There is a lot of emphasis on being able to think strategically and critically, however, in my experience, people tend not to have a problem with thinking, but acting.
People have a tendency to be overconfident in their thinking while underestimating their ability to act. There is a notion that there is an order to things. Strategy then execution equals success, but strategy doesn’t stop at thinking, it has to be carried all the way through each step.
Interesting enough that we associate execution with both success and death, but it is really the same thing. We have lessened the meaning of the word due to our ability to see things through. To Execute means to see things through to the grave. It wasn’t until the 14th century that it was associated to killing someone.
execution | Etymology, origin and meaning of execution by etymonline
Acting strategically requires you to create muscle memory. Our subconscious mind responds faster than our brain, the fight or flight response. We don’t think before we act, we respond before we think. How do we get in the habit of making better decisions? We have to realize that many decisions we make were already decided long before we thought about it, let alone acted upon it.
Questions to ask:
- Is this my problem to solve
- Am I impacted by the outcome
- Do I have the authority to take action
- Is the problem big enough for me to care
- What do I gain from this problem being solved
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