You Need to Be More Strategic...

I hear this regularly from leaders who work with me after receiving this feedback. It's often positioned as the key to advancing to the 'next level' - but what does it actually mean? More high-level thinking? Less time in the weeds? A clearer vision? Bold ideas? A stronger ability to influence?

In my experience, many leaders already are strategic, but they don't always recognize it - or they define it differently from those evaluating them. Sometimes, the challenge isn't about being strategic, it's about making their strategic thinking visible in a way that resonates with senior leadership.

I believe that becoming more strategic isn't just about doing things differently. It's about expanding how you see yourself as a leader. Do you see strategy as someting separate from execution, or as part of how you lead every day? Do you associate it with authority you don't feel you have? Do you hold back from big-picture thinking because you worry it means being less hands-on?

I think about this in my own business. I set aside Fridays as a client-free day to focus on creativity, innovation, and big-picture thinking. If I'm not intentional, it's easy for the day to get swallowed up by day-to-day emails and small tasks that feel urgent. Being strategic requires protecting space for it, trusting that it's valuable to do so, and resisting the pull to always be 'doing'. I've learned that I can't just sit at my desk and expect inspiration to emerge. The best way for me to get in a truly strategic space is to start my day being active in the outdoors. Movement, fresh air, and natural space allow me to be in my body, to see new possibilities, and to make unexpected connections.

Strategy isn't just about looking ahead, it's about creating space to think, ask different questions, and discover.

When was the last time you gave yourself space to think? To ask different questions? To discover?

Instead of feeling like you never have time to 'think strategically', imagine what would be possible if you approached strategy not as a task, but as a way of being. For strategy to become a way of being, something deeper is needed - perhaps a shift in how you see yourself, what you believe is possible, or even permission to lead differently.