Strategy starts with understanding what you are really good at. You also identify what needs improvement and what your vulnerabilities are. This is accomplished with a tool called SWOT analysis.

Some of you may have heard of it. It stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. This is a process where you get brutally honest and challenge your responses with assumption questions to figure out the reality of for each category.

We use this information to create or clarify your vision, which partially consists of your long-term goals. You then form your mission(s) statements which are your "marching orders" on how you are going to accomplish obtaining your vision. Your mission is a direct link to your vision. Mission can change over short periods of time (year-to-year) however; vision stays intact for longer durations. Some companies create long-term visions that may never be totally fulfilled.

You take this information and segment your markets, so you can spend the majority of time in arenas where you can win more often against the competition. This is done through conducting a competitive analysis and market segmentation charting. We use the term silos to identify these specific markets.

Sometimes your strategy will even create something we call "Blue Ocean".  Blue Ocean is essentially creating market(s) or products that do not currently exist. Therefore, you have no immediate competition.