9 Steps to Becoming a More Strategic Thinker
Published on Nov 18, 2015
Strategic planning is usually done by designated staff, but anyone at any level of an organization can learn to think more strategically by following these 9 steps.
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PRESENTATION OUTLINE
Strategic thinking will:
- Help you anticipate and manage change
- Help you identify opportunities
- Expand your reach and impact
- Position you as a leader
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A strategic thinker:
- Is guided by a vision
- Has broad knowledge and perspective
- Is focused on the future
- Has a clear vision of what success looks like
Unlike Strategic Planners, who are usually a designated group, there are people who think strategically every day at every level of an organization. When you think strategically your decisions and actions are guided by a vision or mission, you look at situations from multiple perspectives and you make day-to-day decisions that move you towards your vision.
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Strategic: doing the right things
Tactical: doing things right
Step 1:
Have a mission or vision with clear goals and a definition of success
Step 1: Determine a mission or vision that sets your direction. This is the 'why' that forms the foundation for all of your goals, objectives, decisions and actions. You could have a mission for your team or even for yourself. Make it big and audacious. If it doesn’t scare you at first, it’s not big enough. Don’t worry yet about how you’re going to make it happen.
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"A person who knows how may always have a job, but a person who knows why will always be their boss."
(John C. Maxwell)
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Step 2:
Understand your environment and know the gap between where you are today and your vision for success
Step 2: When you understand your environment, you've got a bigger picture view which enables you to look at situations from multiple perspectives. You can spot opportunities and risks early. Knowing the gap between where you are today and your vision of success will help you craft goals and plans to get you there.
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Step 3:
Build relationships with people you depend on and people who depend on you
Step 3: Once you've built your bigger picture view, strengthen relationships with others who you depend on or who depend on you. Be aware of what’s going on around you.
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Step 4:
Know your strengths and work to them
Step 4: Know your strengths and work to them. Include your own personal strengths, the strengths of your team and the strengths of your organization. Don’t waste time and resources trying to reverse a weakness or become something you're not. Focus on your strengths.
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Step 5:
Always seek learning by
asking the right questions and then listening fully and openly
Step 5: Learn the art of asking great questions – asking the right questions in the right way to get the information you need. Then listen, listen and listen some more with an open mind to the answers to those questions. Always be in 'learning mode.'
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Step 6:
Practice creative thinking skills
Step 6: Practice creative thinking skills. Seek out opportunities to look at things from different angles and experiment with how you can combine multiple existing things to create something new.
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Step 7:
Make important decisions consciously
Step 7: Make important decisions consciously. Don’t let important decisions get made by default. Get clear on the decision that needs to be made and understand how your decision aligns with your mission, objectives and definition of success. Then get everyone on the same page.
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"The problem is that at a lot of big companies, process becomes a substitute for thinking." (Elon Musk)
Step 8:
Get comfortable with risk and know how to manage it
Step 8: Get comfortable with risk. Fail fast and learn. Great risk takers are really great risk mitigators.
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Step 9:
Be a great collaborator and partner
Step 9: Recognize the value of collaboration. No matter how much experience you have collaborating with others, there’s always room for improvement. Working with others will help you look at things from multiple perspectives, uncover assumptions and identify risks.
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"None of us is as smart as all of us."
(Ken Blanchard)
Pam Norton, Career Success Coach
As a career success coach I help individuals and teams tap into their strengths and potential, eliminate self-sabotaging behaviors, think and execute strategically and get more success and fulfillment from their careers. You can learn more at http://www.transitionsparkcoaching.com.
