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Strategy Secrets: From Reactive to Reflective
When was the last time you ate lunch away from your desk and took more than 15 minutes to do so?
If you're like most leaders I work with, it may be hard to recall when the last time was.
Skipping lunch, eating at your desk, or eating on the go may not seem like that big of a deal, but these practices are often a symptom of a bigger issue that may be plaguing you, your team or your organization.
If your day is so full of meetings scheduled by other people and the disruption of day-to-day fires that need putting out that you're forgetting to take care of your nourishment needs, there's a very good chance you a struck in reactive mode - and that's a tough place to be.
Many leaders I work with wish they had more time to spend thinking through their organization's larger strategic needs. They want to be more proactive and less reactive.
But in the quest to be more proactive, they miss an essential step -- the need for reflection.
The Brilliance Trap
Here's a trap I see lots of executives falling into, and it's hurting their organization's strategy, culture, and effectiveness.
It's the perspective of valuing brilliance over getting better.
When new nonprofit CEOs and Department Heads come into their roles, there's a weird thing that happens. It's the expectation - and sometimes requirement - that the leader will bring brilliant, NEW ideas that will fundamentally shift the trajectory of the organization.
So many hiring processes favor "brilliant innovators" who seem to be full to the brim with amazing ideas.
Brilliant new ideas can be exciting and impactful, but without proper strategy, budgeting, staffing, operational planning, etc., we won't fully realize them - and may actually do more harm than good.
To avoid this trap, organizations can instead focus on getting better. Here’s how.