Leading with Purpose: The Importance of Articulating your Vision
If you were to get in front of your entire organization and had to describe the ideal culture, behaviors, and results that you wanted to see, would you be able to do it?
As leaders, a great deal of our operational focus tends to be on solving immediate problems and addressing executional issues. This is to be expected and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it; that is, provided that we do our problem-solving in service of creating the desired future rather than just fixing what’s wrong right now. This is because, while leadership can only ever take place in the present, leaders must never lose sight of the future they are responsible for creating. As long as one is comfortable sitting in the tension of this paradox, things proceed fairly smoothly. It’s when one side of this equation is sacrificed for the other, that’s when things start to go awry.
I have found that many of my coaching and consulting clients can easily rattle off a list of problems they wish they didn’t have. However, when I ask what they do want, it usually takes a lot more time and consideration to come up with an answer. In other words, it is easier for us to clearly articulate the present we don’t want than the future that we do want. It is precisely because the former tendency is so easy and automatic that it is so important to focus intentionally on practicing the latter.
Of course, focusing on the present is a natural and necessary response to dealing with crisis. For example, if you have a splitting headache, it makes more sense to ask for something that will relieve the pain rather than beginning a holistic plan to achieve long-term health and vitality. On the other hand, it is also true that as long as we neglect to craft a long-term vision, there will be no end to the crises that need to be solved. Crisis mentality prevents visioning; lack of visioning ensures crisis mentality. Until and unless we intentionally decide to break the cycle, it will continue on forever.
While I understand—from personal experience of leading operations for over 31 years—that sometimes all you can do is deal with the problems in front of you, I would challenge you to take time to articulate your vision, no matter what you’re dealing with right now. If you’re wondering why your team or organization is not achieving extraordinary results, ask yourself whether they are clear on the vision, and start by testing whether you are clear on the vision.
Try this exercise. Imagine that you are going to get in front of your entire organization and need to describe the ideal culture, behaviors, and results that you wanted to see. I suggest taking 5 minutes to write down what you would say to them. This exercise will not only help you align the organization on how to proactively create the future, but it will also give them the right context with which to reframe the current problems. While visioning can never take the place of addressing crises, it invariably makes them easier to deal with, so I encourage you to start as soon as you can.
If there are topics you find to be of special value to you, or if you’d just like to get in touch and chat about what’s going on with you, simply reply to this newsletter or send me an email at amir@theghannadgroup.com. If you’re experiencing challenges that you would like my perspective on, or you’d like to explore how we can partner with you to support you in your transformative journey, please click here to schedule a call with me. I’d love to hear from you.
Ten Reasons Visioning Often Fails to Produce Results
Assuming you accepted my challenge to create a clear vision for your organization, there are pitfalls you need to be aware of and steps you must take to avoid them. Not all visions are clear and inspiring and unifying. Here are the top 10 reasons visioning efforts often fail:
Recommended by LinkedIn
Read or listen more about how you can avoid these common pitfalls in the posts below.
Get in touch!
What have you noticed about the culture, and especially the language, of your workplace? Is it empowering or defeating? Is it self-focused or others-focused? Are others aware of it, or has it gone unnoticed by most? Have you been able to make a clear connection between the language, culture, results, and morale, or is the connection still a little fuzzy for you? I’d love to know what you came up with, so feel free to reply with your thoughts.
Also, if you answered “yes” (or “no!”) to any of the questions above, I’d love to partner with you in the process of creating an extraordinary culture that delivers breakthrough results and unprecedented fulfillment. If you are interested in learning more about how The Ghannad Group can partner with you to transform your culture, click here to schedule a discovery call with me. During our conversation, we can discuss your specific situation and I’ll share my ideas and insight relative to the questions you have.
If you found something of value in this edition of the newsletter, I'd love to discuss it with you in the comments below. And if you'd like to share that value with others, I encourage you to do just that by clicking the Share button below as well!
Uncovering Human Problems- Delivering Innovative Solutions
1yAmir this came at the perfect time! I am currently in the process of crafting my vision for my team. This reinforces that it has been time well spent!
MBA, Strategic Leader | Growth Advocate
1yI love this
Life Coach
1yThank you Amir, this is powerful and use ful. I help children at a very young age to dream about what they want to become one day, so we speak about Visions and elaborate through conversations on the importance of it and what to do to make the Vision a reality. I love to learn from you.