Think you can lead without a vision? Think again.
Leadership is about going somewhere.
How do you know where you’re going if you don’t have a vision?
Vision makes work meaningful.
Vision helps us feel connected to something larger than ourselves.
A shared vision helps us feel connected with others because we trust we share the same goals and values.
An organization without a clear vision is like a river without banks—it stagnates and goes nowhere.
A leader without a vision to serve is in danger of becoming self-serving.
It could never have been put any better than this. It’s ultimately true and I keep tellinf my colleagues and students virtually the same but with a slight tilt in the phrases!
Carry on.
Thank you, Patrick!
How can you take someone somewhere you have never been? Having a vision can also mean that the vision is based on the leader’s indepth knowledge in an industry, being able to see trends, and visualize future courses of action that guide the vision
Great point, Pinkey. You only know what you know. That’s one of the reasons it’s a good idea to use a collaborative process to identify organizational vision. It makes you smarter. In our book, Full Steam Ahead we say, “what’s important is not only what it says, but also how it’s created and how it’s lived.”
Now, if you find yourself in an organization that doesn’t have – or live – the vision, what to do? I’d propose to create your own vision for [your part of] the organization. To guide your own work. Base that vision on your insight into customers’ needs, and you might find you’re already ready when management comes to the same conclusion/vision.
I agree, Jan. You can have the greatest impact when you focus within your sphere of influence.
Thanks for your blog and all the wonderful educative information available on your webpage. I start reading an excerpt from your book “Full stream” and forget it was only an excerpt until got to the end of the few pages available. Heading to amazon to get a copy. I am really struggling with formulating a sensible vision. I am not sure if you provide that information in your book, but I not sure if organization vision can be change.
Glad to hear that, Gibson. Full Steam Ahead! outlines a process that has been used with leaders in hundreds of organizations, and I think it should be helpful to you. Although it’s written in a parable format, I suggest you read it carefully as there’s a lot of information embedded in the story. All of the examples are real – e.g. the purpose of the accounting department in the story is the purpose statement from the accounting department of a company I worked with. At the end of the book, there’s a summary of the process and major concepts, but it’s better to read the story first so you can more deeply understand them. Good luck with creating your vision. May you go full steam ahead!
Good post. I am trying to lead my team to create our vision and mission statements. I think they must be a big part of developing it or they won’t have “buy-in” or “ownership” of the vision and mission. It’s my plan to have them working on their ideas over the month of December and follow up in January with as many meetings as it takes to develop these properly. Once we have them, I’ll have a banner made of each and post it in our area. Once we are all on the same page and have this established, I also plan to bring up the Vision and Mission in my interviews with potential employees to see if they are a fit to what we are trying to do and where we are going. Wish me luck, because my group is full of “A-Type” personalities.
I applaud you intentions, James. Will there be an opportunity for a group conversation where you team shares their hopes and dreams with each other in real time? All best wishes, Jesse