What makes the difference between a true leader and just another manager? What’s at the foundation of effective leadership?
Michael Hyatt’s leadership principles emphasize the power of vision. His approach helps distinguish between managing day-to-day operations and leading with a clear picture of where your organization is headed.
Keep reading to discover how to overcome common barriers and develop the kind of vision that inspires lasting organizational change.
Michael Hyatt on Leadership
According to Michael Hyatt, leadership should be driven by vision—a sensible yet motivational picture of an organization’s future, usually three to five years ahead.
(Shortform note: The term “vision-driven” implies that vision should be the most important element of a leader’s strategy and should drive all their decisions. While many business advisers agree with this approach, some add nuances: In Good to Great, Jim Collins writes that there are five levels of leaders, and he places those who prioritize vision only into Level 4. According to Collins, to be a Level 5 leader, the highest level, you have to prioritize humility as much as professional motivation—arguing that it’s only those who are humble who are able to follow their vision effectively.)
A vision provides a clear-cut and understandable goal for your entire company to rally around. It should be a stark improvement from your current state, and it should be achievable yet ambitious.
(Shortform note: Hyatt argues that while vision-driven leadership has positive effects for an organization, it’s worth noting that this approach may have unexpected negative consequences, too. Although motivating, a strong organizational vision can inadvertently create tunnel vision among leaders and employees, causing them to overlook opportunities that don’t align perfectly with the predetermined direction. A focus on the future can also obscure important short-term issues, and focusing too much on possibility can cause a leader to ignore the current reality their business is facing.)
Mission Versus Vision
A successful company must have both a mission and a vision—many people think that these are the same thing, but Hyatt explains their key difference:
- Your mission is about where you are now: your company’s current purpose, customer base, and the value you provide to your customers.
- Your vision is about what you want to do next: It’s your idea of where you’re going and what you’ll do once you get there.
(Shortform note: Some experts disagree that every company needs both a mission and a vision. They suggest that, unless there’s a clear reason why your company needs these, there’s no need to waste time and resources trying to formulate them. Additionally, Hyatt’s differentiation between vision and mission is not universally accepted across all organizations and management theories. Some organizations use the terms “mission” and “vision” interchangeably, or they incorporate their vision as part of their mission. This can blur the line between present purpose and future aspirations, which may help companies avoid the tunnel vision.)
Managers Versus Leaders
Hyatt also draws a distinction between managers and leaders. While both managers and leaders are essential to an organization, they play fundamentally different roles. Managers focus on executing existing plans and maintaining stability within the organization. In contrast, leaders create and communicate an inspiring vision for the future, galvanizing their teams to achieve extraordinary goals.
(Shortform note: While Hyatt draws a clear distinction between managers and leaders, some management theorists argue that this dichotomy oversimplifies organizational dynamics and doesn’t reflect the complex reality of effective leadership. Management scholar Henry Mintzberg contends that leadership is one of the many roles that effective managers must fulfill, suggesting a more integrated view of these functions. He argues that all managers must be able to inspire their teams with a well-communicated vision of the future, in addition to performing everyday operations like disseminating information, handling disturbances, and representing the company.)
According to Hyatt, many people who think of themselves as leaders are actually managers because they haven’t taken the time to craft a vision (which they must do if they want to become a leader). There are three main reasons for this:
- They don’t understand what vision is.
- They don’t feel prepared to make a vision, so they focus on the elements of business that they’re more comfortable with.
- They want to focus on more immediate affairs, putting their current plans into action and running things in the present. They don’t want to “waste time” by creating a vision.
As a result, many companies stay stagnant because they don’t have a leader coming up with a vision that pushes change. This eventually leads to the company’s failure.
| Cognitive Biases That Hinder Leadership The three reasons that Hyatt provides for why managers don’t craft the visions that make them leaders can be attributed to some common cognitive biases. Comfort zone bias is the tendency for individuals to stay within areas where they feel competent and safe. Admitting you don’t know how to do something is uncomfortable and can make you feel incompetent, so this bias is likely to lead managers who don’t know how to craft a vision to avoid taking on the task. Instead, these would-be leaders spend time on “comfortable” tasks to avoid the discomfort and uncertainty associated with determining and performing visionary tasks. Furthermore, status quo bias causes people to favor their current state over potential changes. This bias drives leaders to stay content with the way things are instead of pursuing a future-oriented vision and inspiring change in their companies. The status quo bias is often reinforced by loss aversion, where the potential risks of change loom larger than potential gains—discouraging bold, visionary thinking. Additionally, this bias can help explain managers’ preference for focusing on immediate affairs, as the promise of guaranteed, immediate returns from time-tested, day-to-day operations is more appealing than the possibility of future returns. The fear of “wasting time” on crafting a vision compounds this bias even further. |
