V - I - M

I wanted to pass on something that has been very helpful to me over the last several years. It is a framework for change from my favorite author, Dallas Willard. The idea is that change requires:

Vision

Intention

Means


I love this because it is simple enough to remember. Whether it is the AA 12 steps, or any other number of methods for change, they can all be boiled down to these three things. This idea applies to both personal and organizational change. In fact, there is a book coming out called 'Switch' written by MBA types that looks at change. I heard the authors speak at the Willow Leadership Summit, and guess what? After all their research they came up with a metaphor that when you look at it, is just restating these three points.



So here are the points:



Vision - we must have an idea of a preferred future. We must admit we are not where we want to be, and then figure out where it is we want to go. The metaphor used by the authors of 'Switch' refers to this part as the 'Rider' on an elephant. It is the brains, the logical part of ourselves that thinks about where we should go.



Intention - we must actually intend to obtain the preferred future. In my opinion, this is where change almost always gets stuck. We never actually make choices to get us to change because we never really intend to do it. We just 'try harder'. At the Leadership Summit this was referred to as the 'Elephant'. It is the emotional, finicky, hard-to-get-moving part of us. At some point, we must get the elephant in us to actually want to move rather than just telling it to 'try harder'.



Means - we must know how to do go about achieving the change we want. The Bible gives us excellent tips here in the spiritual disciplines like solitude, reflection, prayer, Bible reading, confession, and real relationships. However, we in the church too often get confused and view these as the end goals rather than the means. We must realize that reading the Bible every day means nothing, if I'm not using it to change me. The whole idea of spiritual disciplines is not to appear spiritual, but to use them to lead us to where we want to go, or to who we want to become. In 'Switch' this was referred to as the 'Path'. In the metaphor, we must clear the path to make it easy for the Elephant to move across it.



So there you have it. If you get a handle on Vision (the rider), Intention (the elephant), and Means (the pathway) you can change. Simple, right?