Creating a Vision for Your Child Care Program

A vision isn’t a slogan. It’s a guide for decision-making when things get complicated.

Programs with clear guiding values tend to experience greater consistency and confidence — not because challenges disappear, but because choices become clearer.

Vision as a Practical Tool

According to leadership research from Harvard Business Review, values-aligned organizations make decisions faster and with less internal conflict.

In child care, vision helps answer:

• What do we prioritize when time is tight?

• What do we say yes — or no — to?

• How do we want families to experience our program?

A Different Way to Define Vision

Instead of formal language, reflect on:

• How do I want children to feel here?

• How do I want families to describe this program?

• How do I want to feel at the end of the day?

Example

A provider realized her core value was calm. That clarity led her to simplify materials, reduce overstimulation, and adjust expectations — improving behavior and her own well-being.

Vision isn’t limiting. It’s stabilizing.