Let’s continue from where we left off last week talking about the visioning part of our change formula (DxVxF>R). In the previous post we emphasized the importance of creating a clear and compelling Vision after establishing dissatisfaction with the status quo. The post explored the pivotal role of leaders in guiding change and inspiring others to follow by using the 5 Ps: Purpose, Picture, Plan, Performance Measure, and Part to emphasize the importance of engaging various stakeholders and assigning specific tasks to foster ownership and commitment.
Moving forward, during the Visioning process, it’s also good to ask the following questions about the current reality as well as the desired future reality. Look for gaps in thinking among your community and identify the action steps that will need to be taken to close the gap:
What are the beliefs and assumptions in the community that are congruent with the Vision?
How can we create structures around the Vision that will be consistent with those beliefs?
What patterns of behavior do we want the structure to produce?
Can we describe tangible events that would indicate that the Vision has been achieved?
When your vision is completed, use this checklist to be certain
it is high quality:
Takes advantage of innovation
Incorporates new relationships
Motivates and inspires
Stretches people and moves them toward greatness
Communicates easily
Seems achievable
Fits with your values
Appears sustainable
Is timeless, inspirational, and provides clear guidelines for decision making
Consists of the core ideology (what we stand for and why we exist) and the envisioned future (what we aspire to become, achieve, and create)
Though future-based, is in present tense, as if it were being realized now
Be careful when Visioning to:
Surface disagreements early and thoroughly explore alternatives
Identify any and all weak management support
Watch for a vision that is too obscure or unattainable
Make sure the vision represents a demonstrated difference
Make it real, reachable, and refreshing
Build commitment, not compliance
Put up psychological barriers
We have to remember that our followers and even bystanders who are beginning to believe in the Vision will also experience a sense of loss as they move away from their familiar world and closer to the shared vision. In essence, we, as change agents, are persuading people to let go of old beliefs or habits and adopt new ones. Sacrifice is defined as the surrender or destruction of something prized or desirable for the sake of something considered as having a higher or more pressing claim.
Our followers and bystanders can’t change unless a sacrifice is made (dissatisfaction with status quo). To adopt our vision, people have to abandon what they previously held true. As Nancy Duarte points out in her book, Resonate, “When people deeply understand things from a new perspective to the point where they feel inclined to change, that change begins on the inside (heart and mind) and ends on the outside (actions and behavior).