Stop Strategic Planning

Okay, maybe that’s a little extreme. But I can’t tell you how many times I’ve either begun working with a leader or even just crossed paths with a leader who shared how excited they are because they’ve just hired a consultant to put together a strategic plan for them.

Planning things out is great. But what I’ve seen play out, is that once these folks get the prized strategic plan in hand, they don’t do much of what the plan suggests.

This doesn’t make sense until you realize that for most leaders, the plan is rarely the issue. It’s the execution of the plan that’s the challenge.

If I gave you the flight plan for a trip scheduled to leave West Palm Beach, Florida, flying at 35,000 feet at a speed of 500 miles per hour, and landing in Long Beach, California, would you feel comfortable flying your co-workers there? Without knowing how to take off, keep the plane level, or land?

Also, be careful not to use the strategic plan as a stalling technique. Too many leaders are in a holding pattern, waiting for the plan to be revealed. They tell me, “Well, we’ll have the strategic plan in a couple of months, and then…”

But the “then” almost never happens.

Focus on execution. Ask yourself and your team what success looks like. Practice together. Get better at getting better.

Otherwise, that strategic plan will be just that, a plan. And nothing more.