As the year winds down, we invite you to an empowering way to approach your strategic planning by following these two key steps:

#1 Complete and Celebrate‍

Before you begin thinking about next year, make sure you take substantial time to pause, reflect and acknowledge all of the accomplishments of this year. Give your team members time to reflect, contemplate and write down their own list of all of the accomplishments they can think of from this past year.  Then together make a master list of "all the things."(If you’ve been following our recommendation for monthly celebrations, bring the highlights from these in too at this time.)

Part of completing the year is also acknowledging any high-level heartbreak, major hurdles, challenges or unexpected left turns that occurred this year. 

Thank your team for all they have endured as well as accomplished. Consider doing the wave, throwing confetti, reading a poem, or sharing music as a way to really
anchor this moment.

If you'd like a really creative interactive way to go about completing this year on a high note we recommend checking out our Celebrate Completion Ceremony.

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#2 Surplus Thinking‍

It’s tempting to start strategic planning with questions like, “What do we need to improve?  How can we be better?”  However these types of questions come from a deficit focused mindset of looking for what’s wrong - which has its place, but not at the beginning of strategic planning efforts.  Surplus thinking aligns with appreciative inquiry - where you look for the best of what was, is and could be. 

--- Was: Capture moments of excellence: When was a specific time or experience in which you really felt proud to be a part of our organization? (email us at info@choosepeople.com if you would like step-by-step instructions for our Team Story Jam experience - in addition to it being an uplifting great experience for your team, it's a brilliant way to capture your organization’s cannon of stories for onboarding)

--- Is: Create continuity of pride and identity: No matter how we change or evolve, what qualities of our organization do we want to honor, preserve or protect?

---Could Be: Envision your future image: It's three years from now, and you are so proud to be a part of our organization. What is happening? What have we accomplished that gives you the greatest sense of pride, meaning and fulfillment?

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Just this last week, one of our newer clients shared with me about their upcoming strategic planning.  They have one department that’s struggling with 70% voluntary turnover - ooof. Typically the problem-solving approach would be to ask, “Why are people leaving?” - focusing on the problem, on the deficit.

However, coming from surplus thinking, I encouraged him to:

--- Also look at the 30% that are staying - especially those who are an excellent character and competency fit for the role.  I asked him to consider, “Why are these people such a great fit?  What is it about them that has this work so well?”  

--- Conduct stay interviews with these individuals. How does this role resonate for them?  What do they appreciate about this opportunity?  

--- Uplevel the employment brand for this role - along with all of their recruitment materials by having them reflect what was discovered in the stay interviews. And to then interview looking for these character and competency traits in those they hire for this role.

Of course, because we are talking about 70% turnover, I also inquired about potential deficits and encouraged leadership development for the departmental manager.


Just imagine what it would be like to incorporate and instill a focus on your strengths, your assets, on the inquiry of “What’s working well and how can we expand on this success?” Imagine it’s February 1st and you’ve just completed the first month of the year and you’re celebrating your successes for the month, what would be the impact on morale?  On momentum?  On the energy-levels of your team?  On their creativity?

Here's to enjoying more ease and delight in this next chapter!

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