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Thinking Big and Going Long

As a corporate or national leader, you’re deeply concerned about the future of your enterprise or country. But you may notice something is missing—a sense of shared hope and engagement. You ask yourself, “Why?”

The last time many Jamaicans felt truly hopeful about the future was around 1962, just before independence. I wasn’t born then, but elders recall the power of that moment: a future brimming with promise.

Before independence, leaders like Marcus Garvey, Sam Sharpe, and Norman Manley courageously articulated a vision for Jamaica. They took these stands, despite knowing they wouldn’t see the outcomes in their lifetime, or even in the coming decades. We revere them because they made unselfish sacrifices for the greater good, even when the odds were against them.

Today, we long for leaders with similar clarity and conviction—those not swayed by greed, political gain, or self-interest. Instead, we’ve grown accustomed to pointing fingers; for many, leadership has become synonymous with corruption. Ironically, however, even flawed leaders can still “think big and go long.” They can look to our National Heroes as models. So, where can they start?

Understanding What Really Motivates People

Humans are creatures of imagination, and our motivation is deeply influenced by our vision of the future. This imagined future shapes our experience both now and in the long run.

Take, for example, the motivation of new employees. Initially, they’re excited. Over time, however, as they encounter challenges and setbacks, their enthusiasm fades. In environments that are merely transactional—where work is treated as nothing more than an exchange for money—this disillusionment runs deep.

Today’s younger employees, especially Gen Z, are making it clear: “That’s not enough.” They demand engagement that’s driven by purpose. To meet these expectations, leaders must do two things: think big and go long.

Thinking Big and Going Long

Most leaders don’t genuinely think big or long. They may talk about game-changing goals, but they only want results within the fiscal year, their CEO term, or before the next IPO or election. In the past, this approach might have worked.

But today, employees, customers, and citizens are quick to recognize shallow promises. In a world flooded with “Buy Now!” messages, people have learned to ignore hollow pitches and easy promises. Leaders who try to “sell” people on short-term impossibilities come across as self-serving, and the result is widespread contempt.

The essential truth? “Thinking big” requires “going long” at the same time. For example, Richard Williams developed a 25-year tennis plan for his daughters, Venus and Serena, long before they were born. GraceKennedy did something similar with its 2020 Vision.

Contrast this with the cautionary tales on the CompanyMan YouTube channel, where the creator explores the decline of companies like K-Mart and Nokia. Each story illustrates the dangers of short-term thinking—loss of market share, plummeting shareholder value, and mass layoffs.

These same mistakes happen on a national scale as well. Right now, around 30-40 national plans worldwide—like Vision 2030 Jamaica and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals—are nearing their deadlines, and many are off track.

However, modern employees want more than just their leaders’ long-term thinking and big goals.

Freeing People from Past Disappointments

You may notice that even when there’s good news, some employees stay stuck in cynicism. Previous disappointments have hardened their outlook, making it difficult for them to feel optimistic.

One way to address this is through radical truth-telling. For example, I visited South Africa during the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings in the 1990s. The broadcasted testimonies were harrowing, recounting torture and murder. I could only watch in short bursts.

But the principle was powerful. Truth-telling can be liberating. In our case, the forward of Vision 2030 Jamaica, written 15 years ago, put it bluntly:

> “Partly due to our neglect of long-term issues, our nation has suffered from a number of inadequacies… Previous planning efforts floundered… Jamaicans have expressed a clear wish to break out of this vicious cycle of low performance and build a quality society.”

When organizations or nations engage in these difficult, honest conversations, they show that a troubled past doesn’t have to define the future. It allows employees and citizens alike to hope—and ultimately frees them to think big and go long once again.

Your organization has crafted a vision for the future, winning the approval of a wide array of stakeholders. But how do you keep that momentum alive beyond the initial excitement and actually deliver results?

Jamaica is known for its creativity, especially when it comes to innovation. We excel at producing world-class prototypes and ideas.

However, that reputation also highlights a significant gap: a lack of emphasis on follow-through and upkeep. There’s an old saying: hire a Jamaican for innovation, a Trinidadian to launch it with flair, and a Bajan to handle the day-to-day operations.

Consider Vale Royal as an example. Recently, a viral internet post depicted the state of this historic 1694 property, once the official residence of past Prime Ministers. Despite the Jamaican coat of arms adorning it, the image revealed a dilapidated building.

The reaction was swift and unanimous: shock and disappointment. This was hardly a proud moment for the nation. Clearly, some part of the government process had failed, leaving an eyesore in its wake. The only consolation? The neglected building is set back from the road, slightly out of public view.

What lessons can this teach us about managing grand aspirations like Vision 2030 Jamaica, and how can you apply these insights to ensure your organization’s vision doesn’t face the same fate?

Visions Are Hard to Maintain

Unlike physical objects, a vision is built from fragments of imagination. While it’s often captured in written form, what truly matters is the resonance it finds within people.

A compelling vision takes root in the hearts and minds of those who see themselves in it. It inspires them, evoking strong emotions and a shared sense of purpose toward a future they want to make real.

Yet, creating a tangible product is far easier than inspiring others to envision a brighter future. Those who do this effectively—figures like Marcus Garvey, Martin Luther King Jr., and Nelson Mandela—are rightfully revered.

Sustaining a vision over time is even harder than maintaining a physical structure. Today, both Vale Royal and Vision 2030 Jamaica are in need of revitalization. Though their restoration processes would be different, neither is beyond hope.

Now, think of your own organization. Are stakeholders genuinely motivated by your vision? Has its impact faded? Can you rekindle the energy it once generated?

Ordinary Efforts Won’t Achieve Extraordinary Visions

Perhaps a common oversight by those managing both Vale Royal and Vision 2030 Jamaica was the assumption that regular, routine efforts could somehow produce remarkable, transformative outcomes.

This isn’t just a government issue; the same challenge exists in any organization. Some employees are skilled at keeping day-to-day operations steady. As author Robert Pirsig (in *Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance*) puts it, they preserve “static quality.” They are essential—but they are not visionaries.

For breakthrough change, you need people who drive “dynamic quality,” those who push for improvement and innovation.

Pirsig argues that both roles are essential, but they must be balanced. A possible misstep with Vision 2030 Jamaica was the reliance on government staff focused on “static quality” to also execute and govern a forward-looking vision.

As a result, while Jamaica started Vision 2030 with momentum, the progress has slowed. To avoid this pitfall, your organization must institutionalize the management and execution of its vision, creating a structure that ensures enduring commitment.

This approach, though it may seem new, draws on a proven success story.

Introducing a Vision-Oriented Oversight Committee

Jamaica’s significant reduction in its debt-to-GDP ratio has been celebrated worldwide. This accomplishment was thanks to a bipartisan, long-term effort that drew upon disciplined oversight from the private sector, trade unions, and civil society.

What if your organization established a similar framework—a “Vision-Oriented Oversight Committee” (VPOC)? This committee would serve as a vision-focused equivalent to Jamaica’s Economic Programme Oversight Committee (EPOC), actively balancing both static and dynamic qualities to ensure sustained progress. In some cases, a board could serve this function.

This idea could be the key to Vision 2030 Jamaica’s success. Without a VPOC, the likelihood of achieving Jamaica’s aspiration to become “the place of choice” may continue to diminish over the next six years, potentially jeopardizing one of our most ambitious goals since independence.

As a Jamaican employed in an organisation, you are worried about the future of our nation. It appears as if our country is stumbling along, barely keeping its head above water.

At the same time, you are aware of the power of a corporate vision. Why hasn’t someone done one for our 2.8 million people on the island, and the other 2+ million in the Diaspora?

The good news is that something is already in place in the form of Vision 2030. But why isn’t it changing your everyday experience?

The truth is that we need help. The two main things Jamaicans care most about – economy and crime – seem not to have progressed for decades. Instead, we want the hyper-growth of Trinidad-2004 and Guyana-2023. Or maybe even the steady high performance of the Bahamas.

Or perhaps more importantly, we envy the low crime rates of Barbados or Cayman (formerly a Jamaican protectorate.) At some point, we led all these countries in these areas.

Today, we are working hard not to slip into the same zone as Haiti.

If our leading companies can accomplish so much long-term success, why can’t our country, we wonder? While a direct comparison is unfair, maybe there are a few things we can learn from best practices accepted in your organisation.

A Joined Up, Far-Away Future

A “joined-up” future is one that lots of stakeholders contribute to creating. In a company, it means engaging the board, executives, staff, customers, suppliers, regulators, local communities and more.

Shouldn’t our country do the same?

Based on my experience and queries of colleagues outside government…we don’t know that we already have a joined-up faraway future…at least on paper. In fact, the process used to create Vision 2030 Jamaica from 2003-9 is a world-class model. As such, I have shared it at in-person and online strategy conferences as a case study.

Perhaps you recognise the summary statement: “the place of choice to live, work, raise families and do business.” In times gone, it was the tagline of speeches given by the Governor General, Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition and many others.

But I looked over the recent Budget Debate notes. I struggled to find much of a mention. A Google search didn’t help. Here are a few ways business people at all levels could intervene now to prevent what former leaders of our country seem to be telling us…this is too important to allow it to be eaten up in regular chakka-chakka.

Why the urgency?

With six or so years remaining until we cross the finish line in 2030, we can’t afford to waste a single moment in mid-race. Remember when Miller-Uibo glanced up at the screen and lost her lead in the 400m final of the 2017 World Championships? We are likely to stumble into defeat also as a nation, unless we pay attention to the following.

A Divisive Election – You and I watch the bitter combat underway in the USA. It appears that cooperation towards common goals is impossible. Within a year, our own political parties will try to win the next election by emphasising their differences. This is natural. But it’s the opposite of the intent of Vision 2030 Jamaica. Just imagine if the board of your company were divided into opposing camps. Let’s intervene so that their attention remains on what is most important.

Continuous Inspiration – Your ability to recite our National Pledge and Anthem were picked up as a child. We could elevate Vision 2030 Jamaica to that level of importance, starting with the Forward by Dr. Wesley Hughes, which states in part:

“Today, our children, from the tiny boy in Aboukir, St. Ann, to the teenage girl in Cave, Westmoreland, have access to technologies that were once considered science fiction. They seek opportunities to realise their full potential. This Plan (vision) is to ensure that, as a society, we do not fail them. “

Updated Business-like Measures – How can we know the progress we have made from 2009-2023? Are the measurable results listed in the document beyond reach? Do we deserve an A-? or a D+?

How about fresh, intuitive measures of success which tell us whether or not Jamaica is becoming “the place of choice”? Let’s measure the length of lines outside the US and Canadian Embassies for those seeking permanent residency and how they are growing or shrinking.

Wheeling and Coming Again – Companies have no problem resetting fresh objectives when the old ones no longer do the job. In business, a strategy that is not working is replaced as soon as it’s found to be lacking.

We can do the same for Vision 2030 Jamaica to keep it relevant. This is the beauty of long-term strategic planning.

An honest read of the original document reveals that certain assumptions about the government’s capacity to lead the effort were unquestioned. Today, after over a decade of effort, we have learned much. For example, it’s hard to argue that the planning done in 2009 was enough.

In summary, while we once led the world in long-term national planning, we aren’t doing the same in the more difficult world of national strategizing and execution. But there’s time.

As the clock ticks down to 2030, things are likely to become more awkward for all of us. As you may imagine, the human tendency is to avoid the issue entirely, hoping it goes away.

That may yet happen. But if we don’t confront the gaps in our initial attempt to create a joined-up, faraway vision, we’ll block our citizens from ever believing in a national vision again.

In fact, it would be better if it were declared null and void, than ignored. At least that would have some integrity and enable us to move on to a better national vision, lessons earned.

Better National Strategic Planning

And that is perhaps the biggest lesson for all concerned. We Jamaicans say that we are great starters, but poor finishers. In other words, we know how to kick things off. But when the going gets tough, we aren’t strong at bringing them to fruition.

Said differently, we don’t know how to keep promises just because we made them.

The point here is that Vision 2030, with some five to six years remaining, puts us in an awkward spot. But that’s a lie. We have put ourselves in an awkward spot.

At some point, we were strong in envisioning great things. Like a company who creates BHAGs, our executive team gave its sacred honour to accomplish a great thing, like the framers of the Declaration of Independence.

However, we haven’t put in place mechanisms sufficient to rescue our current situation. At this rate, we won’t be closer to being a “place of choice” than we were in 2009.

In a company, it’s easier to find individuals or a team of leaders who may hold themselves accountable for a game-changing result. Often, the metrics are clear.

Unfortunately, no such clarity exists around Vision 2030. And given our impending election fever, it may not come from politicians. Instead, it’s time for business to step up and bring sound strategic planning to the accomplishment of the most important outcomes of our national lifetimes.

Let’s inspire each other to intervene so we can have what we already know we want. It won’t happen any other way.

As a member of the C-Suite, you may readily support Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAGs)—those ambitious, industry-shaping aspirations that separate leading companies from the rest. These high-stakes goals have the power to disrupt entire industries, often turning bold vision into remarkable results.

Yet, you’ve likely also encountered the sobering insights from *How Big Things Get Done* by Bent Flyvbjerg and Dan Gardner. Their research highlights a harsh reality: major projects across the globe frequently fall short. In fact, fewer than one percent of large projects succeed in meeting their goals on time, within budget, and with all intended features. High-profile failures, like the Sydney Opera House, the Montreal Olympics, and the Panama Canal, showcase how challenging it is to turn big dreams into successful outcomes.

So, when a company or organization makes a commitment to a game-changing goal, the odds are, unfortunately, stacked against it. Take the film *Heaven’s Gate* as an example—it ran years over schedule, went massively over budget, and ultimately led to the collapse of United Artists film studio.

But do these statistics mean your company should avoid aiming for breakthrough results? Should the high failure rates discourage organizations from striving for greatness? Here are some reasons why it’s still worthwhile to pursue game-changing goals, rather than settle for incremental improvements.

**#1. There’s No Backstage**

Some executives believe their company can hold on to the status quo indefinitely. While they might talk a good game about innovation, they are content to stick with familiar practices, almost as if disruptions don’t apply to them. But this is like a writer who clings to their typewriter, ignoring new tools like ChatGPT while assuming the market for their work will remain unchanged.

By choosing inaction, these executives inadvertently embrace a “strategy of inertia.” But this strategy often catches up with them—eventually, almost every industry faces a disruption.

Granted, there are a few rare cases of companies that temporarily escape changing technology, shifting customer needs, new competitors, and unstable supply chains. Even in the public sector, where longevity is assumed, departments that can’t keep up are being defunded under a policy of “contestability.” This shows that no organization, public or private, is immune to change.

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**#2. Problem-Solving Alone Isn’t Enough**

Without a place to hide from change, executives often struggle to shift their thinking after joining the C-Suite. Why? Up until their promotion, they were celebrated for quick wins and problem-solving skills.

Once they reach the top, however, they need to pivot from short-term results to a long-term vision. It’s no longer about fixing issues on the spot; it’s about building a compelling future. This shift requires leaders to let go of their comfort zone and address their blind spots.

For new C-Suite leaders, this shift can feel like a frustrating waste of time. Imagine a strategic planning retreat to set a BHAG: it involves activities like clarifying goals, weighing risks, and challenging assumptions. To leaders accustomed to fast results, these slower, more thoughtful steps may seem pointless.

Some may even prefer the “move fast and break things” mindset that once fueled early Facebook’s explosive growth. But Facebook eventually abandoned this slogan, learning through costly failures that some damage can’t be easily undone.

**#3. Stop Delaying the Inevitable**

It’s a common issue—many companies defer tackling long-term challenges that could take a decade or more to solve. Instead, executive teams focus on easier problems that provide quicker results.

Look around your organization. Are there longstanding issues that have been consistently set aside? Often, it’s because previous leaders failed to establish the BHAGs and long-term plans necessary to address them.

This might sound like bad news, but it doesn’t have to be.

According to innovators like Chunka Mui and Alan Kay, these neglected issues represent opportunities for game-changing innovation. The difference between success and stagnation often lies in a company’s ability to introduce transformative solutions and lead new market categories.

Mui and Kay outline a process that any company can use to shape the future by proactively inventing it. This might sound ambitious, but consider what it could look like if every organization in Jamaica—businesses, government agencies, NGOs, schools, churches, and clubs—invested in the most effective forward-planning practices available.

Back in 2009, the launch of Vision 2030 was a step in the right direction. But now, Jamaicans need to take another step forward: embedding a culture of vision-setting and breakthrough goal creation in every company’s annual planning.

In summary, while aiming for game-changing goals may feel risky, the alternative—sticking to the familiar and hoping for stability—is equally uncertain. For organizations that wish to lead, rather than react, these ambitions remain essential.