This S.O.B.'s a Princess!

Why Core AND Vision are Necessary for Leadership

There are things that will only motivate you for a finite amount of time. It takes a special combination and renewed sense of purpose to create a true leader, bringing a dream from conception to reality. Without the proper combination of core and vision, it’s easy to fall into the trap of the drifter, sleeper or dreamer, instead of realizing one’s true potential as a leader. 

Let’s investigate the matrix below:

While simplistic at first glance, to compare groups of people to fictional princesses, breaking it down shows this comparison to be quite compelling. In fact, the princesses’ leadership abilities mirror the evolution of society fairly accurately, although that may be a separate (and much longer) post. For now, let’s do a quick skate over these four categories. 

(Did you hear that? A QUICK SKATE, there will be many things left unsaid and under-explored in this post but go with me on this princess comparison for a bit and let’s see what we find.) 

Sleeper

First up, Princess Aurora (aka Sleeping Beauty), who is literally asleep through half of her tale. She has no agency over her destiny and, therefore, things happen to her instead of her deciding to make things happen. No core, no vision, no motivation or life change. 

Dreamer

Next we have a princess with a clear vision, but no core. Cinderella clearly dreams of more and yet without alignment, motivation or engagement, she’s also at the mercy of the tides and unable to take control of her own destiny. Her life massively improves by the end of her story, but by accident, not through her own actions.

Drifter

Third is Merida, a modern gal who knows she wants to change tradition and move on from the old ways. She has intrinsic motivation but no clear vision of what she wants her future to look like, she only knows what she doesn’t want. Lacking clarity, direction and focus keeps her from being a true leader. 

True Leader

And then there’s Tiana, a working-class human with a clear vision of the restaurant she wants to own. She has a picture of it in her bedroom to be reminded daily of the future she envisions. She also trains herself to run a restaurant by learning to cook and working overtime in order to exercise that core and be ready when opportunity arises. Tiana is the whole package, a true leader, who, by the end of her tale, gets exactly what she envisions. With clarify, direction, focus, alignment, motivation and engagement – her dreams become a reality. 

You can do the same. Fight off stress, overwhelm and burnout by creating that strong core aligned with a clear vision. Then, when our pesky S.O.B. tries to distract you from your goals, you’ll be ready to fight back with Tiana’s determination and create the reality you desire.