Shotgun approach/strategy

When used metaphorically, as in ‘a shotgun approach’ or ‘a shotgun strategy’ it means to spread one’s resources or efforts over as wide an area as possible, from the obvious allusion to a shotgun, which spread its ‘shot’ or pellets over a wide area. It is sometimes called a ‘scattergun’ approach or strategy, scattergun simply being another word for a shotgun. It is the opposite of ‘a rifle approach’ or ‘a rifle strategy’ which is focused on a specific target or objective. This metaphorical usage for both shotgun and rifle dates from the early 1970s.