Marcus Aurelius once wrote:
“The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.”

I think that’s why I like working in strategic transformation so much, it’s all about thinking about turning obstacles into opportunities; being the river around the rock.

In “The Mind of the Strategist, the art of Japanese business” Kenichi Ohmae provides a blueprint for doing just that.

Here are my top 10 key takeaways

🟡 Develop a strategic mindset:
Think beyond immediate challenges. Consider the larger competitive & market context.

🟡 Focus on the customer:
Make customer needs the foundation of your strategic decisions.

In Clear Thinking, Shane Parrish provides actionable insights to sharpen thought processes, overcome biases, and make better decisions in an increasingly noisy world.

My key takeaways:
🟡 Critical thinking is essential: Evaluate information objectively and challenge assumptions to navigate complexity and make informed decisions.

🟡 Understand cognitive biases: Understand biases like confirmation bias and availability heuristic to prevent clouded judgment.

🟡 Use mental models: Build a mental toolkit to approach problems from multiple perspectives and enhance problem-solving.

🟡 Emotional intelligence matters: Awareness of your emotions and others’ emotions leads to more thoughtful responses and stronger connections.