Each Monday in February I will be serving as 'host' for the new InJoy series on the Facebook pages run by Woman as Visionaries, with Lore Raymond. The activity looks to afford opportunities to glean inspiration, share ideas, make some lovely new connections, and hopefully learn a thing or two. As a nod to the overall theme, my focus topic during the month is EnJoying Who You Truly Are. In considering how to approach the project, I began by regarding the audience to whom I'd be speaking -- visionaries.
These days, if you say the word visionary what most often comes to mind is someone like Steve Jobs... or for a SoCal kid like me, Walt Disney. These were men who saw beyond the limitations of what had been deemed the way to do things up until any given moment. They saw what was possible... and determined to make it not only doable, but practical. In so doing, they have left not only laudable personal legacies, but they grew successful businesses that have thrived after their passing, and helped create products that delight millions of fans... many of whom are willing to wait in long lines in order to be a part of the magic these men have made real.
Interestingly, shrewd businesses accumen and fiscal forecasting do not rank highly on the definitions of the word they exemplify.
The dictionary offers this:
vi·sion·ar·y [vizh-uh-ner-ee] adjective, noun, plural -ar·ies.
adjective 1. given to or characterized by fanciful, not presently workable, or unpractical ideas, views, or schemes: a visionary enthusiast. 2. given to or concerned with seeing visions. 3. belonging to or seen in a vision. 4. unreal; imaginary: visionary evils. 5. purely idealistic or speculative; impractical; unrealizable: a visionary scheme.
noun 7. a person of unusually keen foresight. 8. a person who sees visions. 9. a person who is given to audacious, highly speculative, or impractical ideas or schemes; dreamer.
If this term is so closely related to flights of impracticable fancy... to that which is unreal and imaginary, why then do we admire and strive to emulate people who we describe as visionary? Is it not because of their pioneer spirit... can-do attitude... willingness to take risks... and unflagging belief in the practicality of industrious magic.... as born out time and again by their proven successes?
People such as these show us that successful business need not just be about making a buck. It can be about making a difference.... even making people happy!
