than reinventing the wheel or exhausting all parties by going in several directions at once, our strategy is in harmony with our mission. We know what we are about and what we need to focus our energies on. This is because we have vision. We know where we want to go, and our mission gets us there. At the bedrock of all this are our shared values. The good news is that shared values can be the easiest of these five elements to identify.
That all sounds lovely. It might also sound like a pipe dream. But it doesn't have to be. Combine realistic expectations with some practical steps, and you'll get there.
All or Nothing? Do you need the whole values, vision, mission, and strategies package to start your intentional culture? No! And that's where most organizations get stuck. Wise leaders apply Arthur Ashe’s sage exhortation: "Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can."
Like many things in life, the journey may be more important than the destination. The first step is to develop the habit of higher- level, principled thinking. From time to time, I start meetings with a touch of comedy: “So who are we and what are we doing?” It sounds like levity, but it speaks to a bigger picture and sets a tone. Keep at it, and the baby steps will eventually add up.
So How Do We Do It? There is no one right way. Every group and situation is different. Some need to rise from the ashes of disaster to get the motivation to do it right. Most need to look for opportunities, however brief, when they can poke their heads out of the weeds to see what's already in front of them.
40 JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2025
Baby Steps: It doesn't matter where you start in the hierarchy. Can you agree on a “Statement of Values?” Great! One or two clear elements of the mission? Please write it down. A vision of what everyone would like to see? Awesome! If you have an agreement in one of them, it can lead to more later. If you stick with it, it will gel over time.
Build From Strengths: We humans tend to focus on areas of disagreement. We are trained to identify problems and attack them. Kouzes and Posner's seminal work The Leadership Challenge teaches a more effective approach. Identify strengths and seek to replicate them in areas of weakness. Find commonalities and use them as a foundation to address disagreements. Get in the habit of asking, “What's right?” instead of, “What's wrong?”
Be Mindful and Seize the Opportunity: Listen carefully. Pay attention to successes. Look for patterns. Shared values are always there, waiting to be recognized. Some clarity on vision or mission may pop-up while doing business. When you hear it, call it out. Record it somewhere, no matter how rough.
Annual Planning Sessions: This simple practice can make a world of difference. Scheduling a special meeting to discuss what you'd like to accomplish over the next year can be a terrific jumping-off point. The most useful time to hold this meeting is as soon as possible once a new board is formed after an annual meeting. Or if you've never done one, perhaps you can do the first one in January 2025. You may start with a strategy or two for the year, but by applying the techniques above, you may find
yourselves painting a bigger picture. After all, once you’ve identified goals, you’ve also begun to get clarity on what’s important to your association. Values, vision, and mission may begin to emerge.
Why Wouldn’t You? Every group has shared values. Vision and mission are waiting to be found. Taking the time and energy to identify them creates a foundation that your association can rely on when dealing with everything from day-to-day challenges to major disruptions. Even if all you can do now is to create some strategic initiatives, you will have begun the process of making better decisions. You are on your way to creating an intentional culture. You will build trust and commitment. And you will find fulfillment as a reward for your work. All upside with no real downside - so get to it!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Thomas L. Willis, PCAM has nearly 40 years of community association experience starting his journey as a business partner and evolving into roles as on-site manager, portfolio manager, management company executive, and consultant. He has been a frequent author, speaker and instructor for CAI National and local chapters. He currently serves on the Keystone Chapter Communications & Content Committee, on the Virginia Leadership Retreat Committee, and on CAI’s national faculty.
Tom founded Association Bridge LLC with a simple mission: to share all he’s learned in the trenches with as many as he can before he "croaks." Tom partners with his clients to create practical and actionable plans that pave the way for sustainable and successful communities and companies through education, mentoring, support, visioning, analysis, and application of time-tested tools and strategies. Contact Tom via email at:
tom@associationbridge.com.
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