Not everyone has a vision. Not every leader is truly inspired.  However, there are three things that can be key indicators or key determinants that will bring your vision to a roaring success or a cold, lifeless failure.

The 3 Indicators of the Success or Failure of Your Vision:

1. Passion – a spark that kindles your desire toward success. The kind of vision that inspires you must come not from your head but from your heart. I’m not saying to follow your heart. John C. Maxwell says, “every vision starts with an emotional spark” (2011). The spark must be formed at the very center of who you are. It is foolishness to blindly follow your heart (the Bible warns against this). This spark is not something you imagine, but something you experience. For this passion is what will set you apart from everyone else.

Horst Schultze former COO of Ritz-Carlton says,

“You are nothing unless it comes from your heart. Passion, caring, really looking to create excellence. If you perform functions only and go to work only to do processes, then you are effectively retired. And it scares me – most people I see, by age 28, are retired… If you go to work only to fulfill the processes and functions then you are a machine. You have to bring passion, commitment and caring – then you are a human being.”

It is a passion that drives you day after day. It is not wishful thinking or “pencil magic” on paper. It is not a “pie in the sky” goal designed to make you feel good for a moment, but tossed aside later. No, it is a fire that is lit inside of you, deep inside of you. It is a fire that is contagious. It is a fire that can be fanned by others, but not put out by others. It is ever-present. It is visible to others in your eyes, in your tone, and in the way you communicate. The fire will refine your dreams, your ideas, your thoughts, and your expectations. Without it your calculations will be cold and lifeless. You will retire and your vision will die.

2. Candor – a true version of reality. You will not succeed, you will fail if your passion isn’t combined with candor. Candor is the quality of being open, frank; speaking and facing reality and challenging those you lead to face it as well. Too many people are either duplicitous or guarded in their communication style with others. They live and communicate in a masked world—which is unhealthy, un-compelling, and false. Masked worlds don’t draw people, but rather repell them and isolate. You need the people you lead to get better–to grow. Vision does require your personal candor towards others or your ability to surround yourself with people that will speak frankly with you who will reveal the truth. The problem is many leaders don’t want to listen they only want to be heard or have those that follow aquiesce to their version of the truth.

Vision doesn’t mean you see everything. In fact, a vision can be blinding because you focus on the end result so much you fail to see what’s right in front of you. The vision was clear, the passion was present, but you stumbled and now you can’t understand why you are off track!

Jack Welch said at in the midst of his culture change at GE, he had too many business leaders that refused to change. They wanted to be left alone and refused to face reality (Tichy & Charan, 1998). Candor faces reality. Stop ignoring reality. Surround yourself with candorous truth-tellers.

A dreamer who becomes a fantasizer will never see vision fulfilled. Fantasies are not reality. A dream can become a reality through opportunity, circumstance, hard work, perseverance, and divine intervention. Leaders pursing vision must face reality. Get out of the bubble and get in the trenches. Talk to people lots of people, especially, your people.

3. Perseverance – the ability to press through when changes and challenges inevitably occur. Without it, your car runs out of gas and you sit and wait for a tow truck to just happen by. With it, your car runs out of gas and you start walking, waving folks down, walking, waving, praying, hoping, moving, you press on when no one else will.

The words of the Apostle Paul echo through my ears, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me” (Philippians 3:12, NIV).
Success is not easy. Maintaining success is not easy. Failure is often the easy way out. Quitting is easy. Fantasizing is easy. Perseverance is hard. Times will get tough. Your vision, your pursuit will encounter difficulties, unforeseen challenges, and setbacks. What defines you is not what happens, but how you respond to what happens.

Dave Ramsey says, “Being in business isn’t easy…When you find yourself running out of spiritual and emotional energy, whenever you find yourself getting tired of doing what you do, don’t quit. If God gave it to you to do, don’t stop. Keep moving forward. You can do it.”

Simply put, for the Christian leader, if your vision is not ordained from God, you are merely flattering yourself and you have believed in the wrong vision that will lead towards frustration and disappointment. However, when your vision is ordained from above, these three things will most likely be compelling factors that drive you towards fulfillment.

Three things that will help to determine if your vision will succeed or fail: passion, candor and perseverance.