Greg Githens - How to Think Strategically: Sharpen Your Mind. Develop Your Competency. Contribute to Success.

How to Think Strategically is without question one of the most useful books I have read. Greg talks you through the big skills and microskills of strategic thinking. He guides you toward sharpness of thought, and away from the dull and dumb. For business or your personal life, youll find Greg leading you on a journey of well-organized thought orientations and approaches. The book is a must-read for all who wish to build their skills and expand their views beyond just creative, critical, and systems thinking.

Paul OConnor, President and CEO, The Adept Group

A great strategist needs great strategic thinking skills. How to Think Strategically gets the job done. It provides all the necessary tools and insight to help you become an influential strategic thinker. A great read!

Jeroen De Flander, strategist and bestselling author of Strategy Execution Heroes and The Execution Shortcut

In a world focused on data analytics, financial models, and ROI, the human dimension of strategic planning can be subordinated or overlooked. Githens How to Think Strategically elevates the role of personal leadership and virtues in the process for wise choices, buy-in, and execution. The trait of commitment and the microskill of courage, for example, are indispensable for making hard decisions in uncertain times. Attention to this human dimension empowers complex organizations for effective planning and success.

Gregory P. Crawford, professor of physics and university president

How to Think Strategically will enlighten leaders throughout the organization. Githens stresses the power of an individual to find and make sense of weak signals and use them to create powerful insights. His methodology is refreshingly effective in building a coherent path to learn and enhance specific capabilities to become an effective and influential strategic thinker. It is a must read for any leader wanting to enhance their strategic thinking skills.

Bill Blackmore, board member of five companies, retired CEO, business owner

Get your hands on this book as soon as possible! Its practical. Its insightful. Its accessible to all. Githens has the courage and experience to dismantle strategy and challenge long-held orthodoxies. I plan to keep this book nearby for years to come!

Mazy Gillis, Ph.D., Vice President Global Human Resources

Ive held the positions of Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Operations Officer for the same company, so Gregs outline of the two thinking maps for strategy and operations particularly resonated with me. Both are critically important to the success of an organization, but its equally important that you know which area you are in and not confuse the two. It would be detrimental for both strategy and operations. Furthermore, Gregs portrayal of ambiguity as a critical component of strategy development was eye-opening and truly the embodiment of what strategic thinking is all about, rather than the rush to create a strategy (as it is many times inappropriately labeled). Well done!

Vincent P. DiPofi, PE, Chief Operating Officer, SSOE Group

Greg Githens approach to strategic thinking offers a wealth of practical advice for the most seasoned strategist about how to reason more clearly and with greater self-awareness about the often murky and discontinuous world in which we live. Githens is such a crisp and direct writer that his insights sound like common sense youve known all your life, but dont be fooled: Nuanced and usefully counterintuitive insights are there in abundance for the careful reader. Soak in recommendations to learn, for instance, the micro skill of conceptual mapping or how to devalorize management orthodoxies in order to better understand them. While the ultimate target of strategy itself is the organization, the value of this book lies in the effort to empower individuals that is, each of us to be braver, more exploratory, and more confident in initiating change when it is often a fearful and daunting task.

Amy Zaltman, Ph.D., CEO, Prescient (formerly the Strategic Narrative Institute)

HOW TO THINK STRATEGICALLY

HOW TO THINK STRATEGICALLY

Sharpen Your Mind Develop Your Competency Contribute to Success

Greg Githens

MAVEN HOUSE

Published by Maven House Press, 4 Snead Ct., Palmyra, VA 22963; 610.883.7988;

Special discounts on bulk quantities of Maven House Press books are available to corporations, professional associations, and other organizations. For details contact the publisher.

Copyright 2019 by Greg Githens. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without either the prior permission of the publisher or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923; 978.750.8400; fax 978.646.8600; or on the web at www.copyright.com.

While this publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered, it is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. From the Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee of the American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers and Associations

Quotes from pp. 2, 46, 57, 61, 107, 115, 119, 121, 123, 127, 129130, 153, 175, 212, 214, 223, and 257 from Who Says Elephants Cant Dance?: Inside IBMs Historic Turnaround by Louis V. Gerstner. Copyright 2002 by Louis V. Gerstner Jr. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018967236

Paperback ISBN: 9781938548901

E-book ISBN: 9781938548918

Printed in the United States of America.

CONTENTS

Dedication

Figures

Acronyms

Preface

Part I: The Nature, Purpose, and Scope of Strategic Thinking

Chapter 1: Are You Strategic?

Chapter 2: Cleverness

Chapter 3: Big Ideas

Chapter 4: Twelve Microskills of Strategic Thinking

Chapter 5: Why Strategic Thinking Is Rare

Chapter 6: The Fuzzy Front End of Strategy

Chapter 7: Pockets of the Future

Chapter 8: Strategic Decisions

Chapter 9: The Spark of Insight

Part II: Personal and Interpersonal Mastery

Chapter 10: Perspective

Chapter 11: Shoulder Angels

Chapter 12: Dialogue and Deliberation

Chapter 13: Being an Extra-ordinary Leader

Appendix A: Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity

Appendix B: Microskills of Strategic Thinking

Appendix C: Manifesto for Strategic Thinking

Appendix D: Landmarks on the Map of Strategic Thinking

Appendix E: Useful Terms

Appendix F: Personal Branding as a Strategic Thinker

Notes

Acknowledgements

Index

About the Author

DEDICATION

For my wife, Helen, and my mother, Juanita

FIGURES

1-1 An example of pictorial ambiguity. Can you see the two faces?

1-2 Characteristics of a reasonable person.

1-3 An example of celebrating action over thoughtfulness.

2-1 A five-part template for writing strategy, originating from collective beliefs, choices, and adaptations.