PDF Summary:The Six Disciplines of Strategic Thinking, by Michael D. Watkins

What does it take to be a strategic thinker? In The Six Disciplines of Strategic Thinking, Michael D. Watkins outlines the key mental habits required. From mastering pattern recognition and systems analysis to cultivating mental agility and structured problem-solving, you'll discover the foundational disciplines for identifying risks and opportunities within complex systems.

Watkins also delves into the disciplines for mobilizing your organization—crafting compelling visions, aligning processes with goals, and developing the political savvy to influence stakeholders. Whether you're tackling high-stakes problems or driving strategic initiatives, this guide explores the cognitive toolkit needed to excel as a strategic leader.

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Improve Your Anticipation of Actions, Reactions, and Counterreactions in Organizational "Games"

The next element of mental nimbleness is playing games. To think strategically, Watkins argues, you must concentrate on the "gameplay" your company needs to engage in to create and capture value. These games involve actions and responses from various intelligent and motivated players, like competitors, regulators, customers, and suppliers, who are all looking to further their objectives. This requires anticipating other key players' probable reactions to your actions and factoring those responses into your strategies. Games are typically mixtures of collaborating to generate and competing to gain value. So, you must be able to assess what types of game you are playing, who the players are, what they care about, and the opportunities for cooperation and competition. Watkins explains how you can leverage game theory ideas like the benefits of being first, signaling, balance, order, and backward reasoning to become better at playing the most challenging games your organization must win.

Other Perspectives

• Concentrating solely on gameplay within the company might result in a narrow focus that ignores broader market trends and external factors that could impact the company's ability to create and capture value.
• It may not be feasible to anticipate all actions and responses accurately, as this assumes a level of rationality and predictability that doesn't always exist in real-world scenarios.
• Anticipating reactions from key players might lead to a bias towards existing power structures and relationships, potentially overlooking emerging players or disruptive forces in the industry.
• In some cases, excessive competition can undermine the potential for collaboration, leading to a zero-sum game where one party's gain is another's loss, rather than a value-creating process.
• The strategy may be too rigid in environments that are highly volatile and unpredictable, where flexibility and adaptability could be more valuable than a detailed assessment of the game.
• Signaling, as a game theory concept, can sometimes backfire if the signals are misinterpreted or if competitors use them to their advantage.

How Strategy Experts Organize Their Companies for Action

Once you've identified and prioritized the most significant risks and prospects, it is time to take action. The subsequent three chapters in Watkins's book examine the disciplines that underpin effective mobilization.

Structuring Problem-Solving Processes for High-Stakes Challenges

To equip your organization to tackle problems, you must initially know how to solve them. Watkins emphasizes that today's most challenging organizational problems are "wicked" - meaning that they are often novel, complex, uncertain, volatile and ambiguous (CUVA). This requires using what the author calls systematic problem resolution—a process for methodically defining and breaking down issues into components to analyze and then solve individually and collectively.

Engaging Key Stakeholders Effectively Using the ASCI (Approve, Support, Consult, Inform) Method

The author believes that organized problem-solving begins with identifying and engaging with critical stakeholders. Watkins argues that the "ASCI" (Approve, Support, Consult, Inform) framework is a powerful tool for making sure the right people get involved in the right ways at the right time. Begin by pinpointing the main stakeholders for the challenge you are dealing with. Then, assess their degrees of influence and classify them as: Approve (people whose formal approval is needed to progress), Support (people who control access to required resources, such as information and funding), Consult (people whose advice you need or who will need to be more formally involved in a later stage of the process) and Inform (people who need to be kept up-to-date on your progress). Watkins emphasizes the need to be transparent in your use of the ASCI framework and to communicate the rationale for your assessment to the people involved.

Practical Tips

• Start a problem-solving journal where you document challenges you face, noting down who is involved and their roles. Reviewing this journal can help you recognize patterns in stakeholder engagement and improve your approach to involving the right people in future problems.
• Create a decision-making flowchart for your household tasks to visualize who needs to be involved and when. Start by listing common decisions or tasks, then assign each one an ASCI category. For example, deciding on a family vacation destination might require approval from all family members, support in terms of budgeting, consultation on dates, and informing everyone of the final itinerary.
• Create a personal transparency report to share with your team or family, detailing your goals, progress, and challenges using the ASCI framework. By doing this, you encourage open communication and accountability. For example, if you're working on a personal fitness goal, share your workout plans, dietary changes, and weekly progress with your family to keep yourself accountable and receive support.

Aligning on Definitions, Criteria, and Barriers

Watkins builds on the work of business strategists Enders and Chevallier and their hero-quest-treasure-dragon framework for framing problems and aligning stakeholders. To effectively outline issues, start by specifying goals that are aspirational yet achievable. Then, specify the criteria you'll apply to make trade-offs among the alternative paths for accomplishing those goals. Finally, try to foresee the obstacles you might encounter as you follow those paths. Enders and Chevallier propose presenting the issue with the narrative of a hero, a quest, a treasure, and one or more dragons. The hero is naturally the leader in your company grappling with a significant issue. The quest involves solving an issue, defined in the form of a specific question. The treasure refers to the optimal answer, as well as the advantages of achieving it. And the dragons are the possible obstacles that have to be surmounted to achieve success. Defining these clearly allows teams to use a common language that helps align stakeholders.

Practical Tips

• Create a visual stakeholder alignment chart for a project you're working on, even if it's a personal one. Draw a diagram with yourself at the center, list the people who have a stake in your success (friends, family, colleagues), and connect them with lines that represent their influence on your quest. Use this to strategize on how to engage with each person for support or advice.
• Create a vision board that visually represents your goals to keep them top of mind. Use magazine cutouts, drawings, or printed images that symbolize your aspirations and place them on a board where you'll see them daily. This constant visual reminder can help you internalize your goals and maintain focus on achieving them.
• Create a personal decision matrix for everyday choices by listing your top five values and scoring potential decisions against them. For instance, if you value health, cost-saving, and family time, score your dinner options based on these criteria. A home-cooked meal might score high on health and family time but require more effort, while takeout might score lower on health but save time.
• Use a habit-tracking app to set reminders for regular obstacle forecasting. Choose an app that allows you to create custom reminders, then schedule a weekly 15-minute session to reflect on your current endeavors and predict any hurdles for the week ahead. During these sessions, focus on identifying new obstacles that weren't apparent before and adjust your strategies accordingly.
• Start a journal where each entry is a 'chapter' in the epic of your life. Identify a long-term goal as your 'treasure' and daily obstacles as 'dragons'. Write about how you, the hero, plan to conquer these dragons. This method transforms mundane tasks into an engaging narrative, making them more motivating.
• Role-play difficult decisions with a trusted friend or family member taking on the role of your adversary or challenge. This exercise can help you anticipate potential obstacles and practice your response strategies. By verbalizing your thoughts and actions, you'll gain clarity on your leadership approach and decision-making process.
• Start a small, informal focus group with friends or family to discuss your question and gather diverse perspectives. Meet regularly to share findings, experiences, and brainstorm solutions together. If your question is about reducing waste in your home, your group could share tips on recycling, composting, or repurposing items, and then discuss the outcomes of trying these methods.
• Experiment with a "treasure hunt" game in your daily routine by setting small, attainable challenges that align with your ultimate answers and advantages. For example, if you're seeking to improve your health, your challenge could be to try a new vegetable each week. This gamification can make the pursuit of your treasure more engaging and can lead to discovering new advantages you hadn't considered.
• Create a "Dragon Wall" in your living space where you post notes or images representing challenges you're currently facing. This visual representation can serve as a daily reminder of what you're working to overcome. For example, if you're trying to quit smoking, you might put up a picture of a dragon breathing smoke, symbolizing the habit you're battling.
• Use visual aids like flowcharts or diagrams to map out the common language and processes your team has defined. Visual representations can help team members quickly understand and remember the agreed-upon terms and their relationships to each other, fostering better alignment and efficiency in collaborative efforts.

Balancing Analytical and Creative Approaches to Explore Solutions

Once stakeholders are aligned regarding the issue and criteria, you can move to generating potential solutions. Watkins advises that you start by defining the type of problem you're dealing with and the degree of novelty it presents. For familiar problems, you probably have standardized approaches to creating solutions. However, when the problem at hand is highly novel, it's important to employ creative thinking to define and explore potential solutions. Watkins argues that structured problem-solving requires a judicious mix of analysis with creativity at this point in the process. To that end he advises that you: (1) define the type of exploration that you need to undertake (is the problem you're addressing already well-defined but unknown, or does it need to be deconstructed?), (2) make sure you're not missing crucial issues, (3) make sure that information is properly integrated and interpreted, and (4) ensure that you or other members of the team, or both, can leverage subject matter expertise effectively, while also ensuring that all of the important perspectives are captured.

Practical Tips

• Use social media polls to gauge the novelty of your problems. Post a brief description of a challenge you're facing and ask your network if they've encountered something similar or if it's a new issue to them. This can provide a quick and broad perspective on how unique your problem is and might even offer unexpected solutions from your peers.
• Create a "problem diary" where you jot down daily inconveniences or issues you encounter and dedicate a weekly "creative hour" to devise unconventional solutions. This could be as simple as finding a new way to organize your workspace to boost productivity or developing a unique method to remind yourself to stay hydrated throughout the day.
• Create a personal exploration challenge by picking a new topic each month and finding ways to explore it in depth. For example, if you choose astronomy, you could stargaze, visit a planetarium, read articles, or watch documentaries. By immersing yourself in different aspects of a single subject, you'll discover which methods of exploration are most fulfilling for you, whether it's hands-on activities, academic study, or a combination.
• Partner with a friend or colleague for a bi-weekly "issue audit" where you each share your current top concerns and help each other identify anything that might have been overlooked. This collaborative approach provides a fresh perspective and accountability, ensuring that both of you are covering all bases in your respective projects or personal goals.
• Use mind mapping for visual information integration. Start with a central idea from your reading, and branch out with lines connecting to related concepts, examples, and personal experiences. This can help you see the relationships between different pieces of information and how they fit into the bigger picture.
• Create a personal "expertise journal" to track your learning progress in a specific field. Documenting your journey not only helps in retaining information but also in identifying areas where you need to improve. For instance, if you're learning about sustainable gardening, you could note down your successes with different plants and reflect on what didn't work and why.
• Start a 'perspective journal' to track different viewpoints you encounter daily. Whenever you have a conversation, read an article, or watch a news segment, take a moment to write down the main perspective presented and any underlying assumptions. Over time, this will train you to automatically recognize and consider multiple perspectives in any situation.

Crafting Motivating and Uplifting Visions

To motivate people to explore unfamiliar territories, you will need a good vision. Watkins argues that a common vision is an essential component of successful mobilization. It motivates, directs, and channels individual and group effort in ways that are hard to achieve through commands, control, and incentive systems alone. In the author's view, a good vision should provide a detailed image of a preferred future state that aligns with the company's mission, core values, and strategy, as well as the employees' personal values and aspirations.

Translating Visions into Shared Organizational Narratives

You can lay the foundation for a shared vision by developing a concise and compelling personal vision of the future, then working with your team and other key stakeholders to test your vision and translate it into a narrative for success - something that resonates with and inspires people. A collective vision becomes real when individuals throughout your organization are able to make connections to understand the vision itself, the mission that underpins it, the specific objectives that define it, and the strategic choices that will make it happen.

Practical Tips

• Organize a monthly "Vision Hackathon" where team members and stakeholders come together for a dedicated session to challenge and improve the vision. During these sessions, use brainstorming techniques like "worst possible idea" to encourage out-of-the-box thinking, or "vision swapping" where participants exchange ideas to gain fresh perspectives.
• Share your narrative with a trusted friend or mentor and ask for feedback. Tell them the story of where you've been and where you're going, focusing on the successes you plan to achieve. Their insights can help refine your narrative, making it more compelling and realistic, which in turn can help keep you motivated and on track.

Conveying Your Goals Using Storytelling and Symbolism

To inspire people to act, it's necessary to convey your vision memorably and persuasively. Watkins stresses the value of powerful simplification and storytelling in doing so and suggests five classic "archetypes" that you can use to build your narrative: (1) love (for example your company's intense focus on its customers), (2) redemption (for example the company has gone through a period of poor performance and is looking for a fresh start), (3) rags to riches (for example your company is a disadvantaged challenger trying to overcome challenges), (4) the outsider in an unfamiliar environment (for example when you are introducing a new product or service) and (5) the ultimate quest (for example when you have aspirational goals and are seeking deep fulfillment). He suggests augmenting your idea using vivid imagery, evocative descriptions, and thought-provoking metaphors. Doing this enables people to picture the appearance and feeling of the final outcome.

Practical Tips

• Develop a mini-podcast series for friends and family where you discuss a topic you're passionate about using only the most essential points and engaging narratives. This will train you to speak concisely and compellingly. You could talk about a hobby, like gardening, and share a story about the first plant you successfully grew, emphasizing the key steps in simple terms.
• Use an archetype to structure your next presentation or public speech to make it more engaging. Pick an archetype that aligns with the message you want to convey. If you're talking about overcoming adversity, the "redemption" archetype could be a powerful framework. Begin by describing a low point, then detail the steps taken towards redemption, and conclude with the lessons learned and the positive outcome achieved.
• Write a short story that personifies your goal. Imagine your objective as a character in a narrative, facing challenges and achieving victories. If your goal is to start a business, write about a protagonist who overcomes obstacles with creativity and determination, using metaphors like navigating a ship through a storm to symbolize the entrepreneurial journey.

Aligning Systems and Processes to Further the Vision

Watkins emphasizes that communication is only the starting point for mobilizing your organization around the vision. You must use influence, leadership, and resource allocation to achieve it. You can use a mix of "push" and "pull" methods to accomplish tasks. "Push" approaches rely on the influence of directives, incentives, and measurement systems to set expectations, define desired behaviors, allocate resources, and track progress. "Pull" strategies, however, rely on persuasion and motivation to create change by tapping into people's desires for autonomy and creating a sense of shared purpose. Your success in pursuing both approaches depends on your capacity for social influence—to communicate vision persuasively, connect it to people's personal aspirations and beliefs, and generate enthusiasm about the tasks ahead. Finally, you must back up words with actions by making strategic choices that advance the vision, such as allocating the necessary resources, identifying metrics, and ensuring you have motivated people assigned to the task.

Other Perspectives

• In some organizations, a bottom-up approach where input and ideas are gathered from employees before communicating a vision might be more effective in ensuring buy-in and mobilization.
• Overemphasis on influence and leadership might undervalue the role of collaboration and collective intelligence in achieving a vision.
• Over-reliance on "pull" strategies might result in a lack of structure or clear expectations, potentially leading to confusion or inconsistent results.
• "Push" approaches may lead to compliance rather than commitment, resulting in a workforce that follows directives out of obligation rather than genuine buy-in.
• Social influence is not the only determinant of success; effective systems and processes are also critical, as they provide the structure within which social influence operates.
• Persuasively communicating a vision does not guarantee generating enthusiasm, as individuals may be skeptical or resistant to change regardless of the communication's quality.
• Assigning tasks based on motivation rather than competency can lead to inefficiencies or failures if individuals lack the necessary expertise to execute the tasks effectively.

The Importance of Political Savvy for Strategic Thinkers

Political acumen is the capability to manage and influence an organization's political environment. This represents the final strategic thinking discipline. To succeed in top-tier industries, you must become more politically astute. Why? As you advance within companies, the politics increase.

Recognizing and Accepting the Political Nature of Organizations

Numerous leaders find it difficult to view their organizations politically because of the negative connotations associated with political maneuvering. However, Watkins argues that if you want to lead, you must learn to see past these connotations and welcome the political dimension. He argues that you will not be able to energize your organization to tackle tough problems and transform it to adapt to evolving risks and possibilities unless you understand its underlying political dynamics and are skilled at forming and maintaining partnerships with key players.

Visualizing Organizations as Ambitious Actors Pursuing Agendas

To think politically about your company and the environment around it, Watkins advises that you (1) visualize it as a collection of "actors" (groups, individuals) pursuing their agendas, and (2) identify the decision-making processes that determine what gets done. Agendas typically combine individual and organizational goals that the actors want to achieve. Visualize your organization in this way, and you'll quickly realize that achieving your agenda largely depends on building successful alliances of supporters who are motivated to act on your behalf.

Practical Tips

• Host a role-playing session where employees act out their department's interests in a mock company-wide meeting. This can be a fun and engaging way to see the different agendas at play and how they might conflict or align. It can also foster empathy and understanding among employees, as they get a chance to 'walk in the shoes' of their colleagues from different parts of the company.
• Use the "Five Whys" technique to uncover the root cause of your decisions. When faced with a decision, ask yourself "why" five times to dig deeper into the underlying reasons. This can reveal hidden motivations and help you make more informed decisions.
• Develop a "give-and-take" feedback system with your colleagues or peers. Regularly schedule sessions where you discuss how your personal goals can benefit the team or organization and vice versa. For example, if you're aiming to improve your public speaking skills, volunteer to lead team presentations. This not only helps you practice but also contributes to the team's success.
• Develop a "Collaboration Wishlist" where you list the types of alliances you aim to build and the value you can offer. Regularly review and update this list, then actively seek out individuals or groups who align with your goals. Approach them with a clear proposition of what you can achieve together. For example, if you're looking to launch a community project, identify local businesses or leaders who share your vision and propose a joint effort where both parties contribute resources or expertise.
• Organize informal, low-key gatherings for your supporters to foster community and shared purpose. These can be simple coffee meetups or virtual hangouts where supporters can connect with each other and discuss ideas. The key is to create a space where supporters feel valued and can see the collective strength of their efforts. For instance, if you're working on a community project, host a casual picnic in the park where supporters can meet, exchange ideas, and see firsthand the community they're helping to build.

Identifying Winning and Blocking Coalitions to Advance Objectives

To further your objectives, you must build winning coalitions while anticipating and neutralizing potential blocking coalitions. Watkins describes winning coalitions as “the individuals who, as a group, can endorse your agenda." By contrast, groups that can obstruct your goals are "groups of people who, together, can refuse approval." So, determine the actors whose support would guarantee success. Then build relationships with them by trying to figure out what they aim to achieve and how you might help them succeed. Finally, ensure you avoid inadvertently creating blocking coalitions from people whose agendas might otherwise align with yours.

Practical Tips

• Conduct a "pre-mortem" analysis on your plans by imagining a future where your project failed due to opposition. List out the reasons why these groups might have resisted, and then work backward to address these concerns proactively. This exercise can reveal hidden objections and give you a head start on addressing them.
• Create a tailored value proposition for each potential key supporter. Once you know what drives them, draft a clear statement for each that outlines how supporting your project can benefit them personally or professionally. This targeted approach can be more effective than a one-size-fits-all pitch.
• Offer to collaborate on a small project or task that aligns with a key person's goals, even if it's outside your usual scope of work. This shows your willingness to invest time in their success and can strengthen your relationship. For instance, if a coworker is working on a presentation and you have a knack for design, offer to help with their slide layout.

Developing Powerful Ways to Influence Others

Your capacity to build and sustain backing for your agenda rests on your ability to influence stakeholders. Watkins describes seven techniques for accomplishing this:

• Consultation is a method of persuasion that encourages commitment by making people feel that their perspectives have been heard and, ideally, integrated into your approach.

• Framing involves strategically developing convincing arguments for each individual. Consider their priorities and motivations and develop tailored arguments that will resonate with them.

• Social pressure involves leveraging social norms—including the obligation to honor existing commitments, to reciprocate favors, and to behave consistently with one's values—to bring people on board.

• Choice-shaping seeks to affect the way people see their options by carefully framing the choices—for example, by focusing on the undesirable implications of the status quo.

• Entanglement is a gradual approach to influence that leads people to reach destinations they wouldn't easily arrive at all at once.

• Sequencing is about being strategic in how you influence people to gain momentum toward your goals.

• Events that compel people to make commitments to dates, deadlines, or deliverables require them to take action or follow through on their prior commitments.

Sequencing Interactions Strategically to Gain Traction

Because the sequence of people you approach powerfully influences the effectiveness of your influence efforts, Watkins argues that you should create a sequencing strategy. The author suggests employing the reasoning behind reverse induction to help do this. Envision your ultimate goal and then reverse engineer to determine the optimal way to approach the people whose support is most critical to reaching your aims.

Practical Tips

• Use social media to practice sequencing by engaging in conversations on platforms like Twitter or Reddit. Start by commenting on broad topics or popular threads, then gradually engage in more niche discussions. This helps you understand how to navigate from general to specific topics in a digital environment, which can translate to better sequencing in face-to-face interactions.
• You can enhance decision-making by starting with your desired end result and considering the steps needed to get there. Imagine you want to transition to a new career. Begin by picturing yourself in your ideal job, then work backward to identify the qualifications, experience, and network you'll need to achieve that position. This reverse mapping can reveal a clear pathway to your goal.

Use Events That Compel Action to Drive Commitment and Progress

To create urgency and drive progress, it's necessary to leverage what Watkins calls "events that force action." These are deadlines, deliverables, or decisions that require people to commit resources, provide information, or take other concrete actions that demonstrate whether they support your agenda. They are critical for preventing delay by removing inaction as a possibility.

Practical Tips

• Use a countdown timer for daily tasks to simulate a time-bound event. This can be as simple as setting a timer for routine activities like cleaning or working out. The ticking clock acts as a constant reminder that time is running out, pushing you to complete the task more efficiently.
• Create a "Deadline Jar" to make meeting deadlines more rewarding by filling it with notes of small rewards you can give yourself each time you meet a deadline. For example, if you finish a project two days before the due date, you can pull a note from the jar that might say "watch an episode of your favorite show" or "take a long bath." This tangible, fun method encourages you to meet deadlines and associates positive reinforcement with your accomplishments.
• Develop a habit of proactive information sharing within your network. Start a monthly newsletter or a group chat where you share interesting articles, personal insights, or useful information with friends and colleagues. This not only strengthens your relationships but also encourages others to reciprocate with their own valuable information, creating a rich exchange that can lead to collaborative actions.
• Organize a feedback session where participants must provide constructive criticism or suggestions on a proposal related to your agenda. This could be done in a casual setting, like a coffee meet-up, where you present an idea and ask for direct input. The level of engagement and the quality of feedback you receive will help you gauge who is genuinely interested and willing to help you refine and push your agenda forward.
• Use a commitment device to lock in future behavior and eliminate the option of inaction. This could be a financial penalty for not following through on a goal, like donating to a cause you dislike if you fail to meet your exercise targets each week. Alternatively, use positive reinforcement by setting up a reward that you only receive if you complete the task.

Cultivating Emotional Intelligence to Enhance Social Influence

Watkins emphasizes that effectively using his seven influence strategies largely depends on your EQ—to understand your stakeholders' agendas. This requires setting aside time to understand their motivations and situational pressures and taking care to avoid asking them to take actions that conflict with their values and reputations or that force them to break prior commitments.

Practicing Perspective-Taking to Better Understand Others' Motivations

An effective method to become more emotionally intelligent is to practice seeing things from different perspectives to better understand your stakeholders and your interactions with them. Watkins proposes trying this "perceptual stances" activity:

• First, view the situation from your own perspective. What do you see, and for what reason?

• Next, shift to see it from the viewpoint of one or more of the other stakeholders. How would they see the scenario, and why?

• Then "go to the balcony” to adopt a neutral, dispassionate perspective. You accomplish this by imagining how an impartial outsider would view it.

• Finally, return to your own perspective. Has this exercise provided important fresh perspectives? In what ways might you use this knowledge to improve relationships and influence people effectively?

Practical Tips

• Engage in role-playing games that require you to adopt a character vastly different from yourself. Through these games, you'll be forced to think, react, and interact from an entirely new perspective, which can enhance your ability to understand and relate to emotions and viewpoints different from your own.
• You can enhance empathy by engaging in a "day in their shoes" activity where you mimic the routine of someone you want to understand better. For example, if you're trying to improve your relationship with a colleague, try adopting their work schedule or tasks for a day to gain insight into their challenges and pressures.
• Try role-playing exercises with a friend where you each adopt different motivations and attempt to influence the other. For example, one person could be motivated by career advancement while the other by work-life balance. This practice will help you adapt your influencing tactics to different motivational drivers and improve your persuasive communication skills.