Elements Of A Leader Vision And How To Form One

Why: We want to set up a vision framework for ourselves so that we can work on sharpening it.

Vision is a positive view against negative situation.
How visionary you can be depends on how much people believe in your logic and in your capability to deliver the promise.

In a flash, here is how you do it!

In Short

In order to move the crowd, the vision has to be backed by believable evidence. The question is then in such a short speech, how can one express proof and logic.

Here, we would like to look at some of the thinking tools (mental model) to help formulate your believable vision.

1. First Principle Thinking

Watching material: The Most Powerful Way to Think | First Principles

To build a great vision, it has to be based on the fundamental truth!

By approaching any topic with the first principle, you will decompose the situation into its smallest fact. And then connect them together to build up to why it has become what it is now.

This can be seen as a different level of truth.

For example,
The apple is red because the skin is red. = True
The apple’s skin is red because apple fruit accumulates color pigments. = True
The apple’s pigments change to certain color because of multi-step biochemical processes. = True
The apple’s biochemical processes are dictated by genetic, temperature, and light. = True

You can see that one can answer why the apple is red with all the abovementioned answers and still be correct. Whether the apple is red because of the skin, color pigments, biochemical processes, DNA, temperature, or light.

But the point is that the deeper you dig down to its smallest, most fundamental truth, the more useful the answer becomes in finding a solution.

Because it opens up possibilities for us to investigate and experiment with each fact and combination of facts.

Mental tools

• 5x Whys finding root cause
• 2×2 dynamic metrics of duration and depth
• 5x What ifs seeing possible futures
  • How can we operate in this future?
  • Are there other places where this future already in place?
  • What else could we do that we are not already doing?

Reading material: a book called “The Great Mental Model”

2. Draft your vision

In a vision statement, in order to get the buy-in from anyone, you must express both your motivation (why) and logic (what and how).

Here is one vision formula from Adeo Rezzi.

My team _NAME_ is developing _OFFER_ to help _AUDIENCE_ solve _PROBLEM_ with _SECRET SAUCE_.

Who = _NAME_
What = _OFFER_
Whom = _AUDIENCE_
Why = _PROBLEM_
How = _SECRET SAUCE_

3. More clarification, less doubt.

The balance of information volume is an art.
Too less, your audience cannot form your vision.
Too much, your audience gets lost.

While keeping the balance of volume, the following points are commonly doubted by the audience. So you should clarify it when deemed necessary.

• Why
  • Why you? capability and skill (resource-view)
  • Why now? technology stacking and competitors (market-view)
• How
  • How are you delivering current task? (present)
  • How must we proceed to achieve our goal? (future)

Conclusion

The person who says he knows what he thinks but cannot express it usually does not know what he thinks.

Mortimer Adler

One of the most common leadership problems is a lack of vision. Yet, forming a vision leads our own life and others to a better and brighter future.

Be curious about fundamental truth with the first principle. And then shape a vision statement with the right balance between present and future.

Ich träume davon, das IoT-Geschäft in Europa und Asien zu erforschen und auszubauen.

Ich stelle mir vor, dass wir durch die Zusammenarbeit mit intelligenten Geräten lebendiger und sicherer leben würden.

Mein Ziel ist es nun, während meines MBA-Studiums meinen ersten IoT-Service zu entwickeln.

Ich werde im ersten Semester ein digitales Geschäftsmodell für 5 Bereiche des Geschäfts aufbauen: Wertschöpfung, Marketing, Vertrieb, Wertlieferung und Finanzen.

Go tell your vision with purpose! You have now all the tools.