Passing It On: Growing Your Future Leaders (6 page)

Hanging on one of the walls was a large painting that drew me in as the inscription on the plate below indicated it was a
picture of the “Founding Fathers” of the United States of America. As I stood in amazement with an overwhelming impression
of what these few men had done, I could almost hear their silent voices rising from the work of art—exchanging, debating,
and agreeing on a vision that would lay the foundation of a nation that would outlast all modern nations and set a standard
for many to follow. These men birthed the vision and charted the course of a democracy that would rival any great empire in
history. However, the deepest impact all this had on my inquiring mind was the realization that after nearly two hundred
and fifty years, the fundamentals of the great social and political document the Founders wrote is still as alive as when
they first penned it and added their signatures to validate it. This to me was one of the greatest acts of successful succession.

The ability to conceive and to document a vision is not as difficult as passing on that vision to the succeeding generations.
In this chapter, I want to address this most important aspect of mentoring and succession—passing on the vision for the future.

“To understand the need for succession, a leader must have a vision of the future.”

Very young children often find it difficult to understand that once upon a time, they did not exist. At such a tender age,
they have no vision of the past, and family pictures or stories that do not include them can confuse them. “Where was I?”
a preschool child might ask. Similarly, older people struggle with envisioning a future without them in it—a time when they
will be absent from the family portrait.

Yet they must know the time will come when they will be out of the picture, and life will go on for others. It is never too
early to think about what will happen to your family, your organization, and your legacy when you are merely a memory and
an image in the photograph on the mantle.

In the lion kingdom, the mother has the vision to know that the cubs will grow up and have to feed themselves one day. The
lioness knows this long before her babies have the concept of a time when she will not be there to hunt for their food while
they rest and observe from a safe place.

The most important aspect of the lionesses’ behavior is that they allow the young cubs to
watch
the action. This is critical, as it goes beyond communication through sound, or speech in the case of humans, to provide
visual images of the future
for the young lions. In essence, the adult lions transfer the
vision of the future
to their posterity. Mentoring is about training and preparation for the future; succession is about transferring and transitioning
to the future. If your vision dies with you, you are a failure. As I stated earlier, success is about succession. You are
truly successful when the next and succeeding generations preserve and embrace the future.

Where there is no vision, mentoring and succession are unnecessary. Vision
is
the purpose for mentoring and the motivation for succession. Any attempt to discuss the subject of vision is like dipping
a cup in the ocean in an effort to explain the expanse of the water. However, let us try to understand the basic principle
of vision and the vital role it plays in the process of mentoring and succession. For thirty years I have studied and explored
this comprehensive subject of vision, and its many facets and perspectives still intrigue me. However, for our purposes in
this book, I would simplify the definition as follows:

•  True vision is a human cause worthy of self-sacrifice.

•  True vision is a view of the future more noble than self-preservation.

•  True vision is destiny in pictures.

•  True vision is divine purpose in Technicolor.

•  True vision is a concept of a future more preferable than the past and present.

•  True vision always benefits succeeding generations.

In these past thirty years, I have spoken to millions of leaders and aspiring leaders about the subject of vision and its
vital role in leadership. When I ask leaders if they have a vision and if they can describe or define it, I am amazed that
many fail the test. The way some leaders describe vision explains why they fail to achieve their desired results. They convey
to me a general mission statement with vague notions of changing the whole world, but with no specific perception of the future.

Here are some criteria for framing what is not a true vision:

•  Vision is not a human concoction of the future.

•  Vision is not a conception of your private view of the future.

•  Vision is not personal, private, or selfish ambition.

•  Vision is not a goal, but it produces goals.

•  
Vision is not a complicated list of programs, but it produces programs.

•  Vision is not mere physical sight, but perception of the unseen future.

•  Vision is not ambition, but it inspires self-service.

•  True vision is not for self-promotion, but it promotes others.

•  True vision never destroys humanity, but it builds and preserves human value and dignity.

•  True vision can never be fulfilled in your lifetime, but it extends to generations.

It is this last point that makes mentoring and succession necessary. True vision is generational. To understand the need for
succession, a leader must have a vision of the future—a future in which that leader will have no active role. That is hard
for many people to imagine, but such a vision is crucial to planning for succession. Who will follow you? Who will provide
for the others? Who will perpetuate the legacy?

Vision is the essence of leadership and the purpose for mentoring for succession. Therefore, a visionary leader is one who
sees beyond his phase and perceives the need to incorporate others into the process of his journey. Leaders must see more,
see farther, and see before others see. This visionary spirit separates true leaders and statesmen who have a mentoring spirit
from mere politicians and managers focused on today’s needs or wants. This is what separates them:

•  The politician focuses on programs. The leader focuses on vision.

•  The politician’s priority is securing the next election. The leader’s priority is securing the next generation.

•  The politician is preoccupied with
promises
. The leader is preoccupied with pursuing
purpose
.

•  The politician thinks of protecting his political seat. The leader thinks about preparing a replacement to take his seat.

•  The politician seeks power over his generation. The leader seeks to empower the next generation.

A leader is born when an individual is awakened to a human need that becomes a personal obsession and a driving passion, igniting
a commitment and dedication that becomes more important than self-preservation, cultivating a will for personal sacrifice.
This obsession eventually will manifest itself in perceptions and images that we call a vision. True vision will always produce
sacrifice and require sacrifice. However, true vision is also of a magnitude that breaches the boundaries of our short existence
on Planet Earth.

You as a leader in any category must understand this expansive nature of vision if you are to achieve true success. Look at
a few important principles of vision and the visionary demand for embracing mentoring and succession principles:

Vision is always greater than the visionary
. This principle underscores the fact that true vision will always be more comprehensive than the one who conceived it. The
visionary must accept the reality that he or she will not and should not expect to fulfill or complete the vision within a
term of leadership service or in a lifetime on earth.

The visionary is the catalyst for the vision
. The vision is greater than the catalyst. The visionary is the channel for delivery of the generational assignment. The visionary
is responsible for receiving, defining, clarifying, simplifying, communicating, and transferring the vision to others and
for attracting and inspiring them to the cause of corporate effort. This principle implies that the visionary must never believe
he or she
is
the vision or the center or source of the vision.

Vision is generational
. This principle is important for all leaders to understand and should become the foundation of the leader’s obligation to
prepare the future leaders. Vision is never given for one generation, but is transferred as a trust to the leadership of the
day. True vision is dynamic, fluid, and flexible. Every generation of leaders owes the debt of vision to the next generation.
Ignoring this principle has been the source of great failure for leaders throughout history.

Vision is transferable
. This principle means that true vision can serve any generation in history and therefore must be capable of movement from
one generation, culture, social environment, and age group to another. In essence, true vision can be picked up by a new generation
and continued.

Vision is fulfilled in phases
. This principle emphasizes that all true vision is transgenerational and extends beyond the lifetime of the visionary. This
precept frees the visionary from the pressure of completing the vision in his or her lifetime or leadership service time.
This concept makes him or her responsible for identifying the specific
phase
for which he or she carries the baton and for being willing to release the next phase to his or her mentored successor.

Vision is personal but never private
. This principle highlights the reality that true visionaries receive the vision personally but always are conscious that
their vision is a trust to be delivered to their community, their nation, and the next generation. The visionary is a trustee.
Vision is never for private consumption but for public service. A true vision is a debt owed to the present and future world.

Vision is seasonal
. This vision underscores the principle that all true visions are designed to be fulfilled within the timing of God’s divine
calendar. Every divine vision and purpose has a divine timing attached to it. (“There is a time for everything, and a season
for every activity under the heavens”: Ecc. 3:1) The visionary must be sensitive not only to his
phase
but also to the
seasons
of the vision. Therefore, it is possible to attempt to fulfill a vision prematurely and sabotage its potential.

Another crucial aspect of vision is that it is more important than the visionary. This statement may sound simple, but many
leaders have made the mistake of believing that the vision was about
them
and that they were the source and foundation of the vision. They live under the notion that the vision cannot exist or cannot
be fulfilled without them. This dangerous and serious misconception, or delusion, can cause a multitude of mistakes and negative
results, including depression, overwork, frustration, impatience, and internal conflict. Many leaders have found themselves
dethroned, impeached, indicted, fired, or voted out because of such thinking. The words of King Solomon give great insight
into this danger and could protect us from a misguided sense of selfimportance. “Where there is no vision, the people perish:
but he that keepeth the law, happy is he” (Prov. 29:18
KJV
).

These time-tested words of Solomon are full of wise counsel for all visionary leaders. They remind us of the following:

Vision is the source of personal and corporate discipline
. The word
perish
used in this context is derived from a concept of “throwing
off self-control” or losing self-discipline. Vision creates the spirit of personal and corporate discipline that keeps a group
or organization focused.

Vision is more important than the leader
. Please note in the statement above by King Solomon that he does not say, “Without a leader the people perish,” but rather
“Without a
vision
, the people will perish”—lose discipline. The principle highlighted here is that the visionary leader may present and share
the vision, but the vision becomes more important than the leader. The leader is dispensable, but the vision is indispensable.
The leader is temporary, but the vision is permanent. The leader is for his generation. The vision is transgenerational. The
leader is for a phase. The vision is forever.

People do not follow leaders, they follow
vision
. The statement also teaches the principle that people may be attracted to the visionary, but they must and will be committed
to the vision. The leader’s greatest responsibility is not to attract people to follow, but rather to transfer allegiance
to the vision. True leadership transfers people from personality to purpose.

When the leader dies, the
vision
must live on
. This principle is inherent in the wise declaration of King Solomon and draws attention to the principle that the vision
must and will outlast the visionary and extend beyond his or her influence. It is my conclusion that the greatest gift a leader
can give his followers is a vision (of the future).

These important principles form the motive and foundation of this book. Only when a leader understands, appreciates, and embraces
the reality that true leadership is always transitional and progressive will he or she intentionally commit to the crucial
task of mentoring successors.

First, true leaders must see more in the people in their arena than those individuals can see in themselves. As a leader,
you must be conscious of the people around you who are worthy of being mentored even when they do not see themselves in that
light. Second, leaders see farther than others can see. As a leader, look at life after your death and design it. You can
fashion your future beyond your grave by mentoring. Third, leaders are able to see things long before others see them.