Working together with an aligned vision seems to be such a foundation for so many things that when it doesn’t happen it’s almost a surprise.
Whether it’s a sports team trying to win the game, a couple saving for their first home, a family hosting a special event, a class working on an end of year assignment or a work team delivering a project, the most important thing is to know your goal. Where are heading and why? What will it look, feel and sound like when you get there? What resources, support, assets, skills and time do you need? What are the objections or possible road blocks?
Without setting that foundation you may all be working on your own agenda towards a similar end goal without cohesion, collaboration or a plan.
You might get lucky and get there. You might not.
You might disagree along the way or there could be saboteurs.
You might not all be totally invested in the end goal, so motivations can vary and you could get frustrated that not everyone’s heart is in it.
So you need to ask the question, “why”?
Did you set up for success or did you wing it, hoping that everyone would just jump onboard with the same gusto that you have?
Having those frank, open and honest discussions at the beginning is vital so that you can go in with eyes wide open, talk through issues, get everyone on the same page and cater to varying needs along the way.
In my experience, preparing for success should always be step one in any project. Without it, you might just be preparing to waste a whole lot of time, energy and money.
