The astonishing power of clarity

Give to us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for
—Peter Marshall

In the summer of 2007, Mike Hyatt and several other friends joined me in Ireland for a few days of golf. Mike has been in publishing since he was in college and has done just about everything in the industry at one time or another. He’s been an author, an agent, a publisher, and even a publishing house founder. Mike is an exceptional leader. Until recently, he was the president and CEO of Thomas Nelson, Inc.

I enjoy playing golf. Though I’m not much better than average as a golfer, I love being on beautiful courses, and I like the exercise. But I also believe that golf outings are great times to build relationships and to do some business. Early one morning in Ireland as I was talking to Mike, I showed him the working outline for my book Put Your Dream to the Test. After reading through it, he immediately said, “John, you have to include a chapter on the importance of a clear vision. If you don’t have clarity, you don’t have anything.” And then he began telling me a story from his experience.

Opportunity of a lifetime

In July 2000, Mike’s boss at Thomas Nelson suddenly resigned. At that time, Mike was the associate publisher of Nelson Books, the trade book division of the company, and he was invited to take his former boss’s job as publisher. “I knew our division was in bad shape,” Mike explains. “But I didn’t know how bad things really were until I became the publisher. I took a deep breath and began to assess reality.” Here’s what Mike discovered:

• His was the least profitable of fourteen divisions in the company.
  In fact, his division had actually lost money the previous year. People in the other divisions were mumbling about how his division was negatively impacting the entire company.
• Revenue growth for the division had been flat for three years. In addition, they had just lost their single biggest author to a competing publishing company, making future revenue growth even less likely.
• His division was the least efficient user of working capital at Thomas Nelson. As a percentage of revenue, inventory and royalty advances were the highest in the company, but they provided virtually no return to shareholders.
• Everyone in the division was exhausted. The division was publishing 125 new titles a year with only ten employees. Everyone was overworked, and the quality of the work showed it.

Mike says, “Things could not have been worse. However, as the new divisional executive, I recognized that things could not have been better for me. It was a great career opportunity. If I turned the division around, I would be a hero. If I didn’t, that would be okay too. After all, the division was a mess when I inherited it. I couldn’t lose.”

At that point, most executives would have launched into a major strategy session to dig the organization out of the hole it was in. Not Mike. Through the years, he had learned that when people think about the how too soon, they hurt their potential. It actually inhibits their dreaming and blocks them from thinking as big as they can. He knows that the accomplishment of a dream depends on the clarity of the vision.

What you need is a vision that is so big that it is compelling,” explains Mike, “not only to others, but to you. If it’s not compelling, you won’t have the motivation to stay the course, and you won’t be able to recruit others to help you. Both vision and strategy are important, but there is a priority to them. Vision always comes first. Always. If you have a clear vision, you will eventually attract the right strategy. If you don’t have a clear vision, no strategy will save you. I have seen this over and over again in my professional life and personal life.

“If you have a clear vision, you will eventually attract the right strategy. If you don’t have a clear vision, no strategy will save you.”—Mike Hyatt

So what did Mike do to get a clear picture of what he wanted accomplish?

P.S. To maintain sanctity of the source, this article follows American English.

This article is an edited excerpt from Put Your Dream To The Test by John Maxwell, Published by Jaico Books, INR 250; reproduced with permission.

Share This Post

Tweet