by Oleg Konovalov
We are living in a time of leadership blindness. All leaders claim to have a vision. At best, the vast majority are only pretending. In truth, about 0.1% of business, social, or political leaders actually have a vision.
Countless organizations struggle under leaders who seem to lack any sort of meaningful direction. Instead, they meander from one point to another, their behavior indicating the absence of a coherent strategy and clear vision. In fact, life is not a place we live but a path we take. Vision defines a path into the future down which a true leader must lead others.
Vision is not for a selected few. The truth is that you are a visionary as well. Everyone can be a visionary. You have everything for it.
Vision is essential to successful leadership but is often misunderstood and poorly conceived. In The Vision Code I discuss how to create and execute a strong and compelling vision for personal life and business.
I share in-depth conversations with nineteen global visionaries from different countries and industries and open a window into how visionaries think and act. Drawing on these extensive discussions, we learn the importance of a coherent vision, how to create it, how to communicate it effectively, and how to live by it with integrity and passion.
The Vision Code presents vision as a practical business tool and shows you what to do so you can count yourself amongst the most visionary leaders in the business world today.
Vision directly guides decision-making within a straightforward logical chain – compelling vision, comprehensive strategy, focused execution, and clear metrics. This chain is constantly revolving in a closed loop. Every phase of this loop is a chain of decisions that either feed it or snap it beyond recovery. Thus, decisions must be grounded both in the present reality and the future vision.
As a business tool, vision is a process that can be defined by the acronym CAVIAR:
Clarity – Vision comes when your conscious awareness of a problem or a people’s need you want to solve reaches its peak. Clarity of the goal and how to make it a reality defines the strength of a vision.
Ability – Vision is greater than an organization. Creating a vision is a pivotal moment when one decides to look at the world differently, aiming to change it for good. Therefore, he or she must become much stronger as a leader as a leader’s capability to turn vision into reality directly depends on well-developed leadership traits and competencies.
Viability – Vision is pragmatic and must be fully functional and executable. There is no such thing as a weak vision, this is more of an illusion if it is not fully functional. A vision’s viability can be checked against six criteria – stimulus, scale, scanning, spotlight, simplicity, and excitement.
Influence – The greater the vision, the greater the need for strong and far-reaching influence. Influence defined by an ability to communicate and share a vision. The true magic in communicating vision lies in the ability to encourage ownership of the vision in others.
Acting – Vision stands and lives on acting and demands strong leadership. Visionary leadership is about showing people a prosperous future where they are going to be under your leadership and leading them to this promised future. Our life is defined not by the number of problems we solved or how many people we pleased but by the number of solutions we found that allowed creating successful businesses, live in happy families, and create value for others. Strong leadership is about guiding people.
Revitalizing – Vision dies if not developed further. A compelling vision creates a positive impact at every stage of development.
Filled with insights and real-world examples, I present a rich, multidimensional view of organizational and personal growth that will expand and enhance any leader’s perspective.
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Dr. Oleg Konovalov is a thought leader, educator, coach, and author of THE VISION CODE: How To Create And Execute A Compelling Vision For Your Business. For more information please visit: www.OlegKonovalov.com.