I’m currently reading the book Fire Them Up! by Carmine Gallo (disclosure: I received a free copy of the book). One of the chapters talks about the importance of vision and how to have a vision with impact:
For a vision to have impact, it must be simple and profound. How do you attain both? By keeping your vision to ten words or less. The folks at Sequoia Capital, the prominent venture firm behind such companies as Cisco, Google, and Apple, call it “the one-liner”: a concise statement that tells people what you do.
Why should the vision be short? Here it is:
Condensing the statement, or vision, into ten words or less reflects your command of the business and your market. As one venture capitalist told me, “If you can’t say it in ten words or less, I’m not investing, I’m not buying, I’m not coming on board, I’m not leasing you space. Period.”
To give you clearer description, here is the one-liner of Sergey Brin and Larry Page from Google:
We deliver the world’s information in one click.
And here is the one-liner of Sandy Lerner and Len Bosack from Cisco Systems:
We network networks.
Very concise, aren’t they? While the book mainly talks about business vision, I believe the same principle also applies to personal vision. If you want your personal vision to have impact, you should have a “one-liner” for your vision.
So I look at myself and here is my one-liner:
Helping as many people as possible live the fullest of life.
I’ve mentioned it several times in this blog (such as in this post). The problem is, it consists of eleven words! Ouch. Maybe I should change “as many people as possible” to something which is shorter but has the same meaning.
I believe that reading other people’s one-liners can inspire and motivate us. It can motivate us to have big dreams and to package them in a concise and sharp way. So I’d like to ask you: what is your one-liner?
Your answer will help and inspire not just me, but other readers as well. And, if you still don’t have a one-liner, this is the perfect time to think about it and write down yours. Believe me, it’s well worth the effort.
Comment by Donald Latumahina
22 3. January 2008, 2:11 pm o'clock |
Thanks for sharing, Kristen! Your one-liners are very concise.
Comment by Kristen
21 3. January 2008, 9:08 am o'clock |
Personal one liner: Be grateful!
Professional one liner: Help people appreciate great literature!
Great post — thank you!
Comment by Donald Latumahina
20 24. December 2007, 11:05 pm o'clock |
Nice one-liner, Tom!
Comment by Thomas Clifford
19 23. December 2007, 6:13 pm o'clock |
“Moving people to action with remarkable corporate videos.”
Thanks for a great post!
Tom
Comment by Donald Latumahina
18 18. December 2007, 10:27 pm o'clock |
rn-elizabeth, j.twilite, and Andrew,
Thanks for sharing your one-liners!
Andrew,
Glad to meet you again! I’m doing well here. Great one-liner, by the way.
Comment by GreatManagement
17 18. December 2007, 9:02 am o'clock |
Hi Donald,
I hope you are well.
‘Give more than you receive’
That’s mine.
All the best.
Andrew
Comment by j.twilite
16 15. December 2007, 12:02 pm o'clock |
“To live my life to the fullest with confidence”
Comment by rn-elizabeth
15 13. December 2007, 3:03 am o'clock |
Caring.
Community.
Commitment
Continuity.
Comment by Donald Latumahina
14 11. December 2007, 1:06 pm o'clock |
Thanks a lot, everyone! All your one-liners are great! I am amazed by the way you pack your visions in such a compact way.
Randy,
Thanks for shortening my one-liner to seven words. I appreciate it.
Jon,
I have some background in information security so I know how sharp your one-liner is.
HP,
Thanks for the example.
Rory,
Your one-liner is the shortest so far!
Elmer,
Very comprehensive examples. Love it.
Aaron,
Yes, we often forget that *we* are in charge of our lives :)
Pingback by Personal Branding | Enjoy The Process
# 5. July 2008, 10:54 am o'clock |
[...] good way to create a strong message is creating your one-liner. A one-liner is a statement of your vision in ten words or less. It allows people to quickly grasp [...]