How To Cast A Compelling Vision

What is vision? Vision is a critically important piece of any leadership plan. It is something you must create and share with your team over time.

Vision is a strong mental picture of what you would like to see you or your organization accomplish. Your vision could be:

  • To become the world’s most loved, most flown, and most profitable airline. – Southwest Air
  • To spread the power of optimism – Life Is Good
  • A just world without poverty – Oxfam
  • For clean water and fullness of life – Team World Vision
Man sitting and staring at a cloud covered expanse

Photo by Joshua Earle

Your vision statement can be long or short. For the examples above, I share 4 short vision statements. Each statement clearly communicates what the organization wants.

Southwest Air wants to be the most loved, flown, and profitable airline. Life Is Good wants to spread optimism. Oxfam wants a world without poverty. And Team World Vision wants to bring clean water and fullness of life to those who lack these basic necessities.

Do you have a vision statement? Do you struggle to get your team excited and engaged with your vision statement? It might be you don’t have a compelling vision statement.

How To Cast A Compelling Vision

A compelling vision statement does something. When you have a great vision statement, the heart is stirred when others hear what it is.

I am stirred to bring clean water to children who lack easy access to it. When I hear Life Is Good wants to spread the power of optimism, I am in. Or how Southwest Air wants to be the most loved and actually acts on their vision, I want to fly with them.

To cast a compelling vision, you will have to:

Know what your organization stands for:

What do you want your organization to stand for? Do you want it to be the most loved organization? Do you want your organization to help those in need? Do you want to enrich the lives of your team members and customers?

You need to know what your organization stands for. This is the base of your vision statement.

Know what you want your customers to feel:

How do you want your customers to feel when they interact with your organization? You might want your customers to feel a sense of love (Southwest Air). You might want your customers to feel hope (Teach for America). Or you might want them to take action (Facebook).

Your vision statement should make people feel positive about your organization. Doing this will make them feel like they are a part of what you’re doing.

Know who your organization is for:

We don’t buy into the myth that every organization is for every person out there.

Rock For Life is for life, they are anti-abortion. Talk about polarizing.

Patagonia is not for the couch potato. They are creating outdoor clothing for men and women who want to explore the world around them. They’ve alienated a portion of the population by telling people to get outdoors.

Your vision statement must let the people your organization serve know they are being served. Don’t be vague. Don’t try to include everyone.

Your Compelling Vision

When you create a compelling vision, people will have one of two reactions. The first group, they will be attracted to you. They will feel like they are a part of your family. The second group, well… they’ll feel differently. They will feel like they don’t belong.

You want your compelling vision to polarize your potential audience. You will draw in the people who belong to your tribe. Those that don’t belong to your tribe will be pushed away.

Create your vision using the ideas above and you will have cast a compelling vision.

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