MASTER Risk Model - Learning Resources - Abilities

Vision & Goal Setting

Write one sentence defining your long-term vision for the company—why does it matter now in this market?

Break a multi-year vision into three next steps—focus on directional progress, not flawless detail.

Replace one vague objective on your list with a specific measurable outcome and firm deadline.

Set a weekly checkpoint reminder: “Am I driving vision forward or just reacting to noise?”

Write one vision phrase on a card and place it in sight at your desk as a daily anchor.

Share your core goal with a peer leader—saying it aloud sharpens clarity and accountability.

Journal about what drives your enterprise vision—how does it tie to markets, stakeholders, or legacy?

Write about a long-term goal you set and achieved—what executive practices ensured success at scale?

Journal about how you define goals—do they stretch the firm or simply reinforce its comfort zone?

List three strategic goals from last year—what advanced, what lagged, and why did momentum shift?

Write about how your vision has shifted over five years—what external pressures drove the change?

Write about a senior leader you model—how do they cast vision, and how could you apply that style?

Set one ambitious enterprise goal with a clear outcome—announce it publicly to reinforce commitment.

Link one daily action to enterprise goals—state its board-level relevance before starting.

Block 30 minutes to revisit your corporate roadmap—adjust for market shifts or new risks.

Convene a short exec session to confirm strategic priorities—check alignment with enterprise vision.

Create a 5-slide vision deck showing enterprise direction—share with board or investor mentors.

Take one symbolic action today aligned with your 3-year vision—signal direction clearly.

Ask a board member: “What do you think my top priorities are right now?”—check alignment between intent and perception.

Share your enterprise vision in a board session and ask how each member sees their role in advancing it.

Invite an external advisor to review your strategic goals—do they see ambition, feasibility, and competitive edge?

Ask your senior team to describe the enterprise vision in one sentence—does it match what you intend?

Share your refined long-term vision with a peer CEO—ask what’s inspiring, unclear, or missing.

Ask a trusted advisor to review one of your strategic goals—where could it be sharper or more actionable?

Reframe “I don’t know where the company is headed” as “We are clarifying our long-term growth priorities.”

Change “This ambition is too large” to “This ambition needs staged milestones”—de-risk it by sequencing.

Recast a failed strategy as a step toward sharper positioning—what did it clarify for the future?

Shift from “Execution takes too long” to “We are building systems that endure”—depth beats speed.

Reframe ambition as stewardship—how does your vision enable others to grow, innovate, and succeed?

Turn “I don’t have time” into “This isn’t a priority at this level yet”—then decide if it should be.

Observe whether your calendar reflects enterprise priorities or urgent noise—shift one entry to align with strategy.

Watch how investors, board members, or senior peers respond when you articulate vision—engaged, skeptical, or detached?

Track how often you revisit organizational goals—are they living priorities or static slide decks?

Listen to how global leaders around you frame vision—are they anchoring to long-term growth or reacting to noise?

Notice how you feel after delivering on enterprise goals—energized, relieved, or detached? What does that reveal about alignment?

Observe when you’re most focused—what type of strategic goals trigger peak performance?

Strategic Thinking

Choose a priority today and ask: “What long-term ripple could this create?” Write one line to define it.

Block 15 minutes to map one strategic decision’s ripple effects—who’s impacted across markets and when?

Before your next strategic session, identify the bigger story behind the agenda—what is really at stake?

Ask yourself: “What does success look like in 12 months?” before approving your next major initiative.

Add a “so what?” column to your notes—force yourself to connect every fact to future impact.

Read a global industry trend today and note how it could reshape your market within 12 months.

Reflect on a failed strategic bet—what hidden assumption misled you, and how would you rethink it now?

Journal about your current role—how does your leadership truly shape long-term competitive advantage?

Write about a time you connected divergent ideas—how did it unlock opportunity at the strategic level?

Journal about key external forces—markets, regulation, or technology—how do they shape your strategy?

Reflect on how often you anticipate vs. react—what habits could make you more forward-looking?

Reflect on your default executive focus—markets, operations, or people—and how it shapes strategy.

Lead a 10-minute strategy pause in your next exec meeting—ask: “Where are we headed, and why?”

Redesign one daily decision with long-term effects in mind—how will it shape the organization’s future?

Draft a “What if…” list of three global events—test your leadership team’s readiness to respond.

Map stakeholders for your next major decision—who must support it for long-term success?

Facilitate a pre-mortem: “If this fails, what would likely go wrong?”—document lessons now.

Revisit key performance dashboards—propose one strategic shift to strengthen future alignment.

Ask a peer CEO: “What blind spots do you see in how I approach long-term strategy?”

Share a strategic bet with a fellow executive—invite them to stress-test your assumptions.

Ask a peer leader what long-term risks or opportunities they see that your organization may be underestimating.

Invite a cross-industry peer to review your growth plan—what dependencies or assumptions might you be missing?

After a strategy session, ask a peer: “Was I thinking too tactically, or did I zoom out enough?”

Share your decision-making process with your board and ask: “Did I fully consider the long-term enterprise impact?”

Reframe “What’s the quickest path?” as “What’s the most sustainable route for the next decade?”

Turn “We’ve always done it this way” into “What shifts in the market demand a rethink?”

Shift from “What must we fix now?” to “Where do we want to position ourselves—and what gets us there?”

Recast urgency as opportunity blindness—what long-term bets get missed in short-term firefighting?

Reframe major decisions as investments—“What return will this give the enterprise in 3, 5, and 10 years?”

Change “How do we hit the target?” to “What future are we really trying to create with this move?”

Observe how strategic choices are timed—are they shaped by quarterly results or long-term positioning?

Watch how seasoned strategists probe assumptions—what lines of questioning reveal blind spots?

Track your decision rhythm—how much time is spent scanning the horizon versus driving immediate moves?

Notice where you get mired in details—what higher-level view would unlock sharper judgment?

Observe executive meetings focused only on execution—what’s missing from the long-term horizon?

Note your own language—are you speaking in terms of risk, growth, and future scenarios, or just tasks?

Innovation Management

Identify one obstacle slowing innovation and note three alternative approaches you could test this week.

Call one peer leader and ask how they approached a similar challenge—capture one idea to adapt today.

Spend 10 minutes sketching a new business model outline—no polish, just capture emerging concepts.

Challenge yourself to ask: “What if we stopped doing this?” in your next review—see what it unlocks.

Use a random industry report—relate one insight to your current challenge and sketch implications.

Add a tab in your strategy file: “Untried Bold Bets”—write down five disruptive options today.

Write about a time you sparked industry innovation—what executive behaviors enabled the breakthrough?

Journal about when you resisted a disruptive idea—what drove the pushback, and what did it cost?

Write down three innovations you led—what leadership moves or patterns helped them succeed?

Reflect on leaders who created innovation cultures—what signals made teams feel safe to take risks?

Reflect on how you handle innovation ambiguity—do you see it as risk, or as fuel for market leadership?

Journal about where your environment supports or blocks bold innovation—what barriers could you remove?

Pilot a new way of tackling a core process—shift sequence, tools, or teams and study the outcome.

Launch a simple pilot with defined metrics—limit scope but extract learning for broader scaling.

Identify one outdated enterprise process—sponsor a redesign or test an experimental approach.

Force constraints on a problem—set strict limits and explore how innovation emerges.

Share a radical but unpolished idea with stakeholders—seed early debate and refinement.

Launch a 1-week executive “innovation sprint”—solve a known problem in a novel way.

Ask senior colleagues which bold ideas they saw potential in—why weren’t they pursued at scale?

Share a new idea with a trusted peer and invite constructive challenge—embrace friction before scaling.

Invite your executive team to rate which enterprise process most needs reinvention—begin with their top choice.

Ask a key customer or partner: “What solution do you wish we’d bring to market next?”

Discuss with an industry partner how they test bold ideas—what practices could you borrow?

Ask your executive team: “What promising ideas have we abandoned too quickly—should we revisit them?”

Reframe “This is too risky” as “This is untested at scale”—pilot before ruling it out.

Change “That’s not how we work” to “What if this is exactly why we’re stuck?”

Treat each failed innovation as data—ask: “What did this teach us about our assumptions?”

Instead of “We need a breakthrough,” say “We need a testable step that validates our direction.”

Reframe pushback as a filter—what assumptions or blind spots does the resistance expose?

Shift from “We’re not innovative” to “We haven’t practiced disciplined experimentation enough.”

Notice which executives champion new ideas and which resist—what dynamics accelerate or stall innovation?

Track how long initiatives take from idea to pilot—where is decision friction slowing execution?

Watch reactions to bold proposals—do you see energy, hesitation, or outright resistance?

Observe which contexts (market updates, customer forums, off-sites) spark your best strategic ideas.

During portfolio reviews, listen for recurring failure themes—what do they reveal about assumptions?

Monitor how you respond to fresh proposals—do you nurture or dismiss prematurely?

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