Vision Statement

Anyone who’s ever wanted to do anything started one of these. Because if you don’t have one of these, there’s no way you’ll be able to find the power, the energy and the others you to make something different happen.

What are we talking about? We are talking about having a “Vision“.

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In this article, we are thinking about that vision and being the visionary inside your organisation, the person who can see something better, see something that wasn’t there before.

Because visions are grand, if you can have a great vision, then other people around you will jump on board and help you to be able to achieve that vision because they see the light in your cause. They can see a change where nothing existed before. They can believe in something that is the aspiration that’s something that just doesn’t currently exist.

And being a visionary means you can see solutions to things that don’t exist. You have ideas continuously spinning around in your mind; you can plan for something that needs to happen. But to be able to achieve this, you have to be able to get that vision across to others. So, people around you can see and understand what it is that you’re talking.

Now, when people look at the construction of some magnificent buildings, they must have that grand vision. Otherwise, what we’ll have is just a building site. So, we look in many cities and towns we see dilapidated buildings been replaced or renovated into new living accommodation, places that people want to come to and making into thriving communities, where people want to be.

But not everybody believes they should have a great documented vision statement. And when you don’t have a great vision statement, you don’t have something that other people can champion and be part off. This lack of a vision statement could cause problems because you’re going to have something tangible for everyone to around. Moreover, you must admit, if you’ve got someone with great vision, then it’s more likely others will support that vision making something great happen.

When some people write a vision statement, what we’ll do is we’ll put lots of colourful language in there, making it very generic, making it feel good, but don’t necessarily meaning anything.  Now, for me, this is an incorrect way of writing a vision statement. Because a vision statement not only has to draw people forward into doing something but must be specific enough so others can associate that statement with you, and also motivational. Hence, enough people want to do something as they can see clarity and direction in that statement. And a whole series of words just based in jargon, or just warm-hearted sentiment does not mean anything, and it doesn’t get anybody moving in the same direction as you envisaged

Another common mistake that some people make when they’re writing vision statements is, they will write them in the past tense. Now the vision is a future item, its something that hasn’t yet arrived. Yet. It’s something you’re striving towards, so has to construct a future tense, it’s something you’re moving towards so it should be action-based, therefore, writing a vision statement must use some action words.

The third issue some people run into is producing a “creative” vision statement that speculates on something, rather than one formulated on a plan. Now visions are great, but they are something that you’re looking to try and achieve. And if you have not planned How you are going to make your vision reality, then all it is all wishful thinking.

So let’s think about a couple of good examples of vision statements like to Tesla who’s building its most affordable cars yet, and trying to champion having affordable clean energy cars on the marketplace – “to create the most compelling car company of the 21st century by driving the world’s transition to electric vehicles.”

Also think about TED, who are there to try and build a global community sharing great ideas around technology, education and design. – “We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and, ultimately, the world”.

Are you going to be the visionary within your business, and in your own life, striving to achieve that unique vision within your mind? By making that unique vision visible to everyone else. Or are you just going to wander and think actually, I am just going to take what is given to me?

As Carl Claypool said, “Visionaries look through the lens of a future reality and see how things could be and not how things currently are.”