Strategy is Not a Plan -It’s the Relentless Pursuit of Victory
Strategy isn’t a PowerPoint deck. It’s not a quarterly roadmap or a to-do list. It’s about winning. Whether you’re commanding armies or running a company, strategy exists to create decisive, lasting advantage.
The Timeless Lessons of Strategy
Sun Tzu didn’t write The Art of War to impress. He wrote it for generals who had to win or die. His lesson? The best strategy secures victory before the battle even starts - but it's not a plan. Positioning, deception, and knowing when to strike - that’s real strategy.
Thucydides chronicled the Peloponnesian War, where Athens assumed it could fight forever, making short-term moves without a unifying strategy. Sparta, however, played the long game and crushed them. Today’s businesses make the same mistake: chasing next-quarter results while a smarter competitor is quietly setting up checkmate.
Business Strategy is War Without Bloodshed
Amazon didn’t outfight bookstores—it redefined the game so they couldn’t compete. Michael Porter argues that competitive advantage isn’t about doing just a little better of what everyone else does . It’s about being different in a way that matters. In war and in business, if you’re in a fair fight, you already screwed up.
Stop Reacting—Start Dictating
If you’re making decisions based on what competitors, customers, or analysts expect, you don’t have a strategy—you have a survival plan. Real strategy is preemptive. It shapes the market instead of being shaped by it.
Great CEOs don’t spend their time reacting. They dictate the game. That means making bold moves that competitors struggle to respond to. The best strategies aren’t about efficiency—they’re about control and dominance.
The Only Strategy That Matters is the One That Wins
Strategy isn’t about playing fair - though there're clear boundaries. It’s about winning. If you’re not setting yourself up for undeniable, long-term advantage, then what you have is tactics, not strategy.
History is full of winners and losers. Those who made strategy their weapon didn’t just survive—they conquered. Business is no different. If your strategy doesn’t make you unbeatable, it’s not a strategy at all.