Michelle Micalizzi, Artist
(All Rights Reserved)
“Make your vision so clear that your fear becomes irrelevant.” ~ Someone Really Smart
As I was thinking about the concept of vision, and what it means to build one, I had a few thoughts. One of those thoughts is that many people confuse vision with mission. The way I look at it, vision is what we see in the future and the mission is what we do today to get there. Your vision challenges and inspires your heart to see the big picture. Your mission clarifies and informs your head so you can get things done to reach that future vision. The mission statement is short and concise, and passes the t-shirt test.
Life is not perfect. Life is not easy. Life is good. ~ Life is Good Company
The Life is Good company has a great mission, “Spreading the power of optimism.” I love the story of co-founders Bert and John Jacobs. They had a discussion in the car one day as they were listening to all the crap documented on the news when they became very clear that they wanted to create a company where they optimistically cultivated the good. That idea is the vision that allowed them to come up with simple hash tag branding like #growthegood. They were so clear that fear became irrelevant.
Vision is the art of seeing what others think is impossible.
~ Jonathon Swift
As I continued to ponder about vision, armed with my thoughts about the Life is Good Company, my dear friend Sarah Jo Willy posted this video featuring her life partner Dan Marcotte and his company Dan Marcotte Air Shows. Honestly, I could not explain the visioning process any better than how Dan explains it in this amazing video produced by the geniuses at Wandergroove. Dan’s company strives to “Inspire Surface Level Aerobatics.” Please take the two minutes to view this video via the link below, it’s inspiring.
The Ultimate 10-200 | A Wandergroove Film
Dan says a few things that give me goose bumps. Well hell, the whole video gives me goose bumps, really. A few high points for me include how he describes why vision is so important to have when dealing with the ambiguity of being a self-made person. In order to find the solutions, one has to visualize a positive outcome. In Dan’s case without vision he could literally fall out of the sky. He also talks about why vision is so imperative to growth. Vision is what makes him stretch beyond his comfort zone and beyond his means. Without vision, flight is literally not possible. In Dan’s case, every time he is in the sky he has to use visualization as a tool. Love it. How much better off would every company be if every time they took on a project they visualized the outcome like Dan does? If you want to see Dan in action, he will be flying in Leesburg, VA on Sept 24th.
Wandergroove also fascinates me. I grew up in New England, Vermont specifically, so their mission makes me very happy. As a self-proclaimed wanderer, their mission makes me full-face smile and belly laugh. #YouWereBornCurious. Why yes – yes I was. Fantastic! I already loved them before I even dug into their web presence.
“Welcome to Wandergroove a brand new vessel of documentary style filmmaking
built to curate the history and culture of New England
and inspire those who seek their own journey.
Founded upon the idea that we are all born curious.
Hardwired to explore and discover our own unique place on this planet.
The world is full of untold stories and we want to tell them.”
Wandergrooove created an instant fan of me because they are so clear about what they are up to and why they are up to it! Clearly everything they do is inspired by their vision!
Chase the vision, not the money, the money will end up following you.”
~ Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos
Joe Robinson‘s article, “The 7 Traits of Successful Entrepreneurs” from Entrepreneur magazine’s January 2014 issue, states, “One of the defining traits of entrepreneurship is the ability to spot an opportunity and imagine something where others haven’t.” Visioning what others’ feel is impossible is not for wimps. There are plenty of people who will tell you that you are nuts and that you should get your head out of the clouds and go get a J-O-B. My Dad has told me since I was a little girl, “Michelle, no one gets really rich working for someone else.” Being rich, in my Dad’s world, is not merely about making money. Lots of people make money working for someone else. There are a lot of people here in Scottsdale/Cave Creek, Arizona living in houses that need their own zip code that have gotten there working for awesome companies. There is nothing wrong with helping someone else build his or her dream. In fact that is really what my company Fearlessly Deliver does – I help Business Owners to FEAR LESS and DO MORE so they can reach their dreams. What my Dad was talking about is something much different… he is talking about being prosperous in all that life has to offer, not only monetary gain. Self-made people understand the difference. Making money is just part of what being rich is: having the satisfaction of realizing a dream is worth much more than your bank balance. At the end of the day, as Zappos Founder Tony Hsieh implies, if the driving force is not achieving one’s vision, the money will not follow.
The Illustration’s Story:
Dan Marcotte proclaims himself a “dream-enthusiast”. For 10 years I have been hearing about Dan’s adventures from his life and business partner and the mother of his gorgeous son my dear friend Sarah Jo Willey. I could go on for pages about how fabulous Sarah Jo is but, it is actually Dan who inspired this series of paintings. This seriers is all about how Dan’s visioning process. This visioning process is an example of what all good companies must do to be successful. If we do not begin as Stephen Covey says with the end in mind we will not succeed. I have incorporated the play feature from the YouTube video to connect Wandergroove’s to this image. The hand on the video feed and Dan’s hands are similar both pointing to what is being used and worked on. I also realized after 10 years of using this outlining style where this style originated from – similar to the outline drawn around a dead body in a criminal investigation I outline living bodies because I focus on life and living ones dreams out loud. Maybe one of the reasons I am aware of life and death in this series is because what Dan does is very dangerous and his life is always on the line. I always use color as a tool. I am also exploring with new textures after admiring Artist David Paul’s paintings last week at the Herberger Theater Art Gallery. Also I realize that the 5 images have a more storyboard feel similar to the process used in marketing design with my graphic designer hat on.
Michelle Micalizzi is a Business Executor & Visual Journalist, Her company Fearlessly Deliver, LLC helps business owners to execute projects so that they can FEAR LESS & DO MORE! Michelle uses her ability as a Visual Journalist to tell the story of Entrepreneurship. | 480.526.2609 | michelle@fearlesslydeliver.com
The Gallery at el Pedregal
Select Paintings from the 2015 & 2016 Art of Fearlessly Doing Business Projects are also for sale at the El Pedregal Gallery through October 2016. Pop Up Wednesday – Michelle Micalizzi Featured Artist: Sept 14 4-6PM | Presentation – Art is Business and Business is Art: Oct 27th 5:30-7:30PM.
Hidden in the Hills – Studio Tour
All Fearless Art will be available for sale at the Micalizzi Studio during the Sonoran Arts League’s 2016 Hidden in the Hills Studio Tour on Nov. 18-20 & 24-26, 2016. 10AM-5PM