New Executive Title: CGO – Find or train one today!

This has been bugging me for a while, so I’m going to dig it up and put it out there. Opinions welcome.

Ever since “the vision thing” collided with “execution is everything,” people have failed to resolve the ‘what is more important’ tug-of-war between these two powerful forces. Here, I offer a way to resolve the debate to everyone’s potential satisfaction (or consternation). Forget business for a moment; let’s garden.

It’s a simple fix, really, with a simple manifesto: Be the gardener. To all prospective CGO’s – chief garden officers – follow these instructions for a healthy organization.

Envision the harvest you want your business to produce, then, start with a few well-placed seeds: the right people, ideas, products, technology, capital, etc. Water, fertilize, tend, weed. In relation to your objectives, do all the little things gardens require in order to bloom. Beware over-fertilizing or watering in the name of speed. It will kill your plants. Don’t try and force growth. It just won’t work.

Combined, vision and execution are both a matter of cultivation. Practice being the gardener with your business – or your life – and small accomplishments will have great significance as your company – and you – blossom.