Mission and Vision Statements - Foundational to Successful Change

Written by Don Midgett


Continued from page 1

How can any organization, regardless ofrepparttar type or size, become truly successful if they cannot answerrepparttar 143241 fundamental questions “Why do we exist” and “Where are we going?” Mission and Vision Statements answer these all-important questions. It is important to understandrepparttar 143242 difference between a Mission Statement and a Vision Statement andrepparttar 143243 role of each.

A Mission Statement is a declaration as to why an organization exists and definesrepparttar 143244 businessrepparttar 143245 organization is currently in. Mission Statements concentrate onrepparttar 143246 present and are a reflection of an organization’s core competencies –repparttar 143247 basic skills or products provided.

A Vision Statement focuses onrepparttar 143248 future. It states what you wantrepparttar 143249 organization to be. Vision Statements come fromrepparttar 143250 heart as well asrepparttar 143251 head. A Vision Statement represents a realistic dream for an organization and forces it to take a stand for a preferred future.

Mission and Vision Statements are critical torepparttar 143252 success of strategic planning. A Mission Statement identifies a starting point or current state of business, but a Vision Statement is necessary for an organization to determinerepparttar 143253 direction that should be pursued. Asrepparttar 143254 Cheshire Cat inrepparttar 143255 Adventures of Alice in Wonderland explained to little Alice, “If you do not know where you are going, it does not matter which road you take.” Withoutrepparttar 143256 clarity of vision, your strategic plan – your roadmap to achieve your vision – may prove useless. A strategic plan that is not constructed using a Mission Statement as its foundation and a Vision Statement asrepparttar 143257 way to set attainable goals for a foreseeable future usually send an organization into planning limbo.

In addition to their importance in strategic planning, effective Mission and Vision Statements have other visible benefits. These statements: •Help with decision making •Articulate a reason for being •Create organizational unity •Help link diverse organizational units •Provide focus and direction •Motivate organizational members toward a more desirable future

Once Mission and Vision Statements have been developed, they must be continually communicated, tested and lived by those withinrepparttar 143258 organization. This is key to ensuring thatrepparttar 143259 vision stays alive and works. Mission and Vision Statements are essential for an organization’s successful future but they do not come about without deliberate effort and commitment, by both employees and management.

The oftentime hesitation by an organization’s leadership is understandable. By their very nature, Mission and Vision Statements will bring about change and change is typically accompanied by additional costs and risks. However, rather than fear it, management must embracerepparttar 143260 concept. Some management tools fail to affect any change; but here is one that will do so if properly implemented. Thereforerepparttar 143261 focus should be on ensuring that an organization’s mission(s) and vision(s) are properly aligned and used so that their benefits can be realized. Be a vision driven business or organization rather thanrepparttar 143262 typical problem driven business.

Don Midgett Author



Don Midgett is Managing Partner for The GenesisGroup, helping organizations and leaders discover their full potential. To learn more about effective Mission and Vision Statements and Don go to www.missionvisionstatement.com For workshops, speaking engagements or teleseminars, contact The Genesis Group at 805-646-1740.


Be Proactive - Covey Habit #1 -part a

Written by Steve Wright


Continued from page 1

There is a model called Rational Emotive Therapy (RET). This is often used where people feel helpless inrepparttar face of mounting odds. It is especially effective where people feel they are being oppressed by others for no reason. The model has three steps:

What isrepparttar 142831 strongest emotion? - Depression, Anger, Fear, or something else? As a side note it can be handy to identify that Depression tends to be aboutrepparttar 142832 past, Anger aboutrepparttar 142833 present and Fear aboutrepparttar 142834 future. This can help guiderepparttar 142835 appropriate reaction. What wasrepparttar 142836 trigger for this emotion? Find what incident was atrepparttar 142837 start ofrepparttar 142838 emotion. Often this might be "He said.." or "They decided..". ie Actions of others. This is identifyingrepparttar 142839 "have done to me" aspect that Covey uses to identify reactive responses. Here we are identifying those reactive responses to help us find proactive ones we can choose from. What are other reasons or options? Here is where we investigate what might have driven others to makerepparttar 142840 choices they did. Let's look at my son's music example from above. My strongest emotion was Anger. It was very much inrepparttar 142841 present. What wasrepparttar 142842 trigger? - My son creating allrepparttar 142843 noise. Why? - He wanted me to stop working and play with him. I now have a good basis to decide how I am going to respond and be consciously proactive.

To be proactive is then to choose how we respond to what is happening around us. We need to takerepparttar 142844 initiative and not react to only what we see asrepparttar 142845 reality. Better to stop, assess and chooserepparttar 142846 response that best serves us.

Covey also talks aboutrepparttar 142847 concept of "Circle of Influence" and "Circle of Concern". These arerepparttar 142848 second part of "being proactive", and I will discuss them in "Habit 1 - Be Proactive (part b)".

Cheers

Steve

I found myself incharge of a group without really knowing what I was doing. I am reviewing books and collecting resources at http://2leadership.com. Join me...


    <Back to Page 1
 
ImproveHomeLife.com © 2005
Terms of Use