“The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.” – Michael Porter
In sales, business, and life endeavours, strategy is everything. You need the right strategy to achieve your goals. It is essential to periodically take stock of what you are doing. This will help you understand where you are and where you are headed.
As Porter rightly stated, strategy helps in choosing what not to do. Knowing what not to do means you are on the right path to selecting the right things to do.
I recommend the 3Rs Strategy for entrepreneurs, salespeople, professionals, and anyone who desires to make a difference in their calling. We have successfully applied the 3Rs Strategy in our training events and sales and marketing consultancy.
Let’s now explore the 3Rs Strategy. They are: Review, Reinforce, and Replace.
- Review
At the beginning of every year, businesses typically start by setting goals and determining how to achieve them. Individuals do the same. Sometimes, goals are achieved as planned. However, more often than not, goals remain far from being accomplished. Many organisations and individuals experience this challenge. This is where performance falls below expectations. If nothing is done to change the narrative, organisations or individuals experiencing poor performance will continue to struggle until things spiral out of control.
Where do we go from here? This is where the first R in the 3Rs Strategy comes in.
Review is a formal assessment of something with the intention of instituting change if necessary. Today’s business environment can change without warning! Agile organisations stay up to date with planning and execution. They swiftly follow up on agreed actions and achieve results on the go. Delays are avoided because procrastination comes at a cost—one that can be averted when the right actions are taken.
Review, as part of the 3Rs, asks the following questions:
Are we following the right approach to achieve the desired results?
Are actions aligned with our plans?
Do we have the right team to get things done? If not, what should we do?
Do we have the right tools and adequate preparation?
Are we on track to achieving our goals? If not, why?
What should we do next?
- Reinforce
Reinforce is the second R in the 3Rs Strategy. After asking the right questions in the Review phase, the next step is Reinforce. As the word implies, reinforcing means strengthening or supporting something.
Here’s how the second R works: If, after the Review stage, you discover that you are on track, doing the right things, and achieving the right results, the action to take is to continue on your path. That is, keep doing what you are doing or find even better ways to do it. You can reinforce your strategies and actions to ensure you keep achieving the desired results.
Reinforcing your approach means that you are doing well. Reinforce, as the second R in the strategy, encourages those on the right path to remain steadfast because it will ultimately lead to the right destination.
- Replace
The third R, Replace, is the last step in the strategy. It is a disruptive approach that requires courage to implement because this is where transformation happens.
Here’s how it works: If the outcome is not favourable and you want to change the narrative to prevent continued underperformance, the answer is Replace. Replacing means taking a radical approach to getting results.
Replace could mean:
Replacing all or some individuals in the team.
Replacing a supplier.
Replacing a product.
Replacing a process and designing a new one.
Replace, as part of the 3Rs Strategy, requires intentionality. You must know what you want and go for it.
However, Replace is not a step you wake up and implement randomly. You must have gone through the first two Rs—Review and Reinforce—before arriving at the need for replacement.
Applying the 3Rs Strategy
The 3Rs Strategy can be applied in every field of endeavour. It is a structured approach that works if executed correctly.
Periodically, sit down and ask yourself why you are not selling as you should.
Is the fault yours?
Is it from the team?
Is it from the products or services?
Is it from the marketplace?
Is it due to the terms and conditions of your partners?
Try to identify the root cause of your challenges. The answers to these questions lie in the Review phase of the 3Rs Strategy. Start there and follow through to a logical conclusion.
As Brian Tracy rightly said, “Once you start thinking differently, you start acting differently.”
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