The Power of a Vision and How to Build One

Like most people, I’ve been watching the Paris Olympics in every spare waking moment. From the hard-won success of French swimmer Leon Marchand to the incredible spectacle of Celine Dion singing on the Eiffel Tower, these Olympic Games are a fantastic example of a vision which has come to fruition in spectacular style.

For Paris, the games don’t end this week though. Their legacy will endure well into the future, as we have seen with the London 2012 games; over 110,000 jobs have been created in the boroughs which hosted the games, and in 2016 91% of teachers said that their students were more motivated to take part in sport thanks to the games. Perhaps most importantly of all, we’ve been left with a huge sense of French national pride and collective unity.

This highlights the rousing impact that having a clear vision can have if implemented well. This takes detailed planning and a clear strategy, but these are not factors for the vision itself, which should be broad and ambitious.

What is a Vision?

A vision is a statement which outlines the desired future state of an organisation.

This means that it sets out a clear direction of travel for where an organisation wants to end up.

It should be broad reaching, but short and pithy. The best visions are no more than two sentences long, and preferably will be even shorter than that.

However, just as important as what a vision is, is what it’s not. A vision should not be a clear plan for achieving your goals, nor a series of short term aims which are easily achieved.

Here’s an example of a vision statement from Pfizer: “To be the premier, innovative biopharmaceutical company, making breakthroughs that change patients’ lives.”

Short, to the point, and broad in focus – a great vision.

Think Long Term

While creating a vision is not about detailed planning, it is important to take a long-term and strategic approach. 

This means analysing your strengths and weaknesses as an organisation, taking time to develop ideas for the future, and thinking deeply about what you want to achieve and why.

Holding a vision workshop, a series of discussions about your core values as an organisation, your objectives, and the key principles you want to see in your vision, can be a useful way of doing this.

It’s a valuable opportunity to gather key stakeholders and ensure that you’re all working towards the same objectives.

We recently held a workshop for a client to refresh their existing vision. It was a productive day which left all stakeholders with a clearer idea of the direction their organisation was taking, and a renewed impetus to achieve their goals.

While many people are often sceptical about the benefits of spending precious time thinking about intangible objectives with deadlines years ahead, they rarely regret creating space to think strategically after the event.

Light on Detail, Heavy on Ambition

A vision should not be detailed. This may sound counterproductive, but if it’s to be genuinely transformative and ambitious it’s important that the focus of the vision is on ‘why’ and not ‘how’.

Establishing ambitious goals is a positive thing which should not be inhibited by detailed discussions about how they should be achieved when creating a vision, that can come at a later stage and the vision can be revised if necessary.

In any case, it’s very difficult to fully gauge how you’re going to do something in ten years’ time, so it’s best to focus on what you can control here and now.

Make it Achievable

Equally important as ambition is being realistic. A vision is only useful if it’s achievable.

There’s no point saying that you want to be a billion-pound, world leading business in ten years’ time if you’re a startup in a niche market with very limited funding. It’s highly unlikely that this is achievable, meaning the vision does not provide a clear direction or a realistic goal to work towards. Creating such an impractical vision is a pointless exercise.

Creating a vision is a deceptively complicated task if done well. However, as both the London and Paris Olympics show us, a clear vision can drive forward even the most ambitious of projects and turn ideas into realities.