Mark Brown – Page 3 – Mark S. Brown

Strategy or Tactic?

Is it possible to confuse strategy and tactics? Yes! I have encountered it numerous times in my career. Both strategy and tactics lead to the achievement of a goal, but they are different. Let’s look at an example.

Strategy: Become a world class manufacturing facility through reducing waste and developing the skills of the workforce.

Tactic: Implement lean tools to achieve the strategy.

Tactics need to shift to fit the situation, but the strategy is the overriding guide. On the surface this appears simple, but in practice is sometimes overlooked. In lean manufacturing, some groups may be so enamored with learning a lean tool that they believe implementation of the tool is the strategy. In some cases, they may even believe copying the tool exactly as they learned it is the only solution.

The lesson I learned from my Toyota trainer is that we should never copy a tool. We must first think, then learn, then implement a solution that fits our situation. Never copy without understanding. His favorite question was, “What is the purpose?”

Tactics change and shift depending on many factors. Strategy should be an anchor for the team. A vision that will keep people linked to a goal as they face their daily challenges.

Where have you become too attached to a tactic and need to revisit your strategy? Is your strategy driving your tactics or the reverse?

Time to Move On?

I recently observed a situation where a person was promoted into a new role, but was struggling because they were stuck in their old role. Not that they needed to fulfill their old role, but because they didn’t want to give it up.

I have had many working assignments over my career, each one presented new challenges, and opportunities. Some of my success has come from determining the skills I needed at the particular moment and focusing on being better at them.

I started my career in an assignment writing software even though my degree was Industrial Engineering. I eventually moved to an Industrial Engineering role, and I took my software development skills with me. However, within a year, those skills were no longer relevant to my success. I had to learn new skills.

That pattern repeated itself over the next 30 years. I learned skills, moved, adapted, and repeated. The adaptation is what can be difficult if you are not aware of the need to adapt.

When you transitioned into your current role, what skills became more important? What skills became less important? Have you adapted? Are you continuing your learning?

We build experience and skills over a life time. You don’t have to give up what you learned to move to a new role, but you probably will benefit from shifting your focus to the new skills needed for success.

Why Is Self-Discipline Difficult?

Success requires self-discipline. It is the method by which you convert your time into action on a regular basis. People who are great at self-discipline enjoy the results. People that are poor at self-discipline fail to consistently achieve. Because self-discipline is difficult, most of us fall in the middle.

Here are three methods to improve your level of self-discipline:

1. Set your priorities and goals. When I decide it is time to make improvements in my life, I typically review how I spend my time, and then I make adjustments with new goals. Often I try to adjust too many things. It is more effective to define just one or two priorities and then focus link it with the top change you want to make. Your more likely to stick with it.

2. Create systems and routines that provide daily focus on your goals. Discipline is all about practice. The habit you want to create is easier to maintain if you think of it not as a daily task, but as practice with the intent to improve every day. Stop just checking the box, and challenge yourself. Set up a system for tracking progress and also a system for rewards.

3. Find someone to hold you accountable. For me, the simple answer is find a coach. But that won’t always fit in a person’s budget. An accountability partner is anyone that can provide the motivation for you to follow through on your commitments. It could be a friend, a spouse, or a co-worker. You can also connect with someone with a similar interest or goal and challenge each other to continue.

Self-discipline is difficult because success takes time and we often lack the patience success requires. How can these three processes help you build the foundation for your future success?

A Friend at Work?

Friendships at work can be difficult. But research also shows that having a friend at work can greatly enhance the work experience and results. So how can you be a better friend at work? If you want to make better work friendships, I suggest looking at Tom Roth’s book, Vital Friends.

Friendships fill many needs in our life. Our friendships at work are the same. But in a work environment, we are more effective in our strength zone. So if you learn how you can be a better friend at work, you can focus on your strengths as a friend.

Here are, according to Tom, the roles friends fulfill:

1. Builder. Builders motivate their friends.

2. Champion. Champions stand up for their friends and sing their praises to others.

3. Collaborator. Collaborators work closely together with their friends on shared interests and goals.

4. Companion. Companions are always there for their friends. They are there through the good and the bad.

5. Connector. Connectors are bridge builders for their friends. They help them achieve by connecting them to people and resources they need.

6. Energizer. Energizers are fun friends that always provide a boost. They can change their friends attitudes by walking in the room.

7. Mind Opener. Mind openers challenge their friends and open their minds to new ideas.

8. Navigator. Navigators are friends that provide their friends advice and guidance.

As a friend, you do not fill all eight of these roles. You are probably very good at a few of them, especially in a work environment. If you know the roles that provides the basis for your at work friendship, doesn’t it follow that, you can strengthen your friendships by strengthening yourself in the roles you play?