Ever felt like strategy has lost its north? I did, talking to a CEO who was tired of strategy, and honestly, a bit tired of me too.

When I asked how their strategy work was going, he sighed: “Honestly? I don’t have time for that anymore. Everything changes anyway. We just need to stay flexible.”

He had cancelled his regular strategy meetings.

No follow-up.

No reflection.

No direction.

Photo by AbsolutVision

I quickly understood the problem. He saw strategy as a plan. A rational exercise. Something you had to do, not something you wanted to do.

But strategy isn’t just a plan.

It’s a practice. A rhythm. A way to connect people, purpose, and progress.

When organizations abandon strategic clarity, the same pattern always appears:

• They waste time and money on conflicting initiatives.

• Employees lose engagement because they no longer see how their work fits into the bigger picture.

• Leadership ends up firefighting instead of leading.

• The company becomes slower, weaker, and more fragile.

All in the pursuit of “flexibility.”

Ironic, isn’t it?

Because real agility doesn’t come from abandoning strategy. It comes from clarity. When strategy lives as a continuous practice rather than a yearly ritual, it gives teams direction, energy, and speed in the same direction.

Strategy is not a document. It’s a discipline.

What that CEO didn’t see was that strategy isn’t about predicting the future. It’s about creating focus when everything feels uncertain.

When leaders stop talking about strategy, they don’t gain freedom; they lose their common direction.

And when employees can’t see the connection between their work and the organization’s purpose, motivation quietly fades away.

Think about the difference between these two mindsets:

🔴 Strategy as a plan: “We already have a strategy. Let’s just follow it.”

🟢 Strategy as a capability: “We know where we’re going — and we keep learning how to get there.”

When strategy becomes a living capability, it turns uncertainty into movement.

It helps people make sense of change instead of being overwhelmed by it.

I asked the CEO: “What if strategy wasn’t about making a new plan, but about helping your people stay connected to direction and purpose?”

He looked down at the table for a moment, then said: “Maybe our strategy isn’t broken. We just lost the compass.”

Exactly.

The goal isn’t to make a better map. It’s to make sure everyone can still find north.

The best strategies don’t live in PowerPoints.

They live in people. In conversations, in decisions, in daily choices. Every day.

So ask yourself: Do you have a strategy that people still believe in? One that lives 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒏 the meetings?