Why most strategy is broken - and how to build one that actually works

TL;DR:

Most people were never taught what strategy actually is - so it ends up bloated, vague and unusable. Lucky Start exists to fix that. This post explains what’s gone wrong, what good strategy looks like, and how to sharpen yours fast - without wasting weeks (or your budget).

What if I told you most people don’t actually know what strategy is?

Not because they’re not smart, but because no one ever really taught them.

Unlike doctors or lawyers, business people don’t start with a shared foundation. Some learn in agencies, some in start-ups, some in giant corporates. Others just make it up as they go. That means “strategy” ends up defined in a hundred different ways - some helpful, most not.

No wonder a Harvard Business Review study found 95% of employees don’t understand their company’s strategy.

Because let’s be honest: a lot of the time, strategy isn’t strategy. It’s a bloated deck. A vague plan. A slick presentation full of buzzwords and bullet points.

And that’s a problem. Because strategy is supposed to create clarity. Momentum. Direction.

That’s why I started Lucky Start - to fix what strategy has become, and make it what it should be: Fast. Sharp. Practical. No fluff. No filler. Just strategy that works.

The symptoms of broken strategy

You’ve probably seen it (or felt it) before:

• You’re drowning in slides but still not sure what the plan actually is

• The messaging sounds smart, but says nothing

• Everyone nods in meetings, but no one knows what to do next

• A whole budget’s gone, and you still don’t have clarity

This isn’t just annoying - it’s expensive.

Bad strategy burns time, money and energy. It holds teams back and leaves great ideas stuck in “thinking” mode.

How did we get here?

A few things broke along the way:

• Strategy by osmosis disappeared. With less in-person learning during and post-Covid, many comms pros never had a chance to see how good strategy works

• The decks got longer. Instead of sharper thinking, we got more slides and more noise

• Training didn’t catch up. People were expected to lead strategy without ever being taught how

• And A.I. didn’t help at first. It flooded us with generic content before anyone figured out how to use it properly

The result? Strategy that looks clever, but leads nowhere.

What good strategy actually looks like

Real strategy isn’t a 50-slide deck. It’s a decision. A clear, confident answer to: where are we going, and how will we get there?

It should be:

• Fast to understand

• Sharp in its thinking

• Practical in its output

• Backed by insight, not opinion

• Designed to be used and not filed away

That’s what Lucky Start delivers.

What to do if your strategy’s broken

You don’t need to scrap everything. You just need a smarter starting point.

Here are three fast ways to fix it:

1. Book a free Strategy MOT

A quick, honest call where I’ll tell you what’s working, what’s not, and what I’d do next. No pitch. Just clarity.
→ Book yours here

2. Try The Strategy Detox

48 hours. One ugly strategy, made sharp. Perfect if you’ve got something bloated that needs cutting down to size.

3. Run The Sprint

Your brand strategy. Built in a week. For startups, pivots or pressure-cookers where you need a brand that actually works - fast.

Strategy isn’t dead. It just needs a reboot.

You don’t need more slides. You need momentum.

So, let’s talk. I’ll help you start smarter, move faster and cut through the noise. For good.