Cultivating the Strategic Mind

Blake Leath

Description

For such a common word, strategy is often misunderstood, misinterpreted, and misapplied. Given the complex challenges facing organizations -- and entire societies -- we must grow more and better strategists. Tackling three simple yet sweeping questions, Cultivating the Strategic Mind delivers the goods: (1)What is strategy, and why aren't more leaders better strategists? (2)While strategy is as foundational as DNA within the most exemplary companies, why are so many organizations missing it altogether? (3)How can I apply strategy in palpable, pragmatic ways to the benefit of those around me? As a result of demonstrating a more Strategic Mind, leaders will employ a robust language and methodology for crafting, communicating, and implementing strategic aspirations and commitments. Contemporary business is screaming for equally creative and critical thinkers capable of leading teams and entire organizations.

Sujets

• Gestion et management

Informations

• Publié par: First Edition Design Publishing
• Date de parution: 20 mai 2015
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781622879229
• Langue: English

Extrait

Cultivating the
Strategic Mind
Praise for
Cultivating the Strategic Mind

“In short, Cultivating the Strategic Mind is awesome. What a great tool. I can’t believe how much of it has stuck with me. I’m using Cultivating the Strategic Mind with my staff, and the Omniscience Octagon has proven to be an invaluable resource and tool for our strategic thinking and planning. Thanks again for a great process. Dr. Leath’s principles improve upon many of the strategic concepts I learned as a fighter pilot and tactics officer in the Air Force. I was able to apply them to our business and a sister company almost instantly. The models he has created have proven to be outstanding communication tools with our staff. The best part is that these principles have helped my wife and I develop a strategy to deal with some very complicated issues for our family.”

John Moore
CEO, JM & Associates, Inc./Raymond James

“ Cultivating the Strategic Mind is a must-read for any leader who expects to develop a thinking and strategy-based culture that can execute and achieve sustainable results.”

Tony Jeary
CEO, High Performance Resources

“ Cultivating the Strategic Mind is a brilliant melding of theoretical concepts and practical applications. Dr. Leath is dynamite; he is a wealth of information. His passion for the topic makes it easy for me to engage.”

Jim Maggio
CEO, CIO Focused

“ Cultivating the Strategic Mind was a dazzling headtrip. I had a blast! Leath breezes along and lifts you higher until you forget we’re talking about strategy here. I lost myself in his stories, arriving thirty pages further and filled to the gills with tools I can use tomorrow.”

Robin Blakeley
The Essenza Group

“Dr. Leath has taken an arcane subject and made it entirely concrete, ushering us into a new era of strategy. Were it not for the apparent choice to make strategy feel so palpable, I fear he might have otherwise written an academically oriented book that would have been read by about three people. I consider it a gift that he wrote a book that anyone can sink his teeth into and benefit from immediately. Cultivating the Strategic Mind is fun and successfully decodes what many leaders struggle to implement on a daily basis. I strongly recommend Cultivating the Strategic Mind to anyone needing to think and execute at a higher level. Leath has so swiftly and gracefully demystified strategy that this could very well have been Strategy for Dummies.”

Jeffery D. Price, CFM
Vice President, Merrill Lynch

“Here’s the apparent recipe for writing the definitive, contemporary book on strategy: Take one part Mark Twain, two parts Will Rogers, a dash of Greek philosophy, a teaspoon of surprising perspectives about timeless truths, a tablespoon of three unique contributions
to scholarly thought, and a generous helping of tools. Add wit, fold in some mindbending and unexpected observations regarding leadership and culture, bake for one week, and voila, Cultivating the Strategic Mind ! You hold in your hands meal enough to feed an army of strategists.”

Phil Davis
First Senior VP of Operations, Town North Bank
Cultivating the Strategic Mind

Growing from Leader to
Visionary, Creator, and Architect of Strategy

Blake Leath, Ph.D.
Cultivating the Strategic Mind:
Growing From Leader to Visionary, Creator, and Architect of Strategy
Copyright ©2015 Blake Leath

ISBN 978-1622-879-22-9 EBOOK

May 2015

Published and Distributed by
First Edition Design Publishing, Inc.
P.O. Box 20217, Sarasota, FL 34276-3217
www.firsteditiondesignpublishing.com



ALL R I G H T S R E S E R V E D. No p a r t o f t h i s b oo k pub li ca t i o n m a y b e r e p r o du ce d, s t o r e d i n a r e t r i e v a l s y s t e m , o r t r a n s mit t e d i n a ny f o r m o r by a ny m e a ns ─ e l e c t r o n i c , m e c h a n i c a l , p h o t o - c o p y , r ec o r d i n g, or a ny o t h e r ─ e x ce pt b r i e f qu ot a t i o n i n r e v i e w s , w i t h o ut t h e p r i o r p e r mi ss i on o f t h e a u t h o r or publisher .


Published in the United States by Allagi Learning.

in association with:
IBJ Custom Publishing
Indianapolis, IN
www.ibjcustompublishing.com

Copyright © 2007 by Blake Leath

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this book may be
reproduced in any manner without the express written consent
of the publisher. All inquiries should be made to Blake Leath.

Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper.

ISBN 978-0-9798830-1-9

www.blakeleath.com
www.thestrategicmind.com

Designed by Ed Brock, Scott Swain, Brad Dixon, and Keith Crabtree 1
Other Publications by Blake Leath The Triune for Attraction & Retention: Creating a Culture of Good Leaders, a Great Workplace, and Sustaining Employer of Choice Designation The Family-Owned Business: A Case in Point For more titles, visit www.blakeleath.com or www.allagilearning.com .

About Allagi 1 [1] Learning
Greek for a change for the positive, Allagi Learning is an intellectual property greenhouse that cultivates leaders, strategic thinkers, and organizations. Allagi Learning offers education solutions, progressive training, self-paced/technology-based knowledge bursts followed by facilitated debriefings with certified instructors, and assessments for individuals and organizations.

Allagi...Learn. change. Achieve.
Dedication

To Lauren and Will and my beloved Dawn,
who see in me what seldom exists.
Acknowledgments

While writing is a predominantly solitary task, it requires a small village to fully birth a book, and Cultivating the Strategic Mind is no exception. Mom and Dad, thanks for the constant encouragement and curiosity. Tony Jeary, thanks for getting this ball rolling and helping me conceptualize the vision. Tammy Kling, thank you for the months of help with writing, rewriting, collaboration, and wisdom; you’re a gem. Kym Reeves, thank you for your brilliant editing and research; you made the end fun. Treon Kranz, thanks for your ongoing belief, support, periodic nudges, fact-checking, and clever kernels. Shannon Barker and Kim House, thank you for your generous and constant shepherding of the manuscript, cover, internal artwork, permissions, proofing, and so much more; your DNA is woven throughout and strengthens it all. Keith Crabtree, thank you for your artistic perfection, creativity, patience, and constant receptivity to whimsy. Ed Brock, thank you for your generous contributions to the overall design and cover artwork; you are a true gentleman. Jeff Pollard, Peter Lehrman, Seth Jantzen, and Chad Truby, thank you for your wonderful contributions, without which, Cultivating the Strategic Mind would not be what it is. Dr. C. Magnus L. Rittby, thank you for your insights with regard to the physics and strategy section; any errors here or elsewhere are mine alone. Dr. Richard Galvin, thank you for your insights with regard to the philosophy and astronomy sections. Dr. Michelle Collins, thank you for the development of the strategist self-assessment that accompanies this book – I believe it adds a great deal of value and is reflective of your consistently high-quality work. Pat Keiffner, Jodi Belcher, and everyone at IBJ, thank you for your tirelessness, passion, and commitment to excellence. You made publishing fun. Jason DeLaPorte, Melinda Cox, Dayna Melvin, Jeannine Marckstein, Keri Stewart, Larry D’Anza, Christina Zamora, Martha Benn, Dalton Jantzen, Sandy Rodwick, Tiffany Warfield, Taylor Busboom, Ashley Acker, Dr. Daren Martin, Peter Garrison, Croft Edwards, Sean Allen, Marc Grimm, Dana Drew, Mike Roberts, Bob Spencer, Jean Burgard, Cindy Gregory, Jackie Pollard, Joe Ruggles, Knute Sorenson, Mitchell Nejad, Paul Bruno, Reny Madjarska, Kevin Papay, Candice Perea, Stephen Miller, Susan Zimmerman, Tom Sheives, Kristin Orsak – everyone at DeLaPorte & Associates, Inc. and Allagi Learning, both current and recent, thanks for providing the experiences that make this a richer work. Also, to all the kind individuals who agreed, at various stops along the way, to read the manuscripts and weigh-in – thank you: Michael Boland, Lou Romero, Mark Plake, Dr. Steve Buchholz, Robin Blakeley, David Stewart, David Scholl, Ron Holton, Walter Nusbaum, Phil and Lisa Davis, Glenn Miller, Ken Farrell, Dr. Howard Johnson, Dr. Ray Shoults, Tom Kulik, Joe Brouillette, Kevin Christ, Dr. Edward L. Wingard, and Susan Engebrecht – your time and effort are immensely appreciated. Cultivating the Strategic Mind and I benefited greatly in equal measure from your knowledge, guidance, suggestions, and corrections. Tracy, Bob, Mandy, Sydney, Kim, Jen, Taylor, Kylar, and Terralyn – thanks for keeping me in the circle despite my asocial tendencies. Pam and the late Terry DeLaPorte – thank you for believing in this little runt. And finally, thank you Mark Scharenbroich – for unknowingly leaving an impression within a few minutes that has lasted well over two decades now.
Disclaimer

The stories I have recounted throughout this book are true. However, to ensure anonymity, names and identifying details of certain characters and organizations have been changed.
Table of Contents

PART ZERO POSITIONING
Preface
The Strategic Mind Promise
Prologue
PART ONE FOUNDATIONS
Disillusionment
· Personal Case Study
Shortsightedness
· Failures in Strategic Thinking
Hope
· Review of Representative Findings
· in the Literature
· A Few Points of Clarification:
· Strategic/Systemic Thinking vs.
· Strategic Planning & Strategic Management
· Beyond Origins, Etymology, and
· the Literature to Real Life
· Toward an Understanding of Terms:
· Strategic & Systemic
PART TWO TRIUNE
The Strategic Triune
1. Their Mind in Greater Detail: The Mind Map™
2. Their View in Greater Detail: The Omniscience Octagon™
3. Their People in Greater Detail: Inclusive Ownership
PART THREE PILLARS
Four Pillars