For most small business owners, the treacherous road of entrepreneurship – often filled with unexpected detours, roadblocks and dead ends – inhibits the daily thought process, leaving little to no time for growth and Strategic Thinking. In fact, according to The Persimmon Group and Center for Creative Leadership only 4-7% of leaders are considered strategic thinkers.

A highly sought skill, strategic Thinking is the ability to envision what might happen in the future and then applying it to the current circumstances. While this may be a difficult exercise in the beginning, with a combination of right direction and effective techniques anyone can become a better strategic thinker. Here are some ways you can improve your strategic thinking skills:

1.   Use Your Brain’s Full Potential

Since strategic thinking is about forming connections, it entails two types of thinking: divergent thinking, where we generate ideas in a creative, unstructured manner and convergent thinking, where we use those ideas to figure out a concrete solution by applying established rules and logical reasoning. 

Studies also reveal that the most innovative thinkers have enormous potential to quickly switch between these two styles. Fortunately, this ability to shift from one style to the other can be improved by conscious effort.

One of the most popular methods for doing this is through the Six Thinking Hats technique. Pioneered   by Edward de Bono, the Six Thinking Hats method is an effective method for problem-solving that can be used both individually and in a team environment. The individual approaches a problem by wearing six different ‘hats’, manifesting different types of convergent and divergent thinking. For instance, the red hat focuses on feeling and intuition, the yellow hat concentrates on optimism, the black hat focuses on judgment, so on and so forth.

As this model encourages parallel thinking or viewing a problem from different perspectives, it helps you handle setbacks and obstacles in far more optimal ways.

2.   Put Yourself in Others’ Shoes

Another useful way to start thinking more strategically is by discussing your ideas with other people. And when you discuss your ideas with people who think differently than you, this exchange becomes much more valuable. Why? Because not only will you be expanding the pool of ideas and viewpoints on a particular topic, you’ll also be getting a chance to look at problems from a different angle.

So if a team member has an eye for the big pictures, why not ask them to join you for a brainstorming session? Bring together sales and technical people or extroverts and introverts to generate a gold mine for brilliant ideas.

You may even use your clients as a great source of inspiration for new ideas and new ways of thinking. Encourage them to share their thoughts with you. This will provide you with a whole new collection of strategic ideas, all while strengthening relationship with your customers.

3.   Stretch Your Wings

Strategic thinkers know that learning is supposed to be a lifelong experience. For them, curiosity goes hand in hand with strategic thinking. The more we expose ourselves to new information and absorb it to come up with something new, the more our ability to excel economically and socially increases.

So step out from behind your desk, leave your comfort zone and start experiencing the world. Broaden your horizon by trying new places and new people. Visit the gallery you’ve been meaning to, or go on a holiday you have been saving up for. Visit a new park or take a different route home to stimulate your mind. Always look to learn how the pieces all come together. Unearth opportunities to show positive change and practice strategic thinking instead of reactive.

All new experiences, however, do not have to be physical ones. Reading about new places and contrasting opinions can help improve your strategic thinking skills as well.   

As a matter of fact, some experts say that the best strategic thinkers are T-shaped. T-shaped people can deal with a core role and have a deep understanding of their area of expertise. In addition to that, they can support the business in a wider sense with their ability to branch out into other areas. As masters of trade, these type of people make progress quickly and become true experts with time and practice.

So read widely to keep up with the trends of your own industry. Attend seminars and conferences to stay up to date while also drawing on the experience and insights of your fellows.

Learn how you can take your leadership teams through a growth model which will help them mature on a personal and professional level by following me on LinkedIn and subscribing to the Keijzer Community.

Paul Keijzer is the CEO and Founder of Engage Consulting and the co-Founder of The Talent Games, which aims to transform HR by digitising talent processes and creating more engaging and productive workplaces through gamification and mobile technology. As a global HR and Leadership Management expert, Paul knows how to combine business insights with people insights to transform organisations and put them on the path to growth.

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