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What differentiates successful leaders and companies from unsuccessful ones?

What is the road you need to take in order to achieve all you strive for?

Today, we will try to give you the answer.

Who Should Read “Business Strategy”? And Why?

“Business Strategy” is a book about, just as the title states, business strategy, its importance, the components that it consists of, and how companies can become better at strategizing and therefore reaching more of their goals.

Tracy has an interesting approach, as he uses the historical example of the Macedonian king Alexander the great to illustrate his points.

We recommend it to all managers, leaders, as well as corporate strategists.

About Brian Tracy

Brian Tracy is a writer, a speaker and a consultant with vast experience in business, economics, and psychology.

He is one of the world’s top sales trainers, with over half a million salespeople in over 500 companies having learned his techniques.

He has authored 26 books and has produced over 300 audio and video programs. His works have been sold in over 38 countries and translated into more than 20 languages.

“Business Strategy PDF Summary”

Let’s start with some history.

Alexander the Great, was a king of Macedon, which was an ancient kingdom that was situated in modern-day’s northern part of Greece.

He was given the name “the Great” because he was a great strategist and used his power of judgment to create a vast kingdom for his people.

He became a king rather young when he was twenty years old, and he immediately decided to reorganize the army, appointing generals who were loyal and trustworthy, since he heard some rumors that rebels are trying to assassinate him.

By the age of 21, no one could doubt his rule.

He decided to conquer the world and introduce his culture to them. Those that did not oppose his plans and governance from the countries he conquered were allowed to keep their positions, as long as they paid annual taxes to the kingdom.

He also allowed soldiers from other countries to join the army, if they wish to do so, in order to catch booty.

There were many fights Alexander won by employing his strategic tactics, and not by just brute force.

Many times he was unnumbered, but that did not stop him from winning.

Strategizing means that you plant an image of a future desired position in your mind, and then work backward from there to understand what you need in order to achieve it in reality.

All of the strategic principles Alexander used to strengthen his power and expand his rule can even be applied today in modern environments and situations.

Just think of organizations as armies that go in battle. If they fail to do right in just one step of the strategy, they risk being defeated.

So, what are the principles that companies should follow in order to win every battle they face?

There are seven of them.

First is “the principle of the objective” that revolves around the importance of a business having a clear direction and goal in mind. For your employees’ efforts to be directed the right way, they need to know the result they are striving for.

Next is “the principle of the offensive,” which states that you have to be ‘offensive’ with the market, offering new products and services that will satisfy customers’ needs better than your competitors do.

Furthermore “the principle of the mass” means that you have to mass your forces in one niche. If you are not still a leader in your niche market, do not your energy on expansion – instead invest it in becoming better in the territory you currently operate.

“The principle of maneuver,” asks you to be flexible to move in all directions in the market if such a need occurs.

Then, “the principle of concerted action” is all about teamwork. In order to succeed, you need to be able to create an atmosphere where people work as a team, and where they see their coworkers as sort of an ‘extension’ of their abilities.

“The principle of surprise” will allow you to keep your competitors on their toes, and you can accomplish it by trying always to find novel ways to do things.

Lastly, “the principle of exploitation” explains to you the importance of staying on the offensive, so that your competitors will not be able to catch up. Just exploit your advantages and keep striving for more, keep moving forward.

Key Lessons from “Business Strategy”

1.      The Five Strategic Questions
2.      Four Strategic Planning Principles
3.      Five Phases For Building and Implementing A Strategy

The Five Strategic Questions

You can ask yourself five strategic questions that can help you get the answers you need about how you can become better at what you do.

First, ask yourself about your current situation. Then, retrace the steps of how you got to where you are.

Third, think about the place you want to be in the future, your goals.

Then, asks yourself what you should do to get there. And finally, ask what kind of assets you will need to help you with your endeavor.

Four Strategic Planning Principles

There are four strategic planning principles. First focus on what you do the best of all, which is the principle of “specialization.”

Then you need to separate and differentiate your products from those of your competitors that embodies the principle of “differentiation.”

Furthermore, you need to create a good target group that you would focus on which is known as “segmentation.” And lastly, use your resources for the area in which you can reap the most benefits, known as “concentration.”

Five Phases For Building and Implementing A Strategy

• • “Strategic intelligence gathering and analysis.”

• • “Strategy formulation.”

• • “Strategy master-project planning.”

• • “Strategic implementation.”

• Monitor your strategy

Like this summary? We’d Like to invite you to download our free 12 min app, for more amazing summaries and audiobooks.

“Business Strategy Quotes”

Our Critical Review

Just like all other of Tracy’s books (and we have covered a lot of them so far), this one is quite comprehensive and helpful.

It is filled with actionable and useful advice, which, according to me, is the most significant aspect of business books.

Emir Zecovic

Emir is the Head of Marketing at 12min. In his spare time, he loves to meditate and play soccer.