Leading with a Vision

What differentiates an amazing leader from a mediocre one? Extraordinary leaders inspire! Have you ever wondered how they do it? An extraordinary leader is a person that has learned how to influence people through their authenticity and the vision they share with the team! Below are elements that extraordinary leaders share:

CREATE A TEAM VISION

Small ideas and orders have no power to motivate people and get them into action. It’s another line item on a to do list. Instead of influencing people, you’ll be fighting for their attention in a sea of a million things to do. Great leaders always have a vision larger than themselves, that inspires others to follow and that has team buyin. Often the vision comes from something that happened, or was missing from the team or in a person’s life. It needs to capture the hearts, minds and energies of people and get them to take action. It is something that makes them bring their resources and contribute their efforts to achieving that vision. Creating a vision, be it a team vision, or a personal life vision, is an opportunity for you to create a specific purpose that drives you, benefits you and others, aligns people and others, who will then be drawn in to help you reach your goal. It builds alignment and focus and sets people onto a common path. Always start by creating a vision that is bigger than your idea of you, or that serves and benefits others! 

CONSISTENCY AND DRIVE

Consistency and drive allow you to make something happen; create, take action & then socialize it. Drive is the force that makes you unstoppable. Consistency is what will get you to deliver on your vision. Often the entire vision will overwhelm you, but being driven and working on bite sized chunks consistently, will build towards the bigger picture step by step. As an authentic leader, be consistent in your messaging and always coach back to the vision so that the team takes actions in line with that vision. As an individual, always remind yourself about what that bigger picture is and take actions in line with that vision.

PASSION AND CONFIDENCE

A leader always has an absolute core belief that the vision they created, can make a difference and become real. Often, this is where their power comes from. Certainty is what allows someone to stay on the path to follow their dreams. What kills a dream, vision or leadership is uncertainty. When you stop to think about the leaders that inspired and motivated you, they certainly had passion.  An incredible leader enrolls others in their vision, shares their passion, and their certainty is what will get others there. A vision will also be the space for that passion to naturally occur, you get inspired when you connect to that vision; it drives you! Is your vision big enough? Ask us about how to create a vision and subscribe here where you will receive our FREE GUIDE ON 10 DIFFERENT WAYS TO CREATE A VISION.

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

To influence other people, you must build a united vision or goal and then communicate it, share it, talk about it. You need to know what is important to people and what gets in the way, to uncover that common ground from which you build the vision or goal. This is where you can create transformation. Effective communication becomes important as you can start to speak to them in a way that moves and inspires them. Communication is also the way you’ll be able to inspire other people to do something beyond the norm, to step outside of the ordinary and move on to the creating the extraordinary. Vision Statements can help with communication; short statements that summarize it all! Learn to create one, with us! 

DIRECTED ACTION

Extraordinary leaders have a plan, a way forward, a roadmap, or plan, that will make their vision real. Leaders are strategic in how to get the job done and they know they need a strategy for what they’re doing. So you’ve got to distinguish when to give and when to demand, when to talk and when to be quiet, when to take action and when your team needs to recharge. If it is your personal vision, you still need to create a plan and take actions that will get you there. Learn about AIMSMART, subscribe here.

EMPATHY AND RELATEDNESS

Transformation happens inside of relatedness. Leaders challenge people and break patterns to direct change. Some leaders use humor to break patterns, others do it by listening and being empathetic. This skill is vital as a leader as often, you will be faced by others, who will try and stop your progress. Being able to distinguish this and then redirect their efforts will be critical to creating transformation. 

UNREASONABLE EXPECTATIONS 

We all get what we tolerate. So leaders, those influencing people, create a culture where people can transform. A leader with a vision inspires people to perform at new levels, if high expectations have been set, even when the leader isn’t there, as this becomes the new norm for others. Unreasonable expectations change the world and this is what leads to innovative thinking. Going beyond your REASONS that stop you.

COURAGE

Courage means you do the task anyway, regardless of any fear you have, helping you to work towards any goal that you have, especially if it aligns to your vision. Extraordinary leaders have the courage to act and take risks even when something seems challenging. They also have the courage to get back up on their feet after they failed, possibly many times.

AUTHENTIC

A true leader leads by example and walks their talk. They lead authentically. They’re seen as credible because they share their message and vision through from a genuine space. They offer stories and ‘what’s possible’ with others. Their vision inspires and they put their plans into action. They’re being authentic.

COACH

Leaders coach their teams and teach their managers to coach. They don’t control and tell people what to do, they mentor and coach back to a vision, such that the person themselves comes up with the solution or next steps.

Discover how to embody authenticity and create lasting change in others in the leadership role you’re destined for by leading with a vision. Subscribe here for regular articles and to find out more about our upcoming programs!