CATALYZING STATEMENTS
Soon after John F. Kennedy became president, he began to see the importance of the manned space program that President Dwight D. Eisenhower had envisioned; in fact, in his State of the Union address in January 1961, he made his support of manned space flight clear. Then on April 12, 1961, the Soviet Union sent the first man into space, which seemed to show the world that while the United States had dreams and ambitions, it was lagging behind in achieving its goal.
President Kennedy did not want to fall behind the Soviet Union, which was putting more money and effort toward space than we were at that time. So, on May 25, 1961, he stood before a special joint session of Congress and outlined what could be viewed as his beacon in the fog. He said:
I believe we possess all the resources and talents necessary. But the facts of the matter are that we have never made the national decisions or marshaled the national resources required for such leadership [in space travel]. We have never specified long-range goals on an urgent time schedule, or managed our resources and our time so as to ensure their fulfillment.
It’s important to note that President Kennedy did not stop there. Instead, President Kennedy added what my associate Rick Sapio refers to as a catalyzing statement when he said:
I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth.
(Special address to the United States Congress, May 25, 1961.)
Of course, that goal was fulfilled when on July 20, 1969, less than a decade after President Kennedy made his famous speech, Neil Armstrong did indeed walk on the moon and returned to earth safely.
Catalyzing statements add specificity and are the fuel that motivates us—and those around us—to keep moving toward our beacon in the fog.
At the risk of sounding immodest, I would say that my beacon in the fog of helping people in developing countries is noble, but it is also too broad. This leads to two problems. The first is that, even though I have a goal, it lacks any specificity to guide my actions day to day. The second is that, as I try to garner support from others, my goal seems overwhelming and unattainable.
So, I refined my goal and concluded I wanted to help educate youth from around the world. Even with that, though, it still lacked focus and was too vague for others to grasp. Eventually, I arrived at my catalyzing statement, which is: “I plan on educating 1,000 youth from around the world before I turn 50.” That was the point when I became very focused and also found others who were willing to support my dream. Suddenly doors opened and opportunities arose that helped lead us closer to this goal.
On a very different scale, what I did was much the same as when John F. Kennedy declared, “We will get a man on the moon before the end of the decade … and return him home safely.” We must clearly identify our beacon in the fog, and then we must follow that up by creating our catalyzing statement.
As I’ve come to understand and apply the concepts of beacons in the fog and catalyzing statements, I’ve watched to see if others who have achieved significant success follow the same pattern. An associate of mine was central to helping a small, Rocky Mountain company grow from a family business to a major commercial construction corporation. As I asked my associate about how the company grew, he shared a very telling story.
Back in the late 1980s, he was attending a conference with several of his key executives. The speaker asked the question, “Who has a mission statement for their company?” My associate raised his hand, but the speaker didn’t ask him what the mission statement was. Instead, he asked if any of the company’s executive staff were in attendance. Some were, so the speaker asked the executives, “What is your company’s mission statement?” These individuals stuttered and stammered and could not recite it. It was an embarrassing moment, and these executives were very apologetic. My associate then wrestled with what he could use to clarify the company’s purpose and unify his executives around it. He settled on the phrase: Constructing with Integrity.
He then went on to explain in detail what that mantra meant:
1. What we produce: Build using the highest level of quality and not cut corners. Use the best materials and the best methodologies available to construct with integrity.
2. How we deal with people: Behave ethically and treat all people equally and with respect. Construct relationships with integrity.
3. The organization we build: Remove posturing and politics and build our organization and interactions with each other with respect. Construct the organization with integrity.
These simple three words—Constructing with Integrity—became the North Star, the guiding beacon, for this construction company. What grew out of this beacon was the company’s emotional fuel, or catalyzing statements. And, as my associate told me, “Everyone understood what we stood for, and it was very rewarding.”
Some time later, at a company function, someone took a camera around and began asking team members what Constructing with Integrity meant to them. Here are a few of the statements from that day:
“It means I can live the same way on the job as when I am at home with my wife.”
“It means I don’t ever have to apologize to anyone for the quality of work we do.”
“It means I can be honest with my boss and with my direct reports about what it will take to do a job right.”
Catalyzing statements go way beyond articulating a goal. They emotionally charge us and align us. They internally motivate us to seek and believe and move forward.
Another good example of the power found in a broad goal with a catalyzing statement involves Bill Gates. In the early days of Microsoft, he would boldly declare, “We’re going to become the largest software company in the world!” That sounded great, but at that time nobody even knew what software was! Was Gates referring to a pair of snuggly, warm pajamas? No one could really wrap their heads around what he was saying. Then one day he made the statement, “I picture a world where there is a personal computer in every home and on every desktop.” That was something people understood, and it became Microsoft’s catalyzing statement. The rest, of course, is history. And, just like John F. Kennedy or Bill Gates, your catalyzing statement needs to be something you use as your emotional fuel that can rally the troops.
Several years ago I was in Japan, and I had the opportunity to visit a company in Tokyo called Fujita. From the moment I entered this company’s headquarters, I knew it was unique. The tone, the conduct of the staff, and the presentation of the boardroom were simply different. It was very clear that everyone was focused and clearly on a mission. At the end of our meeting I could not help but probe a bit, so I asked the individual I was meeting with to explain more about the company, its founder, and its history. His answer was immediate and brief—and it told me everything I was looking for. He simply said, “Fujita’s vision is to bring American culture to Japan.”
Now that is a powerful, huge, audacious, and crazy goal. “Bring American culture to Japan!”
Fujita’s daily activities include selling hamburgers, movies, clothing, and other products, most of which are imported. But those things are simply vehicles in support of Fujita’s catalyzing statement. And that catalyzing statement has resulted in Fujita bringing McDonald’s, Blockbuster, and Toys “R” Us to Japan.