How do you eliminate biases when it comes to strategic planning?

Strategic planning is the ongoing organisational process of using available knowledge to document a business’s intended direction.

It is used to prioritise efforts, effectively allocate resources, align shareholders and employees on goals, and ensure those goals are backed by data and sound reasoning.

In this entire process, one might hold onto certain biases of theirs while making decisions related to Strategic Planning. It is not easy to keep those biases aside and look at the bigger picture with a balanced mindset.

But here is a tried and tested solution…

The 6 Thinking Hats

It is a problem-solving tool that makes you aware of those biases by helping you look at the same situation from a different set of lenses. It can be used in a group setting or it can also be used to make individual decisions.

Imagine wearing different coloured hats, each representing a different type of thinking.

1\ The white hat is about facts and information.
2\ The red hat deals with emotions and intuition.
3\ The black hat focuses on caution and critical thinking.
4\ The yellow hat emphasises optimism and benefits.
5\ The green hat encourages creativity and new ideas.
6\ The blue hat oversees the thinking process itself.

By "wearing" these hats one at a time or in groups, you can explore a problem comprehensively and make more balanced decisions.

So next time you are in a meeting and you have to solve a problem, remember to wear these hats… metaphorically :)