Being Strategic
PLAN for success; OUT-THINK your competitors; STAY AHEAD of change.

Most of us have a basic sense of the difference between strategy and tactics–the big picture versus the details. But when it comes time to actually put it into practice, we’re not sure how to do it in a way that works.

In Being Strategic, noted consultant Erika Andersen helps the reader approach business–and life–strategically, explaining why it’s important, what’s involved in doing it, and how to do it. Being Strategic offers a step-by-step model and skills for strategic thought and action that are broadly applicable and thoroughly practical:

  • First, get clear about the problem you’re trying to solve.
  • Then, figure out where you’re starting from.
  • Now, imagine your “castle on the hill,” your ultimate goal.
  • Identify the “trolls under the bridge”; the obstacles in your path.
  • Next, outline the path to the castle: your core strategies and the tactics for implementing them.
  • Re-evaluate your strategy and your tactics as conditions change.

Built around the story of 13th-century Welsh nobles building a castle, and weaving in dozens of real-life examples from her practice, which has helped top restaurateur Danny Meyer and many others, Andersen offers a complete course in turning around a business, or a life.

“When I described our most recent restructuring plan to a friend – a seasoned and successful financial professional – he was certain we must have hired McKinsey & Co. to help us think things through. Wrong. It was Erika Andersen.”

Danny Meyer

President, Union Square Hospitality Group

“Unlike most experts in her field, Erika Andersen has an approach to being strategic that’s sensible and accessible. With her, you feel capable of creating the business, career and life you want. She’s to strategy what Suze Orman is to personal finance!

Nancy Tellem

President, Xbox Entertainment Studios
Purchase on Amazon
Purchase on Barnes & Noble
Purchase on Indie Bound
Purchase on Porchlight