Every year I get the opportunity to provide a leadership training program to a group of individuals who serve municipalities. One of their recent assignments was to watch a movie and report what they learned about strategic planning. One member watched Home Alone.
Since it is the Holiday season, I took time to watch Home Alone with some of my family. While watching the movie I saw some principles we can apply when it comes to our strategic planning. As you close out this year and head into a new one, I hope one or all of these are helpful to you.
Identify Problems
For those of you not familiar with the movie, the youngest boy in the family gets left home alone when the family flies to Paris for Christmas. At one point in the movie, he realizes there are burglars attempting to break into his home. He has held them off for a while, but learns they will be coming back on Christmas Eve at 9:00 PM. Kevin had a problem and he had to figure out what to do.
Within your organization, you may perform a SWOT analysis or some less formal way to evaluate the state of the organization and potential problems on the horizon. If you don’t, this is a great way to be proactive instead of reactive in how you lead your business.
Determine Your Plan
Once he identified the problem – they were coming at 9:00 PM he developed a plan. Kevin realized there were multiple possible entry points to the home, and he created obstacles for entry. Not only that, but he had a plan on how to get the police to arrive.
After you have identified threats and weaknesses, which are where problems are visible, create a plan. Take time to evaluate options, select the best one, and then implement that option. The critical step after you have determined a plan is to implement and adjust as needed.
Use Your Resources
Kevin was home alone, but he was resourceful. He used ornaments, paint gallons, tar, nails, shingles, a blow torch, and more to help implement his plan. He couldn’t run to the store and load up on ammunition or build a huge blockade. He used what he had at his disposal and moved ahead.
“We don’t have the resources” you may think as you look at your plan. That is okay. What can you do with what you have? This is the stage where you can tap into the creativity of your team. What can you do to move into action to take a step closer to your goal?
Accept Help
Even the best-laid plans don’t always work out. Kevin didn’t, as the burglars figured out what one of his final moves was and caught him. With fear in his eyes and his life at risk, help came from an unexpected place . . . I won’t tell you where in case you haven’t seen the movie.
We can create the greatest plan in the world and start moving forward, but eventually we will hit a roadblock. When that time comes, we need to have the humility to ask for help either from other members of our team or outside the organization. As we all know from 2020, unexpected and uncontrollable situations arise. In those moments we will need help and have to embrace it.
As you look at your organization or team which of these do you need to improve on for the upcoming year? Need help thinking into your strategic plan or need help developing the leadership, communication, or teamwork of those on your team? Contact me and let’s discover ways I may be able to assist you. In the meantime, build your plan, implement your plan, adjust your plan, and keep moving forward. Lead well.
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