Ladies are you clear on your leadership vision? 6 steps to get clarity

Leaders are taking their people someplace. Do you know where you are going? Are you clear on the direction you are taking your team? Now might be a good time to figure that out.

Lessons from Steven Covey
Years ago, I listened to The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People on tape. Back then Steven Covey was the go-to person for leadership development. His work on creating your personal vision has stuck with me. What he said was this:

A personal mission statement is based on habit 2 of 7 Habits of Highly Effective People called begin with the end in mind.
 
In one's life, the most effective way to begin with the end in mind is to develop a mission statement one that focuses what you want to be in terms of
- character and
- what you want to do in reference to contribution of achievements.
 
Writing a mission statement can be the most important activity an individual can take to truly lead ones life.

​Steven Covey

Get clear on your vision
I strongly suggest that you spend time figuring out your vision before you get into strategic planning with your larger organization. You as an individual leader need to know that your vision is about.

• Perhaps you want to excel in creating a stronger team.
• Maybe you want to get more effective at managing conflicts.

This vision of yours may be a part of the bigger company vision, for example, increased employee retention. 

​However, it is when you get clear on your individual vision that you start to really take ownership of your work and create more enjoyment in your work.

6 steps to complete your personal vision
 
Starting point

• Set aside a 2-hour block of time.
• Find someplace that you can be alone and uninterrupted to focus on this.
• Preferably you should be off site.

 
Step # 1 – Identify the company’s goals
Jot down a few rough notes about the direction the company is going.

This doesn’t have to be completely accurate and detailed. It’s not what is typed in the tombs of the management documents. It’s kind of a summary of what you know officially combined with what your gut tells you.

• What is the company focused on?
• What are their top three priorities or strategic areas of focus?
• What goal are they working toward?

For example, your company may be looking at:

• Increasing revenue
• Moving into a new funding area
• Reducing short-term disability claims

 
Set this summary of the company’s vision aside.
Let it go out of your mind for a bit. You will come back to it, but for now, ignore it.
 
Step # 2 – Identify your long term vision
Take a few minutes to close your eyes and reflect.

• What kind of work do you want to be doing five years from now?
• What is the impact you want to make?
• What’s the lasting legacy you want to leave in your work?

 
Imagine the perfect scenario for a few minutes and notice what is happening, what’s working well and how you are doing your job.
 
Write down your own vision. This is your own mission critical. This can be in paragraph form or point form.

• In 5 years where do I want to be?
• What is the impact I want to be making?
• What kind of work do I want to be doing?
• What kind of relationships do I want to have with people?

 
Step # 3 - Find alignment
How is your vision aligned with the company’s vision?

Now it’s time to pull back in the vision of the organization. How does it align with yours?

• Do they match?
• Which parts are similar?

 
If there is no alignment, that certainly tells you something, like perhaps it’s time to find a new job. If so, read more here.
 
If you can find points of alignment, it’s time to spend some time there.
 
Step # 4 - Create your 1-year vision
Look at your one-year vision.

Start to bring your vision in closer. In the next year, if you stay with this organization and continue to do the work you are doing, what is it that you see you being able to do in a year?
 
Again, close your eyes and visualize it.
See it visually.

• Imagine in your mind's eye the types of meetings, conversations, and engagement with employees, stakeholders, and clients you have.

Feel it emotionally.

• Connect to the excitement of goals achieved. Feel a sense of purpose when something significant happens as a result of your work with clients. Notice the sense of teamwork, comradery and caring on your team.

 
Record some of the specifics of that vision.
 
Step # 5 – Develop the plan
Get specific.

What takes you closer to that vision and what takes you away from it? What do you need to do to more closely align with that vision? Start to develop specific tasks and strategies you need to do to move towards that vision.
 
Write down your vision and your plan.

• What are you doing?
• What are you creating?
• What are you building?
• How will you do that?

 
Consider this for

• Yourself
• Your organization
• The members involved in your organization
• The people you serve

Step # 6 – Review your vision and plan weekly
 
Take your plan and write it down in a summary format. It’s important for this next part to have it on one page. It might be a

• Sticky note
• Recipe Card
• Evernote file

 
Put its someplace you can access it easily. It might be on your desk, in your day timer or a file on your phone.
 
Come back to this vision weekly
This step is the most critical. Create a routine where you purposefully spend time connecting to your vision weekly.

That might be scheduling an appointment with yourself each Monday to spend 10 minutes reviewing it. The key is that you want to intentionally re-connect to your vision each week.

During this time, determine how in line you are with your vision. This is a time to decide where you need to course correct. What activities, conversations or tasks do you need to do more of or let go of to get you back on track?
 
Creating your vision intentionally gets you there way quicker
When you commit to setting aside 2-hours to develop a personal vision for your role in the company and then commit to reviewing that vision weekly, your leadership will excel. You’ll find more enjoyment in your job and will notice more success in your overall team’s performance. Connect to the future and create your path to get there. It’s called Intentional Leaders

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