Jay shri krishna
LKrishna THINKING
“Most people spend more time planning their summer vacation than
planning their lives.”
When you hear the words “strategic thinking,” what comes to mind? Do visions
of business plans dance in your head? Do you conjure up marketing plans, the
kind that can turn a company around? Perhaps you contemplate global politics.
Or you recall some of history’s greatest military campaigns: Hannibal crossing
the Alps to surprise the Roman army, Charlemagne’s conquest of Western
Europe, or the Allies’ D-Day invasion of Normandy. Perhaps, but strategy
doesn’t have to be restricted to military action—or even to business. Strategic
thinking can make a positive impact on any area of life.
PLAN YOUR LIFE, LIVE YOUR PLAN
I’ve observed that most people try to plan their lives one day at a time. They
wake up, make up their to-do list, and dive into action (although some people
aren’t even that strategic).
Fewer individuals plan their lives one week at a time. They review their
calendar for the week, check their appointments, review their goals, and then get
to work. They generally outachieve most of their daily-planning colleagues. I try
to take planning one step further.
At the beginning of every month, I spend half a day working on my calendar
for the next forty days. Forty days works for me rather than just thirty. That way,
I get a jump on the next month and don’t get surprised. I begin by reviewing my travel schedule and planning activities with my family. Then I review what
projects, lessons, and other objectives I want to accomplish during those five to
six weeks. Then I start blocking out days and times for thinking, writing,
working, meeting with people, etc. I set times to do fun things, such as seeing a
show, watching a ball game, or playing golf. I also set aside small blocks of time
to compensate for the unexpected. By the time I’m done, I can tell you nearly everything I’ll be doing, almost hour by hour, during the coming weeks. This
strategy is one of the reasons I have been able to accomplish much.
WHY YOU SHOULD RELEASE THE POWER OF STRATEGIC THINKING
Strategic thinking helps me to plan, to become more efficient, to maximize my
strengths, and to find the most direct path toward achieving any objective. The
benefits of strategic thinking are numerous. Here are a few of the reasons you
should adopt it as one of your thinking tools: Strategic Thinking Simplifies the Difficult
Strategic thinking is really nothing more than planning on steroids. Spanish
novelist Miguel de Cervantes said, “The man who is prepared has his battle half
fought.” Strategic thinking takes complex issues and long-term objectives, which
can be very difficult to address, and breaks them down into manageable sizes.
Anything becomes simpler when it has a plan Strategic thinking can also help you simplify the management of everyday
life. I do that by using systems, which are nothing more than good strategies
repeated. I am well known among pastors and other speakers for my filing
system. Writing a lesson or speech can be difficult. But because I use my system
to file quotes, stories, and articles, when I need something to flesh out or
Strategic Thinking Prompts You to Ask the Right Questions
Do you want to break down complex or difficult issues? Then ask questions.
Strategic thinking forces you through this process. Take a look at the following
questions developed by my friend Bobb Biehl, the author of Masterplanning.
1. Direction: What should we do next? Why?
Organization: Who is responsible for what? Who is responsible for whom?
Do we have the right people in the right places?
2. Cash: What is our projected income, expense,net? Can we afford it? How
can we afford it?
3. Tracking: Are we on target?
4 Overall Evaluation: Are we achieving the quality we expect and demand
of ourselves?
5. Refinement: How can we be more effective and more efficient (move toward the ideal)?
These may not be the only questions you need to ask to begin formulating a
strategic plan, but they are certainly a good start.
Strategic Thinking Prompts Customization
General George S. Patton observed, “Successful generals make plans to fit
circumstances, but do not try to create circumstances to fit plans.”
All good strategic thinkers are precise in their thinking. They try to match the
strategy to the problem, because strategy isn’t a one-size-fits-all proposition.
Sloppy or generalized thinking is an enemy of achievement. The intention to
customize in strategic thinking forces a person to go beyond vague ideas and
engage in specific ways to go after a task or problem. It sharpens the mind.
Strategic Thinking Prepares You Today for an Uncertain Tomorrow
Strategic thinking is the bridge that links where you are to where you want to
be. It gives direction and credibil-ity today and increases your potential for success tomorrow. It is, as Mary Webb suggests, like saddling your dreams
before you ride them.
Strategic Thinking Reduces the Margin of Error
Any time you shoot from the hip or go into a totally reactive mode, you
increase your margin for error. It’s like a golfer stepping up to a golf ball and
hitting it before lining up the shot. Misaligning a shot by just a few degrees can
send the ball a hundred yards off target. Strategic thinking, however, greatly
reduces that margin for error. It lines up your actions with your objectives, just
as lining up a shot in golf helps you to put the ball closer to the pin. The better
aligned you are with your target, the better the odds that you will be going in the
right direction.
Strategic Thinking Gives You Influence with Others
One executive confided in another: “Our company has a short range plan and
a long range plan. Our short range plan is to stay afloat long enough to make it to
our long range plan.” That’s hardly a strategy, yet that’s the position where some
business leaders put themselves. There’s more than one problem with neglecting
strategic thinking in that way. Not only does it fail to build the business, but it
also loses the respect of everyone involved with the business.
The one with the plan is the one with the power. It doesn’t matter in what kind
of activity you’re involved. Employees want to follow the business leader with a
good business plan. Volunteers want to join the pastor with a good ministry plan.
Children want to be with the adult who has the well-thought-out vacation plan. If
you practice strategic thinking, others will listen to you and they will want to
follow you. If you possess a position of leadership in an organization, strategic
thinking is essential.
Jay shri krishna
LKrishna THINKING
Contact MAIL. lkrishna.htat@gmail.com
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