Ideas are great, but following every thought that enters your head will leave you chasing after butterflies.

We have a lot of ideas. Some of them are even brilliant, but beware—ideas are not a vision. Ideas will come to us as we become more creative. But grabbing onto every thought that pops into one’s head is like luring a kid with free cotton candy. Often, ideas give us really good reasons why we have to jump on them. They say:

Put that thing you were working on aside. It’s so boring. Wouldn’t you want to do this thing instead? Come on. This is a really good idea! And this really good idea almost always has to be done now.

Having a personal vision can be so helpful.

We could easily spend the rest of the day/week/year chasing butterflies, running in circles and thinking we’re getting somewhere, yet nothing seems to coalesce. After each high, we crash and burn.

A lesson that took me years to learn was that sometimes my creativity gets in the way of my follow through. I’d be overflowing with new ideas but lacked the discipline to get each one done. So in an effort to work out this difficult truth, I’ve learned to say no more often, overestimate the time it’ll take; ask myself what I need, who I need and when I need it by so that I can actually fulfill the purpose.

If we want to make the vision real, to stay on task, then we need to:

1. Remember the goal.

2. Ask, “What is the very next step to make that happen?”

3. Set a date for that step to be done by.

4. Clarify the intention (I want to sell the house, I want to get a new job, I want to purge my closet, I want to lose 10 pounds, I want to be less judgmental.)

5. Let your creativity run wild in how it gets done.

Now I’m not saying stop idea making. By all means carry on—but put some effort into knowing what they are for. In business, as in life, it’s important to create a clear channel so that you can funnel your ideas through it, so your ideas serve the big picture.

Denmo is the Founder and CEO of Earthbody, an organic day spa for healing based in San Francisco. Denmo also formulates a line of organic bodycare inspired by the principles of Ayurveda. Denmo is a successful entrepreneur, highly sought healer, wellness educator, playwright, poet, and performer. She leads the Integral Workshop programs of Anatomy of Healing© and Posture of Joy© yearly. She holds a Master of Fine Arts from Naropa University and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Boston University and is a graduate of the World School of Holistic Healing, Mount Madonna Institute’s School of Ayurveda, School of Body Mind Centering and San Francisco School of Massage. As a holistic coach and meditation instructor, Denmo offers one on one private consultations to initiate personal transformation and writes weekly stories for the Earthbody blog.

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Asst. Ed.: ShaMecha Simms/Kate Bartolotta