Clarity of Purpose Enables Decisive Action

In my last blog post, I talked about the importance of nurturing positive character attributes to prepare for moments when our character will be tested. In this blog post we discuss the attribute of clarity of purpose and its ability to enable decisive action.

I remember visiting the John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum on a vacation trip to Boston a few years ago. One of the exhibits that was particularly interesting was the exhibit dedicated to the 1960 televised Presidential election debate that saw John F. Kennedy squaring off against his opponent Richard Nixon. This debate was apparently the first election debate ever televised (television was relatively new in 1960) and it enabled the public to see the immediate reactions of each candidate to the questions they were being asked and the challenges they faced from their opponent.

The exhibit provided a video recording of the event. What really struck me was the confidence that John F. Kennedy showed in answering each of the questions posed to him. In contrast, Richard Nixon looked nervous and uncertain in answering each of the questions. After watching the whole event, it seemed apparent that John F. Kennedy was very clear on his beliefs and what he wanted to achieve as President. On the other hand, Richard Nixon appeared to be trying to figure how to answer each question in way that would help him gain political favour in the moment – no real sense of a long term mission. History writes that this particular debate was pivotal in changing the momentum of the election. At the time of the debate, Richard Nixon had more support and the expectation was that he was going to win the election. As we now know, that did not happen and John F. Kennedy left a legacy of being one of the greatest Presidents of the United States.

The importance of a clear vision with respect to where you are going and what is important is as important today as it was in 1960. Unfortunately, there also continues to be an absence of clear vision and good character in many of today’s leaders. Blessing White published some very interesting data in their “Employee Engagement Research Update, January 2013”. When they asked employees to state what could be done to improve performance, the answer that tied for number one overall was “provide greater clarity about what the organization needs me to do and why”. People lose hope and become disengaged when they don’t have a sense of vision and purpose. Great organizations have great alignment on vision and purpose. The challenge seems to be, do people take the time to reflect on their vision and purpose and connect it to their decision making?

Clearly this issue needs to be addressed. So what can we do? One answer is to get some data and act on it. An individual’s sense of personal mission and long term thinking can be measured. The MERIT Profile Assessment™ enables an individual or team to identify if this is a strength or a development opportunity. This competency as well as other character related competencies can be enhanced through targeted leadership development. The ability to develop a long term vision and connect it to decision making is a very important step in developing stronger organizational culture and in achieving personal leadership effectiveness.

Do you have a clear sense of your vision, your purpose, your goals, your top priorities? I welcome your feedback. Please leave a link back to your own blog too if you have one, via the commentluv feature here on the site.

Dave

David Town, CHRP, is a facilitator and coach of leadership and management principles that enable individuals and organizations to build greater leadership competency, resulting in higher performance and higher employee engagement. David has a particular focus on effectively managing conversations involving confrontation or conflict. As well, he provides insights and assessment strategies for integrating character competencies into leadership skills resulting in increased trust and reduced risk for leaders. David is President of Your Leadership Matters Inc.