Strategic Minds Podcast: Episode 24 – Discovering Insights at the Edges

Key Quotes

“My friend Sharon Price-John, who happens to be the CEO of Build-A-Bear Workshop, has a great way of framing this. She said, stop doing stupid stuff.”

“And what an inflection point does is it changes that envelope of possibilities. So now you can do things you never could before.”

“And if you think about things like a mission, Patagonia would come to mind as a firm that’s centered on that. So I think the first choice you need to make is—what are we sort of centering ourselves on?”

“And if you don’t invest in creating the conditions for those future choices, you just won’t have those choices to make.”

“A leading indicator is giving you some clues about what could be—not necessarily will be—but what could be in the future.”

“And I think strategy is really critical, because how else are you going to have the clarity to say, yes, I’m doing this and not that?”

Winsights: Ideas for Advantage

This week’s Winsight comes from Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, who reminds us: “If you are not genuinely pained by the risk involved in your strategic choices, then it’s not much of a strategy.”

Real strategy requires trade-offs. It’s not about doing everything—it’s about deciding what matters most, and having the discipline to say no to what doesn’t. Great leaders make those choices consciously, knowing that clarity comes with discomfort.

As Hastings suggests, the anxiety we feel when we commit to one path and close off others is the signal that strategy is working. If every decision feels easy, we’re not being strategic—we’re just being busy. This week, reflect on the trade-offs you and your team are making. If you feel that tension, you’re likely heading in the right direction.

Links

Submit a question for Rich to the League of Strategic Minds

Dr. Rita McGrath on LinkedIn

Rich Horwath on LinkedIn
Rich Horwath on YouTube
Rich Horwath on Instagram
Strategic Thinking Institute Website
Inc. Magazine’s Top 4 book for 2024: STRATEGIC  Book
New executive development platform: Strategic Fitness System
Sign up for Rich’s free Strategic Thinker Newsletter

About the Guest 

Dr. Rita McGrath
Columbia Business School professor

One of the world’s foremost experts on strategy and innovation

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About the Host 

Rich Horwath, Founder & CEO
Strategic Thinking Institute  

Rich is a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of eight books on strategic thinking, including his most recent work, STRATEGIC, which was named a “top 4 must-read business book for 2024” by Inc. Magazine, and a national bestseller by USA TODAY. He has been the top rated keynote speaker on strategic thinking at national conferences for nearly 20 years.