Send to Kindle“In my library are about a thousand volumes of biography–a rough calculation indicates that more of these deal with men and women who have talked themselves upward than with all scientists, writers, saints, and doers combined.
Talkers have always ruled.
They will continue to rule.
The smart thing is to join them.”
Bruce Barton (1886-1967)
Scholar, editor, author, Congressman, and founder of the advertising agency
Batten, Barton, Durstine and Osborne
Send to KindleThis is not as much step #8, as it will be done as part of the earlier steps. Your giant vision could become a giant bubble if someone with a needle gets to it before you can take steps to stop him or her. The trouble with threats is their sheer number and their sheer unpredictability. Add to it your paranoia and ego, and those of your co-workers, you have a volatile sausage factory on your hands.
Identifying threats is the least fun of the strategy definition process. For one thing, confidence is mistaken for invulnerability. You must have confidence, but also acknowledge both impermanence as a law of nature, as well as the chinks in your armor.
A new invention, changing government regulation, war, natural disaster, terrorism, employee turnover, stock market instability, the list goes on and on. If you did strike the mother lode, but you cannot serve your customers fast enough, competitors will rush in. Monitoring your threats is an ongoing effort, you have to scan your business environment constantly. Remember, if you’ve read it in the news, it is probably too late.