We all need a plan
While having a vision of the future is important, without the goals, objectives and action steps to get us there it is difficult, if not impossible, to realize the vision. Someone once told me, "Goals are dreams with timetables." I like to think of goals as the overarching statements that help lead us in the right direction. In a 1961 address to President Kennedy stated, "First, 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 the Earth."  This goal was not achieved until nearly 6 years after his assassination. Others carried through with objectives and numerous action steps in order to develop the technology, do test flights and select and train the Apollo 11 crew that landed on the lunar surface on July 20, 1969. This goal fit with the visions that the nation held to be the predominant nation in space exploration.

Our goals do not have to be as monumental as the moon-landing goal, but they are equally important to the success of our organizations. It takes time to develop achievable and stretchable goals and objectives, and the details become critical to our success. Don't rush through it. Remember, this is a long-term vision and plan, best we take our time and do it right.

Once we have generated good ideas and a vision of the future, we need to follow through on the goals, objectives and action steps we have set for our organization and ourselves. Thomas Edison knew this well when he said, "Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration."
It also takes focus and persistence. President Calvin Coolidge once said, "Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence ... persistence and determination are omnipotent."