I am babysitting tonight. My wife is away on her job and I am thinking about the next Essential Element for your Toolbox. Setting the Vision is the next most important Element of leadership.
It’s light outside at the moment and I can see my kids. I feel better when I see them in the neighborhood. Our neighborhood is on a cul-de-sac and our house is situated so that I can see where my three children are at any moment. I can see them come and go, whom they are playing with, and what is going on. I feel good about this; I don’t have to worry because I just know where they are. I can also see them in my “mind’s eye” when I go in for a brief moment. In fact, I can see every kid in the neighborhood. I feel so good about this I am feelin’ like a cul-de-sac god: I can see and hear ev-ree-thing!
Vision is a powerful tool in leadership. To see in one’s mind’s eye what will transpire in the future can help us over the daily challenges and changes in our roles as leaders and as followers. Our vision helps us do what we want to do, get to where we want to go. Vision charts our course, is connected with our dreams and gives us a level of comfort in a complex world. It also helps us prepare for the future because without “vision” we are dead-in-the-water.
Steven Covey has written a few books, one of which is called The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. You may have heard of it before. In it he explores Setting the Vision like this: Begin with the end in mind. This is his second “habit” in the series where he talks about these habits as an embodiment of the principles of “human effectiveness”, that they are “basic”; they are “primary”. He says, “They represent the internalization of correct principles upon which enduring happiness and success are based.” (p. 23) His “beginning with the end in mind” he says, in the most fundamental application, “is to begin today with an image, picture, or paradigm of the end of your life as your frame of reference or the criterion by which everything else is examined.” He goes on, “By keeping that end in mind, you can make certain that whatever you do on any particular day does not violate the criteria you have defined as supremely important, and that each day of your life contributes in a meaningful way to the vision you have of your life as a whole.” (p. 98) Covey’s thoughts appeal to us as leaders because we can think of “setting our course” in life, for ourselves and those we lead, as basing all we do on our principles, our internal moral compass as leaders, so that each behavior, habit, action, or word contributes in a meaningful way to our lives, and those of others, as a whole. If we think about what matters to us most, on a personal level, as a leader, in our mind’s eye we “visualize” a clear picture of where we are headed to have an understanding of the road we must travel. Setting the Vision means having a clear understanding of where we are headed, communicating where we are going, taking the steps to reach our destination, and doing it all contributing to our lives as a whole, framed, or visualized in what we believe as being “supremely important”. “To know where you’re going so that you better understand where you are now…” (p. 98)
All great sports stars envision how to go about playing their sport. Tennis players see themselves serving a winning ace. Golf stars envision the ball rolling across the green and then dropping into the hole. Great baseball players see themselves hitting a ball. Successful athletes use as many senses as possible to create and practice the vision of what they want to do or how they want to move “in their mind’s eye” before their sport is played. All that is left for them when the time comes is to “just do it” because they’ve already “been there, done that”. Wayne Gretsky’s Father used to tell him when he was growing up that instead of being where the hockey puck was at any given moment, he told him to think where the puck would be, and then go there. In other words, Wayne was to “envision” or see in his mind’s eye where the hockey play would end up instead of where the action was. And for the advise of his Father, he became immortally known as “The Great One” for playing the sport of hockey better than anyone else.
The vision of the Navy is everywhere. We’ve seen it in the Plan of the Month, on bulletin boards, in newsletters, and in e-mail. In your units you have in developed it into a Strategic Implementation Plan. My favorite vision comes from the former commander of the USS Benfold, Captain Michael D. Abrashoff. He had a very compelling vision when he was Captain of this ship: To be the best damn ship in the Navy. And he proved it. In 20 months he operated on 75% of his allocated budget, returning $1.4 million to the Navy and became the only ship ever getting the highest combat ratings in the history of the Pacific Fleet! LCDR Gladieux loves his philosophy so much, she had her vision painted on the overhead of the stairwell that leads down to the Minnesota JRIC: “Welcome to the best damn RIA in the Navy!” Very cool. In July 2001 the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Vern Clark, provided a vision that was just as simple and compelling: We are the greatest Navy in the world, and we are going to get even better. In October 2002 he explained his vision for the 21st century as “Sea Power 21” showing us what’s at the heart of our Navy’s operational effectiveness: Sea Strike, Sea Shield, and Sea Basing, all being enabled by Forcenet. More recently, he laid out his vision in “CNO’s Guidance for 2005” titling this comprehensive document with “Winning the Fight…And Bridging to the Future”. The Commander of the Naval Reserve Force, Vice Admiral Cotton’s vision is displayed on a world map as an arrow pointing to the East incorporating the CNO’s 5 goals, the CNR’s 4 Challenges, our 3 Reserve Priorities, and the SECNAV’s 2 Expectations: Support to the Fleet…Ready and Fully Integrated. In 2003 when I attended the PCO/PXO course Rear Admiral Masters shared his Commander’s Intent with us laying out exactly what he expected us to live by: to be the most relevant reserve force in the world; to live by the values of honor, courage, commitment, treating each other with dignity and respect; aggressive pursuit of any cryptologic or information operations mission from anywhere at anytime; to demonstrate a bias for action in Naval Power 21. Last year Admiral Masters issued his Strategy for Naval Reserve Cryptology and prefaced it by saying, “I expect the Naval Security Group Reserve to be the most relevant reserve force in the world”, then his vision: “Integrated Partner in Achieving Maritime Information Dominance for America”. And more recently, you’ve seen his Vice Commander’s Vision on the Deckplates in e-mail and in this newsletter. Admiral Masters knows exactly where he wants to go and he is taking us there; he is building a common vision for us as Reservists, integrated into the Commander of the Naval Reserve Force, the Chief of Naval Operation, and the Secretary of the Navy’s vision for the 21st Century.
James Collins and Jerry Porras wrote a book on visionary companies called Built To Last. They did a six-year research study into why some companies prosper and flourish vs. those that seem to be companies who’d be successful, who “had the same shot in life”, and yet didn’t rise to become a “truly exceptional company”. We are talking about “the best of the best”: 3M; AmEx; Boeing; Ford; GE; HP; IBM; Marriott; Motorola; Sony; Wal-Mart; Walt Disney, and so on. (p. 3) One of their key findings was that these companies distinguished themselves as an “organization”—an institution—through prosperity during multiple product life cycles and multiple generations of active leaders by “preserving their core and stimulating their progress” at the same time. The entire book rests on this key idea, and it would take many more pages to explain in detail; however, this key finding allows these companies to be able to build a framework to set their vision. They do it by intertwining their Core Ideology and Envisioned Future. “A good vision builds on the interplay between these two complementary yin-and-yang forces [preserve the core/stimulate progress]: it defines ‘what we stand for and why we exist’ that does not change (the core ideology) and sets forth ‘what we aspire to become, achieve, to create’ that will require significant change and progress to attain (the envisioned future).” (p. 221) I believe Rear Admiral Masters, Vice Admiral Cotton, Admiral Clark, and the Secretary of the Navy have clearly defined what we stand for, why we exist, and what we all aspire to achieve; our framework is set and our vision is clear. John Maxwell says, “People buy Into the Leader, Then the Vision”, this case, they had me with their “first shot across the bow”.
When I first began this journey, Ensign Sickler shared some thoughts with me that I believe are appropriate at this point to share with you. He is concerned about where we are headed in the Naval Reserve and how we all fit into this “vision”. There are challenges, to be sure. Some people’s lives will change; others may not change much, if at all. With my best “Care & Feeding” hat on I would offer to say that—you’ve heard this from Admiral Masters—he’s not going to lose you. He’s going to “care & feed” you along the way: “You, our Sailors, and mission execution will always be my highest priorities, no matter what.” He’s going to communicate all he knows, going to empower his senior leadership, and going to do his best to prepare for our futures. He knows the challenges and changes ahead and he knows that if we prepare now, early, that we all will have a place. It’s up to us as junior and senior leaders, to communicate our thoughts, desires, ambitions, and concerns using our Chain-of-Command, and especially to “go ask the Chief”, to “Care & Feed” their careers. Let’s chart our course by “preserving our core, and stimulating our progress” using these leadership tools and all the resources available to enhance and plan our careers.
Steven Covey explains his ideas about personal vision we talked about above in more detail in First Things First by talking about The Passion of Vision as “…the best manifestation of creative imagination and primary motivation of human action…the ability to see beyond our present reality, to create, to invent what does not exist, to become what we not yet are.” (p. 103) Then he goes on to say that he’s found one of the most powerful processes in cultivating this passion is to create a personal mission statement. For example, here is mine: “This is Grant Carmichael’s Personal Mission Statement. This is my philosophy, my creed, and my constitution. This is an expression of my vision and values; this statement is the criterion by which everything in my life is measured. My mission in life is to live a God-pleasing life. To that end I will strive to be kind, helpful and supportive with all people whom my life touches. I will create environments for people to succeed and I will work hard to do the best I can in all my roles and stewardships. To fulfill this mission: I serve others in their success; I lead by example with Servant Leadership. I synergize with all people that I work with. These roles take priority in achieving my mission: Being a Christian, a Servant Leader, and a Father. Being a Husband, a Son, and a Brother. Being a Citizen, an Employee, a Teammate, and a Mentor. Being a Steward, a Co-worker, and being a Friend.” It exposes who I am, and, I must humbly admit, the last time I touched it was in July of 2002, but it defines me and allows me to have an impact on the way I spend my time, and allows me to build a foundation, to leave a legacy for my children and to focus where my life is going; this is a vision for my life, a framework, a standard for my life as a whole.
That’s what Setting the Vision is all about. You must be able to see in your mind’s eye where it is you are headed before you ever start out going there. You must be able to be a “cul-de-sac god” to see and hear ev-ree-thing, to contribute to your life, and those around you, in a meaningful way, to “the vision of your life as a whole”. You must practice Setting the Vision and become The Great One of your leadership role, and envision where actions, words, or behaviors will be. Our leaders, our Admirals, consider our Navy as “the best of the best” and are preserving our core, and stimulating our progress as if we are “the best damn Navy in the world!” We are, that’s why “The Passion of Vision” motivates us “to see beyond our present reality, to create, to invent what does not exist, to become what we not yet are.” I shared a personal vision too. It’s not perfect, not like the audacious ones stated above, but it’s simple, and who I am, and it’s a leadership tool. Finally, I will leave you with this thought: The best leaders, like the best music, inspire us to see new possibilities.” (Max DePree, Leadership Jazz, p. 49) And when I put the last lines to this article, my oldest boy was sitting on my lap, and we are talking about what he wants to be when he grows up: a baseball player. And I can see that, in my mind’s eye.
No comments:
Post a Comment