Vision

I really like this vision. I don't think I would change anything

If I have an issue here it's what comes after "sustain". I have a nice warm feeling about "devotion to place" and "our care for one another" but not really sure what that means. A vision needs offer clarity, and both of those phrases seem a little opaque to me, but that could just be me being thick :smiley:

I'm with you Terren, the vague-ness grates on me a little too. But I can understand the idea too that being vague lets folks fill in between the lines for themselves.

I think the warm-fuzzy words "devotion to place" and "our care for one another" signify some of our collective values - e.g., 1) honoring WNC's natural and cultural history, 2) working together collectively and inclusively; but those values are really hard to condense into a couple of words inside the vision.

I hope we can make room to describe these values more fully on our new website-in-development!

I like "devotion to place" and "our care for one another". Yes, they are vague and a opaque, but a vision should inspire action while providing a direction. Most of the fun comes from sharing and collaborating on each of our unique meanings of these phrases.

My question would be, "Does this vision inspire you?" If so, it's good.

I do agree that we should come up with some operational definitions of these goals, to keep us honest about moving in the right direction. I'm not sure I want all that clarity in the vision (and the clarity might be different for each of us).

What do you think?

FYI: Here are 30 example vision statements from the top 100 non-profits - https://topnonprofits.com/examples/vision-statements/

Wondering if we want to change the word 'sustain' to 'enhance,' 'enliven,' or some other word that implies movement, growth, expansion, vibrancy.

And a note on vague and opaque -- often that leaves enough room for everyone to find themselves in the vision. Too sharply focused and clarified can means people don't exactly align so they opt out when they are really close enough to be on board--where the richness comes forth in conversation, as you said, Jim.

what about "nurture"?

Or "cultivate"? ;-)

I like it as is. Rather than 'vague' language, I consider it 'broad' language, As a techie, it took me quite a while to become comfortable with 'broad' phrasing, but there are definite instances where broad is better; mission and vision statements are two such instances, in my opinion.

I take the points about 'broad' language and agree that a vision statement is not the place for concision. To Jim March's point, if it inspires, then it's good. I think my concern is about how well "devotion to place" and "care for one another" accomplish that... I think to insiders, it probably works pretty well. I do wonder whether outsiders would find those phrases compelling.

I thought I just wanted to tweak a word or two but this is what I ended up with. Should this be its own proposal? I changed it a lot.
"Western North Carolina is an innovation hub, using technology to strengthen our communities by connecting people with resources, ideas, and each other."