About six years ago, I began seeing this image in my mind of lego-like looking people getting plugged into a giant globe. Once they were connected to this giant ball, they would light up like a light bright toy. This vision was in my dreams, my thoughts and my conversations. I began drawing diagrams and looking up words and phrases that I had never used.

That experience led me into my first sacred geometry class that was taught by a buddhist priest and reiki grandmaster who had a PHD in quantum physics and international business. She showed me the diagrams I was seeing in ancient books and in marketing theories. I remember thinking, "Ok, maybe I'm not crazy. Maybe I'm on to something.”

At the time, my company was producing specialty brand projects for Coca-cola, the United States Postal Service and Washington State Lottery (to name a few). I had hit a stride in my career. We were doing great work as a team, building a solid client base and our brand was gaining influence in our industry. However, I felt strongly that we needed to pivot our business and go in a different direction. I didn’t have any proof or a plan, I just had a feeling that something was about to change and a vision that was calling to me.

Then the great recession happened. When everyone was tightening up their purse strings, I invested in my skills in direct marketing, sales, performing arts and manifestation. My team and I created a personal brand for me as a consultant. Then I branded over 65 entrepreneurs and leaders who like me were feeling called to pivot their careers or businesses to bring a vision to life. The fuzzy light bright concept led me to the right place at the right time to help my clients find their place and confidently communicate their value in the modern market.

Today, studies are showing that by 2020, over 60% of the US population will be self-employed. That means, the majority will be able to create their own definition of success and choose where they spend their time and who they spend it with. I believe that if you think of yourself as a consultant, then you can move in and out of an organizational structure or entrepreneurship with greater fluidity. Branding your expertise will make it easier for you and others to know where you fit and find new exciting opportunities to grow your skills and expand your influence.

In my experience, too much time is wasted looking for evidence to validate a vision as true. A vision is a picture of a future reality. If you can perceive it, that's because you have expertise that makes you open to it. The way to validate it is to be ready for it. Instead of trying to prove that your vision is possible, make steps to position yourself for success when the future you perceive arrives. That's what I did and that's what I continue to help my clients do too.

For example, Julie Pierce had spent years developing her expertise as a healer and building her sales and marketing skills, but she was struggling to pull all the pieces together and connect with potential customers to get her business off the ground. Branding helped Julie engage her new clients and take calculated steps toward building her business. Read her story here.