8 Steps to Becoming a Strategic Thinker

Strategic thinking is very vital in moving an organization or a team from where they are to where they want to be. Strategic thinking is a great leadership skill that everyone should possess, even if you are not heading a team or department.

The goal of every business and organization is to advance its operations and maximize the value it is offering while increasing its profit. This goal becomes more achievable when the organization has forward-thinking individuals ready to think outside the box and embrace innovation and creativity. Strategic thinkers are assets to any organization.

You don't wake up one morning and become strategic in your thinking and approach. Strategic thinking is a trait developed over time recognized by others, as discussed in last week's post. As you continue to engage in this skill, you will discover that you are getting better at it. Think of this kind of thought as a process and not a destination.

Humans are wired to recognize patterns and, therefore, naturally think strategically. The strategic thinking trait is, however, more developed in some people than others. The difference in your level of strategic thinking is the extent to which you have worked on yourself. What can you do to become a more creative thinker?

#1. Make Time

The busyness associated with everyday living can rob you of the opportunity to think creatively. Becoming strategic in your thinking requires that you create time to think. Making space may mean delegating some of the duties that do not need your involvement to others. That way, you have more time to think critically and build trust and confidence in your team members.

#2.Seek and Observe Trends

Trends are very vital in any industry or organization. Trends have the power to communicate stories of where the industry is coming from and where it is going. When you master the trends in your industry, you are positioned to tackle whatever may come up in the future with the available data.?

Strategic thinkers are masters in seeking and observing industry-related trends. As an individual seeking to become more strategic in thinking, commit to studying the work trends. Keep an open mind and show a willingness to learn from the views of others. Also, be willing to share your data and opinions with others.

#3. Ask why

Do not be afraid to question the status quo or go with the crowd. Ask questions and satisfy your curiosity. When an issue is raised, and you don't fully understand how vital it is, ask questions and seek to understand the desired outcome.

Also, be very strategic in the questions that you ask. Spend time and think things through, looking out for every reasonable opportunity that you can leverage to add value in every situation. Challenge your brain to think outside the box and be willing to try out new ideas when you find one. Ensure that the motive behind asking such questions is to find a better way of achieving results.

#4. Reflect

Your strategic thinking button is switched on whenever you take out time to reflect on the responsibilities that have been assigned to you. When you go through completed tasks, there is a high possibility that you would find better ways you could have done the job. Reflection arms you with the necessary tools needed to perform better in future tasks and responsibilities.

#5. Welcome Opposing ideas

There are different ways of achieving the same result. Therefore keep an open mind to varying ideas that may come. There is a tendency to assume that you have the best strategy once a great option pops up after what may seem like a long period of reflective thinking.?

However, you should bear in mind that there are more ideas, and you should therefore exhaust all the options and not stop brainstorming once the first few ideas pop up. How do you know that you are not leaving something out? Pass your ideas through testing.?

During the testing, you may even discover loopholes in the idea you may have left out during your reflection. Passing your thoughts through rigorous scrutiny also helps develop your logic and minimize the possibility of making decisions on flawed logic.

Whenever you come up with an idea, always ask yourself questions like, " is there a different way of getting the result done"? "Are there other sides to the story"? "Is it possible that I missed out on some vital details"?

#6. Communicate Simply and Powerfully

It is one thing to come up with ideas and an entirely different case to communicate your vision so that others understand. You need to scrutinize the ideas and cut off excesses that may not be necessary. To become more strategic in your thinking, a significant amount of time is fine-tuning your ideas. It will go a long way in affecting its acceptance.?

When you communicate your ideas clearly and concisely, it is easier for people to understand and appreciate your line of thought. This also implies gathering relevant information on the topic to demonstrate a high level of coordination and direction.

#7. Use real data

Data is the life of your decision as a strategic thinker. It would be best if you were an information enthusiast. Trust me, and it is not an easy one. Especially if this is a grey area for you, you will find it enjoyable researching for data on whatever decision you want to make with constant practice with constant practice.?

While you can make a calculated guess at the situation, and it turns out to be correct, using actual data to arrive at your decision is more reliable. Always avoid following blind assumptions. Gather as much information as possible at all times and use the information to develop your strategy. When you do this consistently over time, your strategic thinking traits will become more sharpened.

#8. Provide real options/actions

Make it a point of duty to provide real options and call to practicable actions. In your strategic thinking, always differentiate between fantasy and reality. While some ideas may sound good on paper, they may not be practical in reality. Always check the practicability of your ideas before going ahead with them.

Conclusion

The journey towards developing your strategic thinking abilities may be daunting. However, it is a vital key to moving any organization forward. Always keep an open mind at all times and be ready to go beyond what you are used to. You may never tell the treasure you will find.

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