Rich Horwath, a New York Times bestselling author on strategic thinking, discusses developing strategic skills, moving strategy from an annual event to everyday practice, practicing situational awareness, asking good questions, and having an explorer's mindset to find new perspectives.
Strategic thinking can be learned and developed by acquiring skills like situational awareness, asking good questions, and domain jumping.
Leaders should practice strategic thinking on a day-to-day basis by breaking down their role into granular skills, such as active listening and thinking from different perspectives, to enhance their strategic thinking abilities.
Deep dives
Developing Strategic Thinking Skills
Strategic thinking is not an innate ability, but a skill that can be learned and developed. Research shows that practicing strategic thinking and having baseline knowledge can make individuals more strategic. To become more strategic, leaders should focus on acquiring specific skills, such as situational awareness, asking good questions, assessing the competitive landscape, and domain jumping. By thinking differently and considering perspectives from other industries or fields, leaders can gain insights that lead to competitive advantage.
The Importance of Strategic Fitness
Just as people invest time in physical fitness, leaders need to invest time in their strategic fitness. Strategic thinking should not be limited to an annual event or retreat, but rather a day-to-day practice. Leaders should break down their role into granular skills and activities and identify areas for improvement. This could include skills like active listening, asking great questions, or thinking from different perspectives. By consistently practicing these skills, leaders can enhance their strategic thinking abilities.
The Curse of Knowledge and Domain Jumping
The curse of knowledge often hinders leaders from thinking from different perspectives. To overcome this, leaders should engage in domain jumping, which involves looking at a problem from a different domain or perspective. By asking how nature or another industry would approach the issue, leaders can gain valuable insights and unleash their creativity. Domain jumping helps break mental ruts and stimulates new thinking, promoting strategic innovation and problem-solving.
Exploring the Unknown with an Explorer's Mindset
Leaders should adopt an explorer's mindset by embracing the unknown and seeking new knowledge and insights. Instead of approaching strategy with a know-it-all mentality, leaders should adopt a curious and open mindset. By asking the question, 'What can we learn today?' leaders encourage continuous learning and exploration, which fosters strategic thinking and a proactive approach to problem-solving.
In this episode of The Thinking Leader, Bryce Hoffman talks with Rich Horwath, a New York Times bestselling author on strategic thinking, and strategy workshop facilitator and coach helping executive teams develop their strategic capabilities.
They discuss developing strategic thinking skills and moving strategic planning from an annual event to an everyday practice. Rich shares how practicing key skills like situational awareness, asking good questions, and domain jumping can help people become more strategic thinkers. Bryce and Rich emphasize the importance of cultivating an explorer's mindset to look at problems from new perspectives in order to spark insights and creative thinking.
In this episode:
How to develop strategic skills
Moving strategy from an annual event to everyday practice
Why you should be practicing situational awareness
The importance of asking good questions
How to have an explorer's mindset to find new perspectives
Bestselling business author Bryce Hoffman and agility expert Marcus Dimbleby talk about decision making, strategy, resilience and leadership with some of the world’s best CEOs, cognitive scientists, writers, and thinkers in this weekly podcast. Each episode offers new ideas and insights you can use to become a better leader and a better thinker – because bad leaders react, good leaders plan, and great leaders think!
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