Before an individual or team can build the future, they need to see it together with the kind of shared clarity, alignment, and energy that turns vision into action. Determining key long-term goals and objectives is the crucial first step to informing everything a team does day-to-day with purpose and direction. But most strategic planning processes leave people feeling like spectators rather than architects of what comes next.

This strategic planning and design thinking workshop changes that. Grounded in the foundational principles of positive psychology and design thinking methodology, Mission Possible gives teams a structured, energizing process to define their ideal future state and prototype the roadmap to get there. Through a facilitated Design Sprint, participants move from broad individual or organizational vision to concrete, implementable action plans, using design theory to ideate, discover, and prototype the initial steps that bring their ideas to life. Participants leave with clarity on where they are going, energized about how they will get there, and equipped with a detailed action plan to make it real.

During this strategic planning and design thinking workshop, participants will:

As a result of this session, participants will be able to enhance their leadership capabilities through the following behaviors:

This workshop is ideal for leadership teams, department heads, and cross-functional groups ready to align on a shared vision and take concrete steps toward it together. It is a particularly powerful session for organizations at a pivotal strategic moment, whether navigating growth, change, or a bold new direction, and looking for a structured, energizing way to move forward with clarity and momentum.

What is a Design Sprint and how is it used in this strategic planning workshop?

A Design Sprint is a structured, time-boxed process for rapidly generating and prototyping solutions to complex challenges. In this workshop, the sprint framework is adapted to help leadership teams move from broad organizational vision to concrete, implementable first steps, translating shared aspirations into action plans with real energy and momentum behind them.

How does positive psychology shape the strategic planning process in this workshop?

Positive psychology provides a strengths-based, future-focused lens for organizational planning. Rather than leading with problems to diagnose and fix, this approach helps teams articulate what they want to build and frame their goals in positive, behavior-based language. The result is a planning process that feels genuinely energizing and generates more creative, sustainable, and commitment-worthy outcomes.

What is the difference between Current State and Future State in this design thinking framework?

The workshop begins with the Current State: a grounded, honest look at where the team is today, including its strengths, opportunities, and aspirations. The Future State is the articulated vision of where the strategist wants to go. The Design Sprint bridges the two, generating actionable ideas and initial prototypes that give the team a clear, confident path from where they are to where they are going.

Is Mission Possible a good fit for annual planning, strategy sessions, or leadership off-sites?

It is an excellent fit for all three. The workshop's collaborative, high-energy format makes it ideal for any setting where a team needs to align on direction, generate bold new ideas, and build genuine shared momentum around what comes next. Many organizations use it as their annual planning anchor for exactly this reason.

What does a team walk away with at the end of this design sprint workshop?

Teams leave with a clearly articulated shared vision of their ideal future state, a set of prototyped action ideas generated through the Design Sprint, and initial implementation plans to bring those ideas to life. The focus is equally on the destination and on building an aligned, energized team ready to pursue it together.

The Leadership Laboratory works across multiple industries - including start-up and established technology firms, non-profit and government agencies, finance companies, healthcare organizations and more. We are proud to collaborate with individuals and teams of all sizes.

Contact us and say hello! We're excited to get to know you and share our ideas on learning + leadership development.