Business Strategy

World-class strategy coaching synthesizing academic frameworks (Porter, Christensen, Helmer, Thompson) with legendary founder playbooks (Jobs, Bezos, Hastings, Prince, Rauch, Lütke, Collison).

Quick Start: 5 Universal Strategy Questions

For any strategic decision, start here:

What game are you playing?

• What industry dynamics shape competition?

• Who are you really competing against?

How will you win?

• Differentiation, cost leadership, or focus?

• What's your unique value proposition?

What's your moat?

• Which of the 7 Powers do you have (or can build)?

• Scale, Network, Counter-positioning, Switching Costs, Brand, Cornered Resource, Process?

What job does your customer hire you for?

• Functional, emotional, and social dimensions

• What progress are they trying to make?

What are you saying no to?

• Trade-offs define strategy

• Focus is about what you eliminate

Multi-Lens Analysis

Don't just analyze competition—expand your thinking across all four dimensions:

Dimension Questions

Individual Inner What beliefs/blind spots does the founder hold? What psychology drives the team?

Collective Inner What's the company culture? Industry groupthink? What "truths" go unquestioned?

Individual Outer What behaviors are visible? What do metrics actually show vs narratives?

Collective Outer What systems/structures constrain options? Regulatory? Technology curves?

Evolutionary Lens

• Where is this industry in its development arc?

• What pattern from adjacent industries might "transcend and include" current players?

• What technology shifts are changing structural constraints?

Strategic Challenge Assessment

Ask: "What strategic challenge are you facing?"

Challenge Type Primary Approach Load These References

Competitive positioning Porter + Founder wisdom porter-competitive , founder-playbooks

Market entry/expansion Blue Ocean + JTBD blue-ocean , christensen-disruption

Building moats 7 Powers + Platforms helmer-7-powers , aggregation-platforms

Disruption threat Christensen + 7 Powers christensen-disruption , helmer-7-powers

Platform strategy Thompson + Founders aggregation-platforms , founder-playbooks

Strategic planning Playing to Win playing-to-win , strategic-analysis

Product strategy JTBD + Founders christensen-disruption , founder-playbooks

Scaling decisions Founders + 7 Powers founder-playbooks , helmer-7-powers

Coaching Workflow

Phase 1: Understand the Situation

• What's the specific strategic question or decision?

• What's at stake? Timeline?

• What constraints exist?

• What have you already considered?

Phase 2: Apply Relevant Frameworks

Based on challenge type, load appropriate reference files and guide through:

• Relevant analytical frameworks

• Key questions to answer

• Trade-offs to consider

Phase 3: Learn from Founders

For practical wisdom, reference founder playbooks:

• How did similar founders approach this?

• What patterns apply to your situation?

• What contrarian insights might help?

Phase 4: Synthesize and Decide

• Summarize key insights

• Identify the core trade-off

• Make a clear recommendation

• Define success criteria

Founder Wisdom Quick Reference

Founder Key Principle When to Apply

Jobs "Focus is about saying no" Product decisions, simplification

Bezos "It's always Day 1" Long-term thinking, avoiding stasis

Hastings "Culture eats strategy" Organizational decisions, talent

Prince "Freemium at infrastructure scale" Business model, market creation

Rauch "DX as trojan horse" Developer products, adoption strategy

Lütke "Arm the rebels (not the empire)" Platform vs aggregator decisions

Collison "Think in decades" Infrastructure bets, global strategy

Framework Quick Reference

Framework Core Insight Key Question

Five Forces Industry structure drives profitability "How attractive is this industry?"

7 Powers Sustainable advantage requires benefit + barrier "What power do we have or can build?"

Aggregation Theory Internet enables demand aggregation "Are we a platform or aggregator?"

Blue Ocean Create uncontested market space "What can we eliminate/reduce/raise/create?"

Jobs to Be Done Customers hire products for progress "What job is the customer trying to do?"

Playing to Win Strategy is an integrated set of choices "Where will we play and how will we win?"

Reference Files

File Content When to Load

porter-competitive.md

Five Forces, Value Chain, Generic Strategies Industry analysis, positioning

christensen-disruption.md

Innovator's Dilemma, JTBD Disruption, innovation, product

helmer-7-powers.md

7 Powers, Power Progression Moat building, sustainability

aggregation-platforms.md

Aggregation Theory, Platform Strategy Digital strategy, ecosystems

blue-ocean.md

Value Innovation, ERRC Grid New markets, differentiation

playing-to-win.md

5 Strategic Choices Strategic planning

founder-playbooks.md

Jobs, Bezos, Hastings, Prince, Rauch, Lütke, Collison Practical wisdom, patterns

strategic-analysis.md

SWOT, Scenarios, Decision Frameworks Structured analysis

Decision-Making Heuristics

Bezos: One-Way vs Two-Way Doors

• One-way door: Irreversible, high consequence → Deliberate carefully

• Two-way door: Reversible, can iterate → Move fast, learn

Jobs: The Saying No Test

• "I'm as proud of what we don't do as what we do"

• If you can't clearly articulate what you're NOT doing, your strategy isn't clear

Hastings: The Keeper Test

• "Would I fight to keep this person/product/feature?"

• If no, it's time to move on

Lütke: Platform vs Aggregator

• Platforms empower others to build

• Aggregators intermediate and control

• "Arm the rebels" = be a platform

Meta-Principle: Continue Thinking

The mark of strategic genius is the ability to continue thinking.

Warning signs you've stopped:

• Defending a framework instead of questioning it

• Reducing every problem to your favorite lens (everything is a "positioning problem")

• Dismissing ideas because they don't fit your model

• "That's just how it's done"

Frameworks are tools, not truth. The best strategists hold contradictions, use perspectives as instruments, and resist the urge to close off inquiry too early.

Identity trap: If your identity is attached to a strategy, you can't think clearly about changing it. The sunk cost isn't money—it's ego.