problems analytically, it prevents us from detecting the connections that lead to insights." This explanation supports what I've experienced here in teaching visioning. The old "problem-solving" method—where people sit and focus hard on fixing what's wrong—turns out to physiologically shut down big-picture creativity. By contrast, focusing on the positive and relaxing the mind generally leads directly to intuitive insights. As Lehrer explains, it's when those positive feelings are at the fore and we're not forcing ourselves into nearterm problem solving that, "we're finally able to hear the quiet voices in the back of our heads, telling us about the insight. The answers have been there all along—we just weren't listening." This last insight is one of the most frequently repeated reflections I hear after people spend a half an hour or so writing out the first draft of their vision. But, Lehrer continues, the trick isn't just to relax and let free association emerge. It's essentially to daydream in a waking state where your mind can go where it wants to but you can still remember what was emerging. Focused, documented daydreaming helps each of us access what's long been inside us, resulting in inspiring, creative, caring and darned cool visions of greatness for the future. Ultimately, visioning allows you to write your future. Writing a vision is a passionate and powerful act. The vision tells a story in rich, emotionally engaging detail and in this case, the story happens to be yours, and it happens to have not yet happened. It's the details of the dream you have for yourself that you've put down in print so that you can share it with those around you. Don't let the fact that the story hasn't actually happened yet slow you down. It is, I'm confident, a good story and, I'm even more confident, you already carry the seeds of it inside you. The details will emerge as you write. |SFM| Ari Weinzweig is co-owner of Zingerman's Delicatessen in Ann Arbor, Mich., and author of Zingerman's Guide to Giving Great Service and other books. For more information, visit zingtrain.com. For information contact Ray Leard at 800.359.7873 or email rayleard@purelyamerican.com purelyamerican.com Winter Fancy Food Show Booth 1550 72 ❘ SPECIALTY FOOD MAGAZINE ❘ specialtyfood.com TO READ MORE of Ari Weinzweig's writings on visioning, go to specialtyfood.com/onlinehighlights.