She's a rising leader at a company you know well, whose products you use every day. She's been there the better part of a decade, and now she's done. "I can feel myself caring less and less," she told me this week. She's uncomfortable saying it—she's not the quiet-quitting type—but the vision she signed up for has been swallowed by her leaders' ambition. It's not enough for her anymore. In many ways, it's too much.

Ambition is a tricky thing. It can be a motivating force, driving our growth, innovation and achievement. But too much of it makes us monsters. As long as ambition is our primary driver, we will always crave more—more status, more scale, more money, more power. Ambition's craving has no limits, and cannot be satisfied. Meanwhile we overlook the core human needs we have (and our people crave) for meaning, connection and purpose.

That's why vision isn't optional. Research consistently points to a purposeful vision—the ability to see, and to help others see, where we are going and why—as the strongest driver of leadership effectiveness. We've mistakenly reserved it for so-called visionaries (many of whom look more like monsters these days). But a purposeful vision is essential for anyone leading any kind of change at any scale.

Still, I find that leaders are even more afraid of the v-word than the f-word (feedback) or the b-word (boundaries). Vision asks us to tie ourselves to something that doesn’t yet exist, and that feels vulnerable, dangerous. Far safer to focus on KPIs and OKRs, maybe the occasional BHAG. And so ambition floods in to fill a vision vacuum.

As tempting as it is to write off certain leaders as bad humans, I see this as a very human problem, rooted in fear. The higher your position, the higher the stakes. The bigger your business, the bigger the risks. And the more fearful we are, the less vision we can access. Our literal field of vision narrows when our survival response is activated, but this tunnel vision extends to our cognition too—the brain's amygdala fixates on threats, inhibiting our prefrontal cortex's capacity for situational awareness, cognitive flexibility and ability to think in terms of possibility.

But there's good news: It works the other way too. When we commit to living and leading with a purposeful vision, it gives us courage. It guides us through the dark and difficult moments we will inevitably face. It galvanizes others to join us.

Once we've decided to be a leader, and shifted our mindset from change happening to me to change happening through me, our next step is the one we may be most afraid to take: Dreaming up the new reality we want to create.

“The Four Conditions of Happiness:
Life in the open air,
Love for another being,
Freedom from ambition,
Creation.”

—Albert Camus

TRUTH #2: CHANGE IS POSSIBLE

Possibilitivity (that's not a typo)

[Excerpted from my book-in-progress, How Change (Really) Works: 10 Truths for Living and Leading in Transformational Times]

When we start to think about a change we want to see—and talk to others about it—we tend to focus on aspects of the change that feel compelling but can actually be counterproductive: the problem we’re trying to solve, the plan we have for solving it, and a sense of positivity that everything will work out.

Let’s consider these one by one.

The Problem. It makes logical sense that if we are clear about a problem and the risks it presents, people will be compelled to address it. It's almost true—we must understand the problems we are facing. But what happens when we attempt to lead change through a problem lens?

In classical change management, the metaphor of the “burning platform” has been used to create a sense of urgency, indeed of imminent danger, around the need for change. While this can be effective in moving people to act, it also causes them to react. Often this means people feeling overwhelmed and getting stuck in a to me mindset. This risk is especially high where an abundance of change or a lack of change has led to change fatigue or cynicism. This new problem then has to compete with all the other problems, or more likely, settle into the dustbin of “yet another problem we can’t solve.”

The Plan. Another logical appeal to the prefrontal cortex is making the case for change with a good plan. After all, if we can show people how we’ll get from point A to point B, they’ll see how easy it is and be excited to help us get there, right?

But there’s a resistance that emerges around a plan too. It’s often quieter than our problem-reactivity, in fact the more confident we are in our plan, the less likely others are to challenge us directly. But they will resist, especially if they weren’t involved in shaping the plan with us.

The other problem with plans—and I say this as a lifelong, compulsive planner—is that even our best-laid plans will naturally go awry. That doesn't mean we don’t plan, but it does mean that we must hold our plans lightly, and not lead with the solidity of a strategic plan as a motivating factor for change. It’s too much pressure for the plan to bear. The moment reality diverges from the plan (and it will) people will lose faith in change.

The Positive. Finally, it makes logical sense to stay positive, to assure people that everything will be ok. We might find ourselves making grandiose claims like, “This is going to fix everything!” or being blasé with “Nothing’s really going to change, just keep going what you’re doing.” CEOs do this during mergers, managers do it during layoffs and parents do it during divorces. In an attempt to help the people around us feel good about change, we end up misleading them.

Circumstances will shift again in ways we can’t predict. We might solve one problem and end up creating another. Some people may benefit, some may not, and some may lose something as a result. In times of change we simply don’t know for sure that everything’s going to work out. And insisting it will leaves people feeling unseen, unheard and unsure of our leadership.

If we need to be careful about leaning too heavily on the problem, the plan or the positive in leading change, what’s left? What can we rely on?

The possible. The change we want to see. Our hopes and dreams for what might be. The future state would make all the discomfort and difficulty of changing things worth it.

The difference between positivity and what I call possibilitivity is that one tries to force the future into a comforting frame, while the other focuses on shaping the future.

In Practice: 5 Steps to Your Purposeful Vision

As a change leader, you are an architect of the future. Even in your own little corner of the world, your good work deserves a purposeful vision. It doesn’t have to be grandiose, in fact it’s better if it’s focused, specific and workable. Then it can work as intended—as a frame for strategy, a filter for priorities and a facilitator of key decisions.

How do we craft a purposeful vision that is both concrete and aspirational? In the RadiantChange.co community, we practice with a simple five-step process I created to activate my clients’ prefrontal cortexes and help them see the future:

1. Defining the Scope: Getting specific about the scope of your vision helps you focus—and not get overwhelmed.
2. Mining for Possibility: We use a tool called SOAR, which is similar to the traditional SWOT analysis, but more visionary.
3. Divining the Future: Your purposeful vision is a future state that will naturally generate all desired outcomes, so we work to see that future state as clearly as possible.
4. Refining Your Vision Statement: Here we ensure your vision will appeal to people's heads (logic), hearts (emotion) and hands (motivation).
5. Shining Your Vision: This vital step captures what is most essential about your vision and makes it “sticky,” so not only can people remember it, they can repeat it to others. And they will.

[End of excerpt]

If you're ready to get started, join us for this month's mini-retreat.👇 We'll focus on the purpose part first, and then play with different scopes of vision—from the intimate and individual to the comprehensive and collective. You'll leave with everything you need to shape your own purposeful vision.

March Mini-Retreat: PURPOSEFUL VISION | Where We're Going (and Why)

In the context of change, there’s no concept more daunting than “vision.” Leaders fret over: What is a vision? Why do I need one? What if I don’t have one? What if I told you: You are already a visionary. You just may not know it yet.

In this mini-retreat, guest host Lauren Glazer will reframe vision with radical simplicity: where we're going, and why. Starting with your own sense of personal purpose, you'll begin to craft a vision for the change you want to see that ignites possibility and galvanizes action. We’ll move beyond generic aspirations, daring to imagine a future that will make all the challenges of change worth it.

Friday, March 13, 2026​
7-8:30 p.m. GMT
2-3:30 p.m. ET
11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. PT

Zoom link sent upon registration

Mini-Retreats are free for RadiantChange.co members, who can RSVP here.

Vision makes me feel _______

Now, Reader, I'd love to hear from you. Hit reply and let me know:

• How do you feel about the prospect of putting forward a purposeful vision?
• Have these reflections made it feel more accessible?
• What insights or experiences can you share from your own change leadership journey?

Huge thanks to everyone who replied to last month's note re: transformational mindset. Even if I can't respond to everyone, I read every single note and am grateful for you sharing your wisdom in this work. And of course, if you want to work together more closely, this is the best place to start.

Onward together.

Kristen Lisanti
​Radiant Change​
​How Change (Really) Works