Where are you going? Do you know, does your team know? Do your customers know? Without Vision, everyone blows aimlessly in the wind—rudderless in turbulent water. To me, it starts with personal Vision.
As an executive leader, your personal vision statement must align with the corporate organizational vision statement at the personal level.
Without alignment, how can an executive drive organizational vision? If the personal Vision is not in alignment from the start, how can there be success? The dilemma is that most corporate executives and small business owners do not have a clearly defined personal vision, let alone a written vision Statement – I think you know where we are going by now!
Most executives do not have a personal vision. They are drifting, reacting to what is around them, and painfully doing nothing to reset the course and enjoy a fulfilling life. It is all they know. They lack a support network, courage, Ability, the desire to change, and the Ability to do it, so they drift into misery. It's not a slam but more of an observation of burnout. Yes, that was intended to be overly dramatic, but we know it is true. If you don't have your own Vision, you are only living someone else's Vision. Think hard about that one.
"If you don't have a vision of your own, you are only living someone else's vision."
Jeffrey A. Rogers, CPMBC
Developing a strategic Vision for a company entails commitment, discipline, and creativity. Think of Vision as your unique guidance system, a GPS that keeps you on course and free from all the shiny objects. At the executive level, this Vision is critical for success. These shiny object distractions derail us on our journey, depriving us of our true purpose and why we exist. They steal the impact we could have on others and those we serve.
If assumption is the root of all communication evil, distraction is the thief of Vision, purpose, and impact. This is big stuff, yet it gets minimized by the weeds of the day-to-day!
Sometimes, as an executive business coach, I have seen others mock individual organizational leaders who dare to share their Vision for the future. This requires conviction and courage, and to be brave enough to share this personal, intangible truth with others is daring – only to be shot down and mocked is disheartening. This represents poor culture at best—an opportunity for improvement and another conversation.
Let's frame it up a bit together.
An organizational Vision is a picture of the desired future; having a vision is having the Ability to think about, imagine, or plan for the desired future. A life vision is, therefore, a picture of the dream life you would love to live today and every day personally. The Ability to think about or plan the future with imagination or wisdom. What are the main characteristics of a vision? Research on visionary leadership suggests that visions have five characteristics: a picture, a change, values, a map, and a challenge (Nanus, 1992; Zaccaro & Banks, 2001).
An Executive Visionary Leader is someone with a strong vision of the future. From this above information, as an Executive Business Coach, I see real value in applying Vision to life. Here again, we can identify that alignment is vital to success, yet most do not work for alignment proactively and on the front end.
To be an Executive Visionary Leader has value, and to have your head in the clouds, dreaming, may not have as much value. Here again, it allows art and science to enter the equation personally, professionally, and organizationally. There is a lot to this; it is not easy, and this is why most do not do it!
I wanted you first to understand the benefits of Vision in your world. The Ability to uncover hidden trends circling around us is the main benefit to consider from my vantage. There are many, but for now – uncover hidden trends.
This concept informs us that one with Vision is out of the weeds, in the helicopter, and aware of happenings around them. Visionary Executive Leaders dare to reflect, are aware of their strengths, have the integrity to engage authentically, and have courage enough to stand alone if required to harvest the results of the Vision.
Interestingly, the visionary leadership style was first introduced and described by Daniel Goleman in 1995 with his book Emotional Intelligence. He introduced the world to EI; we value his work today, but at the time, maybe not so much. Nonetheless, he had Vision!
Today, we add AI, Adaptability to the equation. Why? It turns out that Executive Visionary Leadership is legendary for the Ability to uncover hidden trends in the marketplace and position their organizations for future success. This is not by chance but by intentional effort. Executive Visionary Leaders are free from the weeds and are intentionally aware of what is around them.
"Executive Visionary Leaders are free from the weeds and are intentionally aware of what is around them."
Jeffrey A. Rogers, CPMBC
More importantly, Executive Visionary Leaders translate this information into action for future success. They are experts and connect the dots, understanding correlations and developing the next right action steps for success. These Executive Visionary Leaders are innovators and they are creative problem-solvers. They do not stop when obstacles identify themselves. Instead, they thrive on solving the problem.
As with any style, there are pros and cons, and let's explore them together.
Pros of Visionary Leadership: |
Cons of Visionary Leadership: |
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· Natural Ability to inspire others |
· Often fail to communicate the Vision Effectively |
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· Pursue long-term action |
· Often lose track of the day-to-day operations |
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· Respects the team and trusts them to do the job |
· Can sometimes not be realistic |
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· Provides big-picture thinking |
· Sometimes gets too in front of the team |
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· Empowers others |
· Other's ideas can be discounted |
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· Provides focus and priority |
· May not always listen well |
The big idea is that Executive Personal, Professional, and Organizational Vision is critical for success. Developing a strategic Vision for a company entails commitment, discipline, and creativity.
An Executive Leader will go nowhere without clearly envisioning where they want to go. That simple. Distraction abounds around us – focus on Vision, its your friend. Be the elevated Executive Visionary Leader and execute your Vision for success personally, professionally, and organizationally.