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This is the instructions for carrying out a workshop with the team where you together come up with a formulated vision. The workshop takes about 2 hours to complete. Before the workshop, participants should prepare well. 

Workshop instructions: Formulate your vision

This is the instructions for carrying out a workshop with the team where you together come up with a formulated vision. The workshop takes about 2 hours to complete. Before the workshop, participants should prepare well. 

 

What is a vision and why should you have one? 

A vision is a long-term, idealized goal that an organization or individual aspires to achieve. It is a statement of what you want to achieve and why it is important. Having a vision can be helpful because it:

Provides direction: A vision can help guide decision-making and provide a sense of purpose and direction.

Motivates and inspires: A compelling vision can inspire and motivate people to work towards a common goal.

Helps set priorities: A vision can help you focus on what is most important and prioritize your efforts accordingly.

Facilitates collaboration: A shared vision can help bring people together and facilitate collaboration towards a common goal.

Serves as a reference point: A vision can serve as a reference point for evaluating progress and making adjustments as needed.

Overall, having a vision can help an organization or individual stay focused and motivated, and can provide a sense of direction and purpose.

Potential pitfalls and how to avoid them

Holding a workshop can be a challenging task, but there are ways to overcome common pitfalls and ensure a successful and productive session. 

One issue that often arises is bias from the workshop leader. To avoid this, it's best to choose a neutral facilitator who doesn't have a vested interest in the topic being discussed. 

Another pitfall is confusion about the purpose of the workshop. To avoid this, it's important to clearly define the desired outcome and make sure it is communicated to all participants. 

Moderating the conversation, keeping track of time, and ensuring equal participation from all members is also crucial for a successful workshop. There are various approaches to facilitate the conversation, such as open discussion or voting on ideas, to ensure that all voices are heard and ideas are given equal consideration. 

By addressing these potential pitfalls, you can ensure that your workshop is a productive and inclusive experience for all participants.

Who will participate? 

Appoint a workshop leader to moderate and coordinate the workshop. Choose someone who is not directly involved in the process.

Also decide on who will be responsible for implementing the results of the workshop. 

The founders, CEO, management team, and board should be involved in formulating the vision.

What comes first? Vision or mission statement?

It depends on the situation. In a perfect world, a vision would come first as a guide for creating a product or service that benefits others. In reality, a vision may be developed later as a way to attract customers. 

If a mission statement has not yet been created, it is best to start with a vision to guide the development of a mission statement. The vision should describe the "why" of the company from the perspective of the market and customers.

1. Preparation

Prepare the workshop space with writing materials and a wall for posting notes. Be sure to clearly communicate the purpose and expectations for the workshop, including the importance of formulating a shared vision. 

Visions easily become abstract or fuzzy, it is therefore important for the workshop leader to carefully describe the expectations and what it means to formulate a vision together. 

Example of text to send with the invitation to the participants: 

We want to formulate a vision together that can become our guiding light for how we prioritize and how we choose to help the customer. 

A vision is a clear and vivid depiction of our aspirations and objectives. It provides direction, motivation, and focus for our efforts. It is a powerful force that drives innovation, creativity, and growth. By formulating a vision, we aim to convey to external audiences, such as the market and customers, our identity and direction.

Example: 

As a hairdresser, you are not just a master of hair cutting, but a facilitator of self-confidence and comfort in appearance. You have the power to uplift and empower your clients, transforming not only their hair, but also their outlook on life.

Think about this question before the workshop: 

What do we want to achieve or accomplish for customers in the future? 

2. The workshop

1. Start the workshop

Welcome the participants and remind them of the purpose of the workshop and what a vision is. 

Total workshop time: approx. 2 hours

If there are more than 10 participants, you can divide yourselves into groups that work first individually and then present their proposals to the whole group. 

Ask the participants to write down 1-3 proposals for visions on each piece of paper. A suggestion on each note. 

2. Present the proposals

The workshop leader asks participants to post their vision proposals on the wall. The leader can then ask for volunteers to elaborate on their ideas, even if the meaning is not immediately clear. This helps the group better understand and discuss the visions.

3. Collect duplicates

The workshop leader walks up to the wall and identifies exact duplicates. Place the exact duplicates on top of each other. Be careful not to "interpret" different patches as duplicates if they are not. 

Example: - As a workshop leader, I see that suggestions 4 and 8 are exactly the same. I therefore put them together, so that they count as one proposal and not as two proposals. 

4. Vote on the best proposals

Ask the participants to go to the wall and vote for the proposal they think is the best. Give each participant a quarter as many points as there are suggestions, but at least 3 points. 

Participants can assign 1-3 points to their favorite proposals. They can distribute the points however they like among the proposals.

5. Add up the results

The workshop leader calculates which 3 proposals received the most points and puts them aside. The other proposals can remain as inspiration for further discussion. 

Optional: Ask the participants again to vote on the 3 winning proposals, but now they only get 1 point to award each. This is so that all participants will have voted for one of the winning proposals. The winning proposal goes on to the person responsible for the business. 

6. Decision on vision

The workshop leader submits the winning proposals to the person responsible for the activity to decide on. 

3. The decision - The winning proposal

 

The basis for the final choice of a vision is now on the wall. Surely there is more than one proposal that has received votes, so now it is up to the person responsible for the business to decide which proposal can become the new vision. 

Advice for the person in charge

Choosing a proposal with the most votes ensures the team's commitment, motivation, and energy in moving forward. If a less popular proposal is chosen, it may be harder to build community support and commitment to it. 

Selecting the top-voted proposal maximizes the chances of success and engagement.

How to put it in GoalEnvision? 

At the top of the organization page in Goalenvision, you'll find a place for vision that serves as a guiding force for all of our growth targets and strategic goals. Located prominently above these objectives, our mission statement ensures that every decision we make aligns with our core values and purpose. 

It's a constant reminder of why we do what we do, and helps us stay focused on making a positive impact in the world.

When you have carefully crafted your vision and placed it prominently on your GoalEnvision organization page, it's time to turn your attention to setting growth targets. These targets serve as concrete benchmarks for your team to strive towards, helping to keep everyone focused and motivated. 

But setting a growth target is about more than just setting a numerical goal. It's an opportunity to align your team's efforts with your organization's mission and values, ensuring that every decision and action taken is in service of something bigger. By establishing clear and ambitious growth targets, you can help your team stay focused on the long-term vision and stay motivated to achieve it.

 

Good Luck! 

 

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