Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.
-Warren G. Bennis
It’s a new year! It’s a time to wash away the old of the prior year and to make a fresh start for 2019. You have all the potential in the world ahead of you. The vision that you cast now for yourself and your team should be a challenge, yet attainable and you should have at least a general path how to get there.
A vision for your work or team
Vision should be a unifying piece and matches throughout the layers of an organization. Here’s how it looks:
- The CEO casts the vision for the company.
- The VP or Division Head cast their vision for the business segment.
- The Region or District Director cast the vision for the geographical area.
- You cast the vision for your team.
Sounds like the potential for a lot of confusion and competing priories? It’s not if you make sure you are aligned with the vision of those above you. Every year after much thought and prayer, I get my vision for what the next year looks like. I then take that vision and present it to my leaders to make sure that I am aligned with their vision.
So what is your vision for this year?
You have been given a vision whether you know it right now or not. If you do know your vision, keep it out in front of your team. I had signs in my office that I changed out yearly where we actually tracked our vision to reality. If you aren’t quite sure what your vision is, don’t give up. Keep looking and searching for it. Partner with your leader on some guidance to help you discover what it is.
What is your business going to stand for this year? If you don’t own your business or business segment, how will your team stand out this year?
What is your team going to stand for in the community?
What would it take to get the team to the place that you dream of?
What are you going to stand for with your people?
Let’s not forget your personal life! If anything people will think they have this covered with New Years Resolutions. Often the problem with resolutions is that they are more wishes or hopes instead of a solid plan for personal growth. When you formulate your vision for yourself in the new year make sure that they have actionable points.
If you want to lose weight, how do you plan on that? Put your plan in place and then work to live it out.
Do you want to increase your education? What do you need to do to get the funding? Set a deadline for yourself or check the deadlines for scholarships.
Are you looking to take a memory making adventure or vacation? Budget out how much to save, set a deadline and have fun planning.
Discover the vision; embrace it and use strategic thinking to get there.
Make a better tomorrow.
-ZH
