Think Backwards in order to Move Forward.
Think Backwards in order to Move Forward.
Generally, strategic planning is thought of as a forward-thinking management discipline designed to set priorities and focus a company’s time, money and energy around a common set of goals, outcomes, and results. It’s meant to bring the whole team on board and get everyone aligned around future results. Strategic planning, as it is commonly understood, begins with the next step to achieve those goals.
Truth is, it is actually much more effective to think backwards from a tangible and well-articulated goal. Why? Looking forward is an exercise in futility. It underestimates the challenge ahead. There is a tendency to think of pie-in-the-sky possibilities. It puts the focus in the wrong place and fails to align everyone around the critical assessment and decision-making process necessary to determine the time and challenges that must be overcome to achieve each of the smaller goals necessary to achieve the larger goal. Additionally, it does not focus on the discovery and assessment of current and potential assets that could be leveraged along the way.