The Critical Leadership Skill Most Organizations Are Missing
Most leaders are operating with only half their leadership capacity, focusing exclusively on goals, metrics, and left-brain analytical thinking while neglecting the powerful right-brain capabilities that inspire teams and drive lasting commitment. This episode reveals why leading with vision—one of the most critical yet underdeveloped leadership competencies—separates exceptional leaders from merely competent managers.
Research across 500 companies identified leading with vision as a top leadership competency for next-generation leaders, yet organizations struggle to find companies that do it well. The problem stems from an overemphasis on goals-driven leadership that focuses on accountability, performance metrics, and left-brain analytical thinking. While goals drive performance, they don't address the emotional side of engagement. Leaders who rely solely on goals often burn themselves and their teams out, creating cultures of exhaustion rather than inspiration.
The solution lies in developing what Simon Vetter calls "sensory-rich visioning"—the ability to create compelling, aspirational pictures of the future that engage people's hearts and minds. This approach activates the right brain's capacity for imagination, emotion, and holistic thinking, complementing the left brain's analytical strengths. The most effective leaders master both sides: using vision to inspire commitment and goals to create accountability.
Vision operates differently from goals in several critical ways. Goals are specific, measurable, and time-bound—they tell you what to achieve and when. Vision creates a sensory-rich picture of what success looks, feels, and sounds like. Simon illustrates this with a powerful example: describing a beach walk with sensory details (feeling sand between toes, hearing ocean waves, seeing pelicans) versus a goal-oriented description (walking 1.3 miles in each direction for 2.6 miles total). The sensory version inspires; the goal version informs.
The process of developing visionary leadership begins with creating clarity—clearing the "fog" of daily noise and distractions to distinguish important signals from background noise. Leaders must develop the courage to forge new paths, including both boldness to pursue ambitious futures and vulnerability to admit uncertainty. This courage comes from the heart (the French word "courage" derives from "coeur," meaning heart), requiring leaders to bring their authentic selves into their leadership.
Practical applications demonstrate vision's transformative power. One marketing agency owner, overwhelmed and working 70-hour weeks, used visioning to imagine a two-week vacation in Italy with her family. This picture became the driving force for delegation, team development, and cultural transformation. Two years later, she took that vacation while her team managed the business independently—a direct result of leading with vision rather than just managing with goals.
Another example involves an executive team in the appliance business that was losing $20 million in revenue due to dysfunction. By first addressing their teamwork issues and then creating a shared vision for competing against lower-priced Asian competitors, they transformed into a high-performing team that generated $30 million in new revenue within three years. This demonstrates that vision must be shared—it's not an individual exercise but a collective commitment to what winning looks like.
The episode introduces practical tools for developing visionary capacity. Vision boards create visual representations of desired futures across different life domains (health, relationships, business). Deep thinking exercises in quiet, natural settings allow leaders to access intuition and imagination beyond immediate constraints. The "imagine when" and "picture this" frameworks help leaders describe futures in sensory-rich language that engages teams emotionally.
The integration of vision and goals creates what Mike Richardson calls an "and proposition"—the ability to be both structured and unstructured, planful and emergent, tight and loose simultaneously. This whole-brained approach turbocharges leadership effectiveness, running organizations on all cylinders rather than just the left-brain analytical ones. When leaders master both sides, they create cultures where people feel excited rather than drained, inspired rather than overwhelmed.
The ultimate test of effective visioning is visceral experience—when leaders and teams can feel the future in their bodies, not just understand it intellectually. This belief about what's possible becomes a driving force that moves mountains, transforming organizations from places of management to centers of inspired leadership.
Highlights
Research across 500 companies identified leading with vision as a top leadership competency for next-generation leaders, yet organizations struggle to find companies that do it well. The problem stems from an overemphasis on goals-driven leadership that focuses on accountability, performance metrics, and left-brain analytical thinking. While goals drive performance, they don't address the emotional side of engagement. Leaders who rely solely on goals often burn themselves and their teams out, creating cultures of exhaustion rather than inspiration.
The solution lies in developing what Simon Vetter calls "sensory-rich visioning"—the ability to create compelling, aspirational pictures of the future that engage people's hearts and minds. This approach activates the right brain's capacity for imagination, emotion, and holistic thinking, complementing the left brain's analytical strengths. The most effective leaders master both sides: using vision to inspire commitment and goals to create accountability.
Vision operates differently from goals in several critical ways. Goals are specific, measurable, and time-bound—they tell you what to achieve and when. Vision creates a sensory-rich picture of what success looks, feels, and sounds like. Simon illustrates this with a powerful example: describing a beach walk with sensory details (feeling sand between toes, hearing ocean waves, seeing pelicans) versus a goal-oriented description (walking 1.3 miles in each direction for 2.6 miles total). The sensory version inspires; the goal version informs.
The process of developing visionary leadership begins with creating clarity—clearing the "fog" of daily noise and distractions to distinguish important signals from background noise. Leaders must develop the courage to forge new paths, including both boldness to pursue ambitious futures and vulnerability to admit uncertainty. This courage comes from the heart (the French word "courage" derives from "coeur," meaning heart), requiring leaders to bring their authentic selves into their leadership.
Practical applications demonstrate vision's transformative power. One marketing agency owner, overwhelmed and working 70-hour weeks, used visioning to imagine a two-week vacation in Italy with her family. This picture became the driving force for delegation, team development, and cultural transformation. Two years later, she took that vacation while her team managed the business independently—a direct result of leading with vision rather than just managing with goals.
Another example involves an executive team in the appliance business that was losing $20 million in revenue due to dysfunction. By first addressing their teamwork issues and then creating a shared vision for competing against lower-priced Asian competitors, they transformed into a high-performing team that generated $30 million in new revenue within three years. This demonstrates that vision must be shared—it's not an individual exercise but a collective commitment to what winning looks like.
The episode introduces practical tools for developing visionary capacity. Vision boards create visual representations of desired futures across different life domains (health, relationships, business). Deep thinking exercises in quiet, natural settings allow leaders to access intuition and imagination beyond immediate constraints. The "imagine when" and "picture this" frameworks help leaders describe futures in sensory-rich language that engages teams emotionally.
The integration of vision and goals creates what Mike Richardson calls an "and proposition"—the ability to be both structured and unstructured, planful and emergent, tight and loose simultaneously. This whole-brained approach turbocharges leadership effectiveness, running organizations on all cylinders rather than just the left-brain analytical ones. When leaders master both sides, they create cultures where people feel excited rather than drained, inspired rather than overwhelmed.
The ultimate test of effective visioning is visceral experience—when leaders and teams can feel the future in their bodies, not just understand it intellectually. This belief about what's possible becomes a driving force that moves mountains, transforming organizations from places of management to centers of inspired leadership.
Highlights
- Replace goal-only leadership with sensory-rich visioning to inspire team commitment and prevent burnout
- Develop clarity by distinguishing important signals from daily noise to accelerate decision-making
- Create vision boards that visually represent desired futures across business and personal domains
- Use "imagine when" and "picture this" frameworks to describe futures in emotionally engaging language
- Schedule deep thinking time in natural settings to access intuition beyond analytical constraints
- Build shared visions collectively rather than imposing individual perspectives on teams
- Balance left-brain analytical goals with right-brain inspirational vision for maximum impact
Important Concepts and Frameworks
- Sensory-Rich Visioning — Creating future pictures using all five senses to engage emotional commitment
- Left-Brain vs Right-Brain Leadership — Balancing analytical goal-setting with inspirational vision creation
- Goals vs Vision Framework — Understanding when to use measurable targets versus inspirational pictures
- The "And Proposition" — Being both structured and unstructured, planful and emergent simultaneously
- Clarity Through Fog Clearing — Distinguishing important signals from background noise to accelerate progress
- Courage from the Heart — Combining boldness with vulnerability in leadership approach
Tools & Resources Mentioned
Dale Carnegie Training — Global leadership development organization with roots in personal development | https://www.dalecarnegie.com/
Marshall Goldsmith — Executive coach and mentor in leadership development | https://www.marshallgoldsmith.com/
Leading with Vision — Research-based guide to developing visionary leadership skills | https://leadingwithvisionbook.com/the-book/
Alliance for Leadership Development — Coaching alliance for executive development
Vision Boards — Visual tool for representing desired futures across life domains
Calls to Action
- Create a vision board with images representing your desired future across business, professional development, and personal life domains.
- Schedule quarterly "deep thinking" sessions in natural settings without devices to access intuition and imagination.
- Practice describing team goals using sensory-rich language ("imagine when" and "picture this" frameworks).
- Conduct a team workshop to develop a shared vision rather than imposing individual perspectives.
- Balance every goal-setting session with vision-creation exercises to engage both analytical and emotional commitment.
- Use the beach walk exercise to experience the difference between goal-oriented and vision-oriented communication.
Key Quotes
- "Goals drive accountability and performance, but vision drives inspiration and engagement" — Simon Vetter
- "We need to clear the fog so we can see clearly and accelerate" — Simon Vetter
- "Vision is a belief about a future that can move mountains" — Simon Vetter
- "We need both goals and vision—it's an and proposition, not an or proposition" — Mike Richardson
- "The body is a powerful instrument for experiencing vision viscerally" — Simon Vetter
Chapters
00:00 — The Missing Leadership Competency in Modern Organizations
01:33 — From Dale Carnegie to Executive Coaching: A Leadership Journey
05:48 — Research Reveals Vision as Critical Yet Underdeveloped Skill
06:40 — Answering the Fundamental Question: Where Are We Going?
14:36 — Clarity, Courage, and Culture: Three Pillars of Visionary Leadership
16:36 — Why Most Companies Lead with Goals Instead of Vision
20:49 — The Beach Walk Exercise: Goals vs Sensory-Rich Vision
23:30 — Transforming Overwhelm Through Vision: The Marketing Agency Story
29:32 — From Dysfunction to $30M Growth: Team Vision in Action
33:20 — Vision Boards and Visual Tools for Future Creation
35:25 — Creating Space for Deep Thinking and Imagination
39:27 — Integrating Vision and Goals: The CEO Forum Exercise
42:17 — The Visceral Test: Feeling Vision in Your Body
45:00 — From Management to Inspired Leadership Presence
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This Episode's Guest:
Simon Vetter
Website: https://simonvetter.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonvetter1
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About the Host
Mike Richardson – Agility, Peer Power & Collective Intelligence
Website: https://mikerichardson.live/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/agilityexpertmikerichardson/
Creators and Guests
