Making A Strategic Plan Work For You
Making A Strategic Plan Work For You
Anon
Most successful companies have a strategic business plan. This plan provides a frame work that the senior executives use to move their company forward. Wikipedia defines strategic planning as " an organization's process of defining its strategy and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including capital and people. "
Okay, but what has that got to do with me? Well if world class companies use strategic planning to achieve success, maybe strategic planning can work for you.
Let's break down the process. The first part of a strategic plan is to look at the current situation and define the favorable outcome (vision). Next develop goals and objectives and a set of actions needed to reach those goals. Finally decide what resources are required to accomplish the goals.
For example let's say you are 20 pounds overweight. You have a vision of a favorable outcome (looking good in a bathing suit). You set a goal of losing 20 pounds by summer vacation. Finally you decide to spend the money (resources) and join a health club.
Now lets expand this strategic plan to include not just losing weight but reinventing yourself and becoming the person you want to be: successful and happy.
The first step is to create your Personal Vision. A personal vision statement should inspire and motivate. Is this vision statement something you can really get passionate about? If not, now is the time to rewrite your vision statement. As you write use powerful words, adjectives and action verbs that vividly describe the you of your dreams. Take the time to really refine this statement. This is Important ! Your Personal Vision Statement is critical to your success. Everything else is based on this vision.
Once you have strengthened your vision statement, put it some place where you are constantly reminded of the words in your statement.
Now that you have your Personal Vision Statement it's time to develop a Personal Mission Statement. Whoa! wait a minute what's the difference between a Personal Vision Statement and a Personal Mission Statement? Is this just an exercise or is it important to my success?
There is a big difference between a vision statement and a mission statement and yes it is vital to your success. Let me explain.... A vision statement puts in writing your dream of who you want to become. Just as Martin Luther King had a dream which inspired millions, your dream will inspire you. The mission statement puts some detail to the dream. For example let's say you want to start a business; a coffee shop. Your vision statement could be something like this: "My coffee shop will be the best shop in town." Okay that's a great vision/dream, but how are you going to achieve that dream? That's the role of the mission statement. " I will own the best coffee shop in town by serving only the finest coffees at reasonable prices. Customers will enjoy a friendly and intimate setting. My wait staff will be knowledgeable and trained in providing outstanding service."
Now create your own mission statement by expanding on your vision statement detailing how you will achieve your dream.
Again put it in writing and/or print it out and carry it with you. Write it on a small card and keep it in your pocket book/wallet. Use it as a screen saver, tape it to your bathroom mirror and/or put it on a bulletin board. Don't hide it away! Keep it in front of you as a constant inspiration.
Now is also a good time to start a journal. On the first page put your Personal Vision Statement and your Personal Mission Statement. Next write down your goals. Use the journal to keep track of your progress. Bear in mind that no one rides their bike at full speed every day. Some days you'll just coast and other days you'll be soaring. The important thing is at the end of a week, a month or a year you will have made progress. Keeping a journal will allow you to look back on how far you have come and inspire you to keep on pedaling.
Making A Strategic Plan Work For You - To learn more about this author, visit Pete Turner's Website.
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"Nobody plans to fail - but a lot of people fail to plan."
Anon
Most successful companies have a strategic business plan. This plan provides a frame work that the senior executives use to move their company forward. Wikipedia defines strategic planning as " an organization's process of defining its strategy and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including capital and people. "
Okay, but what has that got to do with me? Well if world class companies use strategic planning to achieve success, maybe strategic planning can work for you.
Let's break down the process. The first part of a strategic plan is to look at the current situation and define the favorable outcome (vision). Next develop goals and objectives and a set of actions needed to reach those goals. Finally decide what resources are required to accomplish the goals.
For example let's say you are 20 pounds overweight. You have a vision of a favorable outcome (looking good in a bathing suit). You set a goal of losing 20 pounds by summer vacation. Finally you decide to spend the money (resources) and join a health club.
Now lets expand this strategic plan to include not just losing weight but reinventing yourself and becoming the person you want to be: successful and happy.
The first step is to create your Personal Vision. A personal vision statement should inspire and motivate. Is this vision statement something you can really get passionate about? If not, now is the time to rewrite your vision statement. As you write use powerful words, adjectives and action verbs that vividly describe the you of your dreams. Take the time to really refine this statement. This is Important ! Your Personal Vision Statement is critical to your success. Everything else is based on this vision.
Once you have strengthened your vision statement, put it some place where you are constantly reminded of the words in your statement.
Now that you have your Personal Vision Statement it's time to develop a Personal Mission Statement. Whoa! wait a minute what's the difference between a Personal Vision Statement and a Personal Mission Statement? Is this just an exercise or is it important to my success?
There is a big difference between a vision statement and a mission statement and yes it is vital to your success. Let me explain.... A vision statement puts in writing your dream of who you want to become. Just as Martin Luther King had a dream which inspired millions, your dream will inspire you. The mission statement puts some detail to the dream. For example let's say you want to start a business; a coffee shop. Your vision statement could be something like this: "My coffee shop will be the best shop in town." Okay that's a great vision/dream, but how are you going to achieve that dream? That's the role of the mission statement. " I will own the best coffee shop in town by serving only the finest coffees at reasonable prices. Customers will enjoy a friendly and intimate setting. My wait staff will be knowledgeable and trained in providing outstanding service."
Now create your own mission statement by expanding on your vision statement detailing how you will achieve your dream.
Again put it in writing and/or print it out and carry it with you. Write it on a small card and keep it in your pocket book/wallet. Use it as a screen saver, tape it to your bathroom mirror and/or put it on a bulletin board. Don't hide it away! Keep it in front of you as a constant inspiration.
Now is also a good time to start a journal. On the first page put your Personal Vision Statement and your Personal Mission Statement. Next write down your goals. Use the journal to keep track of your progress. Bear in mind that no one rides their bike at full speed every day. Some days you'll just coast and other days you'll be soaring. The important thing is at the end of a week, a month or a year you will have made progress. Keeping a journal will allow you to look back on how far you have come and inspire you to keep on pedaling.
Making A Strategic Plan Work For You - To learn more about this author, visit Pete Turner's Website.
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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Joe DagerJoe Dager is President of Business901, a progressive coaching company providing no-nonsense direction in areas such as Lean Six Sigma Marketing and organized referral marketing. What others say: In the past 20 years, Joe and I have collaborated on many difficult issues. Joe’s ability to combine his expertise with “out of the box” thinking is unsurpassed. He has always delivered quickly, cost effectively and with ingenuity. A brilliant mind that is always a pleasure to work with.” - James R. If you want to learn more about Business901, start a conversation with us. We can be found @ Web/Blog: Business901.com Web/Blog: FundingYourNonprofit.com LinkedIn Profile Follow me on Twitter - Visit Joe Dager's Website |
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Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
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