Your Bridge Between Dreaming and Planning
photo credit: alex azabache/unspalsh
Dreaming and visioning can be powerful tools to expand our thoughts and have some fun. At some point, we need to decide whether dreams can become realities–this is where strategic thinking comes in. Strategic thinking is not the same as strategic planning–it can lead to planning, however thinking strategically can also simply get you into a mindset that is more intentional, focused, and aligned while maintaining creativity and honoring your dreams. Strategic thinking does not produce an outcome or a plan; instead, the strategic thinking journey is the destination. It’s the deliberate “what iffing” and testing of dreams that may create new ideas, solidify thoughts, and spark some planning as well.
There are five key elements to strategic thinking:
Intent Focus: the meaning, purpose or reason–why it matters
Systems Perspective: what’s connected to what, what influences what, what is impacted by what
Sequence Orientation: what order things need to happen in and how much time it might take
Hypothesis Driven: what you think the outcomes might be and what you might discover along the way
Intelligent Opportunism: what you can leverage, what advantages you have, what resources exist
How might you use this approach for redefining or restructuring your team? Give it some thought before considering the sequence below.
Intent: I want to restructure the team to play differently to people’s strengths and growth goals.
System: Each person plays a role (or several roles) in making our team work, so keeping in mind how each impacts the other will be important.
Sequence: In what order might I begin to shift roles and responsibilities and how much time might it take for us to be fully functional in our new structure (keeping in mind the system impacts)?
Hypothesis: I think that some team members will embrace this and really dive in with a positive outlook. I think others will need more information to understand and get on board, or possibly even feel threatened by any changes. If I can manage each person’s expectations and continue to impart my vision, I believe we can make some impactful changes that will benefit everyone.
Opportunities: I can use our weekly meetings and my regular one-on-one check ins to keep the team updated on goals and progress and get their feedback.
What about applying strategic thinking for a personal desire, like redecorating your house? Try it on your own before reading our example.
Intent: I want to redecorate the living room to showcase my art collection.
System: I need to keep in mind the design and function as both play a part in the ability to enjoy the space.
Sequence: I’ll need to remove everything from the walls and patch and paint before I rehang any art pieces. The furniture should be placed before the art is hung or put on shelves. I need to work at times when the family is not using the space.
Hypothesis: It will be easy and only take me the weekend to make all of the changes that I want to make. I should be able to get my family members to help me so that it will take less time and be more fun. I think I can showcase more of our art collection by reconfiguring things.
Opportunities: I can ask my spouse to help me to empty the room when the kids go to bed. The rest of the family will be out on Saturday morning so I can use that time to begin painting.
You can see that neither of these is a plan–they are ways of considering a situation or a desire that get you thinking creatively and strategically in tandem. While the above are simple examples, they get the imagination going, sparking additional questions and ideas, and help you better understand what strategic thinking is all about. And starting with some dreaming and letting your mind wander can allow new thoughts to enter and take hold before heading down a more strategic pathway.
Have some fun with this process–you might find that putting some structure to your creative thoughts can lead to increased joy in the journey and more possibilities than you could have imagined.
