The Vision Statement!

At Elevation Church we have a very clear and compelling vision statement: people far from God will be filled with life in Christ. On top of that, I have leadership orientation materials that are built around three guiding principles in the small groups ministry: hosting, leading and Communication. Basically, everything seemed to be going well...and then I read this book! On page 29 there is a brief statement made by Herb Kelleher the CEO of Southwest Airlines.

Herb Kelleher established a vision for Southwest that they would be "THE low-fare airline." To explain the significance of this statement Kelleher describes a scenario in which Tracy from marketing approaches him about adding an entree to the very slim menu for the Houston to Las Vegas flight. His Response is what stuck to me. He said, "Tracy, will adding that chicken salad make us THE low-fare airline from Houston to Las Vegas? Because if it doesn't help us become the unchallenged low-fare airline, we're not serving any chicken salad."

After reading this statement I went through all the same thought processes that you just did. I thought, "What's the big deal? I would like a chicken salad if I were riding on your plane!" Then it occured to me that it doesn't matter what I would like. I can always go fly on another airline that will offer me chicken salad. On the other hand, If I want to benefit from THE low-fares of Southwest I will need to settle for peanuts. The point is, Herb Kelleher knew without even having to think about it what his decision was going to be because he had a clear and compelling vision for his company. I am faced with "chicken salad scenarios" every week. What I don't have yet is a statement that is specific enough to help me make decisions during these scenarios.

So now that I've been reminded of the need for a clear and compelling statement, I won't stop until I've found it. I'll keep you posted!