I’ve already written one note on strategy, attempting to distil everything I know on the topic into something more simple and actionable than what I’ve found in the literature.
That note is still a very valid take on how to think about and work with strategy, but I’ve since come across another approach which is even more simple, and possibly more precise and actionable.
In fact, it might be too simple, which is why I’m not updating the original note, but instead writing this new one.
Anyways, the framework goes like this:
- Problem
- Cause
- Solution
As I wrote in my original note, strategy is problem-solving, and this is problem-solving at its essence.
I learned about it via Patrick Campbell, the founder and CEO of Profitwell, as he was interviewed for “Lenny’s Podcast”.
During the interview, Patrick also makes another excellent point that while this is a great framework for building strategy, it’s also a great way to structure presentations. I agree with him 100%.
Many people struggle with presenting their ideas clearly. This framework is a great way to convey your ideas in a logical structure that makes it easy for other people to follow.
There will be typos, half-baked ideas, and opinions presented as facts here. I'm not a professional writer, and I'm not trying to be one. I'm writing these notes as an exercise to clarify my thinking and archive insights worth revisiting. If you find it useful, that's great. If you don't, that's fine too.