April 2008

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following article was first published in the Eastern Daily Press' 'The Business'  on 16 April 2008</I></div> <bR> <div> <B>I can see clearly now</B></div> <bR> <div> Do you sometimes awaken from a dream, utterly convinced by the sheer reality of the people and places you've encountered?  If so, you have experienced a vision: defined by the OED as `a thing or idea perceived vividly in the imagination.'  Do you have such a clear, vivid picture of where you'd like your business to be at some point in the future?  If not, perhaps you should invest some time in developing one.</div> <bR> <div> The marketing strap line for my mentoring practice is `together, we'll turn your vision into reality'.  I think it's a reasonable job description for the boss of any business - have the vision and make it real.  Knowing where you want to be and what it's going to look like when you get there can help keep you focused on the things that really matter in your organisation.  Without that clear view, it's all too easy to get pushed off course, or enticed into seriously flawed decisions.</div> <bR> <div> Consultants sometimes work with client businesses - especially in the corporate sector - to develop `vision statements' designed to define the company's ambitions and to guide and motivate the staff. Despite good intentions, in practice these often end up hanging on the office wall in a dusty frame, ignored or forgotten - the creativity and commitment that went into their construction a distant memory.  Such an exercise might keep a management team occupied for a couple of days at a workshop, but if the result is not, as the dictionary implies, something that is `perceived vividly' by everyone, it is liable to prove a frustrating waste of time.</div> <bR> <div> A vision isn't simply about a few words crafted by a committee, but rather it's a process in which the leader paints a picture of his or her dream about the future of the business:  what will make it great, what sort of people it will attract and what working there will be like.  That picture is shared with everyone, and it is used at every opportunity to encourage and stimulate people to perform to their full potential.  A vision, far from being simply a statement, should become a way of life within the business.  </div> <div> I believe one of the most valuable benefits that a clear vision provides is that it can be used as a `lens' through which you can observe your organisation's behaviour as you strive to achieve your objectives.  And if the values that the organisation wishes to adhere to are included with a widely-shared vision of where it is going, it can help to guide you in your decision-making, providing a means of testing options so that the actions you take are those most likely to lead you to your desired state.  This is what I call `vision in action':  using that vividly imagined perception to shape action and behaviour and keep everyone heading in the right direction.  It's the way to turn your vision into reality.<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" >   </FONT></div> <bR> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" width=180 BGCOLOR="#CC3333" TEXT="#080000"> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>