What is a Visionary?

The dictionary defines visionary as "one with exceptional foresight and imagination." 

The Center for Visionary Leadership describes visionaries as:

"The builders of a new dawn, working with imagination, insight, and boldness. They present a challenge that calls forth the best in people and brings them together around a shared sense of purpose. They work with the power of intentionality and alignment with a higher purpose. Their eyes are on the horizon, not just on the near at hand. They are social innovators and change agents, seeing the big picture and thinking strategically.

     There is a profound interconnectedness between the leader and the whole, and true visionary leaders serve the good of the whole. They recognize that there is some truth on both sides of most polarized issues in our society today. They search for solutions that transcend the usual adversarial approaches and address the causal level of problems. They find a higher synthesis of the best of both sides of an issue and address the systemic root causes of problems to create real breakthroughs." 

When I think about visionaries I automatically think of those famous individuals that are all over the history books for changing the world. George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Rosa Parks, Gandhi, etc. The truth is that while these people are visionaries,  they are not the only visionaries. One does not need to be famous in order to be a visionary. One simply needs to have the imagination and focus to see the world as a different place. Visionaries are those who have their own moral code and aspirations, and yet understand that nothing in this world happens by itself. They share their ideas with others and have the courage, foresight, and empathy to insure that they are making the world a better place for the whole.  Visionaries are ordinary people that have taken the time to look around them and see how the world really is. They have decided to live their lives in a manner that encourages a future that is closer to the world that they imagine. 

When I look at what a visionary is, I can begin to see that this is not an impossible goal to attain. It is something that is already a part of who I am and how I think. I just need to apply that part of myself more often. It gives me courage and renews my determination to take a look at the people who are changing the world today and realize that I could do that too, if I only took the time to do it. I think it is important for all those who are starting their own journeys toward bettering the world to take time and appreciate just how close they already are. 

For more detail and examples click here to see a list of 50 visionaries who are changing the world today and learn about what they are doing to make the world a better place.