I am reading Onward by Howard Schultz of Starbucks fame. I am only about a third in, but I am already gripped by much on the journey he has been on the past few years. I think one of the toughest disciplines in life is focus. There are many stories of people and organizations that start with a vision for creating art and value and end up selling out for commerce. Even on this blog you here me touting the value of growth, personal and organizational. Phrases like "not moving forward is moving backward", but one must determine how to move forward and stay on vision. The vision itself might pre-determine growth rates as opposed to Wall Street, and that is how it should be.
It is equally important to develop a vision statement for ourselves that we can use as a litmus test, a way of measuring our adherence to our own personal goals and dreams. For me, I think there is where I am most challenged right now. Like the Starbucks of a few years ago, I am doing many things in a way that looks consistent with my vision and my dreams, but the reality is I need to re-visit that vision statement and re-boot.
