Rules of Strategy

This is often overlooked because it might seem obvious. When defining your strategy, spend a few minutes getting on the same page about who this strategy is for. This activity will help crystallize the direction and other aspects of the strategy.

Vision is the foundation upon which all successful strategies are created. A vision must be ambitious. It must be challenging but also achievable. A compelling vision will serve as the anchor for the time when you need to pivot your strategy.

Your strategy should not be a synergistic driver of efficiencies across global right-sizing initiatives. A simple strategy promotes clarity and focus. It should be easy to read, understandable, and quick to recall.

Focusing on one challenge helps you concentrate effort, resources, and attention. Focusing on the right challenge also enables better decision-making. With a clear focus, alignment on decisions becomes much easier to achieve.

A challenge always comes with a set of constraints or obstacles. It is important to spend time understanding these obstacles. Identifying an immovable constraint in time can help you change your strategy to make it achievable.

A good strategy is a living system. Its most unmovable element is the vision. Everything else must be adaptable to changing circumstances, environments, and other aspects. Be stubborn on vision and flexible on details.

Keep the fluff out. Vague, empty, meaningless buzzwords will make any strategy hard to read and follow. Fluff obscures focus and fails to provide a clear and coherent plan of action. Keep the fluff out.