Visionary leadership in a highlight reel kinda world

Leadership. Sounds simple enough right? I am a manager, therefore I am in a leadership role and I am considered a leader. Wrong. Managers and leaders are two very different people. As simple as I can put it, managers manage. They manage a budget, they manage tasks, and they manage to manage innovative thinkers and future industry leaders right out the door. Leaders, however, are inspiring. They inspire others to be creative, to share ideas, and to be their best. While they may hold the same position in a company as a manager, and have the same responsibilities, their outlook on how to get tasks done is vastly different than their manager counterparts. Leaders have a vision for the future. It is impossible to lead without one. Through this post, we will discuss how to create a leadership vision, what factors should be incorporated into this vision, and how you can take steps now to become a leader in life and not just in the workplace.

I know I sound like a broken record, but all roads lead back to your personal brand. Back in February, I wrote an article titled That's on brand... where I discussed creating my personal brand. In the article, I walked through the steps and produced, what I thought, was a fantastic overall synopsis of me and who I wanted to be. So, I made that my personal brand. Do you know the funny thing about creating a personal brand and living to promote your personal brand? As you grow and evolve, so does that personal brand. A month and a half after that original article, I rebranded myself. In the article titled Brand... new me, I discussed how to identify your personal ethics and how you should then incorporate those personal ethics into your personal brand. The results? A much deeper understanding of who I am as a person to my core, and who I want to be in life.

Both your personal ethics and your personal brand play a part in your leadership vision. How you lead someone, your goal for the future, and how you communicate as a leader depend on those unique values and life experiences that only you have. So how can you incorporate these unique traits into a leadership vision? 

Michigan State University had an excellent article on the qualities of a visionary leader. They say that every visionary leader has these three qualities:

                                            1. Visionary Leaders See the World Differently.

                                            2. Visionary Leaders Help Others See the Vision.

                                            3. Visionary Leaders Turn the Vision Into Reality.

So essentially, visionary leaders have a unique vision for the world they want to live in, they then live a life to make that vision a reality which gets others to buy into that vision, and then they lead the charge on getting people to actively make the changes necessary to make that vision a reality. How powerful is that? This concept can apply to any situation - a relationship, a workplace, the sky is the limit! So let's talk through how you, today, can take steps to become a visionary leader in your own life.

First, you have to establish those personal ethics and your personal brand. You have to ask yourself "What is my purpose?" Once you establish that, you must look inward and ask "What are the traits that make me, me?" Write all of them down, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Then take your list, combine the traits into categories, and write out statements for the categories. Those are now your personal code of ethics. For example, here is my personal code of ethics:

- All decisions I make will be for what best suits my family.

- I will take a humanistic approach to life and be kind and welcoming to everyone.

- I will be okay with saying no to things that do not serve me.

- I will be organized and prepared, but also flexible.

- I will listen with intention and not with a solution in mind.

- I will proactively create happiness in my own life through my outward appearance and attitude.

- I will work to continually improve myself.

So now take those personal ethics, which you have incorporated into your personal brand, and ask yourself how can I take these things and make a difference in the world, workplace, friendships, etc.? What changes can I make, as a leader, that will inspire others to follow me, respect me, and make changes in themselves as well? The answer to those questions is how we are going to create that leadership vision. 

For me, that leadership vision was simple. I want to encourage uniqueness, creativity, and innovation as a leader. I want to create a culture of understanding and humbleness, where we can appreciate the attributes of others, while also seeing the value in ourselves. The ultimate goal of this leadership vision would be to see a positive change in our mindset, the value we see in ourselves, and the way we compare ourselves to others. In today's society, that does not align with world views. Good. That means I am officially checking off quality number one. I see the world differently.

So how do I get others to see this vision? My current way of doing this is posting on social media. You know what takes guts, being real and vulnerable on social media.  Social media has become a highlight reel for people. You see what they want you to see. Read that again. You see what they want you to see. This is where that comparison aspect kicks in. We compare our struggles to the highlights of others. We compare our chapter one to the chapter twenty of others. I have had countless conversations with friends where they say "What am I doing wrong? Why can't I go on vacations like that? Why does she have so many followers? What is wrong with me?" These are the people I am hoping to reach. Fast Company Executive Board says visionary leaders communicate in an engaging style. They note that these visionary leaders are using positive language, enthusiastic tones, telling relatable stories, and presenting strong calls to action. These are the things that I incorporate into my posts. 

Simply put, I post the truth on social media, with boundaries of course. I let people see that I'm not living in a perfect dream world. I share motivating quotes I heard. I share lessons I have learned through life. I give people that reality check that social media perceptions are often not reality. I do all of this with a smile on my face, because it makes me approachable. It makes people want to listen to what I have to say. I talk to people as if I am just chatting with a friend. I try to motivate people to be their best selves every day, but in a upbeat way.

The feedback that I have gotten has been amazing. People have told me how grateful they are that I post those things, how much they need to hear certain things on certain days, and ask for advice on how they can get to the place I am in. I am in the process of checking box number two. People are starting to see the vision.

The next step on my visionary leadership journey is one that I will be on for the rest of my life. Building a legacy, changing the way that people view themselves and the world around them, and letting people know that it is okay to struggle. Social media has given me a small platform, but the goal is to consistently preach the message of self-love and reach as many people as possible in this lifetime. By living out my personal brand and personal code of ethics I truly believe that I can make a difference in the world. 

You can be a leader in your life every single day. No matter your situation. Having a vision and actively working to inspire others to work towards a greater future is all you have to do. There is a simple quote that has tremendous power. "Be the change you want to see in the world." Imagine the possibilities if we all did this.