COMMUNICATING YOUR VISION
JANUARY 2013
by Lisa Maki
A vision is the end-result of what has to be fulfilled on earth. It is the final outcome of an assignment. It is the finish line in a race. Our vision is our God-given assignment in our lifetime. As a leader, your vision entails smaller visions belonging to people who God will bring to you or has already brought to you. These people may not even know what their visions are. They were placed under your leadership for the purpose of leading them where God wants them to be.
Proverbs 29:18 says … Where there is no vision, the people perish.
Since the vision is the end-result, it is your role as a leader to make your people see where all of you are headed. They have to realize what their role is in getting to the ultimate destination. A vision will be of no use if you can’t communicate it down the line. You have to assume that not because you see it, your people also see it in the same way. You have to paint a mental picture in their minds.
When God gave Moses a vision, He gave him the big picture … the promised land … a land of milk and honey. Moses had to communicate this vision to the people so that they will follow him and understand the process of getting to their destination. He didn’t just communicate the vision to them once, but over and over again.
What you also have to realize, as a leader, is that the clearer your vision is, the easier it will be for others to catch it. The question now is: How do you communicate your vision effectively?
1. Write your vision. In Habbakuk 2:2 God told Habakkuk to write the vision so plainly that everyone who passes may read as he hastens by. You can’t have a vision and not have it written down. You need a vision statement first. It should state the end-result, what you expect to happen. (I will be writing about vision statements on the next publication.)
2. Have a mission statement. A mission statement is part of the vision statement. They go hand-in-hand. It explains what you are going to do. This will also explain more or less what makes you different from others.
3. Once you have your vision-mission statement written down, it is going to be easier to communicate it verbally. However, you have to be sure that your vision-mission statement is clearly written.
4. If your vision-mission has different components to it, be sure that you break it down clearly.
5. Find out from your people, or those who God connects to you, what their visions are. This way you will know how to align your visions together.
6. If you have people under you or you are leading a group of people, let them know what your vision is. Explain it clearly to them. Then ask them how they can connect their own personal visions with yours. From here you will see who is and is not clear about his/her personal vision. It is your responsibility to lead and guide them accordingly.
7. Make sure that how you want your vision understood is how other people understand it. You can do this by asking.
8. It is good to have a regular “revisitation” of your vision, probably twice or once a year. This is a time for you to compare your vision-mission to what you have done and accomplished. This is also a good way of finding out what you can stop doing, what you can continue doing, what you should start doing, and what you can do differently.
God entrusted that vision to you. At the end of the day, you and only you will be held accountable as to what you have done with it.
Proverbs 29:18 says … Where there is no vision, the people perish.
Since the vision is the end-result, it is your role as a leader to make your people see where all of you are headed. They have to realize what their role is in getting to the ultimate destination. A vision will be of no use if you can’t communicate it down the line. You have to assume that not because you see it, your people also see it in the same way. You have to paint a mental picture in their minds.
When God gave Moses a vision, He gave him the big picture … the promised land … a land of milk and honey. Moses had to communicate this vision to the people so that they will follow him and understand the process of getting to their destination. He didn’t just communicate the vision to them once, but over and over again.
What you also have to realize, as a leader, is that the clearer your vision is, the easier it will be for others to catch it. The question now is: How do you communicate your vision effectively?
1. Write your vision. In Habbakuk 2:2 God told Habakkuk to write the vision so plainly that everyone who passes may read as he hastens by. You can’t have a vision and not have it written down. You need a vision statement first. It should state the end-result, what you expect to happen. (I will be writing about vision statements on the next publication.)
2. Have a mission statement. A mission statement is part of the vision statement. They go hand-in-hand. It explains what you are going to do. This will also explain more or less what makes you different from others.
3. Once you have your vision-mission statement written down, it is going to be easier to communicate it verbally. However, you have to be sure that your vision-mission statement is clearly written.
4. If your vision-mission has different components to it, be sure that you break it down clearly.
5. Find out from your people, or those who God connects to you, what their visions are. This way you will know how to align your visions together.
6. If you have people under you or you are leading a group of people, let them know what your vision is. Explain it clearly to them. Then ask them how they can connect their own personal visions with yours. From here you will see who is and is not clear about his/her personal vision. It is your responsibility to lead and guide them accordingly.
7. Make sure that how you want your vision understood is how other people understand it. You can do this by asking.
8. It is good to have a regular “revisitation” of your vision, probably twice or once a year. This is a time for you to compare your vision-mission to what you have done and accomplished. This is also a good way of finding out what you can stop doing, what you can continue doing, what you should start doing, and what you can do differently.
God entrusted that vision to you. At the end of the day, you and only you will be held accountable as to what you have done with it.
Lisa Maki is a Professional Development Coach. Please visit her website at ...
www.lisamakiconsulting.com/
www.lisamakiconsulting.com/
