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organization. And with analysis often comes synthesis, where you pull your individual thoughts back into a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.
    Why Would an Employer Care About Analytic Thinking?
• Cost-benefit analysis is just one example of a common use of analytic thinking in the workplace. Employers must know how a proposed product, idea, or plan is going to affect the bottom line.
• Analysis of key problems or successes in the workplace can help to ensure their remedy or continuation.
• Analytic thinking is rational and logical and not governed by emotion. Employers need decision makers who examine the details in a situation before making a decision.
    How You Can Develop or Use the Analytic Mindset
• Analytic thinking is a skill you’ve likely honed through your schoolwork. You have probably used analytic skills if you’ve taken an English course and analyzed a piece of literature. Consider how you developed analytic thinking in various courses.
• Writing a research paper requires analytic thought as you work through the main problem or thesis. What have you analyzed in your papers?
• Try analyzing a favorite movie. Watch it again and notice the components: the actors selected for the roles, the story, the costumes, the sound effects, the music, the lighting, the scenery, and so forth. Describe the different components and consider why they were chosen. How do they help (or hinder) your enjoyment of the film?
• Create metaphors to give meaning to a situation. For instance, what might be your metaphor for your job search? Is it a nightmare? Or are you on easy street? Is your future an abyss? Or is it, as the saying goes, “so bright you have to wear shades”? Analyze how your metaphor affects your behavior.
    On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rank your use of the analytic mindset?

    If you were going to tell an employer about your strength in analytic thinking, what example(s) would you use?
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    MINDSET 4: THE STRATEGIC MINDSET
    A strategic mindset is first and foremost rational, logical, and practical. The strategic mindset incorporates analytic thinking and draws from a systems perspective of looking at the Big Picture to solve a problem. A strategic mindset provides a specific way of solving problems, often using a method called strategic planning, a common system used by organizations to understand their current position in the marketplace, develop a vision, and plan for the future. Common techniques used in strategic planning are SWOT (an acronym for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analyses, goal setting, vision statements, and gap analysis.
    Why Would an Employer Care if You Are a Strategic Thinker?
    Strategic thinking can help an organization:
• set priorities and stick with them;
• develop focus and keep everyone on the same plan;
• measure and monitor success and progress;
• determine what is and isn’t working, why it isn’t working, and how it can be changed;
• ensure employee commitment to its plans;
• focus on action rather than contemplation.
    How You Can Develop or Use the Strategic Mindset
• You will learn specific strategic planning techniques later in this book as you develop your career plans and prepare for interviews.
• Read a book on strategic planning and try applying the approach to an organization you’re in.
• Look for courses that teach strategic thinking or planning. You can find them in most business, human resources, or organizational behavior programs.
• When you encounter a problem, ask yourself questions such as the following, which will stimulate strategic thinking:
• What strategy will work best to solve this problem?
• What challenges do I need to be aware