The Power of Vision, Part 1

November 30, 2015January 3, 2016 / Justin Irving / 12 Comments

Photo Credit: Sight and Vision, by Kate Ter Haar, Flickr

Vision is central to the work of leadership.

What is Vision

So what is vision? I define vision simply as …

a picture of a preferred future.

This picture of a preferred future can be for an individual, a family, a team, an organization, or a society.

By “picture” I do not mean a literal image, but rather a mental picture of an envisioned future reality that is preferable and desirable by those most closely connected to the vision. A major part of the work of leadership is communicating this picture of a preferred future in a manner that is compelling and unifying.

Characterizing Vision

John Kotter provides the following characteristics of vision:

Imaginable
Desirable
Feasible
Focused
Flexible
Communicable

In keeping with these characteristics, Burt Nanus describes vision as a realistic, credible, and attractive future.

As leaders help to paint a picture of a preferable future for their followers, the vision becomes compelling and unifying as it is realistic, feasible, credible, attractive, and desirable.

From Sight to Vision

On this distinction between sight and vision, Max De Pree writes:

“We can teach ourselves to see things the way they are.
Only with vision can we begin to see things the way they can be.”

Although our eyes allow us to see what is, vision is the pathway by which we can see…and help others to see…what can be.

From Vision to Reality

As we move from sight to vision, the next step is about moving from vision to reality. Warren Bennis describes the work of leadership in the following manner:

“Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.”

Vision is about possibility. The work of leadership is about helping to translate this preferable possibility into living reality.

But vision is not only a picture of preferred future possibility. Vision and the leadership work of vision casting become the means by which leaders help organizations move from vision to reality.

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In the month ahead I will be highlighting several additional features related to vision. Why is it important for leaders, followers, and organizations? What challenges come along with the leadership work of vision casting? Why is vision a primary tool with which leaders work?

Take a moment to share you thoughts on vision below.

Here are all of the post links for this series:

The Power of Vision, Part 1
The Power of Vision, Part 2
The Power of Vision, Part 3
The Power of Vision, Part 4
The Power of Vision, Part 5

Leading on Gratitude Road

November 24, 2015November 23, 2015 / Justin Irving / Leave a comment

Gratitude Road, by Bart Maguire, Flickr

This past week I had the opportunity to share briefly in a chapel service at our school. The theme was thankfulness and gratitude. Whether in the Thanksgiving season or beyond, learning the art of gratitude is important for leaders and followers alike.

The Good and the Bad of Future Focus

But nurturing a spirit of gratitude comes more naturally for some.

As I consider my personal tendencies and strengths, one of the tendencies that can work against a spirit of gratitude is an orientation toward the future.

Future focus has many benefits. As leaders, a focus on the future is important for planning and strategic thinking. I take up the importance of this theme in another post (see Strategic Foresight).

But future focus has a down side as well. At times, this future orientation can work against nurturing a spirit of gratitude. Sometimes gratitude and thanksgiving are not primarily about looking to the future, but rather reflecting on the past and being present in the moment.

Thankfulness through Remembering

The Bible affirms the value of remembering throughout the pages of Scripture. Remembering what God has done in your life and in the lives of those around you is often the seedbed from which thanksgiving and gratitude arise.

One example of this is in Psalm 105 where the author calls the reader to give thanks to God by remembering well:

“Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name….
Remember the wondrous works that he has done”
(Psalm 105: 1 & 5).

If you are like many leaders, it is easy to have your sights set on the future and where your team and organization are headed. But are you taking time to pause for gratitude? Are you taking time to pause and be present in the moment and to look to the past with thankfulness?

Walking Down Gratitude Road

As you consider nurturing a spirit of gratitude, perhaps you may need to join with me in taking time to pause and look at the present and the past. In this act we have the opportunity to see the faithfulness of God in our lives. As we look back and remember well, we begin to see that through both the joy-filled and difficult days, we have much for which to be thankful.

I hope you will be able to take some time in this season to nurture a spirit of gratitude in your life and leadership. Learn to remember well; learn to remember with gratitude.

Observations from an Overwhelming Week

October 5, 2015October 4, 2015 / Justin Irving / 4 Comments

Stress, by Environmental Illness Net…, Flickr

Life can feel quite overwhelming at times. This past week felt like this for me. Perhaps you can identify.

In light of my week, I’m going to take a bit more of an autobiographical approach to this post.

My week was not overwhelming due to a massive crisis hitting my life, though there are plenty of crises hitting our world these days. In fact, most of the various items hitting the schedule were extremely enjoyable taken individually. The overwhelming feeling simply came as the normal flow of life built up and a few added curveballs were thrown into the mix.

I’m sure you have your own list of ordinary and normal flow of life items, but here are a few of mine from both the professional and personal levels:

Professional

Preparing class lectures
Meetings with students
Teaching classes
Grading papers
Recording lectures for online students
Participating in administrative meetings and attending to administrative needs for our school

Personal

Spending time as a family
Enjoying a date with my wife
Attending a friend’s wedding
Engaging with our community group at church
Teaching a Sunday school class
Spending time in the minivan with my daughter who is learning to drive
Watching my daughter’s high school soccer game
Helping coach my son’s football team with multiple games and practices
Helping with the normal flow of house work

Navigating the Curveballs

I’m a bit tired just typing out this list of normal flow of life activities! I know you have your own list as well.

For me, this list shifted from normal flow to overwhelming when spending time working on two vehicles needing maintenance — one vehicle that was outsourced to a professional and one vehicle with work I did myself. Oh, and I lost my wallet as well!

You get the idea. We all have our normal flow of life activities, and then the occasional week comes along that throws us a curveball. My curveballs this week were vehicle repairs and a lost wallet. Your curveball likely was something else.

Working Hard from Passion rather than Stress

In the midst of this slightly crazy, and wonderful, week, I landed on a delightful quote from Simon Sinek:

“Working hard for something we don’t care about is called stress;
working hard for something we love is called passion.”
– Simon Sinek

With the exception of the vehicle maintenance and calling credit card companies to report lost cards, as I look back on this past week, a vast majority of everything with which I engaged thankfully fell into the passion category. Although I hope to avoid such a busy week as I move into another, I’m grateful that even when the work feels hard, it still feels meaningful.

May you find work in the week ahead that draws out passion rather than stress for you!

I’ll be aiming for this sweet spot as well.

Groups vs. Teams: What’s the Difference?

December 9, 2014 / Justin Irving / Leave a comment

Purpose in Leadership

Working Together Teamwork Puzzle Concept, Scott Maxwell, Flickr

“A group becomes a team when each member is sure enough of himself
and his contribution to praise the skills of the others.”
– Norman Shidle

Most people participate in some form of a team or group on a regular basis. This happens through recreation in the realm of sports and clubs. This happens on the job as people come together to get things done within organizations.

Although you likely have been part of both groups and teams in the past, do you understand the difference? What are the key distinctions between a group and a team?

Defining Teams

Larson and LaFasto describe three basic characteristics of teams.

Two or more people
Specific performance objective or recognizable goal to be attained
Coordination of activity among the members of the team is required for attainment of the team goal or objective

Independent or…

View original post 334 more words

People or Production — Getting Things Done while Caring for People

August 21, 2014January 3, 2016 / Justin Irving / 1 Comment

Photo Credit: People, Viewminder, Flickr

People or Production

In management studies, there is a rich history of work engaging the importance of focus on people and results.

— A Concern for People is characterized by leaders or managers emphasizing and recognizing the needs of followers, and then working to meet followers in these areas of need.

— A Concern for Production or Results is characterized by leaders emphasizing organizational objectives and what the best pathways are for meeting these goals and objectives.

Engaging Leadership Style

The “Ohio State” studies, and the “University of Michigan” studies on these themes were complemented by what is known as Blake and Mouton’s Managerial Grid. Based on the categories of concern for people and concern for production or results, Blake and Mouton’s categorizes leaders in the following manner:

Impoverished (low results/low people)
Authority-Compliance (high results/low people)
Country-Club (low results/high people)
Middle-of-the-Road (med. results/med. People)
Team (high results/high people).

People and Production

As leaders, it is easy to feel this tension between a focus on results or a focus on people. Many times, managers and leaders view it as a mutually exclusive decision. Either the focus will be on results, or the focus will be on people.

Thankfully, contemporary models of leadership are emphasizing the priority of both. Both people and production are valuable, and in fact the two serve each other in a healthy organizational system.

Chicken or Egg

But what comes first. Must a leader prioritize one over the other, even though both are valuable? Generally, transformational models of leadership emphasize change and getting things done. These approaches emphasize results along with individualized consideration as a necessary part of the leadership approach. This commitment to organizational goals is seen as the best way to meet the needs of people.

Servant-oriented models of leadership emphasize a commitment to people. These approaches emphasize a commitment to serving the needs of people as primary. This commitment to people is seen as the best way to accomplish organizational goals and objectives.

A Matter of Emphasis

It really comes down to a matter of emphasis. Both people and production are a priority. Both followers and goals are essential. But which is the best way to meet these aims. For the time being, I land on the side of emphasizing people first, and seeing this as the best way to also get things done.

Thankfully, there is a growing body or research helping us understand this relationship between goal-orientation and follower-focus.

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Pursue both. Leaders who value and develop their people will have a solid community ready to meet organizational goals. Leaders who work with their community to get things done will have healthy organizations that provide stability for their people. Both are a priority, so lead well toward both of these ends.

Perspective, Priorities, and Personal Care — Reflections on Seasonal Transitions

August 19, 2014January 3, 2016 / Justin Irving / Leave a comment

Photo Credit: 1st Fall Picture, DaDaAce, Flickr

Enjoying Summer

I love summer. I love the warm weather that finally arrives in Minnesota. I love the chance to connect with family, friends, and neighbors. I love softball games in the park. I love time to get outside and enjoy nature. I love the change of pace. I love the opportunity to be with people that the normal school year busyness does not always allow.

But summer can be complex as well. Summer activities take planning and coordination. Summer activities take time away from work that needs to get done. Summer activities add a layer of complexity.

Preparing for Fall

I’m feeling this complexity especially as the summer-to-fall transition happens in late August. Summer activities are slowing down and preparations for the school year are ramping up.

For our household, ramping up toward fall is not only about the kids starting back to school. It is also about us as parents preparing for fall teaching. My wife began her teacher training this week. My fall faculty workshop begins next week. And, our kids start back to their first day of school next Monday.

Sometimes ramping up for work can feel like more of a job than the work itself. Training sessions are in motion. School supplies need to be purchased. School uniforms and clothes need to be secured and organized. Lesson plans need to be polished. Syllabi need to be finalized.

Keys for Thriving in Transition

As I’m in the heart of managing this seasonal transition and shifting gears into fall, I’m thinking about keys for managing transitions in seasons of life and work. What are some of the keys to managing transitions well? What are some keys to thriving in the midst of changing seasons?

Here are three guidelines I’ve been thinking about today:

1 — Need for Perspective

If transitional seasons are the norm, this may lead one to weariness very quickly. Thankfully, most of us experience seasons of normalcy between periods of transition. I’m in a very full two week period at the moment. One of the tactics I use to manage this busy season is simply keeping things in perspective.

Anything can be managed for two weeks, right? Perspective helps me to press in, get things done that need to be done, and to remember that this season of transition will soon level out to a new norm in a few weeks. I find that transitions require a need for perspective, and this perspective helps me to stay calm and focused in the midst of the busy season.

2 — Need for Prioritization

We can’t do everything. This is certainly true for me. I’m grateful for the many opportunities I have: serving in a job I love, time with family and friends, invitations to speak, engagement with research and writing projects, pursuing opportunities for learning, serving among communities I value, and the list goes on. But, I can’t do everything…and neither can you. This requires prioritization.

Priorities are based on perspective. As we aim to see our lives and the investment of our time will help us better understand when to say yes and when to say no. When opportunities and invitations arise, having perspective, and prioritizing based on this prospective gives a basis for decisions relate to time investment.

I’m thinking a lot about what to say yes and no to in this season of transition. Though not the only example, I sent a final “no” regarding a conference I wanted to attend in September. I valued the learning opportunity, but in the midst of prioritization, that was something that had to go as I looked to the month ahead.

How are you prioritizing in this season? Based on these priorities to what are you needing to say yes, and to what are you needing to say no?

3 — Need for Personal & Spiritual Self-Care

I’m also reminded of the need for good spiritual and personal self-care in these seasons of transition. It is amazing what simple things like eating well, getting enough sleep, and taking time to pause for spiritual reflection do in the midst of busy seasons. I like the title of Bill Hybels’ book Too Busy Not to Pray. When it comes to good spiritual and personal care, I think there are many “too busy not to” priorities:

Too busy not to sleep well
Too busy not to eat well
Too busy not to exercise
Too busy not to pray
Too busy not to reflect and meditate on the Bible
Too busy not to spend time with those closest to me

You likely have your own list of priorities for personal and spiritual self-care. In the second point above I emphasized the need to say no to some things. Equally important in busy seasons is the priority of saying yes to what matters most—saying yes to the personal and spiritual self-care that sustains us in busy times.

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As you look to your own seasons of change, how are you managing the transitions? Are you getting the perspective you need to guide your decisions? Are you prioritizing based on this perspective? Are you maintaining the needed personal and spiritual self-care in the midst of it all?

10 HBR Must Reads: THE ESSENTIALS

August 18, 2014January 3, 2016 / Justin Irving / Leave a comment

I’ve become a fan of HBR’s 10 Must Reads series. This series provides an efficient way to access key HBR articles on a variety of subjects such as teams, strategy, and change management.

Perhaps the best volume for getting started is their “The Essentials” volume. It is entitled HBR’s 10 Must Reads: The Essentials and provides what they say is “an introduction to the most enduring ideas on management from Harvard Business Review.”

Here’s an over of the10 articles in The Essentials for HBR’s 10 Must Reads. I’m putting in bold my favorites from this list:

“Meeting the Challenge of Disruptive Change,” by Clayton M. Christensen & Michael Overdorf, (orchestrating innovation within established organizations)
“Competing on Analytics,” by Thomas H. Davenport, (using analytics to determine how to keep your customers loyal)
“Managing Oneself,” by Peter F. Drucker (managing your career by evaluating your own strengths and weaknesses)
“What Makes a Leader?” by Daniel Goleman, (using emotional intelligence to maximize performance)
“Putting the Balanced Scorecard to Work,” by Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton (measuring your company’s strategy with the Balanced Scorecard)
“Innovation: The Classic Traps,” by Rosabeth Moss Kanter (avoiding common mistakes when pushing innovation forward)
“Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail,” by John P. Kotter (leading change through eight steps)
“Marketing Myopia,” by Theodore Levitt (understanding who your customers are and what they really want)
“What Is Strategy?” by Michael E. Porter (creating competitive advantage and distinguishing your company from rivals)
“The Core Competence of the Corporation,” by C.K. Prahalad and Gary Hamel (identifying the unique, integrated systems that support your strategy)

Check out this resource when you get a chance!

C.S. Lewis on Empowerment — Exploring Leadership Development

August 16, 2014January 3, 2016 / Justin Irving / 1 Comment

Photo Credit: C. S. Lewis, Sigurdur Jonsson, Flickr

Empowerment is vital for effective leadership. It is core to most of our relationships…from teaching, to parenting, to leading.

Leading People to Not Need Us

In discussing love and giving, C.S. Lewis implicitly engages the practice of empowerment. Lewis writes:

“The proper aim of giving is to put the recipient in a state where he no longer needs our gift. We feed children in order that they may soon be able to feed themselves; we teach them in order that they may soon not need our teaching.”

Celebrating Growth toward Independence

This principle is not only essential for effective parenting or teaching, it is also essential for effective leading. It raises a heart-searching question for us as leaders: Are we leading our people to dependency on our leadership, or are we leading them to a place of independence and interdependence?

Recognizing Leader Struggles Along the Way

Organizational leaders who hunger for power and position will have difficulty leading followers to a place of independence. Organizational leaders who struggle with personal insecurity will struggle to free followers to this place as well.

Secure and follower-focused leaders recognize that it is a win for both their followers and their organizations to create pathways where leaders may be both developed and empowered for service.

Finding the Reward of Empowerment

Lewis continues to press his argument:

“Thus a heavy task is laid upon the Gift-love. It must work towards its own abdication. We must aim at making ourselves superfluous. The hour when we can say ‘They need me no longer’ should be our reward.”

All too often, our saying “they need me no longer” is viewed as a threat rather than a reward. But true love—love that holds the importance of others and their goals alongside our own goals—will lead in such a way that both leader and follower values, goals, aspirations, and dreams may be pursued.

Developing and Deploying Emerging Leaders

In reality, leaders who get the concept of developing and deploying their people do not work themselves out of a job, for such leaders are constantly creating new opportunities for new developing leaders. Great leaders create space for others to flourish. Great leaders identify potential, develop this potential, and release this potential into new roles and opportunities.

Leadership development does not need to be a zero sum game. Thriving organizations and entrepreneurial communities benefit from a regular flow of developed and empowered leaders released into new opportunities.

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How are you wired as a leader around these themes? Do you tend to hold onto authority over others, or are you wired to identify, develop, and release talent in the cause of your organization’s mission? Great leaders empower their people!

Servant Leadership and #GLS14

August 15, 2014January 3, 2016 / Justin Irving / Leave a comment

Photo Credit: Jesus Washing Feet, Fulbourn St. Vigor, Steve Day, Flickr

The 2014 Global Leadership Summit, put on by the Willow Creek Association, is taking place yesterday and today (August 14-15). Although I’m not present at the conference, I’m following key trending insights, particularly on Twitter (#GLS14).

Leadership and the Introvert

There are several takeaways from Day One. Bill Hybels shared key lessons in his opening session. Susan Cain’s reminder of the presence and importance of introverts in our organizations was also a welcome addition to the public leadership discourse.

Susan Cain called us to “remember that one-third of your workforce is probably introverted,” that “most introverts are deeply passionate about a few things,” and that “they are leaders because they were passionate first.”

Patrick Lencioni on Servant Leadership

While the reports coming out throughout the first day were many, I especially appreciated the themes Patrick Lencioni addressed. Here are a few key tweets from Lencioni session:

“Leaders sacrifice themselves for the good of others.”
“If we’re doing it for ourselves, we’re going to leave a trail of tears behind.”
“If you’re not interested in developing yourself, don’t be a leader.”
“The best reason for someone to become a leader is to sacrifice themselves for the good of others.”
“Most people don’t really want to change the world, thy want to become known as the person who changed the world.”
“I’m tired of hearing about servant leadership because I don’t think there’s any other kind of leadership.”
“Servant leadership is the only leadership. All else is economics.”

Servant Leadership for the Good of Others

I’m passionate about servant leadership. Though I would not express this quite the same as Lencioni (I like hearing more about servant leadership!), the point is well-taken. Leadership at its core is about service. It is about valuing others. It is about focusing on their needs. It is about sacrificing for their good of those we lead.

Servant Leadership Next Steps

While this post is just a quick highlight of some of the servant leadership themes raised at #GLS14, some may wish to dig a bit deeper. Here is one of my journal articles on the topic, providing both a biblical and research-based frame for engaging servant leadership. Servant leadership is not only an ethical approach to leadership—it is also effective!

Enjoy the article, and enjoy Day 2 of #GLS14

Macro Change through Micro Improvements

August 14, 2014January 3, 2016 / Justin Irving / Leave a comment

Photo Credit: Sunny Pebbles, by Laura Thorne, Flickr

I read an interesting article in The Economist recently. It is entitled Little Things that Mean A Lot, and the author argues that businesses should aim for lots of small wins that add up to something big.

New Routes to Organizational Success

The article focused primarily on the role of analyzing large pools of data in order to identify opportunities for incremental improvement. One illustration came from UPS. In America, there are some 60,000 UPS vans that drive 100 plus miles each day. If through data analysis UPS can find ways to reduce driving by 1 mile per day for each van, it is estimated that the company would save close to $50 million in fuel and related costs each year.

Although most of us are not looking for $50 million in small wins for our organizations, the new market realities in our world are calling for most organizations (for profit and nonprofit alike) to look for both big and small opportunities. Most of the “big wins” have already been identified since the beginning of the Great Recession. It is now time for organizations to up their game in finding the “small wins.”

Building a Mountain with Pebbles

One of the quotes in the article expresses the need in this manner: “It is about building a mountain with pebbles.” While most of us would simply prefer to find the mountain, the new realities of our world often translate to using a both-and approach to organizational improvements. We need to have an explorer mindset, looking for new mountains of opportunity. We also need to have the mindset of the statistician, looking for macro opportunities within the micro dimensions of business and organizational life.

Explorers and Statisticians

How are you pursuing big-wins through small opportunities? How are you maintaining the entrepreneurial mindset of the explorer, while also seeing the details as the researcher or statistician would? This requires us to partner well with others on this journey. This requires us to build our teams with a diversity of expertise so that we can pursue growth and opportunity on both fronts.

Enjoy the journey, and keep your eyes open for macro change through micro improvements.