Harnden62

We Canadians are a complex lot.   A rich mix of ethnicities connected through shared ideals and core values.   Values such as politeness.   “You Canadians!   You are so nice!”   Being honest with ourselves, we know that our values are laced with an underlying passive aggressiveness.   Our ‘PA nature’ if you will.   Kept in check, a little PA is all good; merely a counter-point to our politeness and friendliness, giving it a bit of spice.   Left unchecked, it is a caustic soda that eats away at the very fabric of who we are. In my recent travels through Pearson Airport, I stepped into puddle after puddle of caustic soda, eating at the very ‘souls’ of my shoes.   Little things.   It wasn’t the lineup through security.   It was security’s complete disinterest in simply grabbing the backlog of empty X-ray trays to help travellers from tripping over each other in the pile up. It wasn’t the brutally slow Tim Horton’s Express Line...

When it comes to creating a strong vision statement, the range of opinions out there is mind boggling.  On top of that, the emotions people express on this topic are right across the board: from love, to hate, to complete indifference.  And when you look at all the advice on what should go into a strong vision statement, no wonder the task scares people off. What's the big deal?  Why are there so many failed attempts at articulating a vision.  Here are some more common reasons. Why do vision statements fail? Vision by Committee  Too often leaders confuse the act of crafting a vision with word-smithing a statement.  They shuttle their leadership team off to a retreat and start messing around with words that are supposed to end up on a poster.  The problem is, they have missed the point.  It's not about crafting copy.  It's about inspirational leadership.  Vision by committee doesn't work. No Vision?  No Statement At th...