For example, what is your strategy when parking? Do you pick the first spot you come across and then walk? Or do you drive around until you find one that is closer? Each is a different strategy (and it's McNeilly's Law that, whatever your parking strategy is, your spouse has the opposite one!). Well, one researcher studied this problem and determined that picking the first spot was a faster strategy than cruising around (which made me very happy since this happens to be my strategy).

What does this have to do with thinking strategically? This; being a strategist is more than having it in your title...it's about thinking strategically all the time. It's a way of life. True strategists are always thinking strategically, whether they are making business decisions, playing games or parking. They are always trying to figure out the game. What are the rules? Who are the players? What are their strategies? How do I win? What defines winning? Every potentially competitive situation they face (and yes, parking is a competitive situation) they think strategically. And even in ones that they are not directly involved in (say their kid's soccer game) they willingly offer strategic advice.

True strategists are also not just broad thinkers. They also understand the importance of good execution and paying attention to the details. They realize it helps very little to have a good strategy if one has poor execution. For example, in 1993 the Saturn Company couldn't get enough cars in the marketplace to meet demand. Its excellent advertising, new no-haggling buying process and well-engineered cars allowed it to quickly grow share for its parent company (GM) and build a loyal customer base. However, 1994 found Saturn with a swelling inventory and a stalled dealer expansion program. Although the original GM strategy was to bring out larger and more profitable models, expand capacity and increase advertising, GM failed to follow through. Capital injections in Saturn dried up and as a result, Saturn's market share was essentially flat since 1993. Execution did not follow strategy. Futurist Joel Barker has a saying about this, "Vision without action is merely dreaming. Action without vision is only wasting time."

One other thing that defines true strategists; they are always trying to find ways to improve their strategic thinking. Good strategists analyze their mistakes. This can be done in a lot of ways. For example, if one is not successful it's important to ask if the problem was with the strategy or the execution. Was the strategy flawed? Or was the strategy correct but the execution was faulty? In the Saturn example above it was an execution issue. But K-Mart's woes came less from poor execution than a poor strategy. Attacking Wal-Mart at its strength (lower prices) was not a feasible plan.

Another method of improving one's strategic thinking is by learning through the mistakes and victories of others. This can be done by reading about business strategies of other companies, learning new business strategic theories, and generally keeping up with the latest business news and analyzing it. However, one should also go beyond business and read about other competitive situations from which strategies can be learned; military history, diplomacy, sports, interpersonal relationships, etc. The list goes on and on. Then follow through by trying these new strategies out when solving your problems, whether they deal with making a strategic business move or just finding a parking space.