The 7 Perspectives of Effective Leaders Perspective Two

Defining Vision

• Vision is not a mission statement, purpose statement, or future description, but a combination of elements.
• Effective visions are written and reviewed consistently to guide decisions and inspire action.
• Vision is both intellectual and emotional, resonating with leaders' values and inspiring exceptional efforts.
• Finding vision is similar to finding a specific item in a drawer, knowing exactly what you are seeking.

Elements of Effective Vision

• Clear: A clearly defined vision allows for building detailed strategies to transition from current reality to the desired future. It specifies future business characteristics, organizational members, and operations.
• Compelling: A compelling vision attracts and motivates, drawing leaders into higher-risk endeavors. Strong belief inspires others to participate in the vision.

Seeing Vision

• 3B Vision Framework: A framework to engage both head and heart, leaders must answer these three crucial questions:
  • What do we belong to? (culture, character, and work ethic)
  • Who are we going to become? (future state, growth, and personal development)
  • What are we going to build? (compelling ambitions, tangible goals)
• What Do We Belong To?:
  • Successful businesses are mission-driven, not profit-driven.
  • Teams need to belong to something larger than themselves (culture, character, values)
• Convictions: Uncompromising values and beliefs, guiding decision-making.
• Behaviors: Observable actions reflecting convictions, standards for actions and expectations.
• Purpose: Fundamental reason for existence; transcends profit to provide meaning.
• Who Are We Going to Become:
  • Teams require professional and personal growth from organizations.
  • Viable vision demonstrates clear growth aspirations for business units.
  • Future-state descriptions should include team characteristics, brand attributes, customer experiences, community impact, talent development, profit distribution, and technologies.
• What Are We Going to Build:
  • Compelling ambitions are not short-term - they require decades of commitment.
  • Compelling visions highlight daunting challenges and inspiring goals.

Vision and Leadership Effectiveness

• Vision provides a roadmap for leaders, helps engage teams, and distinguishes leaders from managers.
• Leaders without vision are merely managers, acting reactively without direction.
  • Leaders need a vision of a brighter, specific tomorrow in order to lead effectively.
• Decisions and actions should be consistent with the vision.
• Vision builds alignment - it's a key for creating unified purpose within an organization; this should come from the top and inspire those beneath them.
• Vision should drive decisions, actions, and communications, and inspire team-wide action.
• Leaders must 'be' their vision; contagious belief will inspire others.
• Effective visions involve an "opportunity gap" between current state and desired future, prompting improvement and advancement.
• Vision requires consistent review, repeating, and consistent use to remain effective and relevant over time.

Potential Blind Spots

• Never Get Too Comfortable: Maintaining ambition and a focus on progress helps prevent decline and encourages continual improvement.
• Review It Regularly: Consistent review ensures a vision stays relevant, providing strength in challenging times, empowering resilience and decisiveness.
• Repeat, Repeat, Repeat: Repeated communication reinforces the vision, inspires and keeps expectations aligned among team members (e.g., Monday morning team meetings).
• Use It or Lose It: Vision needs integrated application in daily operations and decision-making (e.g., use vision as a guiding principle for employee hiring, strategy building).