On the historic night when Tennessee Ladies Basketball Coach Pat Summitt, won her 1000th career victory she thanked the university administrators of 25 years ago for having the “vision” and commitment to support women’s basketball at their university. She thanked all the appropriate people including her many former great players, her past and present coaches, and the University of Tennessee community. This amazing college sports program is a great model for a study of vision and leadership.

What is your vision for your band program? Perhaps you were fortunate to have a college course with a professor who included the idea of “developing a vision” for your students and your program. Quickly, let me define my use of “vision”. It is the ability to “see” an idea and plan for the future. Put another way, a vision is simply a picture of an ideal state of what the leader wants his/her organization to be at some point in the future. The best leaders have a vision of where they want to take themselves and their organization. I believe a solid leader is not only a visionary, but also has the natural ability to make the vision “real” for others. For sure, getting to know your students and better understand what makes them “click” is absolutely a must when you begin this process. Establishing a vision starts with you, the director. You must make clear where you want to take your program, and why.

What does outlining your vision look like? What exactly might such bold actions require of you? First, write down your ideas. Dream big, but be realistic. Don’t hesitate to share your vision often with your staff, students, parents and administrators. Share with those folks who can help you refine your plans. Key ingredients must be enthusiasm, passion and very good communication. Since vision is a personal endeavor and you know your program better than anyone—I encourage you to research the topic. Visit with your high school or college band director and talk about the act of developing a vision. Talk to your mentor or a veteran band director about your vision. One of the best things we band directors do is share ideas with one another. Most importantly, package your vision and share it out loud. Your band community cannot read your mind. You must clearly inform all concerned parties what your vision is for the program. If you have a band web site, start there. A word of caution; set yourself and your program up for success. Be realistic with your dreams. Embrace the reality of what your program can become with both short-term and long-term goal setting.

To keep things simple, let me offer a suggestion on how to start:
(1) Make the decision to change what needs to be changed.
(2) Identify your reasons to change and write them down.
(3) Focus on your future vision.
(4) Tell your students, your band boosters and your administrators about your vision and how important their role is in supporting your “vision”.
(5) Set up time-goals for changes to be in place. This should help you move toward establishing your vision for your program for next year and the years to come.

During my tenure on the TBA board of directors, I have seen the hard work and inspiration of amazing visionary leaders. Past and present board members and executive directors have established a great performance record for this organization. Thinking “big” and “acting big” are the best ways to describe how TBA has come to be the model organization for professional growth and advancement of band educators in Texas. Solid leadership, commitment and the constant sharing of the “big picture” have made TBA a truly great organization serving us all.

I close with a quote from leadership guru Stan Slap. “The leader’s vision should be to take the group to a better place than where it is today. It should be a clearly communicable picture of the future, steeped in value, and philosophy, as well as structure. A clear vision provides direction and establishes purpose..… so that people want to embrace it.”

I doubt that Tennessee coach Pat Summitt dreamt 25 years ago that she would become the all-time winningest college basketball coach, exceeding 1000 wins. Her success story surely would not have happened without great vision, passion, enthusiasm, commitment and solid leadership.

You have my best wishes—my fellow band visionaries—as you consider creating and sharing your new vision with your students.