After many  idea sessions, dreams and just quality thinking time, I started to create a vision of how it would all work  - how all the ideas would come together and a framework to generate  new ideas.

I realized that dreams in themselves do not take you to the important stage of reality.   The dream in itself is not enough to get you to where you want to go.  The vision is what gives greater depth to your dreams. As I dreamt about teaching kids business, I started to envision the ways I would go about it.

The vision was not totally clear from the start. I knew what I was trying to accomplish, but I had to, think and re-think, how to make it work or how it would come together. I went through a lot of paper, as I scribbled down notes constantly.

I always felt that the vision was an important tool  to  help me understand how  all the little things (ideas), or little pieces, all worked.  As the vision of teaching kids business became clear, I realized that there were things I would not do. The vision allowed me to stay focused and prevented me from developing things on the website that didn't teach kids business or were not consistent with my dreams.

I think a vision is like having many dreams in a row that kind of take you from start to finish, but with a kind of guiding light to it. The vision guides you along and helps you focus on the right things. You will find that once you start creating something, that it is easy to take it in many different directions.  It is key to know the direction you want to go before you waste a lot of time and money on the wrong things.

My  vision recognized the scope of the website, which means the range or variety of programming - lots of different choices. The vision clarified that kids would be given the opportunity to be involved in the development of the programming and that kids could work with the programs, on their terms and own time. 

 It was important to provide kids with a framework to think and experience things. I did not want to take a school approach, in which you present material and then test kids.  The test in our case is what you choose to do with the information or how to apply it.  

The vision  of kid's involvement really shaped the programs. For example; the caddie program was one of the first programs which set the stage for providing kids with opportunities, by giving them ideas and tools.  It has been a huge success because kids can get what they want out of it - create their own opportunities and experiences.

The vision also excited me as the opportunities for the website became clear.  I started to realize more and more things were possible.

Now it was time to communicate this vision in terms other business people would understand and participate in.

Step Four: [Communicating Your Concept]