We joke in our house that my wife and I are the frontal lobes for our kids. Even though I think our kids are more self-reliant than others, it still seems like we’re always helping them remember the little things that their brains just haven’t learned how to remember to do for themselves.
It can be frustrating until you realize that it’s not about them or how you parent. It’s actually that their frontal lobes haven’t developed the executive function required to remember those things yet. And it won’t until they’re like 25!
So in the frontal lobe is the prefrontal cortex. That’s the CEO of our brains. And as we know, a CEO that is able to align teams around a strong vision and company point of view is usually pretty successful.
But without that vision or a point of view, the rest of the organization, or brain, just sort of wanders, doesn’t it? It’s like my kids getting off the bike trainer and wandering off to whatever next thing pops into their minds, while leaving all the lights on and the door open out here in the workshop.
Same goes for a lot of brands. Without a vision or point of view, it’s hard to engage consumers or motivate employees because we just wander from one thing to another.
Here’s a little exercise. Think of three brands with strong visions and points of view. Write them down.
And next think of three leaders with strong visions and points of view. Write those down.
Now, what do they share? When I did this exercise, it came down to three things.
- They have clarity of purpose. They share a deep belief in their vision which ripples out to everyone they touch.
- They are often bold and can be disruptive. And that breaks through to whoever encounters them.
- They relentlessly tell stories to build connections. And that, well, builds connections doesn’t it?
So, I’ll just boil it down with something you hear me say all the time. Your brand has to have a clear and strong vision and point of view. With it, you can stop competing and carve your own path.
We’ll see you out there!