The Visionary Trap and Why Big Ideas Alone Won’t Scale Your Business
- Brainz Magazine
- Jul 13
- 5 min read
Debra Chantry-Taylor helps entrepreneurs & leadership teams break through barriers to succeed in business & life. As an EOS Implementer® & Family Business Advisor, she guides firms to clarify their vision, tackle tough issues & create lasting growth & balance. She is the founder of Business Action & podcast host of Better Business, Better Life!
Some of the most successful businesses across Australia and New Zealand are built by bold, driven, fast-thinking Visionaries. They’re the founders who can see what others can’t. They’re charismatic, passionate, and never short on ideas. But they’re also often their own worst enemy when it comes to growth. I call it the Visionary Trap, and if you’re a founder or family business leader stuck in the chaos of your own ambition, you’ve probably experienced it.
What is the visionary trap?
It’s what happens when a business leader has all the vision, passion, and energy, but no structure, no accountability, and no one to balance them out.
The visionary trap looks like this:
Constant new ideas, nothing fully executed
Shiny object syndrome, chasing the next thing instead of finishing the current one
Team confusion and burnout
Decisions are bottlenecked at the top
No consistent rhythm or structure in the business
A leadership team walking on eggshells, trying to guess what mood you’ll be in today
Sound familiar?
If you’re running a mid-sized business, especially a family-owned one, and everything feels reactive, chaotic, or just a bit too hard, you might be deep in it.
The good news? There’s a way out.
The power of the visionary/integrator duo
In the Entrepreneurial Operating System® (EOS®), we recognise two distinct leadership types at the top of a business:
The Visionary: The passionate founder, idea generator, risk taker, relationship builder
The Integrator™: The steady hand, execution expert, team aligner, decision driver
When these two roles are clearly defined and working together, the results are extraordinary.
Don’t believe me? Just look at some of the most famous Visionary/Integrator partnerships in history:
Walt Disney and Roy Disney: Walt was the dreamer. Roy was the business brain who brought it all to life.
Steve Jobs and Tim Cook: Jobs was the product visionary. Cook was the operations genius who scaled Apple to new heights.
Ray Kroc and Fred Turner (McDonald’s): Kroc sold the dream. Turner built the systems to make it global.
Sara Blakely (Spanx) and John Fieldly: Blakely is the classic Visionary, creative, intuitive, and fast-moving. It wasn’t until she brought in professional leadership that Spanx became a sustainable powerhouse.
The lesson? Vision alone isn’t enough. It’s the combination of Vision + Execution that builds something truly scalable, sustainable, and in EOS language, saleable. And even if you don’t want to sell, you should have a business that is saleable!
What does an integrator actually do?
A true Integrator is not just a GM or COO. They’re the person who:
Translates the Visionary’s big ideas into actionable steps
Runs the day-to-day so the Visionary doesn’t have to
Drives accountability across the team
Keeps people, priorities, and processes aligned
Says “no” when needed and means it
This role isn’t always loved at first. Visionaries sometimes bristle at having someone “keep them in line.”
But once the results start showing, most say the same thing:
“I wish I’d done this years ago.”
Real-life example: From visionary chaos to calm scaling
I recently worked with a high-growth family business based in Melbourne. The founder was brilliant, a classic Visionary. He was great at spotting market opportunities, connecting with customers, and getting everyone excited about the future.
But internally? It was chaos.
New ideas every week. Projects half-finished. Senior leaders are unsure of priorities. Constant changes in direction.
His team was exhausted, and so was he.
Through EOS, we helped him step into his true role as Visionary. We used the Accountability Chart™ to separate out the Integrator role and define who really owned what. Then, we helped him find a strong Integrator, someone who complemented his style with structure, systems, and follow-through.
They now run Same Page Meetings monthly to stay aligned, use the V/TO™ to keep the whole team focused, and drive weekly execution through their Level 10 Meetings™.
What changed?
Revenue up
Team stability is up, with far less staff turnover
Fewer fires
A leadership team that’s actually enjoying the ride again
And the Visionary?
He finally has time to think, create, and enjoy his business again.
The EOS tools that make it work
EOS provides the structure to make the Visionary/Integrator relationship thrive. Some key tools include:
Accountability Chart™: Clarity on who owns what, with no overlaps
Same Page Meeting™: Monthly alignment time for Visionary and Integrator
Vision/Traction Organiser™ (V/TO™): A simple two-page document that keeps everyone on the same page
Rocks: 90-day priorities that keep execution focused
Level 10 Meetings™: Weekly meetings that actually work, focused on solving real issues
These tools create what we call Vision + Traction = Healthy. Without both, the business either drifts or breaks down.
Final thought: It takes two to scale
Visionaries are the heartbeat of most entrepreneurial businesses. But without the right structure and support, they can become their own worst bottleneck.
It’s not about changing who you are; it’s about surrounding yourself with the right person to bring your vision to life.
If you’re a Visionary business owner in Australia or New Zealand and you’re feeling stuck, I can help. I’ve worked with dozens of leadership teams to clarify roles, remove friction, and build the structure that turns good ideas into real results.
Because the most successful Visionaries?
They don’t try to do it all alone.
Let’s talk about how EOS or getting a Fractional Integrator can help.
Debra Chantry-Taylor, Accredited EOS Implementer® | Family Business Advisor | Leadership Coach | Entrepreneur
Debra Chantry-Taylor is an Accredited EOS Implementer®, Certified Leadership Coach & Family Business Advisor with over 30 years of experience in business. She works with entrepreneurs & leadership teams to help them break through barriers, clarify their vision & drive sustainable growth. Debra has supported over 600 business owners across New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Europe, & the USA. Her hands-on experience as a business owner, experiencing both huge success as well as two train wrecks, gives her a unique perspective, helping leaders navigate both successes & setbacks. Passionate about balancing business success with personal life, Debra helps her clients achieve a fulfilling, well-rounded life while growing their businesses.
