There are those of us who can be intimidated by the word “strategy”—it creates images of sterile corporate boardrooms and long, boring meetings. We might wonder how strategy and strategic thinking and planning can have any place in our small, homey, home-based businesses. But, in fact, it just may be a little strategic thinking that we need…
In general, thinking strategically means looking at the big picture. Instead of just looking at the logistical details or the every day specifics, we often need to ask ourselves questions about why we are doing things and what we hope to accomplish in the long term. These questions are what prompt us to start thinking about how to get there and how to make things better—this how strategy is born.
Planning for how to do things better, how to make the improvements you would like to make, or looking for opportunities to make your business a better fit with your personal philosophies and mission all involve some strategic thinking. We have to get out of the box and be able to rise above the daily details and balance sheets and to-do lists in order to see that larger, long-term picture of where we would like to take our businesses and why.
Strategic thinking can take practice—especially if you are used to thinking in terms of logic and details. Don’t feel badly if you have a hard time getting out of the every day in terms of your planning and organization of your business. It can be helpful to brainstorm with other strategic thinkers while you’re learning how to think and plan beyond the obvious daily details. I have found that keeping a notebook or journal and mapping out some of my ideas and processes can be a good way to start the strategy wheels turning. Then, I can actually “see” the workings of my business instead of just plodding along from within.
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