if...
"vision without implementation is daydreaming"
then...
"implementation without vision is a nightmare."
you can have all the systems in place but without a compelling vision your organization or ministry will not be sustainable. vision is the attempt to be prophetic. the sacred stirrings that force you to ask "what if..." a visionary then must go on a deep dive looking for the answer to that nagging question. great visionaries in my opinion have the ability to articulate their findings in a way that has little to no ambuguity and yet is still laced in the kind of mystery that propels the team, community, organization, investor or buyer to take the necessary risk.
for some reason when thinking about this, i keep coming back to when the world was believed to be flat. until when one day someone began to believe otherwise. the sacred stirrings within shouted louder and louder, "what if there is more to this world? what if this world isn't flat...what if what we came to find could extend the boundaries of this kingdom?" these ideas sounded ridiculous to those who listened and yet that stirring began to spread contagiously that it almost seemed foolish not to explore. they already had the boats, the crew and the supplies to impliment such a pilgramage; they were just lacking the vision.
great visions will force people to take a risk.
we must be responsible with this power and not force our people to take unnecessary risks that in actuality is a just a day dream. great visions require implimentation. when the "what if" and "how" are merged seemlessly together the results will be breathtaking.
if you're a visionary please find a great activator who can help you answer the how question.
if you're an activator please find the visionaries of this world to enhance their prophetic attempt at realizing that sacred stirring.
One of my interns is off the charts on the Activator category in her Strengths Finders. "Belief" topped my chart... I would have guessed a few others. I only read a few pages of the Anneagram book you recommended- I'll jump into that as soon as the dust settles around here.
Posted by: ryan guard | July 18, 2008 at 08:53 PM
My problem in the past has been that I'm the visionary, but implementing the vision has been tough. I have found some people who are activators, but they have commented, "That's what we pay you to do." Granted, I was in a smaller church, but that was always my downfall.
I love the daydreaming quote though.
Posted by: Mike | July 20, 2008 at 12:15 PM