What is Strategy and How Does Strategy Impact Your Business?

Definition of Strategy

According to WikiPedia the definition of strategy is:

strat·e·gy/ˈstratəjē/Noun

Strategy is often mentioned when talking about wars and the military.  The famous quote at the top of the page is from a Chinese warrior named Sun Tzu. 

Sun Tzu (544 BC - 496 BC) was a famous Chinese Military Commander and Author.  As you can see, the term strategy has been around for awhile...

The meaning of his quote is to point out the invisibility of a structured plan.  The tactics are what the enemy sees on the battle field.  The plan cannot be seen by the enemy, hopefully until it is too late. 

What is your strategy?

Do you Know...?

What Does Military Strategy Have To Do With Business Strategy?

In war you have an enemy. 

In business you have competition.

In war you want to beat the enemy. 

In business you want to beat the competition.

In war, the victor reaps the riches.

In business, when you beat the competition, you gain more riches than they do.

IF you want to survive, you have to be smarter than the competition.  In order to do that you need a plan, or a system to accomplish your goals.

How You Develop A Business Strategy

We see strategy as a result from critical thinking and problem solving.  The basis of a strategy is the resolution. 

• If your competition is beating you online, then you need a web marketing strategy. 

• If you are running out of cash in your business, then you need a cash flow planning strategy. 

The result of fixing a problem is a strategy to resolve the problem. The strategy you choose may not always be the right decision, but at some point you have to make a decision and "go to battle"!

Combining Critical Thinking With Problem Solving

Critical Thinking + Problem Solving = Strategic Solutions

Take all of the elements of Critical Thinking:

• Objectivity

• Creativity

• Analysis

• Experience

• Research

• Observation

• Ideas

• Education

• Ability

• Concentration

Combine the Elements of Critical Thinking with Steps to Problem Solving:

• Step 1 - Identify the Problem

• Step 2 - Research the Problem

• Step 3 - Analyze the Problem

• Step 4 - Brainstorm Solutions

• Step 5 - Make a Decision

• Step 6 - Create a Strategy

• Step 7 - Implement the Strategy

• Step 8 - Monitor for Success or Failure

• Step 9 - Review

• Step 10 - Adjust Strategy

• Step 11 - Be Willing to Accept Full Responsibility

By combining the elements of both Critical Thinking and Problem Solving, you can create specific strategies for business problems.  

Examples of Business Strategies

Here are some examples:

Problem: No traffic to your website.

Solution: Web Strategy (Web Strategy Defined Here..)

Problem: Need to grow my contracting business in a down economy

Solution: Energy Efficiency Marketing Strategy (See Green Marketing Here...)

Each problem was a significant problem to the business.  Solutions to these types of problems can be long term problems. 

Each of the ones listed above took over a year to fully implement. 

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