Vibrant Visionary or Blatant Blah

I never predict.  I just look out the window and see what is visible—but not yet seen.”

Peter Drucker

I’ve Been Thinking. . . about what I see when I look out the window and into the future.

Rate yourself on a scale from 1 to 10.  One if you are a Blatant Blah up to a ten if you are a Vibrant Visionary. 

Blatant Blah is satisfied with the present, hates the idea of change and believes the status quo is a trophy to be attained.  A number ten Vibrant Visionary is just the opposite.

In my opinion, Roberto Goizueta was a '10'. . .  a Vibrant Visionary.

The name Roberto Goizueta is well known at the Coca-Cola Company and throughout the business world.  Goizueta was the chairman and chief executive of the Coca-Cola Company for nearly two decades.

In a speech he reportedly gave to the Executive's Club of Chicago a few months before he died, Goizueta made this bold, visioning statement:  "A billion minutes ago, human life appeared on Earth.  A billion minutes ago, Christianity emerged.  A billion seconds ago, the Beatles performed on 'The Ed Sullivan Show.'  A billion Coca-Colas ago. . . was yesterday morning.  And the question we are asking ourselves now is, 'What must we do to make a billion Coca-Colas ago this morning?'"

That is a question of a Vibrant Visionary!

Mr. Goizueta was undoubtedly committed to making Coca-Cola the undisputed best company in the world.  When he took over Coca-Cola in 1981, the company's value was $4 billion.  Under his leadership, the company experienced a 3500 per cent increase in value to $150 billion. 

Goizueta's success stretched far beyond the dollars.  His commitment to people motivated him to nurture, coach and mentor others to assume increased levels of leadership.  As Robert W. Woodruff, the namesake of Coca-Cola, took Goizueta under his mentorship, Goizueta continued the people building culture.

Visionary leaders know it takes people to achieve those lofty visions.

Goizueta believed that:  "At end of every day of every year, two things must remain unshakable; our constancy of purpose and our continuous discontent with the present."

Discontent with the present. . .  An inherent characteristic of every Vibrant Visionary. 

Blatant Blah is ordinary, stagnant, boring and forgettable.

Vibrant Visionaries are a bit weird, with crazy ideas, unquenchable passion and a unique sense of 'what could be.'  Goizueta's results speak for themselves. . .

Vibrant Visionaries separate themselves from group think.  They make us think.  They think anything is possible -- like a cell phone, Facebook, cruise control, cure for cancer or a host of other ‘unthinkables.’

How do you go from Blatant Blah to Vibrant Visionary?  First, we need to understand some of the differences.  Here are a few comparisons. .  .

1.  Vibrant Visionaries see the world as a blank slate where they have been placed to produce a masterpiece.  Blatant Blahs see the conditions of the world dictating the make-up and quality of their masterpiece.

2.  Vibrant Visionaries consider the impossible possible.  Blatant Blahs are convinced the seemingly possible is really impossible.

3.  Vibrant Visionaries are always looking for the next calculated risk.  Blatant Blahs calculate the risk and avoid anything with less than a 92% chance of success.

4.  Vibrant Visionaries stick out.  Blatant Blahs fit in.

5.  Vibrant Visionaries continually evaluate HOW they think.  Blatant Blahs just think they think.

6.  Vibrant Visionaries make sense out of weird.  Blatant Blahs think anything is weird that doesn't make sense.

7.  Vibrant Visionaries are always searching for the next peak to conquer.  Blatant Blahs are desperate to find a plateau where they can rest.

8.  Vibrant Visionaries are contrarians.  Blatant Blahs hate contrarians. 

9.  Vibrant Visionaries relish the privilege to challenge 'what is.'  Blatant Blahs enjoy the security of 'what is.'

10.  Vibrant Visionaries welcome the potential misery of uncertainty.  Blatant Blahs prefer the certainty of misery to the misery of uncertainty.

It's evident, the world of Vibrant Visionaries and Blatant Blahs are worlds apart.  We all exist somewhere on that continuum.  I guess the question is whether the remainder of our lives will be a blah repeat of the past or forgetting the past to create a fresh vibrant future.

“As a visionary leader, you’ll find beauty where others do not.  You’ll seek opportunity where others find only problems, and you’ll see answers where others haven’t recognized the questions.”

Sheila Murray Bethel