Andy Stanley - Drive-In Conference Session #5 notes

“Casting a Compelling Vision”

Vision casting will always include an element of waking people out of their
apathy. Vision casters rarely bring new information to the table. What they
bring is an impassioned concern about an existing problem. They bring
fresh eyes. –Visioneering

To make your vision stick:
1. State it simply.
-needs to be a sentence long
*Memorable is portable.
-shrink your vision statement down to make it memorable and portable
-you can always expand on it when explaining it to people
NPC – We’re creating a church where unchurched people like to attend
-incomplete is OK
-One Campaign – Make poverty history

2. Cast it convincingly.
-what you do in front of other people
-Nehemiah 2:17-18
*Define the problem.
-your vision is addressing an existing problem
-point to the problem, and make people feel like they need to solve this problem
-What is the problem your vision is designed to solve?
-what would go undone if your organization ceased to exist?
-before we offer solutions, we have to offer people the weight of the problem to be solved
-unchurched people’s problem is disconnection with God, not the church (initially)
*Offer a solution.
-your vision is the solution to a problem
-every successful organization is viewed by its customers as a solution to a problem
*Explain why and why now!
-what is compelling you to act on what you see (the problem)
Position and present your vision as the solution to a problem that must be addressed immediately.

3. Repeat it regularly.
-vision leaks
-new people, people were gone, people forget and are busy with other things
-repeat it every chance we get, you can’t do it enough
-January – people coming back to church, great time to cast vision in first two weeks
-September –when people return to church
-Once a year with a big campaign to recruit volunteers for the next Fall (usually mid-Spring)
-invite them to join you

4. Celebrate it systematically.
-building celebration into the rhythm of the organization
-celebrate doing something that supports the vision
-Baptism – time of celebration with people’s videos
-have times of storytelling – what happened this week/month/day that made you see the
vision?

5. Embrace it personally.
-your willingness to embody the vision will have a direct impact on your credibility as a leader
-if they believe you are committed whole-heartedly they will follow you
-when something extraordinary happens you share it
-what can I do, and what can we do as a family do to show we live the vision?

How do I know if it is working? – listen to prayer requests and complaints
-what we pray for is what we are burdened for
-Complaints – people tend to complain about the things closest to them
-some complaints need to be taken seriously, other complaints tell us we need to cast the vision again compellingly

Conclusion:
1. Vision has no autopilot.
2. Vision requires constant care and attention.
-vision leaks very easily

FIELD WORK - Session 5

“Casting a Compelling Vision”

“Vision casting will always include an element of waking people out of
their apathy. Vision casters rarely bring new information to the table. What
they bring is an impassioned concern about an existing problem. They
bring fresh eyes.” –Visioneering

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What is your current vision statement?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________

2. Andy said, “Before we offer a solution, we have to help people
understand the weight of the problem we are attempting to
solve.” In the formation of your vision statement, these three
questions need to be answered first.
*What is the problem you are trying to solve?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
*What is the solution to your problem?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
*Why is now the time to solve the problem, and why are
you the one to solve it?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________

3. Reconstruct your current vision statement to be “memorable.”
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________

4. When are the best times in the rhythm of your organization or cycle
of your church ministry for you to cast vision?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________

5. Andy said a great filter for determining whether your vision is sticking
is the type of complaints and prayer requests you are getting. Is
your vision sticking based on this filter?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________

6. How do you celebrate success in your organization?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________