Dorie Clark, author of The Long Game: How to Be a Long-Term Thinker in a Short-Term World
Mark Thompson
Even before Covid-19, it was hard for some women entrepreneurs to make time for long-term strategic thinking about the growth of their companies. Time—especially for women with school-aged children—became an even more precious commodity during the pandemic. As entrepreneurs learn to manage their businesses in the era of Covid-19, it is critical to reorient ourselves to future possibilities in an age of uncertainty.
“During the pandemic, we have felt like we have no control,” said Dorie Clark, Duke and Columbia universities professor, strategy consultant, speaker, and thought leader. “We can’t control public health, we can’t control governmental regulations, we can’t control what the policies are, or where we’re allowed to travel.”
By making small incremental changes, Dorie Clark thinks we can. She is the author of the recently published book, The Long Game: How to Be a Long-Term Thinker in a Short-Term World. The book provides both inspiring stories and practical advice on how to regain control.
Take Control By Setting A Direction
It’s extraordinarily stressful when things change on a day-to-day basis and you think you have no control. Long-term thinking is powerful because it enables you to realize that even if, in a given moment, you may not have control over a lot of things, you do have control over the general direction in which you are headed. “Things we can do—even if they’re small things—enable us, over time, to steadily head in the direction we want,” said Clark. “There’s power in small, deliberate steps that are taken over time.”
Think In Waves
You can’t do all things at all times. “Think in waves,” exclaimed Clark. “Waves have peaks, then recede.”
Give yourself grace. Don’t beat yourself up about not being as productive as you want to be. There are exigent circumstances. When social distancing was at its peak, you may have spent more time on caregiving. Now that things are beginning to get back to normal, kids are back in school, and social distancing restrictions have eased, it’s an opportunity to spend more time thinking about your business.
Create More Space
Make time by creating more space. Reallocate time that you spent on caregiving. Develop systems for setting boundaries on your time. Rather than saying “no” to someone who wants to meet, create a counteroffer.
“There are very standard defaults of what people will ask for,” said Clark. Write a script for each. For some, Clark sends them relevant articles that address the issue at hand. She has lots of articles on LinkedIn and Medium. Those Clark wants to get to know are invited to group events. She frequently hosts virtual cocktails with eight or 10 people.
Set Goals
“If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there,” wrote Lewis Carroll in Alice in Wonderland. “We don’t want to be the jellyfish floating in the ocean and just going wherever the waves take you,” said Clark. The power of goal setting is that it sets a direction for you. That’s not to say the goal is unchangeable. Opportunities and challenges will present themselves, and you will have to adjust and adapt.
Leverage Your Strength
Petra Kolber is an author and speaker on topics such as fitness and happiness. At age 56, she had an audacious dream—to become a DJ. Some said this was an outlandish goal. They thought she was too old to be a DJ. Kolber proved them wrong.
First, Kolber learned how to be a DJ. Then she leveraged her strength as a conference speaker to create opportunities to DJ by bundling her two areas of expertise.
Take the Long View
Kara Cutruzzula, a freelance journalist, knows things take a while to percolate. She started a daily newsletter about creativity. “You might ask ‘why would Kara, a freelance journalist, give away what she gets paid to do,'” said Clark. Through the years, Cutruzzula developed a following of a few thousand loyal readers. One of those readers was a book editor who had been commissioned to publish a book about creativity. Because the editor was a reader of the newsletter, Cutruzzula was constantly on the editor’s radar. Cutruzzula didn’t have to pitch writing a book. She had already established herself as an expert on the topic and a good writer, and was asked to write it.
Take Baby Steps
Dave Crenshaw, a productivity and time management expert, talks about what he calls “distance to empty.” Some cars tell you how many miles you have until you run out of gas. He suggests that you think about your day and how you allocate your time in the same way.
Crenshaw suggests setting a deadline for yourself, much like the distance to “empty” on a gas gauge. For example, perhaps you want to stop work at 6 pm. At first, that might not seem realistic, so build muscle by taking incremental steps. If you typically end work at 9 pm, set a goal of finishing 15 minutes earlier. Then slowly wind it back until you reach your ultimate goal.
How will you integrate long-term thinking into your strategic plan?
