From Defence to Strategy

A note to young leaders.

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.

By all means control costs in 2026 – afterall, you have to be able to stay afloat, before you can sting.

But cost cutting alone can only take you so far.

Don’t get caught playing defence for too long.

Bring the sting back into your strategy.

This week, grab a colleague and sit in a room with a whiteboard – and don’t come out until you’ve devised three bold moves/ initiatives /contracts – just 3, no more – such that if any one of them happened, it would change the trajectory of your company.