Time to Dream

It’s that time of year, the start of the 4th quarter when you should dream about the future, personally and in your business. Families dream about places they want to see, plan their vacations and create budgets to support their dreams. They map the dates on a calendar and block out all other engagements. Maybe it’s an international trip to Tuscany, Paris, or London, a second honeymoon for couples, or a family outing to our Country’s landmarks. Making assignments, doling out responsibilities, and taking all necessary actions to achieve the best vacation create excitement.
If you’re a business leader, dreaming is critical to strategic planning. Dreams are the lynchpin for visioning. Where do you want your business to be in five, three, and the end of next year? Carving out the time to dream, then validating the company’s vision, allows you to establish the foundation and focus for goal development and, eventually, the year-to-come business plan. The plan answers critical questions on how to sustain and grow the business, for example: what sales look like, how the company organizes to achieve goals, when and what new markets to enter, and human capital, equipment, and facility investments. The business plan is translated into a budget and used as the organization’s central monitoring and decision-making tool.
Dreaming is the starting point, and we often don’t spend time doing it. Upon our initial engagement, I ask clients about their big dreams for themselves and their businesses. Often, they seem surprised by the question, and usually, their response centers on where they want to retire, the location and size of their home, the places they want to see, and a nest egg they want to grow. However, their answer for the business is usually crickets. Yet the company is the financial means that underwrites achieving their personal dreams.
Importantly, dreams drive passion in the organization. They give purpose to the work activity and clarify the vision. We admire those who shoot for the stars and set a course to achieve their dreams. We emotionally connect to leaders who express their dreams; the bigger, the better. President John F. Kennedy spoke about his dream in 1961, “I believe that this Nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to Earth.” This was an audacious dream for our Country; astoundingly, eight years later, on July 21st, 1969, Neil Armstrong fulfilled it.
So, this month, set aside time to dream big and set your course for the upcoming year. Validate your vision and start developing your goals that eventually will end up in your 2023 business plan and budget. Dreaming is a leadership and a best business practice!
COL Paul A. Raggio (Ret) is a fractional CEO who develops C-Suite executives, business owners, and employees on leadership, management principles, and best business practices. His email address is praggio64@gmail.com, and his phone number is (252) 571-7368.