If You Can See It...

“George Patton famously proclaimed, “We herd sheep, we drive cattle, we lead people. Lead me, follow me, or get out of my way.””

Our job as leaders is to lead, which seems obvious. But more often than not leaders fail because there is no vision or plan to share and lead from. It’s hard to get people to follow unless they really understand the destination. It’s about believing. It’s about ownership. It’s about passion for even the smallest things. 

I often espouse, “If you can see it you can do it,” and that is really the core principle behind leadership: developing, articulating, sharing and executing a vision. This is accomplished when everyone on the team can “see” the entire vision or at least their part in it, and how their contribution fits into the greater whole. You know that your team is onboard when they can articulate back to you or to other members of the team.

Visualization is powerful.

The first step is internal to the leader where they can see themselves implementing the vision /the outcome.

The second is where the practice gets exponentially more powerful and difficult to achieve. It is the actual communication to others of the idea or product or task, so that everyone involved can also “see” it and understand what it requires.

This second form of visualization can make or break a leader. When a leader can get everybody to see and share a single vision, it is galvanizing. A strong vision and understanding of the objectives will keep the efforts focused and driven to achievement. Almost anything can be accomplished if you can get everybody involved to see and understand the whole picture and their contribution to it.

Leadership requires the ability to mobilize the best in the people on the team. It’s about getting everyone to work together towards the common goal or vision. Articulating the vision requires that the leader has” listened” to the vision from all angles.