Every leader has a vision. If you want to see success as a leader, you need to effectively share your vision and ideas.

WHY DO YOU NEED TO COMMUNICATE YOUR VISION?

In another module we talked about developing mission and vision statements and how vitally important they are to your safety and security ministry. Now we’re going to use that vision statement to get church leadership fully on board with your goals and ideas for the team. Chances are you didn’t just start your safety and security ministry without any approval. Most teams start as an informal team; there are no plans, policies or procedures and you recruited like-minded individuals to stand watch during church services. As you start to move from informal to formal you’re going to need to vision cast to the leadership as well as your team 

HOW DO YOU COMMUNICATE YOUR VISION?

With vision you excite people about the future. With vision you bring necessary changes to the church and to the team. With vision you mobilize people to solve problems that exist in your church community.  A "vision" also tells your team why they are working for the team. It paints a picture of success. It's the dream or goal everyone is working towards.

The church you serve in will have an overall vision of what it is running after, and in addition to the church’s overall vision, there will be smaller visions that accompany it, such as the vision for the safety and security ministry team.

These visions are not competing; they should complement and amplify each other. The key point is this: if you want the safety and security ministry to look a particular way, you must cast vision.

So how can you cast a vision that makes sense? Here are four ideas that can greatly improve the effectiveness of your vision casting.

1. You’re Not on an Island.

You shouldn't have a perfectly formed vision when you go to share your ideas with the team. Collaboration is the foundation for true development.

You can try to share your ideas by saying: "Here are my ideas. Here are the pros vs. cons and I would love your input to create the vision."

Team collaboration and insight can create a stronger buy-in for everyone on the team. Once the team starts to see their ideas come to life, once they start to see growth and fruits of their collaboration it will create more value. 

2. Pull back the Curtain.

Just like the Great OZ, in the Wizard of OZ, keeping the details of your vision to yourself and only showing the big picture doesn’t afford your team the ability to see behind the scenes, to see the details that make up the big vision and work together to make the dream a reality. Some leaders have a tendency to only share the big picture of an idea because it is more inspiring and exciting. However, sharing the details of a vision is just as important as the picture. What do we need to do to achieve our end goal?

Communication of all points in a system and not just individual performance pieces, is critical to accomplishing the vision. When people know what they are working towards then they are able to fully support the entire operation beyond just their piece of the puzzle. 

Remember, processes are managed, people are lead. Imagine dumping a 1000 piece puzzle out on a table and trying to do it without ever looking at the picture on the box. That is what it is like for your team if you only give them pieces of the vision. They cannot move forward without seeing the overall picture.

3. Be concise.

When talking about your vision, be short and sweet. Of course you’re excited about it, but If you speak for an extended period of time, your vision will get lost. Church leadership won't get on board if they don't understand.

You should think of your vision as like an elevator pitch:

• One sentence that shares the outcome or end goal
• One sentence with what benefits or fruit will come from this vision
• Two or three sentences that discuss your roadmap to get to that vision

Here is an example of a vision I shared with my team:

We want a safer worship environment.

Safety will amplify the core mission of the church and lead to more attendance.

We will build this with good plans, policies and procedures that promote quality, qualified training which leads to lower risk for everyone. We will have established roles with clearly defined duties and responsibilities in addition to advanced scheduling to allow for off duty worship time with family. 

We will continue to collaborate to ensure that the core mission of the church is amplified which will create an atmosphere of hospitality shrouded in safety.

4. Be the Vision.

After sharing the vision, you need to be the spokes-model for it - you need to live it. Every action and decision should relate to that vision. Change occurs both top-down and bottom-up. You need to be the leader of that change.

If you’re changing an old system, you can expect some trials and tribulations along the way. Unfortunately, it is likely that there will be people fighting against the vision. Teams and team leaders must have the courage to stand behind your convictions. 

Change is frightening to people who are “used to doing it this way”, but it's your job to lead through it. Sharing your vision means directing the team towards shared goals and outcomes. With collaboration, direction-setting, and bravery, effective leadership will bear fruit and have success.

 IMPLEMENTATION OF YOUR VISION CASTING

Effectively casting your vision is just as important as any other skill, capability or ability your team has. Scheduling and having working tools for the job is vital for managing the team. Having and casting vision is vital for leading the team. If you can apply these three ideas into your vision casting as a leader you will see increased participation, and can expect that more visions will become reality.

Sign up For the Protector's Toolkit Basic Membership (Free) and get access to the Vison Casting Worksheet.