We all use strategy in our daily lives. For many it is a bit of a mystery, a special sauce you put over a challenge in order to solve it.
But what is strategy?
There are many different definitions, mostly involving planning. Our definition: a strategy is a plan of possible actions to be taken, towards a desired outcome. Point where you want to go – towards a goal – and you then figure out how – which is a strategy.
The concept starts before human history was written, and it may not be limited to humans. And, early strategy focused on military aspects, such as The Art Of War written 2,500 years ago in China by Sun Tzu. Today, business strategy is often the reason people want to get better at understanding how to be effective in making strategic plans.
When we want to accomplish something in our personal lives, we often think of a plan to make it happen. We think of possible actions, and pick the ones that we believe can be best linked together to get us closer to our goal.
Are you able to make effective strategies?
We usually put more focus into areas we are passionate about. And strategic thinking is no exception.
For those times when you have to make a plan of action to reach a goal we are not as excited about, you can link it to a stronger passion area of your life. Having trouble being motivated to learn a new language? Plan a trip to somewhere where the language is spoken (everyone loves travel!), or explore the food and eat at restaurants where the menus are written in that language.
Future posts will explore linking personal strategy with goals, challenges, tactics, monitoring, and other aspects of living an authentic, balanced and rewarding life.