The Importance of vision.
People often ask me how important vision is in the creation of their future and their businesses or working life. Whether it’s their personal future or businesses future, I answer that it is absolutely imperative for success.
People with vision, ideas, creative gifts, innovativeness and talents – people who develop channels in their lives for these abilities achieve success.
Those who are creative with their visions are also the ones who attract others to them. Vision must be creative, different and inspiring.
The Vision of Ray Kroc
Ray Kroc sold paper cups to restaurants in his early career and worked his way up to become a top salesman. But his vision went way beyond paper cups. He dreamed of making a big impact on the restaurant business, so he quit his job in order to market a machine that could mix several milkshakes at the same time.
When you have a dream. opportunities come to you. Through promoting the milkshake machine he met the McDonalds Brothers who ran a highly successful restaurant. They got talking and Ray Kroc ended up becoming their partner.
Driven by his vision he came up with the concept of duplicating the McDonalds restaurant on the other side of town, he encountered a lot of opposition from the McDonald Brothers. This was back at a time when hamburgers and chips were not an accepted meal. Kroc begun developing his own empire, he was driven.
For the first eight years he poured all he had into the concept and saw few profits in return. He battled with the McDonald Brothers during this time. Kroc was well into his 50s when he began the McDonalds journey.
Today the Ray Kroc estate alone is estimated to be worth about $350 Million. Ray Kroc had a vision and it changed the world.
A Dream and a Mouse.
Walt Disney did the same with his dream. He had to approach 303 banks before he could find one willing to finance his wild and crazy idea to put a fun park with a cartoon mouse in a swamp area.
Unfortunately Walt passed away before Disneyland was opened but on the day it did open Walt’s wife Lillian was speaking at the opening ceremony when the MC said “I wish Walt could have seen this” Lillian answered,
“He did and that’s why you are seeing it now”.
Neil Armstong, the first man to walk on the moon, said that ever since he was a boy he had a dream of doing something important in aviation. Elon Musk had dreams of space exploration since he was a child. His company Spacex became the first private company to launch a space mission in 2020.
To be a successful person, regardless of your age and there is a plethora of stories of people becoming hugely successful at an older age, you must have a vision or where you want to be. Vision will cause you to be stretched far beyond the abilities you currently possess. It will launch you into abilities you do not have right now.
Will there be pain along the way? You bet. But betterment by its very nature is about vision, and being a better person is worth the pain it takes to get there.
An athlete has a vision for Gold. A businessperson has a vision for success, helping people solve a problem and profits. A mother has a vision for bringing up well-balance children in a happy family. What is the vision for your life?
Vision and Leaders
Vison is not a goal. It is a picture, a canvas on which you paint your future. It shows you what the future could and should look like. The businessperson’s canvas shows them standing in front if a tall modern building with their company name on it – a sign of their success.
The athlete’s painting shows them standing in victory lane holding the spoils of the win high above their heads surrounded by cheering fans. And the young man or women wanting the heart of their sweetheart envisions being at the alter with their beautiful partner.
We are all leaders in one way or another. Whether you are a leader in the tradition sense of the word or the leader of you, we all have a painting of where we are going and transforming it into living reality to effect the lives of those around us.
The wonderful thing about vision it that it is not something that you manage but something you lead people into. I have seen companies, businesses and organisations being managed, not led. One of the reasons they aren’t led is because there is no vision.
To be a better you and a great leader, you need to lead people to a goal worth achieving. The vision creates inspiration, which leads to perspiration (and more than a little frustration), With a vision a team of workers become more than just workers- they become an army. It is a rallying point, it gives them meaning and purpose.
Communication and personal example are of utmost importance in passing on vision. Here’s a simple but powerful strategy I use when transferring vision to my colleagues.
- Keep it simple.
A cluttered or hazy vision doesn’t give people an accurate picture of where they are going.
- Stick to the core issue.
These are what is important. When speaking to individuals and corporations the core issue is to motivate people to a life of excellence. How we do it varies greatly. But the core issues is to motivate and lead people to create their version of a magnificent life.
- Repeat it before people.
People need to be constantly reminded and motivated. Repetition is one of the greatest tools of teaching. Think back to your early school days were you were made to recite your times table over and over again. Motivation is like a warm bath it needs to be topped up or it goes cold.
- Stress its importance.
People start to “own” the vison as they catch your enthusiasm, passion and drive.
- Show people how to attain the vision.
I hear a lot about delegation, but unless people have mastered a task or have a good understanding of how you want it done, how can they be delegated to do it with accuracy and intelligence? Show them how.
- Help them attain it.
A baby needs to be helped to take its first steps. A child needs assistance to ride a bike for the first time. By helping them, you lead them towards fulfilling their own vision.
- Show them the consequences of reward and failure.
Build their motivation to succeed.
- Celebrate the small victories.
Each small celebration inspires people on to the next one. This is one of the reasons I enjoy speaking at corporate awards nights. They celebrate each small step that leads to their top awards.
Every achiever, whether at a high level or just beginning, is applauded.
- Make sure each team member is aware of how their personal input is contributing to success.
People need to know that their contribution has meaning and is appreciated. This gives them a sense of ownership of the vision and inspires them to greater achievement.
This doesn’t mean you can’t be flexible; it means you set a standard and stick to it.
Turn your present into a vision of how you want the future to be.
Vision Creates The Future
Commitment to vision is an awesome power. If you decide to persistently move towards your goals over days, weeks, months and years you will change your life, the lives of people around you , and your world. Regardless of setbacks.
Have you ever seen a successful athlete suffer a horrible injury and then come back stronger than ever and win the prize……a failed businessperson start all over again from zero and become a huge success……a couple come back after a failed marriage to build a solid, secure unit? It is because the vision stayed alive despite their circumstances.
If you have a vision it eases the pain of when you face problems. They lose some of the sting. The vision lifts you above difficulties and give you strength to persevere through them and out the other side.
You can change the way your thing about your work, your employer, the people who work for you, your future. It’s a decision.
Live life.
David
