Good Strategy Bad Strategy: The Difference and Why It Matters

by Richard P. Rumelt

Identifying the difficulties and obstacles will give you a much clearer picture of the pattern of existing and possible strategies.

To gain this change in perspective, shift your attention from what is being done to why it is being done,

A new alternative should flow from a reconsideration of the facts of the situation, and it should also address the weaknesses of any already developed alternatives.

The creation of new higher-quality alternatives requires that one try hard to “destroy” any existing alternatives, exposing their fault lines and internal contradictions.

good strategies are usually “corner solutions.” That is, they emphasize focus over compromise. They focus on one aspect of the situation, not trying to be all things to all people.

Judgment begins with knowing yourself, your abilities and biases.

For that practice to be effective, you should first commit your judgments to writing.

What this student has missed is the opportunity to pre-commit to a position and thereby subsequently evaluate her own judgment.

To commit to a judgment is to choose an interpretation of which issues are critical and which are not and then to choose an implied action.

What issues do you expect to arise in the meeting? Who will take which position?

Privately commit yourself in advance to some judgments about these issues, and you will have daily opportunities to learn, improve, and recalibrate your judgment.

Social herding presses us to think that everything is OK (or not OK) because everyone else is saying so.

It is important to push back against these biases.

paying attention to real-world data

by learning the lessons taught by history and by other peop...