Article by Matt Lock with Contributions from Brian Chandler and Bernard Page
In leadership, it's often said that strategy should be the guiding light—the north star by which everything else aligns.
It’s a comforting thought. Neat. Ordered. Safe.
But in real life, strategy doesn’t float above the fray. It has to walk on its feet.
When we look backwards, great strategy always makes perfect sense. We nod, we admire. The story becomes obvious in hindsight.
But living strategy forwards is a very different experience.
It’s messier.
It's full of decisions made with partial information, unexpected challenges, shifting landscapes.
You can’t plan your way perfectly through complexity—only relate to it well enough to make good moves.
And that’s the uncomfortable reality: strategy is not just something you think; it’s something you do.
One of the oldest debates in leadership thinking is deliberate vs. emergent strategy.
Should strategy build from careful planning—or should it emerge from action?
The answer is: yes!
Strategy needs both.
Deliberate thinking gives us focus and direction. Emergence keeps us alive and responsive.
As Michael Porter once said, strategy “walks on two feet.” Without one or the other, it limps.
The problem is, most leaders lean heavily toward one foot.
Some love a master plan, defending it long after reality has shifted.
Others prize agility, calling every pivot strategic when it’s sometimes just improvisation.
Good leadership holds the tension.
Planning must be written in pencil.
Adaptation must be purposeful, not reactive.
In other words: be willing to chart a course—and equally willing to redraw it.
There’s another truth we sometimes hesitate to name:
Not everyone is wired for strategy.
We tend to treat "being strategic" as a universal leadership competency, something anyone can and should develop.
And yes, some of it can be learned—through practice, frameworks, experience.
But real strategic thinking requires a natural orientation toward complexity, patterns, systems, and possibilities.
Not everyone finds that energising. Not everyone even sees it.
If you’re building a leadership team and strategy is critical, make sure you have a few of these mindsets in the room:
INTJ (The Architect) – Brilliant at forming detailed, long-range plans.
INTP (The Logician) – Deep, independent thinkers who question assumptions.
ENTJ (The Commander) – Visionary leaders who organise people and resources for big goals.
ENTP (The Debater) – Energetic innovators who thrive on challenging the status quo.
Without a few natural strategists, you’ll end up mistaking busyness for progress—or mistaking rigidity for leadership.
To lead strategy well is not to have the perfect plan.
It’s to step forward into the unknown with eyes open—committed, but not blind.
Focused, but not fixed.
Willing to walk the messy, necessary path between planning and emergence.
Good strategy tells a compelling story in hindsight.
Great leadership lives the story forward.
Where in your leadership are you clinging too tightly to the plan — and where are you improvising without enough purpose?
Matt helps leaders and teams develop their mindset and resourcefulness so they can relate productively, communicate effectively, and navigate challenge and change with confidence.
Through coaching and training, he empowers leaders with better choices and more options for progress—building better leadership from the inside out.
Curious what that could look like for you or your organisation? Let’s talk.