Creating Experiences of a Shared Purpose That Transforms Hearts and Minds
By Ramkumar Seshu, Author of Born to Win & Leadership Lessons from the Bhagavad Gita
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After 43 years of helping people help themselves joyously across India, I’ve walked into countless corporate offices adorned with beautifully framed mission statements and inspiring vision plaques. They speak of lofty goals, transformative futures, and noble purposes. Yet, I’ve learned something profound: during times of turbulence and uncertainty, these carefully crafted words can feel distant, even hollow, to the very people they’re meant to inspire.
Why does this happen? Because rallying a team around a shared vision, especially when the ground beneath them is shifting, is far more than an exercise in corporate communication. It’s about creating what I call a “lively, felt experience” of purpose and direction—something that touches people’s hearts as much as their minds, something that makes them genuinely happy to be part of the journey.
The wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita, which has always inspired our work at Born to Win, reminds us that true leadership lies not in commanding followers, but in helping others discover their own inner strength and purpose. When we apply this philosophy to vision-building, something beautiful happens: people don’t just follow the vision—they become co-creators of it.
The Fragility of Vision When Storms Arrive
During periods of change—be it a market downturn, technological disruption, or organizational restructuring—a team’s sense of shared purpose can become incredibly fragile. Uncertainty breeds anxiety, and anxiety can quickly erode the trust and focus that make visions come alive.
I remember a conversation with Vikram, the Head of Marketing of a Leading Real Estate Construction Firm in Bangalore, facing intense competition. “Ram, we have a clear vision for where we need to go to stay competitive. We think we have communicated it effectively. But I think my teams need to connect between what we say and what they feel.”
His challenge wasn’t the vision itself—it was compelling and well-articulated. The problem was the connection to it. His people couldn’t see how their daily efforts, their anxieties about job security, and their individual aspirations fit into this grander picture amidst all the uncertainty swirling around them.
This is where I’ve learned that the difference between managers and true motivators becomes most apparent. Managers announce visions; motivators help people fall in love with them.
What True Leaders Do to Make Vision Stick
Through our work with Vikram’s Senior Team through the “Born to Win – Winning to Lead” program, we helped them successfully unite their teams around the shared vision.
- They Make It Personal and Meaningful
A vision that remains purely organizational often fails to ignite individual passion. True leaders understand the importance of helping each team member see their personal place in the vision.
Take Harish a key manager in the Contracts Department. Initially, he wanted better coordination and clearer clarity on expectations. As he progressed through our spaced engagement process, something happened. He evolved from seeking basic coordination to expressing genuine appreciation, He said “I am Self-motivated and the feeling of Yes, I Can whenever I get a new task has helped me to be positive in whatever job I begin with. This is making me satisfied in what I do.”
This transformation illustrates a fundamental truth: when people see how organizational vision connects to their personal growth and satisfaction, magic happens. Harish didn’t just improve his performance metrics—he discovered joy in his work. His time management improved because he saw purpose in his tasks. His productivity increased not through external pressure, but through internal motivation.
Our program helps leaders master what we call “Purpose Alignment”—the art of connecting organizational goals with individual aspirations. It’s about showing people that the company’s success and their personal fulfilment aren’t separate destinations—they’re the same journey.
- They Communicate with Heart and Consistency
In uncertain times, silence from leadership is deafening and often filled with negative assumptions by team members. Effective leaders don’t just announce a vision and expect it to cascade naturally. They create ongoing conversations that keep the vision alive and relevant.
Consider Niraj Kumar from the Retail Sales Team. His journey shows how consistent, meaningful communication transforms not just performance, but entire mindsets. Initially, he focused on his job, in his own words he was “Finishing all pending transactions with customers, and hand over to CRM.”
But watch how his language evolved through the 6-week engagement process: ” Have been very careful in value judgement and aggregating time to 168hrs, this has helped me spend more time with my customers and answer all their queries; I am more focused in analyzing the situation; My CRM Team’s confidence towards me has improved in all respect.”
This transformation happened because he consistently reinforced the vision through regular check-ins, celebrated his progress, and helped him see how his individual growth served the larger purpose.
- They Embody the Vision
Nothing destroys a vision faster than leaders whose actions contradict their words. The most powerful way to rally a team around a vision is for leaders to visibly demonstrate their commitment through their behaviours, decisions, and daily priorities.
Sandeep who was a Senior Manager in the Projects Department, was in a constant firefighting mode which led to enhanced stress in himself and his team.
During the course of the program, Sandeep focused on becoming more organized and on planning his tasks, this is what he said later “Increase in Self Confidence & positive thinking, this has made me more confident and optimistic. The Win-Win principle has made me more patient with my team.”
- They Create Momentum Through Small Victories
A grand vision can feel overwhelming, especially during challenging times. Wise leaders break down the journey into achievable milestones and then make a deliberate effort to recognize and celebrate progress along the way.
This is beautifully illustrated in both Harish’s, Niraj’s and Sandeep’s journeys:
Harish moved from struggling with basic coordination to achieving “Better follow-up for any details required – Like payment tracking; Reduction in time for completing the work.” His productivity metrics improved, but more importantly, his confidence grew with each small win.
Niraj’s evolution was equally remarkable—from basic task completion to “Sales figures have gone up and team is able to perform better” and finally to “Have given desired numbers to Quarterly standard.”
Sandeep’s experience was very insightful, from a highly stressed environment to stating that “Along with the operations team we worked for a smoother transition. Productivity has increased by 70% and Quality by 60%. This is a fantastic program.”
These leaders immersed themselves in the transformative process of “Born to Win – Winning to Lead”. They celebrated each improvement, each sign of growth, each moment when team members discovered their “I Can” potential. This created a positive feedback loop that sustained motivation through challenging periods.
Vision Is a Living, Breathing Experience
Ultimately, uniting a team around a shared vision in uncertain times is an active, ongoing process that requires more than well-written statements. It demands leadership that is deeply human, consistently communicative, and demonstrably committed.
When leaders master this art—when they can truly connect their teams to a compelling “why” even amidst the “how is this possible?”—something magical happens. Teams don’t just navigate change; they become the driving force behind it. They don’t just work toward the vision; they become living expressions of it.
Harish, Niraj and Sandeep exemplify this transformation. They moved from being employees who needed direction to becoming self-motivated contributors who found genuine satisfaction in their work. Their stories show that when vision becomes personal and meaningful, when communication is consistent and caring, when leaders embody what they preach, and when progress is celebrated—people don’t just buy into the vision, they become it.
At Born to Win, we believe that every organization has the potential to become a place where shared vision creates shared joy, where individual growth and collective success become inseparable, and where people wake up excited about contributing to something larger than themselves.
The journey from “I Can’t see how this affects me” to “I Can’t imagine doing anything else” isn’t just about communication—it’s about transformation. And that transformation begins when leaders choose to see vision-building not as a corporate exercise, but as a deeply human opportunity to create workplaces where people genuinely thrive.
Ready to transform how you unite your team around shared vision? Discover how “Born to Win – Winning to Lead” process can help you create deeper connection and commitment in your organization, turning every team member into a living embodiment of your shared purpose : https://borntowin.co.in/winning-to-lead/
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