A project vision without a compelling reason to exist and continuous advocacy - is a false start. 

You can’t lead successfully without envisioning where your team needs to go before they get there. A vision without advocacy is just a beautiful picture in your head that nobody sees or understands.

What is it about opportunities that sit in front of you for long periods of time, but you don’t see them because you are not actively looking for them? And yet, the moment you can articulate them they seem to materialise as if by magic. 

A vision is similar.

A vision needs to be brought to life so that you and your team can identify it and fight for it. It is powerless without leadership and it won’t deliver value for you if you don’t allow broader ownership of its realisation. 

I understand that you may be wondering; for example, if advocacy is the communication and wider support of an idea, plan, or way of doing something, are we simply seeking others’ approval of our vision? 

Yes and no.

Yes, it requires the vision to be articulated in such a way that the vast majority of those involved in the project understand it and, by default, may either approve or accept or buy into the outcome. And no because it’s more than this. The key to successfully implementing a vision is for your team and key stakeholders to be able to communicate it for themselves, in their own language, with their own quirks – without losing its powerful essence. 

If your project vision doesn’t influence your key decisions, it’s not worthy of its title.

A vision must be:  

• inspirational and aspirational  
• acknowledge a future context and  
• drive a sense of urgency

A vision must also serve the following key functions. It must be:  

• brought to life without focusing on the how (e.g., visual cues and references)  
• capable of being continually enriched throughout the project development  
• owned and understood by the entire team/organisation – not just by designers  
• supported by robust and measurable design, development, and environmental principles to enable the delivery of the vision – the how

I believe so strongly in this idea that I devoted a whole chapter in my new book - BUILD SUCCESS - to creating and advocating for a vision. Highlighting that you must create a compelling reason for a vision to exist in the first place, and then advocate for it during the entire lifecycle of the project.

I am keen to spark conversations for leaders within the built environment. I have written a book that is intended as a pragmatic blueprint to support courageous leaders in pursuit of high-quality project outcomes.

Our industry has some amazing opportunities and challenges ahead, that can use collective wisdom. You can check out my new book BUILD SUCCESS or follow me with the links below. 

 Wishing you success.