The Leadership Challenge excerpt - Leaders Inspire A Shared Vision

The following is an excerpt from The Leadership Challenge by James Kouzes and Barry Posner. Following this excerpt, I have posted some points for us to ponder.

Envision The Future

“Be an enzyme” is a refrain that Pam Omidyar, founder of HopeLab, often repeats. The idea of “be an enzyme” evolved out of her love for science-her graduate training is in plant molecular genetics-and it conveys her strong belief in the power of people to make a difference. “I love the concept of catalysts, in science and life,” she says. “Enzymes are the catalysts that make possible biochemical reactions. Enzymes increase the rate of a reaction, but are not themselves consumed by the reaction. ..In short, enzymes are nature’s activists.”

…Exemplary leaders are forward-looking. They are able to envision the future, to gaze across the horizon of time and imagine the greater opportunities to come. They see something out ahead, vague as it might appear from a distance, and they imagine that extraordinary feats are possible and that the ordinary could be transformed into something noble. They are able to develop an ideal and unique image of the future for the common good.

But it’s not just the leader’s vision. It’s a shared vision. We all have dreams and aspirations. We all think about the future; we all want tomorrow to be better than today. Leaders have to make sure what they see is also something others can see. When visions are shared, they attract more people, sustain higher levels of motivation, and withstand more challenges than those that are singular. Leaders develop the capacity to Envision the Future for themselves and others by mastering two essentials:

• Imagine the possibilities
• Find a common purpose


…Leaders are dreamers. Leaders are idealists. Leaders are possibility thinkers. All enterprises, big or small, begin with imagination and with the belief that what’s merely an image today can one day be made real in the future. It’s this belief that sustains leaders through the difficult times. Turning possibility thinking into an inspiring vision-and an inspiring vision that is shared-is the leader’s challenge.

When we ask people to tell us where their visions come from they often have great difficulty in describing the process. And when they do provide an answer, typically it’s more about a feeling, a sense, a gut reaction. Clarifying your vision, like clarifying your values, is a process of self-exploration and self-creation. It’s an intuitive, emotional process. There’s often no logic to it. You just feel strongly about something, and that sense, that intuition, has to be fully explored. Visions are reflections of one’s fundamental beliefs and assumptions about human nature, technology, economics, science, politics, art and ethics.

A vision of the future is much like a literary or musical theme. It’s the broad message that you want to convey, it’s the primary melody that you want people to remember, and whenever it’s repeated it reminds the audience of the entire work. Every leader needs a theme, something on which they can structure the rest of his or her performance. What’s your central message? What’s your theme?


Food for thought:

1. Are you surrounded by inspiring leaders, especially those that you work closely with, whether within or outside of work?

2. Why do leaders often have problems articulating a vision? Do they even possess one in the first place?