The hidden choice between growth and survival
Life boils down to choices. I like the way Epictetus put it, which was: “You are not your body body and hairstyle, but your capacity for choosing well. If your choices are beautiful, so too will you be”. Unfortunately, choices are by definition hard. An “easy choice” between something unambiguously good, and something unambiguously bad, is […]
Before ideas, comes action
In the past 5 weeks, I feel like original thoughts have slowed to a trickle. Perhaps you’ve experienced something similar. Normally as I go about things, new ideas and theories are constantly bubbling up. Sometimes I’ll get the urge to write something in the most inconvenient of moments – whilst driving, having coffee with someone, trying to go […]
Strategy can never be “scientific”
When you’re facing a task that doesn’t have a solution that you know will work at the outset. There is no “strategy” to fixing a muffler, or flying a jet, or tying pigtails; there is just a method. Strategy is reserved for the many walks of life where there are no neat and tidy solutions […]
Break point: an introduction to the strategic lifecycle
Most companies, yours included no doubt, make things up as they go along. In general, unpretty as it is, this is no bad thing. By behaving haphazardly and reactively you are also behaving experimentally: trying various things out, some of which will fit, and some of which won’t. If the ratio of hits to misses […]
How to make an innovative product idea go mainstream
There’s only one thing tougher than having loads of competitors: having no competitors at all. Although the presence of other brands similar to yours comes with lots of challenges, it’s easy to forget the advantages it confers as well: It means you’re operating in an established market It means there are people out there who […]
Dare to be bad at something
The market, sadly, does not reward allrounders. When Andre Agassi was two years old, his dad taped a tennis racket to his hand so he could get in on the court, even though he was too young to properly grip the handle. Such a one-dimensional upbringing most of us would consider to be horrifically skewed, […]
How aggression creates iconic brands
Of all the things a business can aspire to, there is one I believe that outstrips all the rest: to be a case study. Case study businesses are those that other businesses return to, again and again, as a benchmark for how things should be done. Case study businesses are taught in MBA programs, cited […]
The problem with strategic models, and why I don’t use them
You wouldn’t build a house without a hammer. You wouldn’t paint a fence without a brush. And, in much the same manner, many people wouldn’t develop a strategy without a model. Strategic models are generally seen as the “tools” required to do strategy, and as such are the mainstay of management consultancies, corporate away days, […]
Break invisible rules – the easiest way to stand out
Nobody likes to think of themselves as a follower. A sheep. As someone who slavishly adheres to the rules and behaviours set by everyone else. A herd animal, mindlessly marching in step with the crowd, never thinking for themselves. But the truth is, we all are. Even the most outrageous rebel will, on 99 metrics […]
Effort is the enemy – why hard work is overrated
Success and effort, we’re assured, are inextricably linked. There is no success without effort, and (short of some cruel misfortune) there is no effort without success. You want something? Then put your back into it. Starting a business? Be prepared to work 20 hour days. This narrative – that sweat is the currency that buys […]