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4 ways big-picture thinking can boost your career

Try these techniques to build resilience and inspire your team.

In June 2019, Greta Thunberg gave a speech at the Brilliant Minds conference in Stockholm.

“Here is some big-picture thinking for you: If you … are living a high-carbon lifestyle, that means you have used up countless people’s remaining carbon budgets … that they will need in their everyday life for generations to come,” she said . “Everyone and everything needs to change.”

Thunberg’s speech exemplifies her big-picture thinking skills – she looks beyond everyday energy use to see the long-term impact that it will have on our planet and future generations. 

Research shows that successful entrepreneurs often show an aptitude for big-picture thinking, but the skill can benefit everyone, and can be improved upon with practice and the right mindset. 

So what is big-picture thinking exactly, and how can we get better at it?

What is big-picture thinking?

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Big-picture thinking is a strategic concept that helps people visualize an entire idea, rather than concentrating on just the small details. It involves envisioning the long-term possibilities of a course of action or an idea. Gorick Ng – a Harvard University career advisor and Wall Street Journal best-selling author of The Unspoken Rules: Secrets to Starting Your Career Off Right , which discusses this concept – explains that big-picture thinking involves being goal-oriented, rather than task-oriented. 

One critical component of big-picture thinking is systems thinking , which involves looking at connected wholes rather than separate, individual parts. In other words, people who use systems thinking are able to see how processes and tasks are connected to each other to compose a bigger whole. And, because engaging in big-picture thinking will typically involve working across multiple teams with many people, cross-functional collaboration is another key element in putting this strategic concept into practice.

Big-picture thinking is often contrasted with detail-oriented thinking , which prioritizes narrowing in on specific aspects of a project rather than examining the project as a whole. Although many people view big-picture thinking and detail-oriented thinking as opposites, teams need both, working in tandem, in order to successfully achieve their goals.

Finally, while often lumped together, long-term goal-setting and big-picture thinking are different. Setting long-term goals is a critical part of big-picture thinking because it can help people plan out their big idea; these goals can serve as milestones to help people assess their progress and stay focused.

What are the benefits of big-picture thinking?

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Developing big-picture thinking can not only help you – it can also benefit the people around you and your organization.

Strategic problem-solving can boost your career

As part of his research, Ng spoke to hundreds of professionals across many industries. One was a retail cashier who noticed that the business became chaotic around lunchtime. They realized that competing businesses that had clear markers for where customers could stand were more efficient, so they suggested implementing a similar system. Because of their big-picture thinking skills, the cashier not only found a way to improve their workplace, but also got promoted, Ng said.

“It’s kind of like we’re all walking down an art gallery. … And we’re all looking at a painting, and different people are seeing different details in this painting,” Ng said. Some people, Ng said, might see obstacles in this “painting” and be frustrated by them. But others might see these obstacles as opportunities to think of innovative solutions; it’s those people who use big-picture thinking skills.

Adaptability makes way for resilience

Jason Schwertfager, COO and Co-Founder of the executive search firm Artemis Consultants , added that using big-picture thinking can make professionals more nimble and adaptable amid challenges. People who use big-picture thinking are always looking for ways to improve a situation – just like our cashier who improved their store’s efficiency. Meanwhile, people who are hyper-focused on smaller, everyday tasks may tend to concentrate on completing those tasks rather than looking ahead and brainstorming ways to improve the status quo.

Having a vision for the future is motivating

At its best, effective big-picture thinking can be inspiring to both yourself and others. If you have a vision for the future, it can keep you focused on your long-term goal even in the face of challenges. Think of Thunberg – she’s motivated to continue fighting against climate change because she wants to save the planet (the biggest picture kind of thinking!), even as she faces obstacles like politicians unwilling to change policies and widespread apathy to the perils of climate change.

You, too, can use big-picture thinking to inspire others around you with your long-term goals, even if your OKRs are more modest than Thunberg’s. 

Forward-focused thinking leads to innovation

Big-picture thinking also fosters creativity . A well-known example of someone whose big-picture thinking skills led to innovation is Steve Jobs. Jobs wasn’t satisfied with creating phones that maintained the status quo – he looked ahead to imagine what phones could do in the future. His forward-thinking led to him inventing the ground-breaking iPhone.

How to grow your big-picture thinking skills

While people may have a tendency to naturally think in one way or the other, it’s possible to strengthen your big-picture thinking skills. Here are some techniques you can practice to develop these skills.

Embrace a growth mindset 

How (and why) you should embrace a growth mindset

People with growth mindsets believe that success is determined by effort, whereas people with fixed mindsets think traits are innate. If you’re focused on acquiring knowledge and expanding skill sets, that will help you foster a growth mindset. And practicing this skill will help you develop big-picture thinking skills as well – if you believe in growing and practicing new skills, you’re opening your mind to developing big-picture thinking. 

For example, in his research for his book, Ng came across someone who worked a sales job. Some people, Ng said, might do the bare minimum for this job and just cold call clients. But this individual kept a record of the times they were rejected on a sales call. Eventually, they brought their notes to the rest of the team to discuss what wasn’t working in the company’s approach and how to improve its strategy. Rather than being satisfied with performing the same tasks every day, this individual wanted to acquire new knowledge and expand their skill set by brainstorming ways to improve the company’s status quo operations – that’s big-picture thinking in action.

Use disruptive thinking

Disruptive thinking can also help foster big-picture thinking. Similar to brainstorming and mind mapping, disruptive thinking is a creative process that generates ideas through free-flowing, unstructured brainstorming . Practicing this skill engages that thinking-outside-the-box muscle – rather than encouraging people to take the most obvious or straightforward path, disruptive thinking encourages people to pursue all options. Using disruptive thinking allows you to view a situation from a variety of perspectives and foster an open-minded approach to your work, which are both qualities that can lead to big-picture thinking.

Play strategy games

Strategy games – think chess and checkers – are good tools to develop big-picture thinking skills. These games often involve planning ahead, picturing several rounds of future moves, so playing them regularly will help you practice big-picture thinking.

And finally, back to basics. Set goals and make to-do lists – because, while it’s important not to get too bogged down by small details, setting long-term goals for yourself keeps you on track and focused on accomplishing your long-term objectives.

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6 big picture thinking strategies that you'll actually use

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What is big picture thinking? 

An example of big picture thinking, 5 benefits of looking at the big picture, 4 ways to embrace big picture thinking, 6 exercises to develop big picture thinking.

“Big-picture thinkers broaden their outlook by striving to learn from every experience. They don't rest on their successes, they learn from them.” John C. Maxwell, author, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership  

More than ever, organizations are looking ahead to the future with a close lens and keen strategies. This type of big-picture thinking is imperative to the success of any company. It's part of building mental fitness . 

After all, our world is in a constant state of change. With much of the future unknown and uncertain, companies (and people) need to stay agile and think strategically about what’s to come ahead. In fact, half of us feel unable to plan for the future. 

At BetterUp, we’ve studied what this type of thinking looks like in the workplace. To be a future-minded organization means that you’re both pragmatic and optimistic. You look ahead to find the upside and possibility of opportunity. You have confidence in your ability to take action and influence outcomes. 

But you also make space to be reactive. Your organization knows that the future isn’t set in stone. To look at the bigger picture ahead, you know that you need to make space for reflection in case things don’t go as planned. 

Because if there’s anything we’ve learned in the last couple of years, things don’t always go as planned. Even the best-laid plans are disrupted. After all, external factors like the global pandemic , a fluctuating market, and political unrest all play a role. 

In this post, you’ll learn how to adopt habits to become a big-picture thinker. Find out how strategic thinking can keep your organization a step ahead — and be better prepared to pivot when needed. 

First, let’s understand what we mean by big picture thinking. 

What is big picture thinking?

Big picture thinking is a type of thinking that helps you think about the future. It’s strategic thinking that helps you build a vision of the opportunities ahead. 

These types of thinking skills aren’t inherently natural to us. Like any other sort of skill or muscle, it takes practice to start thinking with a big picture view. Let’s look at some examples of big picture thinking — and why it’s worth investing in building a future-mindedness in your workplace. 

Let’s take a step back to look at some examples of big-picture thinking in the workplace. You could potentially use this example as a thinking strategy with your team members. 

Lucy is a director in a technology company. As an HR leader, Lucy has a breadth of experience in human resources management . Her team is responsible for making sure that employees are well taken care of. 

Throughout the pandemic, Lucy and her team have wrestled quite a few challenges to help make sure employees are a top priority. When the pandemic first hit, Lucy was challenged with leading the COVID-19 workstream to help pivot to remote work . She and her team needed to form guidelines and policies around COVID-19 . 

She was tasked with looking into employee benefits and resources to offer employees in response to the pandemic. She was also asked to think about the future of work strategy and present it to the senior leadership team. 

Lucy’s initial future work strategy incorporated a return-to-office approach. Lucy's company previously required employees to work from the office. She knew it was a top priority for leadership to have employees return to the office. 

But Lucy kept up-to-date on industry trends and research. She found that employees preferred working from home . But more importantly, she learned employees wanted the flexibility to make decisions about how (and where) they work. Companies agreed, with 83% of employers saying the shift to remote work has been successful . 

She also kept a pulse on the job market and climate outside of the corporate world. With employees leaving in droves during the Great Resignation , Lucy pivoted her strategy. She also realized that while the job market is still competitive, the company would need to retain and continue to develop its top talent. After all, the company was tightening its budgets. 

Lucy stayed agile and adopted the skills of a future-minded leader. Her strategy included a detail-oriented, employee-driven approach to returning to the office. Instead of requiring employees to work in the office, Lucy proposed an employee-centric approach. Let employees pick and choose how they want to work. Accommodate employees for hybrid work environments and invest in professional development opportunities. 

Lucy also proposed initiatives like virtual team activities , team offsites, and “in-office” connection days to help keep social connections strong . The leadership team saw Lucy’s strategy as an inclusive, culture and people-first approach. They agreed to implement Lucy’s strategy thanks her to big thinking. 

Thinking about the big picture has its benefits. Let’s talk through five benefits of looking at the big picture. 

• It helps organizations stay resilient in the face of change and adversity. Big picture thinking helps you build a cushion of resiliency amid change. When things throw you for a loop, your big-picture thinking can help you adapt with ease. 
• It keeps companies agile (especially during challenging times). Agility is more important than ever with change as a constant. Especially when change becomes more complex, big-picture thinking keeps your company agile. 
• It helps improve your bottom line. Adopting strategic thinking helps improve your organizational performance . When organizations are future-minded, your overall performance benefits, too. 
• It creates a culture of imagination and creativity. At BetterUp, we value zest, playfulness, and imagination. When you’re able to weave strategic thinking into your company culture , your employees benefit. 
• It can increase your organization’s ability to adopt strategic foresight. Strategic foresight is the ability to look ahead and provide insight into what might happen in the future. This future-minded decision-making helps your organization stay ahead of the curve. 

If you’re looking for specific actions to take to help embrace big picture thinking, try these four tactics. 

Build future-minded skills 

We know the future isn’t clear. And that’s OK. Organizations everywhere are navigating the same uncertainty and unknown. In fact, 63% of Americans say they’re stressed about the unknown . 

But your workforce doesn’t have to feel like it’s navigating the unknown alone or without support. Creating future-minded leaders in your company will help keep your workforce agile, healthy, and engaged.

Our data shows that future-minded leaders report increased team agility, team performance, innovation, and resiliency. We also know that 82% of people have significant room for improvement in at least one area of future-minded leadership skills.

How are you building your leaders’ problem-solving skills ? In what ways can you keep big picture thinking top of mind for your organization? 

Practice imagination 

At BetterUp, we have a set of high-impact behaviors that help guide what we do (and how we do it). One of my personal favorite high-impact behaviors is called practice imagination. 

The idea? Well, every idea is a good one. You can think outside of the box and propose new projects that may seem unattainable. You can pitch big-picture initiatives that might seem impossible to pull off. 

But here’s the surprising thing: you’ll surprise yourself with what you’ll come up with. And with a bedrock of psychological safety , trust, and inclusive leadership , your ideas might even come to fruition. 

Invest in your employees’ professional development 

Employees want career development opportunities. Without a vision for what their future could look like in your organization, you risk losing your top talent. 

Make an investment in your employees’ development . Are you investing in virtual coaching for your employees? What upskilling opportunities do you have available? Are you encouraging your employees to invest in their own professional development? 

At BetterUp, we know the value of learning opportunities. In addition to our own coaching and personal development, BetterUp gives us a yearly stipend for learning. I’m able to use my stipend for workshops that support my passions, like writing. 

Provide coaching 

Strategic thinkers are people with growth mindsets . Companies that adopt a growth mindset and invest in coaching have seen the benefits first-hand. And with access to virtual coaching, you can tap into the full potential of your workforce. Your employees (and your bottom line) will reap the benefits. 

At BetterUp, we partnered with a publicly traded cloud technology company to support its sales goals. As part of this partnership, we provided a group of sales leaders with personalized Sales Performance coaching. The goal? To help unlock their capabilities (including strategic and big-picture thinking) to drive revenue. 

We took a close look at the performance of those sales managers who were provided with coaching versus those that were uncoached . The results speak for themselves. Teams of coached sales managers saw an 11% boost in reaching sales goals versus non-coached teams.

Ultimately, this translated to an additional $10 million in total bookings per team. Coached sales leaders saw a 60% increase in the number of their direct reports who achieved quota.

By dedicating time every week to their Sales Performance Coach, sales managers experienced significant Whole Person growth. They saw 24% gains in productivity and focus, as well as a 16% gain in strategic planning .

Like most skills, big picture thinking takes practice. Here are six exercises to help develop your big picture thinking skills. 

1. Start with reflection 

It’s hard to know where to go if you don’t know where you’re starting from. If you’re striving to become a big picture person, the first step is to press pause. 

Take some time to reflect on your current thinking strategies. What’s your approach to solving problems? Are you adopting a future-minded approach when it comes to thinking about the future? What are your team needs and how can a big picture lens help? What are your strengths? What are your opportunities for growth? 

2. Ditch perfectionism 

Detail-oriented people, you may not like this one. But your perfectionism is getting in the way of you becoming a big picture person. 

If the perfectionist inside of you is clinging to the perfect plan, you’re probably not able to look past the short-term. Challenge yourself to let go of things. 

3. Think about other perspectives 

Part of being a big picture thinker is considering other perspectives. Of course, we live in a world where plenty of people have plenty of opinions. And sometimes, that can be overwhelming. 

But if you take the time to think about the counterargument or try to understand another point of view, it can help. Take some time to think about perspectives that differ from your own. 

4. Use mind mapping as a tool

It helps to write things out. 

If you’re interested in journaling , this could be a good way to spill your big pictures onto paper. Mind mapping helps you articulate what you’re thinking into tangible goals, actions, or ideas. 

5. Ask yourself the tough questions

Think about your audience or the counterargument to your big-picture ideas. What are the higher-level tough questions you might receive? What questions can you anticipate that might challenge your strategic thinking? 

Take a minute to do some brainstorming and ask yourself the tough questions. You’ll be better equipped to navigate those challenges — and it might even shift your thinking. 

6. Stay focused on your purpose

As a creative myself, thinking up big ideas is a lot of fun for me. But sometimes, as they say, the dreamers can get lost in the clouds. 

Stay focused on your purpose to make sure you’re staying on track with your goals. Remind yourself what problems you’re hoping to solve and root down in your purpose. 

Make sure your workforce understands the purpose behind their work , too. With purpose as your North Star and a coach as your guide, you can unlock your workforce’s full potential. 

Start thinking big 

With BetterUp, you can start thinking big. Access to virtual coaching can help tap into your strategic thinking skills. By doing so, your organization can drive growth, development, and better business performance. 

Together, we can help your workforce start to adopt strategic leadership skills. With the help of a coach, your employees can be prepared for a better (and brighter) tomorrow.  

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Madeline Miles

Madeline is a writer, communicator, and storyteller who is passionate about using words to help drive positive change. She holds a bachelor's in English Creative Writing and Communication Studies and lives in Denver, Colorado. In her spare time, she's usually somewhere outside (preferably in the mountains) — and enjoys poetry and fiction.

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The Art of Big-Picture Thinking

It's your job to know where—and how—you fit in your company's big picture..

Posted July 20, 2024 | Reviewed by Hara Estroff Marano

• It is up to individuals to place themselves into their workplace's big picture.
• Think holistically to put facts, pictures, sounds, and details into context
• Recognize patterns for what is really there, not what you expect to see.
• What do you perceive that others do not?

Given the nearly unprecedented uncertainties caused by the rise of generative AI , professionals must accomplish their work at high levels and remain relevant, yet with little job security.

Whatever field or industry they work in, today's knowledge workers (a term coined in the late 1950s by management expert Peter Drucker and now in widespread use) are often specialists in one or more endeavors—a fact of life that creates challenges beyond how well they perform and collaborate with colleagues. They must also be attuned to the mission their organization is trying to accomplish, communicate the importance of their role, and justify their place within that organization and mission.

And that brings with it a larger challenge—figuring out the big picture, the overall mission of the organization, and where each fits in. As Drucker himself told workers : "You must take integrating responsibility for putting yourself into the big picture."

Cultivating Big Picture Thinking

How and where you fit into the big picture isn’t always readily apparent. It requires big-picture thinking.

A good way to start is to realize that there is a big picture in the first place. What is your organization trying to accomplish, and how is it going about it? What ecosystems does it operate within— not just in which industries, markets, or fields of study, but in terms of communities and society? Who are the people the organization tries to serve?

Seeing the big picture doesn’t mean ignoring the details. Focus is important, yet we must make sure we are focusing on the right things. This requires putting facts and details into context while thinking holistically and system-wide. Sometimes it means zooming out for a bird’s-eye view.

Drucker urged people to widen their horizons and take an expansive view of themselves and what they want to accomplish. It requires thinking about what constitutes their own big picture as an individual at work and outside of it. Doing so enables people to determine aspirations, set goals , and know how to allocate their time.

Big-picture thinking means constantly being alert and observational, discovering and acting upon relevant information. That includes having a sense of what to read in various formats (in print, on the web, in various apps.), plus who to talk and listen to. Above all, it means paying close attention .

Detecting Patterns

Pattern recognition contributes to discerning the big picture and our roles and responsibilities. Drucker wrote often about the need for training perception and the ability to see patterns. “In the new society of organizations, you need to be able to recognize patterns to see what is there rather than what you expect to see," he said presciently in a 1993 Harvard Business Review interview.

Drucker was known for employing visual and visualization -related metaphors in his work and writing. “The characteristic of the innovator,” he declared 60 years ago, “is the ability to envisage as a system what to others are unrelated, separate elements.”

An important part of Drucker‘s life was appreciation for and deep knowledge of Japanese art; he even taught the subject in the early 1980s at Pomona College. And that, too, was related to his ideas of perception and discerning the big picture/larger context. "What interests him in Japanese art," said art writer Suzanne Muchnic, “ is not only the fine points of its styles, techniques, subjects, and creators but how it fits into world art history and what makes it special.”

Looking Out of Windows

Drucker was known for the observation/metaphor that he "looked out the window" to see what was visible but unseen by others. If we want to follow his example, we need to look out of not one but many windows and from a variety of vantage points and in different time periods. Looking at the same data or information, what do you perceive that others do not? Can you communicate its importance to your colleagues and anyone else who needs to know?

Drucker acknowledged that trained perception is not always natural or familiar. “We perceive, as a rule, what we expect to perceive. We see largely what we expect to see, and we hear largely what we expect to hear,” he said in a 1969 presentation in Tokyo to the Fellows of the International Academy of Management: “Perception, we know, is not logic," he added. "It is experience. This means, in the first place, that one always perceives a configuration. One cannot perceive single specifics. They are always part of a total picture.”

Conclusion: An Ongoing Process

Training perception is an ongoing process, as is the professional development that furthers our claim to a role in the big picture. Refining big-picture thinking can be a source of continual enrichment of our lives, inside and outside the workplace.

Peter F. Drucker: Classic Drucker: Wisdom from Peter Drucker from the Pages of Harvard Business Review (Harvard Business Review Press, 2006)

Peter F. Drucker: Managing For Results: Economic Tasks and Risk-taking Decisions (HarperCollins, 1964)

Peter F. Drucker: The Drucker Lectures: Essential Lessons on Management, Society, and Economy (McGraw Hill, 2010)

Peter F. Drucker: The Ecological Vision: Reflections on the American Condition (Transaction Publishers, 1993)

Suzanne Muchnic: “Landscapes of the Mind,” Pomona College Magazine , Fall 1994

Bruce Rosenstein is Managing Editor of Leader to Leader and author of Living in More Than One World: How Peter Drucker's Wisdom Can Inspire and Transform Your Life.

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Critical Thinking Tutorial: The Big Picture

Analyzing arguments.

Before you begin, ask yourself a few questions to determine what you might already know about analyzing arguments. Here are a few to get you started.

• Is an argument always a quarrel?
• Is arguing an act of invention or investigation?
• What makes an argument strong or weak?
• Are all strong arguments sound?
• Are all sound arguments logical?

Logic is a branch of philosophy that examines and appraises arguments. The opening six minutes of this video looks at what an argument is, highlighting the components that make it a valid or sound argument. Pay close attention to the definitions of a premise and a conclusion , as it will help you meet the first learning outcome of this module.

Source: A Very Basic Introduction to Logic by PhilosophyToons on YouTube , 2021

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