Strategic Thinking Skills #3
A practical approach to Strategic-Thinking, Problem-Solving, & Decision-Making. Training that’s absolutely “critical” for every manager or owner !!!
from National Seminars Training.com 7/13 enhanced by Peter/CXO Wiz4iz 8/13
Strategic Thinking Essentials
· Open minds are essential!
· Challenge conventional thinking
· What’s your Vision?
· Thinking big and broadly
· Automatic filters that affect your perception of the world and the way you think
· Reading the environment of today and anticipating the environment of tomorrow
· Zoom-in, Zoom-out: looking beyond the picture you see from where you stand
For Better Decisions
· What do you need to accomplish? Focus on the goal
· Weighing risks against the potential rewards
· Intuition or hard fact? Facts then feelings
· Building adaptability & flexibility into your decisions
· Choices must be made to establish priorities
· Glitches & Goofs can be a strategic thinker’s best friend
Thinker’s Thinking Tools
· The important role of information gathering in “conceptual-izing” new strategies
· Understanding the drivers, strengths, & vulnerabilities of any situation or business condition
· Identifying roadblocks and land mines that can throw you off track
· Protecting your “thinking time” — it’s hard to be your “strategic best” amidst the hustle & bustle of everyday life
· Questioning strategies: the best answers come from the best questions
· Articulating your strategies: communicating so everyone understands
Creative & Critical Thinking Skills
· Creative idea generation first, to come up with lots of “outside-the-box” ideas fast
· SWOT Analysis avoid paralysis
· Get out of “stuck in a rut” thinking
· Avoid costly mistakes using “what-if” thinking/ consequences
· Paradigms: where to look for the next generation of breakthrough ideas
From Strategic Thinking to Strategic Planning
· Aligning strategic decisions with your critical goals – Vision
· Plan critical steps of strategic thinking that guarantee your Action Plan succeeds
· Setting measurable, specific objectives. SMART Goals
· Identify organizational barriers that may interfere with new strategic plans
· Keeping strategic planning simple: the hazards of confusing “comprehensive” with “complex”
· Plan for Resource needs
· Rely on your Strategic Planning Team for confirmation & new ideas
· Monitor your Action Plan (& modify as necessary) to determine your Strategic Plan’s effectiveness and what you can do better next time.
Comments: Is there anything you could add to Strategic Thinking?