DA Visions Pamphlet
In Debtors Anonymous, vision may be something connected to medicine,” but we
thought of as the ability to form a clear and don’t get around to it. Why?
specific picture of what we want to do in life,
what we obtain, create, achieve or We come up with excuses: we’re too busy, we
accomplish. It’s knowing where we’re going. don’t have time, we didn’t have the right
Our vision is our mission, our dream, and our opportunities, we have families to support,
goals – as they have been revealed to us by and so on. Meanwhile, we fritter away the
our Higher Power. One DA member’s vision time we do have, just as we frittered away
may be to paint a portrait or to write a book, our money, and our “dreams” keep getting
while another’s may be to have a family, or pushed aside. We let our fears, anxieties, self-
live in a house surrounded by trees. Each doubts and self-will block the inspiration of
person’s vision is entirely unique and yet all our Higher Power from entering our lives.
serve the common goal.
How Do I Figure Out What My Vision Is?
Is Achieving Our Vision the Goal of Debtors
Anonymous? Sometimes one of the hardest questions to
answer in life is “What do I really want?” We
Debtor’s Anonymous’ Statement of Purpose keep ourselves so busy doing what we have
is: In DA our purpose is threefold: to stop to do that we don’t get around to asking
incurring unsecured debt, to share our ourselves what we want to do. And
experience with the newcomer, and to reach sometimes we don’t know how to
out to other debtors. differentiate between what we really want
and what we think we should want. Do we
However, in addition to not debting, we seek want to become a teacher because it pleases
our vision and the quality of life as it is our parents?
described in “The DA Promises”:
In DA, discovering one’s vision can come
“When we work this program with integrity about in many ways. First, we must stop
and to the best of our ability, one day at a debting – as debting distracts us from self-
time, a life of prosperity and serenity will be knowledge and connecting to our Higher
ours.” Power. Second, we must seek to know God’s
will for us by using prayer and meditation and
What Keeps Us From Being Clear About Our working the Twelve Steps of Debtors
Visions? Anonymous. It is through working the Twelve
Steps that our blocks and resistances are
Just as many of us have been vague and removed. Third, we use the Tools of DA to
unfocused about money, so too have many of help clarify and support our vision.
us been vague and unfocused about our goals
in life. We may have wondered, “Do I have a
talent? A gift? What am I good at?” Some of
us find ourselves in jobs or even professions
we don’t like. Others of us know exactly what
we want to do but for some reason we aren’t
doing it. We say things like “I’ve always
wanted to study music, or go to Hawaii, or do
DA Visions Pamphlet
Specifically by: How Do Visions Meetings Help?
• Working with a sponsor and talking
about our needs, ideas and feelings Verbalizing our vision at a meeting enables us
• Listening to other DA members share to overcome our fear and to gain clarity on
their experience, strength and hope our goals. At a “Visions” meeting we
on the subject encourage and support each others’ dreams.
• Having pressure relief meetings We are given a blueprint for our goals, just as
• Following our action plans a Spending Plan gives us a blueprint for our
• Being of service financial recovery.
• Visions
What May Happen as We Discover Our
It is important to be aware that as we Visions?
progress in recovery our vision may change or
expand. When we take the actions to Discovering our vision takes courage because
complete one vision, another one may when we learn what we want to do – what
emerge. For instance, our original vision of our Higher Power’s will is for us – the next
being solvent may expand to include step is to do it! And that may be scary. Are we
returning to school, opening our own really willing to go to any lengths to make our
business, going abroad, etc. vision come true, and to do God’s will? If we
follow our dreams, what will happen? What
What are the Consequences of Ignoring will others think? Then too, when we proceed
One’s Vision? toward our vision other feelings may emerge
– such as fear of failure on one hand, and a
Ignoring or denying our vision, like ignoring or fear of success on the other. Both may be
denying our feelings, takes its toll. Not being unsettling.
true to oneself might even be called a kind of
self-debting. For some it may manifest in What are the Benefits of Living Our Visions?
physical symptoms or in depression, anger,
anxiety, irritation, restlessness. Sometimes, We may start out thinking that there is
we find ourselves becoming involved in the something very selfish about daring to live
lives of others as a way of avoiding fulfilling our vision, but what most of us discover is
our own potential and vision. This saps us of that the best gift we can give others is our
the energy that we need to be “spending” on own personal contentment and example. It is
our dream – and then we wonder why we when we live our vision, aligning our will with
feel aimless and annoyed. And then there’s that of our Higher Power’s, that we attain the
always the danger that our old “debting” peace, joy, emotional balance, self-worth,
thinking will persuade us that the only way to and love that has been promised. By living
fill the void is to spend money. Ignoring our our vision and doing God’s will for us, we
vision and the promptings of our Higher inspire others to do the same. And so the
Power increases our fear, reinforces our self- never ending chain of recovery and growth
will, and eventually leads to a sense of failure continues.
and decreased self-esteem.