IS STRATEGY ESSENTIAL THAN TACTICS ?

We grew up in an atmosphere where we were advised to have a proper strategy. Even a chess game without strategy and tactics will lead to complete failure. Strategy and tactics seem so similar in use that they almost tend to overlap. No wonder the Online Dictionary is also confused with these two terms.

So, what are Strategy and Tactics?

A Stanford class is enough to find the contrast between the two terminologies. Once a professor enters the class on Entrepreneurship. He randomly splits the class into groups and gives them $5 as funding. The groups are allotted with 2 hours to earn and a final opportunity of 3 minutes to present their achievement.

If you are one of the students what will be your response?

The groups which used the $ 5 as their actual fund, ended up setting up a lemonade stand or selling lottery slips or shaped the currency at the roulette table. We will believe that $5 has limited potential and is capable of the above-mentioned strategy. Those groups had the least collection in the class.

One of the groups considered $ 5 as a simple distraction and avoided the fund and focused on the 2 hours to earn. They identified the main goal and brought the subject in a broader light. They made reservations in the local restaurants and sold the reservation to people who wished to quit the queue. They were able to earn a few hundred in just 2 hr.

Unfortunately, they weren’t the ones who earned the most. One group identified the main resource as the 3 minutes of presentation. They sold the 3 min time to a recruiting company and allowed them to present before the Stanford class. They earned $650.

On closely studying the incidence, you will realize the groups which used Tactics or strategy to attain a goal. In simpler terms, Strategy is a collection of goals that hoped to achieve. Tactics are definite action that is taken to accomplish a goal.

• TAKE OFF YOUR BLINDFOLD: Often as the typical students, we assume the data too seriously and become too focused on the resource specified. For instance, the typical students blindly bombed into the tactic for using $5. Nowhere in the instruction, the professor mentioned to us $5. So, they lived in a blindfold. Using tactics alone can never help to achieve a desirable goal. Any and all goals need a well-structured strategy. It needs cleverly planned tactics that can spin the move.

“Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy are the noise before defeat.” -Sun Tzu

• TAKE A STEP BACK: When we are in the situation it is very easy for us to be focused at an angle and build ideas around it. Take a step back and view the entire situation. The things or details which were meant to be important will soon become insignificant. This is the applaudable quality of the second team. They came out of the situation and viewed it in the bigger picture. That’s when they realized the goal is to earn the maximum in 2 hrs. They weren’t narrowed by the $5 strategy.
• USE THE RESOURCES: The simple difference between a mediocre team and a great team is the utilization of the resource effectively. We cannot deny the fact that $5 and 2 hours aren’t resources. The best utilization of the resource is the game-changer. The $650 team realized that the resources can be used to varying capacity. The best resource can be the best thing to invest in. So, they ended up with the highest collection.

When the pathway is not upright, you always need a strategy. Having a proper strategy can help you exploit the strength against the weakness. Tactics originated from the Greek word “taktikos” which loosely correlates to “the art of systematizing or orderly arranging”. Both of these terms are complimentary. Therefore, both must be included in an action plan.

So, when you realize a situation that demands action, take off your Blindfold, Step back and use the resources effectively. Always strategy and specific tactics do matter. Wars can be won on papers.