Visionaries – Visionary Leaders of One or Many

See also, our list of 50 Visionary Leaders of Today

Visionaries and visionary leaders begin by first leading themselves.

No one starts out saying, “I am a visionary leader”. Few would feel comfortable proclaiming it. Visionary leaders are vastly more focused on accomplishments than accolades.

Yet each creator is the visionary of his or her work. Each entrepreneur starts as a visionary leader of one. Founders and CEOs are creators who are visionary leaders.

It is the destiny of each of us to be the visionary of our own life.

“You are the visionary of your life. Vision it daily, then lead yourself into it by the decisions you make and the actions you take.”
~LeAura Alderson, cofounder-iCreateDaily.com®

Each entrepreneur starts as a visionary leader of one.
~LeAura Alderson, cofounder-iCreateDaily.com®

Creators

Most people aren’t confident enough to stake their claim in the land of leaders. Of course we all need to put in the time and earn the credibility. Yet each creator is the visionary of his work.

Each entrepreneur is the visionary of her business, guiding its direction. Each inventor is the visionary of his product, bringing it to life from idea to conception to manifestation.

Vision evolves in the voyage of becoming.
~LeAura Alderson, iCreateDaily.com®

Becoming a Visionary Leader

The most famous visionaries throughout history began just doing their work. They came to be known as visionary because of their work. They wrestled their work into the world over time and as a result, they influenced and inspired others to the point where they were seen as visionary.

The creator’s journey begins as a glimpse, and grows into a vision. Becoming a visionary begins with doing your work, diligently, over time.

You are ever the visionary of your life and your work. You’re the only one who can be.

Creators keep magic and wonder alive. Go forge a fate world maker.
~LeAura Alderson, cofounder-iCreateDaily.com®

The Maker is Made in the Making

This is an obvious thing and yet it’s easy to miss. Most do. But it’s too important. In fact it’s everything. When we stop playing the blame game… the excuses game… we can get on with maker’s game.

But makers… makers keep company with Creativity, the muse of Creation itself.  To create is the mark of The Maker. To create is a direct connection with divinity. And… we are all creators. Human destiny is to become fully conscious creators. Co-creators.

You can read more on that in this article on life alchemy.

When we fully realize the truth of how deeply we create our own reality, the reality that we create changes.
~LeAura Alderson, cofounder-iCreateDaily.com®

Image by Okan Caliskan from Pixabay

Visionary Leadership Style

If you’re “art” is that you’re an entrepreneur building a business, then your role is to be the ideator and visionary leadership guiding the company’s direction. You will eventually be able to hire others to implement the ideas you conceive, so that you have more time to focus on visioning.

If you’re a painter, you cannot hire someone to paint for you, but over time you will be able to hire someone to do all the many menial tasks that you don’t enjoy that take you away from your core role as creator.  As the artist, your ultimate job is to do your art as only you can do. As a leader of your brand, it is to also keep sight on the horizon of your goals.

The artist is the visionary of his art… the writer is the visionary of her book.

If you’re a writer, you cannot outsource the writing of your book. However,  you can certainly outsource the editing, sales and marketing. There are many tasks related to getting your work into the world and growing your business and brand that can be delegated.

As you’re able, you must delegate so that you can continue to ascend keep the big picture in sight. Doing our art is wonderful, but you must periodically come up for air and assess if you’re on track. The more you can do this the more you will be in alignment with your vision for your life.

What a blessing to be able to take ideas from mind to manifestation. Be it canvas or page; sound or stage… creators are privileged to give form to wonder… and wonder to form.

But first…? First, you must lead yourself.

To be a visionary leader is to first lead yourself.
~LeAura Alderson, iCreateDaily.com®

5 Steps to Becoming a Visionary Leader

1. Recognize that you are the leader of your vision
2. You are the creator, bring your vision to life through daily effort
3. You are the maker, make your work and you will make your world
4. Lead yourself and you will lead your vision into being
5. A visionary leader begins by leading himself/herself, and others will follow

The real job of a leader is not about being in charge, it’s about taking care of those in our charge.
~Simon Sinek, British-American author, speaker, b.10/9/1973

22 Characteristics of Visionary Leaders

Visionary leadership involves high mentality and emotional intelligence.

1. Autodidact
2. Aware
3. Compassionate
4. Creative
5. Determined
6. Disciplined
7. Empathetic
8. Enthusiastic
9. Focused
10. Gratitude
11. Integrity
12. Kind
13. Optimistic
14. Persistent
15. Problem solver
16. Rational
17. Reflective
18. Resilient
19. Revolutionary
20. Stoic
21. Thoughtful
22. Visionary

Inspiring Visionary Leaders of the Present and Future

What follows is a short list of some of our favorite visionary leaders who are making a tremendous difference in the world and in the lives of millions. Visionaries and visionary leaders of the present and future.

Listed alphabetically by first name, this is just the beginning of our list. We’ll be adding more as they come to mind or as we meet them, virtually or in person. Visionary leadership is about more than leadership style. Visionary leaders inspire and influence others to rise into their best. 

We view all of these to be visionaries, thought leaders and societal influencers precipitating consciousness expanding positivity in the world today. There’s so much to say and share about each one of these, so this is a work-in-progress, where we will return to embellish our admiration and appreciation with expanded descriptions. For now, we’re following Seth’s advice to “ship it“… to hit ‘publish’ before we’re ready, before it’s finished, in order to get it out there.

54 Examples of Visionary Leaders Alive Today

This is an evolving list of people from all walks of a life who are making a tremendous contribution through their work – listed alphabetically by first name:

1. Aubrey Marcus, founder, Onnit nutrition, podcaster, author, b.2/28/1981; on a mission to spread consciousness and awareness
   
2. Ben Greenfield, founder, Ben Greenfield Fitness, fitness science, products, author, b.9/1981, the ultimate health and fitness hacker/scientist/philosopher.
   
3. Benjamin Hardy, organizational psychologist, author, coach, mindset advocate, b.1989
   
4. Brendon Burchard, high performance coach, author, b.2/18/1977
   
5. Brené Brown, professor, researcher, author, b.11/18/1965, positively influencing millions with her message of courage, authenticity, and daring bravely
   
6. Brooke Castillo, life coach, podcaster, author, wise woman, relatable, personable and offering sage no-nonsense advice
   
7. Carol Dweck – landmark scientific research and book on growth mindset
   
8. Chase Jarvis, founder CreativeLive, photographer, author, b.7/19/1971
   
9. Dalai Lama, Tibetan spiritual leader, author, b.7/6/1935
   
10. Dan Sullivan, business coach, author, b.5/19/??
    
11. Deepak Chopra, Indian-American holistic health advocate, spiritual teacher, author, b.11/22/1946
    
12. Denzel Washington, actor, director, producer, b.12/28/1954
    
13. Ed Mylett, motivational speaker, entrepreneur, author, b.4/27/1971
    
14. Gary Vaynerchuk, entrepreneur, author, 11/14/1975
    
15. Grant Cardone, entrepreneur, author, real estate mogul, b.3/21/1958
    
16. Hal Elrod, survivor, author & creator of Miracle Morning series, b.5/30/1979
    
17. James Clear, coach, speaker, author, blogger, b.1986
    
18. James Nestor, journalist, multiple times bestselling author, including potentially one of the most important books for health of the century, Breath, The New Science of a Lost Art
    
19. Jamie Kern Lima, billionaire entrepreneur founder IT cosmetics, author, b. 7/16/1977 – read her book and BELIEVE in yourself! Also, see Jamie’s inspiring quotes and story.
    
20. Jason Silva, TV personality, storyteller, filmmaker, futurist, speaker, b.2/6/1982
    
21. Jay Acunzo – Unthinkable Podcast and programs for creators, author. A creative thought leader who demonstrates through his work, his visionary perspective on creativity.
    
22. Jay Shetty, former monk, teacher, show host, author, b.9/6/1987
    
23. Joanna Penn, fiction and non-fiction author, course creator helping authors make a living, b.3/11/1975. A highly successful fiction and non-fiction writer. You may enjoy our podcast interview with her as well.
    
24. Jocko Willinks, former Navy Seal, podcaster, author, speaker, entrepreneur-product creator 9/8/1971, an embodiment of masculinity balanced with compassion.
    
25. Joe Dispenza, DC, neuroscientist, author, teacher, transforming health and expanding consciousness, b.3/24/1972. This is the first stop I make when working on healing for the focus on the power we each have within us to heal ourselves.
    
26. Joe Polish, Genius Network, master connector, author, addiction recovery advocate, b.2/5/1968
    
27. John Maxwell, pastor, speaker, author, b. 2/20/1947, legendary positive thought leader.
    
28. Jordan Peterson, psychologist, professor, author, b.6/12/1962, multiple times author of landmark books on psychology and human development. Including, Maps of Meaning and 12 Rules for Life, which I highly recommend toward greater understanding of ourselves and humanity at large.
    
29. Lewis Howes, product developer, School of Greatness podcast, author, b.3/16/1983
    
30. Lindsey Stirling, musician, performer, author, teacher, b.9/2/1986, we’ve featured her and many of her videos throughout our articles. Lindsey is an amazingly creative artist who has created her own incredible success through consistent persistence over many years.
    
31. Marie Forleo, coach, show host, author, b.12/7/1975, a vivacious, strong, compassionate and empathetic coach, Marie has forged her own unique path of excellence while helping many others do the same.
    
32. Matthew McConaughey, actor, author, b.11/4/1969
    
33. Mel Robbins, commentator, author, speaker, b.10/6/1968
    
34. Mike Dillard, entrepreneur, teacher, podcaster, author, b.9/29/1977
    
35. Monty Moran, former CEO Chipotle, author
    
36. Oprah Winfrey, media magnate, show host, actor, author, b.1/29/1954
    
37. Paulo Coelho, Brazilian lyricist, author, b.8/24/1947 for his most insightful classic book, The Alchemist
    
38. Peter Crone, coach, ‘Mind Architect’, author,
    
39. Peter Diamandis, futurist, founder Xprize, author, b.5/20/1961
    
40. Phil Town, investor, founder-Rule One Investing, investment educator, author, b.9/21/1948
    
41. Ray Dalio, investor, author, philanthropist, b.8/8/1949
    
42. Richard Branson, serial entrepreneur, maverick, mentor, author b.7/18/1950
    
43. Ryan Daniel Moran, serial entrepreneur, podcaster, author, b.10/3/1987
    
44. Sara Blakely, entrepreneur, owner-founder – Spanx, philanthropist, author, b.2/27/1971
    
45. Seth Godin, former dot com business exec, author, teacher, b.6/10/1960
    
46. Simon Sinek, motivational speaker, author, b.10/9/1973
    
47. Steven Pressfield, fiction and non-fiction author, b.9/1943
    
48. Tim Ferriss, entrepreneur, investor, podcaster, author, b.7/20/1977
    
49. Tom Bilyeu, cofounder Quest Nutrition & Impact Theory, show host, author, b.3/30/1976
    
50. Tom Cowan, MD, holistic physician, author, entrepreneur, product creator
    
51. Tony Robbins, serial entrepreneur, investor, philanthropist, transformation coach, author, b. 2/29/1960
    
52. Vishen Lakhiani, entrepreneur, creator MindValley, author, b.1/14/1976
    
53. Will Smith, rapper, actor, producer, b.9/25/1968
    
54. Yuval Noah Harari, Israeli historian, philosopher, professor, bestselling author of over 27.5M books in 60 languages

The beginning of a very long list which we’ll add to as we have time to. Please send us your favorite visionary thought leaders and we’re glad to add them here. (I sense a new article brewing)! 🙂

Two things that great leaders need to have: empathy and perspective.
~Simon Sinek, British-American author, speaker, b.10/9/1973

RELATED: Visionary Tools

I Am a Dreamer

Visions and dreams encompass not only creative and entrepreneurial endeavors, but also visions of global contribution, which brings to mind for us the visionary artist and his legendary song, John Lennon’s I Am a Dreamer.

Here are three different renditions, all equally beautiful, uplifting and inspiring.

America’s Got Talent Performance by Swedish Singer, Chris Klafford

A Global Rendition of Imagine

Good to the end and well worth the 3:16 minutes.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7IP4UlXvG

John Lennon and Yoko Ono

In a classic music video showcasing the wonderful legacy they shared with the world.

Get Gratitude.

The Day is the Way.

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