Most people don’t ask for a strategy because they want clarity.
They ask for a strategy because they want permission.

They want a smart-sounding explanation for a decision they already made emotionally.
They want someone with a title, a framework, a PowerPoint, or a consultancy badge to tell them:
“Don’t worry. What you’re about to do is fine.”

They don’t seek direction.
They seek absolution.

Strategy is supposed to be a map, a brutally honest, sometimes uncomfortable, sometimes ego-destroying map that tells you where you are, where you want to go, and what needs to die for you to get there.

But most people don’t want that.
They want a mirror that flatters them.

They don’t want a strategy.
They want a story.

Strategy requires change. Justification protects comfort.

A real strategy forces you to confront painful truths:

Your product isn’t good enough.

Your brand position is confused.

Your goals are delusional.

Your team is slow.

Your expectations are a fantasy.

Your execution is weak.

A real strategy demands sacrifice,
focus, discipline, cuts, constraints, and decisions that make you unpopular.

Justification demands nothing.
It wraps your existing mess in nicer language.

“Focus on core strengths” → translation: don’t improve.
“Maintain brand consistency” → translation: don’t take risks.
“Evaluate after Q4” → translation: don’t commit.
“We’re exploring options” → translation: we’re doing nothing.

People call it “strategic thinking.”
It’s not.
It’s intellectualised avoidance.

The corporate ritual of fake strategy

You’ve seen it a thousand times.

Someone asks for a strategy deck.
You present one.
It’s clear, direct, grounded in data, backed by logic.

And what happens?

They flip through it looking for one thing, confirmation of what they already wanted to do.

If it aligns, they call it “brilliant.”
If it contradicts them, they call it “too risky.”
If it challenges them, they call it “not aligned with leadership direction.”
If it exposes their flaws, they call it “not the right time.”

This isn’t a strategy review.
This is ego preservation.

Companies don’t fall apart because of weak plans.
They fall apart because decision-makers want to be right, not effective.

Strategy is a tool. Justification is a symptom.

You can tell instantly who wants which.

People who want a strategy ask:

  • What’s the real problem?
  • What are we willing to sacrifice?
  • What evidence supports this direction?
  • What happens if we choose wrong?
  • What do we execute this week?

People who want justification ask:

  • Can you phrase that differently?
  • Can we keep all our options open?
  • Can we align this with what we already decided?
  • Can we add more slides?
  • Can you make this sound positive?

One group is building.
The other is hiding.

The strategy test: One question that exposes everything

Ask this:

“If this strategy contradicts what you want, will you still follow it?”

Watch the room freeze.

If the answer is no, they never wanted a strategy.
They wanted a disguise for their ego.

Also, when we talk about a “Great” idea needs explaining, it’s not great. Period.

Justification is the death of progress

Most companies don’t stagnate because of poor skills or poor talent.
They stagnate because everyone is busy searching for rational-sounding excuses to avoid doing the hard thing.

They don’t want the truth.
They want the illusion of being thoughtful.

They want a consultant-approved way to continue being the exact company they already are, even if that version of the company is slowly dying.

Justification looks civilised.
The strategy looks confrontational.

Guess which one actually works.

The brutal rule: If you want progress, stop asking for permission

If you actually want a strategy, prepare for discomfort.

Prepare to cut.
Prepare to simplify.
Prepare to refocus.
Prepare to kill pet projects.
Prepare to stop doing things that make you feel important but change nothing.

If you want justification, keep doing what you’re doing,
and enjoy the slow decline disguised as caution.

A real strategy moves you forward.
Justification lets you stay exactly where you are,
while pretending it’s intentional.

Choose which one you want.
But don’t lie to yourself about the difference.