— by Ryan Ramsdale

Transitioning from a tactical to a strategic mindset is a journey. It’s a journey that I have been on longer than I recognize. I was thinking of this journey as a one-way, no lay-over trip, that is, if I was thinking of it at all. Along the way I’ve experienced moments that I interpreted as the arrival at the destination of higher-level strategic thinking. As it turns out, those perceived arrivals were merely milestones or lay-overs.

Two recent experiences helped me to uncover the reality of where I am on the journey.

1. While discussing a development project in a recent team meeting, we talked about the technology required to deliver on the project and our conversation stalled. As a team we started to cycle on how the development required is or isn’t possible and who is qualified or not to complete that work. The comment that stood out to me was “technology is the enabler; we need to keep our eye on the goal”. The inference here was to keep our focus on the mission not the support mechanisms that get us there. While we do need to have a plan that is tactical, measurable and executable that includes the details, getting locked on them is not going to move us forward. Getting stuck there is a cue that our thinking had become too tactical, and our eyes were off the mission. This was the challenge to my default position.

2. That evening I went home, and it was time for our weekly budget conversation. As my wife and I recently transitioned to a new method for managing our income, book- keeping and spending we are equal parts excited and frustrated. We believe in the plan, but it brings into question so many habits we have formed for over 15 years of marriage. My lens on this issue is narrow and the instant something doesn’t compute my anxiety escalates. We end up making very little progress in the conversation as we abandon the conflict (my journey regarding conflict issues will have to be a future article).

The next morning, I connected the dots between these two experiences. In our team meeting, we refocused on the mission and the fear around who would complete development of a product became a manageable step that just required the right action plan. The same perspective presented itself in my personal example. Why was I so anxious and fearful about our budget conversation? My focus.

Money is an enabler to our goals, not the goal itself. I caught myself in this tactical mindset again. I’m trying to plan, anticipate and track every cent from a place of fear. Fear that the money will go somewhere other than the regimented budget allocation. The question I never asked was “does this still get us towards our goal?”

Now the light has fully exposed the issue. We do not have a goal!

My focus has been the tactical all along. Manage income to perfection each pay period; but to what end? Putting my feet up and patting myself on the back for being such a disciplined guy? How does that move our family forward?

I realize this may not be a huge revelation to some of you reading, but to a high analytical detail-oriented person, this IS a big deal. For some of you, this will resonate.

In the absence of a clearly defined mission fear and anxiety have a far greater impact on progress. Fear comes in and can immobilize us if we don’t know where we are headed. Overcoming this fear starts when we take the time to establish where we want to be in the long term. You, your organization, career, department, business, relationship- all of it.

With a goal, a mission or a destination in sight we can power through. We can run with endurance the race that is set before us.

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[ Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash ]