The Power of Strategy

It isn’t easy to begin something new. 

You may have an idea or passion or drive to begin something but success is about more than just beginnings. 

Success is about courage, execution, diligence, and patience. 

But the first step you must take to arrive at success is to begin. 

While I am a huge fan of ‘just starting’ when it comes to beginnings, there is also an art to starting something new that can set you light years ahead of where you would have been if you ‘just start’. 

I once had a mentor teach me a principle of life during my teen years. His statement was ‘smart people learn from others mistakes.’ I’ve found that statement to be very true. 

When you are setting out to create or begin something new, it serves your best interest to learn from others who have gone before you. Find those who have had success in similar work. Study those who have journaled their lessons in books or blogs or on podcasts. Having the courage to begin is the first step. Learning what actions to implement as best as possible is your next step. 

This planning, studying, taking inventory is what I identify as setting strategy. You will save yourself much heartache and frustration if you take the time to set real, implementable strategy to your actions. 

Strategy is more than mission statements, vision boards and creative meetings. While developing plans of how you are going to embark on your new work is vital, strategy sets into motions and puts into action the plans you have made. 

I like to envision a skeleton when beginning new work. You have a fundamental idea or passion or dream that you now want to take action on. You have a skeleton. But the skeleton is simply bones. It has now muscle or ligaments or sinew. There are no organs or blood rushing through veins. More importantly, there is no breath. No life. Just bones. 

Your vision for this idea is the skeleton. Your mission begins placing muscle and ligaments and sinew in and around the bones so that it has a chance at operating properly. 

Your principles and beliefs and culture become the organs and veins and blood that allow this life to exist. 

Your plan of action puts skin on the skeleton. But you still have no breath. Everything remains idealistic and a bit imaginary. There is no life. 

Until you take organized, purposeful action your ideas and dreams are simply that- ideas and dreams. Intentional action is what brings your dream to life. Purposeful action is what sustains your success in building this new thing. 

Strategy breathes life into this body you have created. Without strategy, your idea is simply a skeleton. 

The power of strategy is that it is the oxygen to the work you are doing. 

Strategy breathes life into your work in three ways.

1- Strategy sets you into motion. 

You have an idea or dream or passion work you want to create in the world but you aren’t sure how to go about doing it. You believe in this work. You may even have proof of success that this idea will actually work. You have a plan and possibly even a mission. You have the resources and understanding you need. 

But without motion, without action, you just have an idea and a bunch of stuff. You have no substance. 

Strategy created with intent explains how you are going to build this idea. Strategy becomes the force that empowers you to take steps forward. Strategy gives you permission to create, build, and move. 

There are millions of ideas that exist in the minds of humans across the world. At any given moment you walk by someone who is thinking of the next great invention for humanity. But they rarely act. 

Some may even share their idea with friends and family only to sit and stare at the life skeleton of an idea. 

Some may take the time to study and write down how they can take action on this idea. But it never goes further than a pen and paper. 

You can have the greatest vision and powerful mission statement and an immense amount of resources but without strategy, without taking action, all you have is an idea. 

When you dig deep into you strategies- you begin to spell out the details of action that will guide your work. Those details set you into motion with intention and accountability. Strategy gives you the depth of energy needed to hold yourself, and others, acceptable to actionable effort. 

To put it simply, strategy gives your the how, why, who, where, what of the action needed. 

2- Strategy sets boundaries.

Potentially one of the most challenging aspects of creating new work is keeping your attention focused on what’s in front of you. 

It’s easy to chase rabbits. Especially if you are self-employed or creating a start-up. You’ve suddenly become the accountant and marketing expert and technology department and sales lead and content creator and before you know it, most of your attention has been diverted to everything except the work you set out to do. 

A strong strategic plan will set boundaries early that will protect you from losing sight of the goal. These boundaries will hold you accountable, and show you where and when to take specific actions. They show you how to operate in your day to day work. 

When you set clear and strong boundaries you have now released yourself for having to rethink your work each day. You simply follow the boundaries and strategy that has been set. This removes unwanted over thinking to take place. 

3- Strategy lays the foundation.

Anything built on a shaky foundation will soon fall. Regardless of how big or small your idea or dream might be, if it is built on a shaky foundation it will not last. 

Setting strong, specific strategy that can be implemented each day lays a strong foundation for your work. It gives your the boundaries needed that will guide you and sets into motion the accountability needed for success. 

Having a vision is great. It is the first step. Setting a mission to that mission is a must. Creating a plan of action to fulfill your mission and bring your idea to life is critical. Your success will not take place without these elements. 

But strategy is the oxygen to the life of your vision. The more specific you can make your strategies, the easier they are to implement. When you set specific strategy, take intentional action and build in accountability and boundaries, you will soon realize the success you have dreamt of all along.