“It all starts with a vision.
If we want to be the best people we can be, and live the best lives we can win we need to be clear where we want to go. Then we need to take control of whatever is in our power, and make a plan to get there. Or we will be buffeted by fortunes. At the end of our lives we will wonder what our lives were for.
Visions and plans may evolve – new possibilities may occur. Experience may make us decide we no longer want some things or they are not possible. But we need to continue to have visions and make new plans through tracking and reflecting on what we have done.”
GEMs Vision Journeys are the underlying framework for all GAMEChange empowerment processes. Based on principles of Appreciative Enquiry, they start with the positive but also being realistic and hard-headed about the challenges. They combine in one diagram:
- Strategic planning principles
- SWOT analysis starting with opportunities
- Theory of change developed through action learning over time
One diagram combining meaningful pictorial representation of all these elements together means that people can always see their vision before them as the inspiration to continue when life is difficult. They can add details and track their progress in relation to the vision. They can easily see at a glance which processes and strategies work or do not work. In order to improve success from cycle to cycle they can easily track and do new diagrams for new journeys as life evolves.
Vision Journeys:
Diagram Template DNA
Vision journeys have evolved since the end of 1990s from simple ‘Achievement Road Journeys’ and ‘organisational achievement road maps’ commonly used by NGOs as a participatory impact assessment tool.
Achievement Journeys became a core part of the PALS or GALS processes that Linda Mayoux facilitated from 2002 onwards, starting with PALS workshops Kabarole Research and Resource Centre (KRC) in Western Uganda where ANANDI gave a presentation by ANANDI on Road Maps they used in India. The Vision Journey as an individual life planning tool with vision, current circle and one lane came to her in a ‘burst of spontaneous inspiration’ while facilitating a group of KRC farmers with flipcharts of trees and the back of a jeep.
The Vision Journey then evolved further as an organisational and/or individual strategic planning tool with multiple lanes and SWOT analysis. Facilitation in community workshops with a wide range of different organisations for different purposes led to addition of a number of features for greater clarity:
- stipulation of adequate number of opportunities and challenges and alignment of placing of these nearer or further from the road to align with SWOT analysis.
- clear separation of milestones and actions – so the actions become the main emphasis rather than everything jumbled together.
- clearer colour-coding – rather than just attractive picture maps – to facilitate clarity and tracking
These enabled more in-depth and accurate analysis by and between people with high levels of education as well as those who never had access to formal education.
What are Vision Journeys?
strategic planning (Vision Journey), impact assessment and evaluation (Achievement Journey and tracked Vision Journey) PALS as GALS and more recent methodologies like Financial Action Learning System (FALS), Happy Family Happy Chain, iLEAD etc.
Vision Journeys are of two basic types that can be combined as a process or done separately:
- Vision Journeys look to the future. This is generally the first Vision Journey used so that people are immediately inspire with possibilities of future change, rather than getting depressed about what may have gone before.
- Achievement Journeys assess lessons from the past in relation to the future vision. This is useful as part of a later review where it is combined with planning the next vision journey to the future.
Journeys may be single track or multi-lane for different aspects of levels of a vision or plan.
Vision Journeys are useful for any issue, in any context and for any number of participants from individual level to very large collective planning processes.
Generic steps
Current adaptations of GAMEChange empowerment methodologies have systematised a number of generic steps.
A Vision Journey towards the future is usually the first and underlying framework tool:
- Vision
- Current circle and road framework with one or more lanes
- Opportunities and challenges
- Timebound SMART target and milestones
- Activities and achievement targets in the milestones on the way.
Vision Journeys then track progress over time with red ‘fruit circles’ around things achieved and other symbols marking things that prove more difficult. Then adjust the Journey as required.
Champions draw the main steps in their notebooks and do a role play for peer sharing and continue do discuss experience of peer sharing.
The Road/strategic plan
The journey distinguishes between:
- vision/dream as ‘thinking big’ and long-term inspirational goal/s to motivate someone to get up in the morning when the going is tough.
- SMART ‘target’ or ‘ambition’ as Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timebound (SMART) medium-term elements of the dream.
- Milestones or short-term periodic SMART achievement steps, starting with the first milestone after one month or earlier so that action starts immediately after analysis.
- Actions – SMART achievements are distinguishes from the actions to move from one to the next. It is the actions that are the most important for change over time.
Appreciative SWOT/risk analysis
- Starts with opportunities/strengths and identifies as many as possible (a very minimum of 10) as these are what will lead most to success and keep someone feeling positive.
- Does a thorough risk analysis because if you do not identify risks/ challenges/ weaknesses/ threats then things will happen to divert your road.
- Balance opportunities and risks – for every risk identify an opportunity so that the balance remains always positive – or maybe you need to go a different road.
Action learning/theory of change
Living action learning plan that you revisit, tracking progress, analysing what works and does not work, and and continue to track over time. Do not leave it in a drawer until the next workshop or donor visit.
Learn from experience: start with a Vision Journey looking forward to the future. But also take time to analyse and appreciate your past achievements and struggles.
Consistent colour coding so that you keep the plan clear. It is best to start with a draft in pencil, but then distinguish:
- red ‘ripe fruits’ are drawings and circles for vision and achievements/actions you have done.
- black ‘native fruits’ are what is already there.
- green ‘unripe fruits’ are drawings and circles of positive things yet to achieve or actions yet to do. Once you achieve one thing, plan some more new green fruits.
- blue ‘perished fruits’ are drawings, crosses and circle for things to avoided, you no longer want or you know from experience now will not work.
building a Change Movement
- Share the steps with other people in your households, communities and networks so that they can do their own plan – not copy yours.
- Meet together regularly to share experiences of what works and what does not works.
- Develop collective plans over time for individual and collective actions to support each other – change starts with the individual, that is where you have responsibility and some control, But not all things can be done alone. And not everything should be just for you if you want a community, society or world that is good to live in.
Simple Journeys
The first Vision Journey (individual) is a simple one-lane plan to achieve one or more elements of a bigger vision.
Some other vision journeys like business plans may also only have one vision. In this case gender issues are important in drawing the vision symbols, opportunities and challenges and targets and actions.
Multi-lane Highway
Multilane Highways represent visions and plans for different levels or dimensions of an issue. It can combine visions, targets and plans on different levels eg personal/ household/ collective or production/market/cooperative. It can also combine different dimensions of an issue eg livelihoods/coffee production/health with eg gender balance and leadership on one diagram. Seeing these dimensions in parallel enables analysis of complementarities and interlinkages.
Multilane Highways also provide a core monitoring and tracking tool that can be consolidated and aggregated from individual level to households or groups to organisations and movements.
Multi-lane Vision Calendars
Multi-lane Vision Calendars are an adaptation for seasonal activities like businesses, livelihoods or financial management where monthly targets are important. Calendars have as many lanes as necessary for detailed planning and monthly sections.
Toolkit examples with Facilitation
SNV Ethiopia Soulmate Visioning
SNV Ethiopia Vision Journey
Achievement Journey
Developed in 2020 for IFAD with Asel Kuttubaeva, Tribhuban Paudel and Beatrice Gerli for Happy Family Review as part of IFAD’s Rural Women Economic Empowerment Joint Project in Kyrgyzstan and Nepal.
Business Innovation Management Calendar
Developed in 2019 for IFAD with Asel Kuttubaeva for Business Action Learning for Innovation (BALI) methodology as part of IFAD’s Rural Women Economic Empowerment Joint Project in Kyrgyzstan
Financial Management Calendar
Developed in 2017 for Oikocredit with Intan Dharmawati, Malou Juanito and partners NWTF and ASKI in Philippines for Financial Action Learning System (FALS) methodology as part of Oikocredit’s Bridging the Gender Gap in Responsible Finance project.
Leadership Multi-lane Highway
Developed in 2020 for Oxfam Novib with Katja Koegler and partners in Mali, Niger and Pakistan for Marriage No Child’s Play project..