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Trumpeting the Vision — D3, W3, M1 — Intentional Leadership — Vision

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 30, 2013| Leave a Comment »

So, what did you learn yesterday about the communication methods you are using to share your vision?

Spend some time today to reflect on what you’ve learned, what it means, and what you now need to do to communicate your vision more consistently and effectively, so it sticks, with your team/organization.

Is it time to refine your vision statement more clearly and simply?

Have you clearly articulated the “Why” behind your vision? What’s the compelling reason for you to strive for it? What will happen to your team/organization if you don’t reach it?

If you haven’t heard this already, it might be helpful to know that the most popular radio station in the world is WII FM (or What’s In It For Me?). You need to be able to help your people make the personal connection between themselves as individuals–then the team, then the organization–to your vision. If you can do this effectively, you will be way ahead of the game. And the way to do this is to really get to know your people, what inspires them? What motivates them? What do they want to do, be, or have more of?

Do you need to put different benchmarks in place to measure your progress along the path to your vision? If so, what are they? And what are the key milestones you will need to reach along the way?

Once the measurements have been clearly defined, how will you celebrate when you reach them? And how will you reward your team members for their efforts?

Next, it’s time to thoughtfully map out your communication plan: Audience, Key Messages, Vehicles (primary and secondary), Timing, Owner, Outcome, Status, and Review. Successful leader-communicators consistently spend 80% of their time (with respect to communication) planning the communication and only 20% actually communicating. While it may seem counter-intuitive because it’s so easy to open our mouths and speak, truly effective communication does not just happen!

Your plan is nearly finished! Now, outline the key action steps needed to implement the plan, including who owns each action, what the expected deadlines are, and what the outcomes should be.

Now that you have an initial draft of your plan put together, who can you ask to review it? Find a trusted advisor or mentor and ask for their candid feedback before you take the plan to your team/organization.

It may sound like a lot of time-consuming effort, but I promise you the time you spend thoughtfully considering and planning your work will pay off in the end, with a more thorough, thoughtful, carefully crafted approach and it will show in the results.

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Trumpeting the Vision — Day 2, W3, M1 — Intentional Leadership — Vision

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , on January 29, 2013| Leave a Comment »

As we spend this week contemplating what tools and with what frequency we are communicating our vision, let’s spend today really digging into what we’ve been doing and how it’s working for us.

Take some time to ask yourself the following questions:

  • What methods have I been using to communicate my team’s/organization’s vision?
  • How effective have they been?
  • What measures do I have in place to determine effectiveness?
  • Do I need to consider other measures?
  • Have we been celebrating activity linked to our vision?
  • If so, how?
  • If not, why not?
  • How do I connect with the vision and demonstrate it in my actions?
  • Do I need to be doing something differently?

The answers to these, and other questions that will no doubt arise as you go through this exercise, will allow you to recognize if changes are needed in your strategies and actions, or confirm you are on the right path.

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Trumpeting the Vision — Day 1, W3, M1 — Intentional Leadership — Vision

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , on January 27, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Welcome to week 3 of our Intentional Leadership journey!

Today, we will focus on the incredible volume of messages the average person is exposed to in a day — anywhere between 247 and 3,000 — depending on which source you pull the research from,  and those sites are focused only on commercial (advertising and marketing) messages; what might the number be when you factor in all the personal and directly-related business messages we deal with in a day? Hard to wade through, aren’t they?

This is one reason we must “trumpet the vision” as we are working to inspire and motivate our organization. It’s oh-so-critical to make your vision as crystal clear and simple as possible, and then to say it over and over and over, and celebrate it, and link it to action… many times a day, every single day.

It probably sounds boring and tiring, but it’s true. People need to hear things a minimum of 12 twelve times, through a variety of different mediums, before they truly begin to notice and attend to a message. Repetition is critical. This does not mean you need to say exactly the same words the same way every single time.

Indeed, what will be more effective is to weave your vision into messages at a variety of levels. Connect it to the major initiatives your organization is undertaking. Tie it into what lower level teams are working on. Draw the lines to how individuals are helping your organization move closer to the vision.

Don’t necessarily be subtle and don’t assume they will quickly see all the connections you see. Draw them the picture over and over and over. Make the connections for them.

Today’s exercise is to spend some time considering how your vision has historically been communicated and reinforced. What has worked the best?

If you’re not sure, spend some time talking with your people today and ask them what the vision is. If they can’t tell you simply, you have some work to do.

If that’s the case, take some time to articulate your vision and really consider if it’s simple enough to grasp quickly. Think about how you can make it more real for your team or organization; what picture do you need to draw for them so they get it?

Who can help you? Remember, you need not be the only vision ambassador; you know the people who get it — enlist their help in communicating and reinforcing your vision throughout the organization, in a variety of different ways.

Let me know how I can help you.

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Seeing the Bigger Picture – Intentional Leadership — Week 2, Day 1 (M1) Vision

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , on January 21, 2013| 1 Comment »

It looks like this week we are going to focus more on organizational vision than personal vision. Week two is focused on Seeing the Bigger Picture.

Leaders are often defined by the size and scope of their vision. If you know the story of the McDonald brothers, you will remember they were brilliant in terms of anticipating and responding to the desires of their market, and even more so at developing the assembly line process in terms of food production. They attempted to sell franchises, but the concept never took off. In fact, when one franchisee in Phoenix wanted to name his restaurant McDonald’s, the brothers said, “why, no one will know who we are in Phoenix!”

Enter Ray Kroc, a milkshake machine salesman who did business with the McDonald brothers. He could see the bigger picture. He envisioned McDonald’s franchises all across the country. He worked with the brothers, eventually buying the rights to franchise, etc., and his vision built the global corporation we know today.

He was convinced he was on the right track and confident in his ability to be successful. This is not to say it didn’t require years of hard work and sacrifice, but he saw the potential and made it a reality.

Break now to the story of Sergey Brin and Larry Page of Google fame and fortune. They started with the challenge of linking the growing data connections on the internet. As they became more engrossed in their project, they quit school to follow their passion full-time, starting Google in a garage in 1998. By 2008, Google was processing nearly five billion web searches per month. Page says he learned something in college that drove them forward; it was this phrase:

Having a healthy disregard for the impossible.

As I’ve noted in an earlier post, while there are many out there stating certain things are impossible, there all too regularly seems to be someone, somewhere who is doing the impossible. Man on the moon. Rover on mars. Printing out human kidneys on an ink jet printer…The stories are out there to be found each and every day of someone achieving something once thought impossible.

The point here, having great vision and setting the audacious goal is a hallmark of visionary leaders.

What is the vision of your organization?

Is it big enough?

Does your team see  and understand it?

Do they believe it’s possible to achieve?

Are they as passionate as you about achieving it?

Me, I’m out to change the world one person, one experience at a time. Yes, it’s huge…and for today, at least, it’s just me (I have yet to build a team). That’s not a deterrent, though. I’m fully confident in my ability to succeed.

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Intentional Leadership – Day 4 (M1, W2) Vision

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , on January 17, 2013| Leave a Comment »

As is key in improving your effectiveness with most any endeavor, reflection on this journey is critical. Today, take the time to reflect on your vision.

Write it down.

Paint a vivid picture of your dream.

Then, as a communications expert once explained to me, it’s time to “reduce the sauce.” He was referring to the process in cooking when you’ve put all the ingredients into the pot, mixed them together, and have to keep cooking until it has condensed, and reduced…as you know, you end up with something more concentrated than what you began with.

So, reduce the sauce. Keep rewriting your vision until you can state it concisely and clearly in just a few sentences; no more than one short paragraph. When you reach that point, see if you can condense it down to one sentence.

Paul Martinelli, President of the John Maxwell Team, often says, “If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”

Give yourself the time to do this. Be patient with yourself. Try the words on for size. Let them roll around on your tongue to ensure they are your words and you are comfortable speaking them. Authenticity is important. Notice how your body feels as you say the words and declare your intentions. Trust your intuition when it says, “That’s just right; you can stop now!”

When you are finished it should be obvious who you are and what you stand for.

I spent years working on this one; refining it time and time, again. And it’s changed over the years, as I’ve learned more and reflected on my experiences. That’s the beauty of the journey.

I can’t wait to hear your vision statement…I hope you will share it with us here.

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Intentional Leadership – Day 2 (month 1, week 1) – Vision

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , , on January 15, 2013| Leave a Comment »

What is true about you?

When you dream and have a vision for your life, you begin to set the journey apart from what others are doing.

Do you want to do, be, or have more in your life? I think many people do want more. Based on experience and observation, however, many of them never take action toward realizing that longing. It takes time, commit, energy, and hard work. 

In the beginning, you may not have a full, crystal-clear picture of what success will look like. You may not even see more than the first couple of steps on your journey, leading in the right direction.

Know this: Each step you take towards achieving your dream brings you one step closer to becoming a fuller, more satisfied, better version of yourself. Each step will bring your vision into clearer focus, more steps will appear, and the resources you need will become available to you.

This personal journey is critical; if you cannot lead yourself, how can you lead others? If you cannot define your personal vision – for who you are and what you will be – how will you create a compelling vision that will draw others who would follow you?

With this in mind, I am refocusing from my thoughts of yesterday. Today is about my personal vision for me – not creating and growing a business.

Remember, a vision is what you will do, be, or have when you have “arrived.” It’s a future state, not a representation of who you are today. State it in the “present” tense as you develop your vision – it will fuel your belief in your ability to achieve it.

So, here is mine:

Do. Be. Have. I am intentionally pursuing my personal growth plan, understanding it is a lifelong journey, and I learn something new every day. I am a person of value who values others and does whatever I can to add value to others. I am enjoying the fulfillment and satisfaction that comes with recognizing and living my purpose.

This is a different statement than the one I would make about the vision I have for my business.

Today’s exercise:

  • What is your personal – not business – vision?
  • How does your vision affect those closest to you? Is it enriching or destructive?
  • How is your personal vision embodied in your work?
  • Does your work nurture and feed your personal vision, or is it drawing you away from where you need to be?

I trust if you are reading this, you are serious about growth and serving others. Take your time in responding to the questions. The key is to do a quality job here; rushing through this will not serve you well.

I’m thrilled you are coming on this journey with me. I’ll “see” you tomorrow!

 

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Becoming an intentional leader — Day 1 (month 1, week 1) Vision

Posted in Leadership, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 14, 2013| 2 Comments »

Last May, I attended the Chick-fil-A Leadercast. It was a powerful event and food for my growth plan. I learned a number of lessons that day, and have been mindful to apply them over this past 8 months, and have shared a number of them with others. I purchased a number of books through the Leadercast and received a couple of additional benefits. One of them, a booklet called Intentional Leader, created by Giant Impact (the organization that runs the Leadercast every year). I rediscovered it last week while organizing my home office. It offers twelve months of lessons, broken out for a 5-day week (with prep work for weekends), with each month focused on a different topic. At the end of each day’s lesson is one or more questions, intended to help the reader dig deeper into their thought processes and beliefs.

I’m a couple of weeks past the start of the year, but there’s no time like the present to learn and grow. So, I’m starting today. Won’t you join me?

Month 1 is Vision; week one is Personal Vision; day one is…

Leading others well begins with leading yourself well. And without a strong personal vision driving your own leadership, even this task can prove difficult.

In the beginning, the first, most critical step towards becoming an effective leader is self-awareness. You must know your strengths and weaknesses. You must understand what it is you seek to achieve. Once you understand your vision, you must be able to articulate it. Then, you must reinforce your words with your actions. Hold strong against the people and forces you will inevitably encounter that will attempt to deter you from your path.

Envision yourself succeeding, and refuse to let failure deter your vision.

My personal vision is to continue to grow and to reach out to as many people as I can to share the gifts I’ve been given, adding value to whomever crosses my path along my journey. To that end, I’ve invested in myself in many ways throughout my life — classes, workshops, seminars, reading, gleaning wisdom from a variety of mentors, and surrounding myself with others who share my passion and are also on a growth journey. I’ve become a John Maxwell certified Coach, Trainer, and Speaker, and am building a business focused on helping others discover their passion, overcome self-limiting beliefs, develop and implement plans to reach their goals, and to realize their full potential.

I’ve got the beginning steps in place and I can see the next few I need to take, but I’m a long way from fully realizing my dream and my potential. But that’s ok, because I know it’s a journey and it will take me some time. This is the kind of work — for me at least — that comes so naturally and is so fulfilling, the idea of “retiring” doesn’t seem very appealing!

Question: What may be preventing you from confidently believing in your personal vision?

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Taking stock and clearing out the clutter

Posted in Food for Thought, tagged , , , , on September 9, 2012| 1 Comment »

The “town” (I say this in quotes because we have a Mayor and City Council, but our town is only houses and families…no services…seems funny to me!) has a community yard sale day twice a year; yesterday was the latest. It marked the 5th time we’ve participated, although on a much smaller scale than in years past. I kept the door open for only two hours, rather than six, but it felt so good to move some of our things on to others who will find them useful, even though we don’t, any longer.

In recent months, I’ve had a very strong need to clean things out, both literally and figuratively. I’ve been cleaning out my closets and drawers, throwing things away, and sending stuff to Goodwill and Salvation Army with the hope that someone else may get some good use out of the things I no longer need, want, use. Some days, this need is so strong, it’s a physical vibration (well, this makes sense if all things are energy, flowing into and out of things, then it’s just my frequency responding…) and I am compelled to clean, sort, and toss.

It feels much better to have what I need and use, and not be confronted with too many choices about what to wear and use each day.

There used to be a time when my purchases were based on what they cost, not necessarily on quality or value. These days, I am in a position to think less about cost and base decisions on quality and value, and it’s a much better place, to be sure. Take my wardrobe, for instance. I’ve never been a fashion plate, leaning more toward the comfortable than the latest fashions. I want what I buy to be things I truly love, feel good in, and know I can wear for years — both because the styles will still be fine, and because they are of such a quality that they will still be in great shape for some time.

What does this have to do with personal growth and leadership, you are probably asking yourself. Well, here’s the parallel, at least in my mind.

As I get older, I’m more focused, more in tune with myself and what I need to be a whole, healthy, happy person who is able to contribute and add value to others. As with the things in my closets, cupboards, and drawers, I am also taking stock of who I am, what I have to offer, how I want to spend my time, and with whom I want to share it.

One of my mentors, John Maxwell, shares that at the end of each year, he takes a week off to review how he spent the past year, before he plans for the coming year. He considers each person he’s spent time with in terms of whether the relationship was positive, one that added value to his life and lifted him up, or whether it was one of those relationships that suck the life out of you (my words, not his!). Based on this reflection, he decides who he wants to spend more time with in the coming year (think ‘life energy’) and who he will spend less (or no) time with in the future. He follows the same pattern with engagements, meetings, and other activities.

John understands that this is not a dress rehearsal. We get only one shot at this thing we call life and he wants it to be a quality experience. Me, too!

I want to spend my time with quality, like-minded people. I need to spend time with people who are better at the things I want to learn and in the areas in which I want to grow. I need to read good books; ones that make me think, expose me to new ideas, challenge my perceptions about what is possible, and allow me to learn from others’ experiences. This is not to say I don’t read the occasional frivolous fiction (I can’t help but lose myself in the ridiculous world of Stephanie Plum from time to time!)…but the point is, I am working on being more intentional about how I spend my time and who I spend it with.

I know many people think in terms of “spring cleaning,” but fall has always been a time of renewal for me. Although, I suspect, this will be an on-going process for me from now on, as each day I understand more fully that growth in any area is a daily process, a daily activity…not just something one does for some pre-determined amount of time (four years of college, perhaps…) and then is done. The thing is, I’m not done, and doubt I ever will be.

My questions for you are these:

When do you take stock of your life and how you are spending your life energy?
How often, and how frequently, do you spend time in reflection?
Does that time reinforce the good and right in your life?
Does it lead you to explore new paths, and make changes?
Are you any closer to understanding the difference between need and want?

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Writing to learn what I know

Posted in Communication, tagged , , , , , , on August 14, 2012| Leave a Comment »

I have loved to write for as long as I can remember. I remember dreaming of stacks of beautiful, crisp, clean white paper and a nice pen (oh, yes — a nice pen is critical. Ask anyone who loves to write, and those who write long-hand are very particular about the kind of pen they need to be fully present in their writing, open to creativity, and able to fully channel those words and thoughts to paper) and uninterrupted time to write.

I’ve made my living for 20+ years as a communicator for a variety of companies in a variety of industries, and much of that work involved writing; “putting words in a row,” as a dear friend describes it.

I have always believed words were important. Remember the saying, “Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me!” How wrong that is. Words are powerful. They can change our lives. They can change the world.

“Words matter. Write to learn what you know.” This is a saying on a card given to me by my aforementioned friend. For years, I kept that card on my bulletin board. At some point, it was packed away for a move. I have yet to unpack it, but the physical card isn’t as important now; the words are imprinted on my mind and I remember them daily.

For years, I have used writing as a channel for other people’s messages; in a sense, in the corporate world I have functioned as something of a ghostwriter for a number of my colleagues. Recently, I have been called to fully live my purpose — change the world by adding value to others — which demands that I step out into the world with my own voice, to share with you my passion, my purpose, my thoughts, my experiences, and my questions.

This is why, today — on the 14th of August, 2012 — I invite you to join me on my journey. Welcome to Leadership & Life Potential. Welcome to LauraLines. Welcome to this exciting, energizing, thought-provoking conversation. I hope you will join the conversation and come back often; I promise to be here with new thoughts at least weekly. I intend to write to learn what I know, and further explore thoughts and ideas related to passion, purpose, personal growth, communication, and leadership.

Together let’s change the world with powerful words.

What are you writing, and what are you learning about yourself through the process?

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