sagacious strategy.

Last Friday was something of a Red Letter Day in my world. I stepped on stage with a group of female jazz musicians and performed to 234 people in a fabulous theatre as part of Wellington Jazz Festival. It has been a three month long passion project which has demanded time and energy from me while balancing a steady flow of client work and a reasonably sized contract on the side, too. There have been moments I’ve felt quite stretched and a little overwhelmed. But here I am on the other side of it all, and the one word that comes to mind is strategy. 

I’m a big believer in strategy. And what I’ve come to realise as I’ve gotten older is how important having a game plan is. I’m not just talking about launching projects or products, and I’m not just talking about a marketing plan or a determined approach that everyone’s asked to follow. I’m talking about how to get from A to Z, and how to consider the bigger picture at every step of the way. 

Strategy is about having a game plan, a grand design, a method. It’s about determining a procedure or approach for a successful outcome. 

Sagacious is the word that best describes the strategy that I aspire to apply to the work I do for my clients. It means clever, discerning, foxy, clear-sighted, logical or smooth. In my mind it’s being sensible with a bit of personality thrown in for good measure. It’s doing things outside the box, challenging the norm and standing out from the crowd. In other words, it’s what I’m all about!

Without strategies sorted, I could not have jumped from one project to another and delivered quality, impactful work while my busy mind whirred and my full calendar pinged me with notifications. 

Without a strategy, a piece of writing very easily becomes waffle. Who are you talking to? Who do you hope will read your message, and what action are you wanting them to take? What words will they respond to in a positive way? How are you going to follow that up afterwards? What happens next?

Before a piece of writing is even started, it’s worth thinking about strategy. Do you have all the information you need and all the context required? Are there key points that could be helpful in determining a messaging hierarchy? These are all questions I ask myself before I write a single word. It used to feel like extra admin, but it saves an incredible amount of time and brain fade in the long run.

If you’re wondering what to communicate, or how to communicate something - and to whom - start with big-picture thinking and planning. Think about what happens before that communication goes out, and what happens afterwards. 

Or, if you’re not sure how to take the next step, get in touch. I’m sure I can help.