Disrupt The Usual
By Les Mottosky
No business role is more demanding or respected than the Chief Executive Officer. They get the glory for intended results and take the heat for the flops.
But what's the difference between these two outcomes? Timing, team and necessary adjustment to the strategy can do it, but that's only part of the picture.
It gets more interesting – and revealing – when we dig for the levers behind successful execution. Because it isn't a position or a person. It's an idea. Specifically, it's how broadly and deeply that idea is felt throughout the organization; it's the vision.
Humans are driven and directed by stories. The more deeply we believe in and feel the veracity of the story we tell ourselves, the more likely we are to behave in a manner to realize that narrative. Psychologists tell us this isn't likelihood, but a certainty. Past behaviour predicts future behaviour. And those behaviours hinge on narrative.
This is the power of a well-articulated vision. Because a vision is a vivid, compelling story of the future being built. If a person can see themselves contributing to that future, they are in. All the way in.
The fastest and most durable way for leaders to serve organizational goals is by building a culture that feels the vision, not just understands it. When the culture is clear on why they go to work, where they're headed and the values the org is embodying to get there, everything changes. People go the extra mile and do it with enthusiasm.
Decades of research, including from Harvard Business Review, show that organizations with clear, aligned cultures are far more likely to be sustainably profitable. This fuels growth, innovation, and reinvestment. These are the signals of a CEO who's tapped in and rocking. They also indicate a leader who is working tirelessly to communicate the vision. They're bringing the story of the organization's future to life in the hearts and minds of the people.
Vision plays the role of the organizing force in an aligned culture. It translates meaning into action, answering why the work matters, not just what to do. In an aligned culture, people aren’t merely executing tasks, they're pursuing purpose. And the vision gives daily decisions that directional pull.
Vision also anchors values under pressure. A culture isn’t tested when things are easy; it’s revealed under stress. Vision is what provides that stable reference point when incentives conflict, tradeoffs arise, or fear enters the system.
When people internalize the vision, behaviour becomes self-regulating; they act “in character” without being told. But more than that, it turns belonging into ownership. While a stated vision informs, the felt vision enrolls. When people see and feel themselves in the future being described, accountability becomes intrinsic rather than imposed.
In an aligned culture, vision is that shared internal compass synchronizing judgment, behaviour, and energy across the organization.
With a collective future where many signals are screaming doubt and confusion, it's that vivid vision that'll provide the confidence for a culture to persevere.
For this second quarter of the 21st Century, those CEOs that consistently get remarkable results will prioritize their own role as Chief Vision Officer.
TAGS: #Vision Is The Engine #Radical Reframe #Disrupt The Usual #Wisdom In Leadership #Adaptation As Innovation
Les Mottosky
Adaptation Strategist & Advisor // Revealing competitive advantage. I help leaders build aligned creative cultures that can measure their vitality and adapt to rapid change. It's not easy. But it's simple.
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