Category Archives: Recommended Blogs

The Kernel of Good Strategy

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Good morning!

Yesterday we talked some about the four signs of bad strategy.  Today, let’s talk about the three things that make up the “kernel” of good strategy according to Richard Rumelt in his book Good Strategy, Bad Strategy.

1. A diagnosis that defines or explains the nature of the challenge. A good diagnosis simplifies the often overwhelming complexity of reality by identifying certain aspects of the situation as critical. You are essentially asking “What’s going on here?”. It is a judgement about the meaning of a set of facts.

2. A guiding policy for dealing with the challenge. This is an overall approach chosen to cope with or overcome the obstacles identified in the diagnosis. Good guiding policies are not goals or visions or images of desirable end states. Rather, they define a method of grappling with the situation and ruling out a vast array of possible actions.

3. A set of coherent actionsthat are designed to carry out the guiding policy. These are steps that are coordinated with one another to work together in accomplishing the guiding policy. The actions within the kernel of strategy should be coherent. That is, the resource deployments, policies, and maneuvers that are undertaken should be consistent and coordinated.

The “kernel” is not the totality of the strategic plan, but it is the core.  Without the kernel the plan is in trouble.

Have a blessed day today!  Headed out with my boss today to meet with another organization to talk about CEO coaching – ought to be interesting!

BG

Rumelt, Richard (2011-07-19). Good Strategy Bad Strategy: The Difference and Why It Matters (p. 77). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

4 Signs of Bad Strategy

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Good morning!

When you hear the term “strategic planning” does it conjure up images of long meetings, thick binders, and plenty of fancy trendy words?  Does it evoke feelings of frustration and boredom?  And at the end, do you wonder if you really have a good strategy?

Well, I am reading Good Strategy, Bad Strategy by Richard P. Rumelt and he lists four things that are indicators of a bad strategy:

1. Fluff. Fluff is a form of gibberish masquerading as strategic concepts or arguments. It uses “Sunday” words (words that are inflated and unnecessarily abstruse) and apparently esoteric concepts to create the illusion of high-level thinking.

2. Failure to face the challenge. Bad strategy fails to recognize or define the challenge. When you cannot define the challenge, you cannot evaluate a strategy or improve it.

3. Mistaking goals for strategy. Many bad strategies are just statements of desire rather than plans for overcoming obstacles.

4. Bad strategic objectives. A strategic objective is set by a leader as a means to an end. Strategic objectives are “bad” when they fail to address critical issues or when they are impracticable.

Do you see any of these four indicators in your strategy?

This is a good book for those that are serious about strategy development.

BG

Rumelt, Richard (2011-07-19). Good Strategy Bad Strategy: The Difference and Why It Matters (p. 32). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

What Did You Say?

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Good morning!  Still no snow up here in SW Michigan and in fact we have even had a few sunny days which is a great blessing.

Blah-Blah-Blah!  How many presentations have you heard, meetings you have attended, or memos (emails) you have read where at the end you go “What?”.  In this highly verbal world we live in it seems we believe the more words we use and the “fancier” the words the better.  However, we often leave our listeners (readers) saying “What?”

We seem to forget that the goal was communication which demands clarity – instead we often cause confusion.  So what do we do?

Drive towards clarity!  Learn to speak, write, draw, and so on in ways that engage your audience, not what makes you feel good or smart.

Dan Roam has several books out that are a great help – his latest one is Blah Blah Blah in which he introduces his Blah Blahometer – a great way to evaluate the clarity of your message.  I would recommend checking out his site as well as his book.

Remember – the goal is to communicate with great clarity and it is not to try to impress them with your vocabulary or extensive knowledge of corporate-speak / ministry-speak.

Hope you have a great weekend!
BG

“Is This What You’ve Been Waiting for Your Entire Life?”

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Does this describe you?  Do you resonate with some of these statements?

“A year ago I knew I wasn’t happy. I felt the discontent deep inside me. It rattled my bones.

Just one year ago, I knew I wasn’t living a healthy life, I knew I wasn’t focused on my relationships like I should be, I knew I wasn’t pursuing my passions, I knew I wasn’t growing as an individual, I knew I wasn’t contributing to people like I should, I knew I wasn’t living a meaningful life.”

Click here to read the rest of the post on the Minimalists blog.  Some great questions.  Of course as a follower of Christ, a central part of the process is getting before the Lord about His calling on your life – not just our passions.

Maybe this is worth spending a day away to reflect on?

BG

Is Organizing Your Email a Waste of Time?

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For the GTD (Getting Things Done) adherents, the title of this post might be akin to heresy!

But that is essentially what Michael Schrage is saying is true based upon research conducted by IBM (click here to read his post).  They found that people using the email search features usually found what they were looking for faster and with fewer errors than people using complex email file folder systems (like me).

At first, I rebelled slightly at the thought of not precisely filing my emails, but then I began to reflect on how I am using my email folders and realized that while my folders helped to a certain extent, I was actually relying more now on my search function in Outlook to find what I wanted more than the folders and that the folders were actually hindering the use of the search function.

I don’t think I am quite ready to get away from my email folders yet, but I am about to simplify them greatly – today!

One question Michael asks that bears repeating is are you spending more time thinking and reflecting on how to get better organized than you are on accomplishing desired outcomes?

Blessings on your day!
BG

The Problem Isn’t Motivation, It’s Follow-Through

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Good Friday morning to you. It has been an intense but fruitful week for us at here Life Action, but the result was me not being able to write much this week. We are launching the OneCry Initiative next month which is a nationwide effort and we had leaders in from across the country working out key strategic issues before the launch.

Just read an interesting article in the Harvard Business Review blog about how motivation Peter Bregmanis often not the problem with leaders who want to work on their growth, it is actually follow-through. The challenge is when we think it is motivation and we keep trying to convince ourselves in our minds to do something when we really need to stop the conversation in our head and just do something.

So make a specific decision and carry it through and when your mind starts to argue with you about it – ignore it. Getting back in shape is usually a big issue this time of year as many of us ate a tad too much over the last six weeks. In Peter Bregman’s article he makes the following suggestion of how to deal with this type situation using working out as an example:

1. Create an environment that supports your goal(s) – do things like have your workout clothes out and sitting next to your bed ready for you when you wake up.

2. Accountability – have an accoutability partner. This has worked wonderfully for my wife. She has another woman with whom she works out and they hold each other accountable as well as encourage one another.

3. Decide when and where you are going to work out and put it in your calendar.

4. Commit to a simple and very concrete plan that is simple to quantify.

5. Realize that the follow-through challenge will only last a few minutes – as soon as you have your workout clothes on and are headed to the gym, you will be fine. I have experienced this personally. The hard part is rolling out of bed, but once I do & have on my gym clothes I have no problem and am actually looking forward to the workout.

6. Discipline will carry you through at first, but then momentum will take over – especially as you start seeing progress towards meeting your goal.

These seem to be some good points that you could apply to many areas of your life. So, quit worrying about motivating yourself and begin taking specific steps in following through with what needs to be done to accomplish your goals.

Have a great weekend!
BG

More Effective Emails

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I don’t know about you, but emails are now my primary form of communication and I have found plenty of opportunities to improve.  I still remember a simple (at least I thought it was simple) two line email caused a two and a half hour lunch meeting to clear up.  Probably has something to do with my low EQ!

The site MindTools has a good article with a few suggestions:

The subject line is a HEADLINE – it should tell the reader at a glance what the email is about and often determines how quickly they will read it.

Keep each email to one point.  Personally, I have found it best to make sure that the entire email fits into the reading frame.  I have found several people I work with tend not to scroll down on emails and often miss points deeper in the email.

Response – be specific on the action you want taken by the reader(s).

Don’t be too informal with internal emails.  You need to assume others beyond the recipient will read your email.

Some good points. One I would add is never deal with emotionally charged issues via email.  Face-to-face is the only way to deal rightly with those type issues.

Have a great day communicating!

BG

Twitter for NonProfits

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Are you trying to figure out how to use Twitter effectively? I read a good post on using Twitter for nonprofits.  You might find it interesting.

Ron Edmunson interviews Claire Diaz-Orti who leads Twitter’s Twitter for Nonprofits program on his blog.  A good read with some good links if you are interested in better using Twitter.

Blessings on your weekend!
BG

Self Care – How Are You Doing?

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It is a beautiful morning!  A few clouds in the sky with the sunrise reflecting off of them producing amazing colors.

When you are in a ministry or non-profit, usually your focus is on serving and impacting others with the hope of seeing lives transformed. Often, the idea of taking care of yourself is not at the forefront of your mind or it may even seem self-centered or selfish. The problem is that if you don’t, you will at some point render yourself unable to serve others and may even disqualify yourself from leading and cause damage to others.

Fatigue is often associated with poor decision making and as we discussed in an earlier blog post, we are all just one poor decision away from being disqualified from leading.

So how are you doing in regards to self-care?  How are you caring for your soul?  Your walk with the Lord?  Do you have healthy rhythms of being quiet before Him, spending time in the Word and in worship?

How are you doing with the key relationships in your life? If married, are you investing heavily into that relationship? Just remember, well after you are no longer a leader in your ministry and they have moved on and even forgotten you, your spouse is the one that will still be with you. So, are you caring for them now?  Investing in that relationship now?

How about your overall health?  Physical, mental, and emotional? Are you caring for your body so that you extend your ministry?  Are you growing and exercising your mind?  Are you developing healthy relationships and thinking patterns that contribute to your emotional health?

With the right motivation, taking care of yourself in order to make yourself more effective is not only not selfish, it is a very necessary investment. Don’t make the mistake of not investing in your health.

Tony Schwartz has some excellent ideas on his website.  Not sure of his faith background, but still he has some good advice.  Also, check out Wayne Cordiero’s book, Leading on Empty.  Great book.  Also, his DVD Dead Leader Running is powerful.

Have a blessed time preparing to celebrate the birth of our Lord.
BG