The greatest organizations have some sort of vision or dream that acts as a life force for its working environment. That shared vision should feed the energy of the organization over and over. Your intentions as a business are likely the subject of that shared vision, and if you are looking to fulfill those intentions, the strategy you take as a business must align with them.

Most business owners know that the strategy they choose to take is vital to the growth and sustained success of their business. But it is the intent behind that strategy that truly makes it tick. If you can unite your organization under the same shared vision and intentions, you will find it much easier to get people to buy in to your strategy. This will, in turn, mean greater execution and results.

The intent behind your strategy must have certain recognizable traits, including:

• Heart. Intent is emotional by nature. If you can rally your organization around an emotional cause or vision, that is an extremely powerful connection that will be much more likely to get them invested in making your vision a reality.
• A challenge. The intent behind your business strategy must instill a challenge that is within reason. There should be tangible goals and achievements that you can accomplish along the way, with one bigger picture end goal in sight. This gives the people in your organization something to strive toward and not lose sight of. But make sure that the challenge is realistic, otherwise it will breed contempt within your organization.
• Competitive awareness. Nothing motivates people like competition. Recognize where your competition is at, and make it a priority to stay ahead of the competition in areas that align with your business's intent and vision. This will instill a sense of pride in your employees, knowing that they are working for an organization that not only has a clear vision, but cares about being the best organization possible.
• Empowerment. Your business strategy must enable empowerment within your organization, otherwise people will never buy into the strategy or its intent. Everyone should feel like they are a part of the team and that they have the ability to help drive the action within your organization.

What is your strategic intent? Give this a good deal of thought; rather than just publishing a mission statement and hoping that unites your company, make the intent of your business obvious throughout its entire strategic plan. This will provide you with much greater results and much more motivated employees.

Thomas von Ahn | Chief Elephant Slayer | Viral Solutions LLC