Strategy Shouldn’t be Linear
“In the context of health and ecology, things that grow unchecked are often considered parasitic or cancerous. Yet we inhabit a culture that privileges novelty and growth over the cyclical and the regenerative. Our very idea of productivity is premised on the idea of producing something new, whereas we do not tend to see maintenance and are as productive in the same way.” - Jenny Odell
Traditional Strategy is linear.
It assumes a straight line, clearly outlined from point A to point B.
It assumes we KNOW. We know how long a task will take, the outcomes. It is predictable.
It has a short-term view, with results required each quarter.
It is always “up and to the right” in terms of growth.
It disregards the current context, what’s happening in your life, the environment, and society.
It operates from the head, from metrics and capabilities, versus from the whole person considering intuition, emotions, and the body.
It assumes we have consistent capacity and output at all times.
It often does not ask the questions For what purpose? For whom? At what cost?
What if strategy was spiralic?
What if strategy honored both our short-term (within a year) and long-term, multi-year arcs?
What if we connected to our inner knowing about what is meant to channel through us in this time?
What if we connected to our bodies and our fire, our Knights of Wands, to deeply understand our capacity during a given season?
What if we set aside traditional metrics in search of commitments that would guide us through non-traditional seasons, like gestation, rest, integration, and rebirth?
I am in a winter, integration season.
I am still only 6 months out from quitting my corporate job. I am not in a producing season - for the first time in my LIFE.
I want to spend this time very deeply learning, integrating, growing, and healing. I want to bring more WATER in to my body that has been a metaphorical prairie, being driven dry by the expectations, the pace, the “heat” of 15 years of corporate.
To bring in more water is to focus on contemplative practice, easy movements, actual WATER, and ritual.
What questions can you consider in soul-guided, spiralic strategy?
What season are you in? Both in the near term (within the next year or so), and the macro season (multi-year arcs)?
Some seasons and spirals you can consider are Spring/Gestation, Summer/Bloom, Fall/Integration, and Winter/Transition/Death-Rebirth. (Life cycles h/t to Lindsay Mack).
Consider not just the end of this year, but looking ahead to next. If you’re a planter, you’re past growing season and are now prepping your seed buy for next spring.
What practices can you call in for support?
If you’re in a Bloom season, maybe this is where you call in more traditional productivity measures to ensure there’s a rhythm for publication, service, and delivery. You might be launching and be on more social media, more sales calls to birth your work into the world. And making sure that you are making money to stock away for the upcoming harvest season.
If you’re in a Transition season, maybe this is doing a digital or input detox. Spending more time in nature, doing more art and contemplative practice. More time writing, reflecting, and in conversation. Acknowledge that there is less time producing.
What archetypes or elements can you anchor with?
Anchors are crucial to keep us tethered to the space we are in. These can be tarot archetypes, other archetypes (see Kim Krans), or elements.
I’m currently anchoring with the Empress - calling in nurturing, desire, nature, and strength, engaging with Water.
How can this season show up in your calendar?
This might be a season with more “white space” on the calendar. Or a season with more calls on the calendar. Knowing what we need to make space and focus for and actually making space for that on the calendar.