How to enjoy strategy – don’t over complicate it.

If there is one subject capable of sending people around the bend, it is strategy. I could name one well-known book that has this effect on many people far more accomplished than myself.

However, just as it is easy to confuse, it is also easy to simplify. To ‘get’ the basics. To develop an approach that is strong and disciplined.

Readers of this post who have learnt to ski will remember that you started on the nursery slopes, then enjoyed the excitement of being whisked up the mountain to enjoy your first easy runs signified by a green sign. Your instructor would then have chosen the next most challenging type – blue runs.

These are some of the most enjoyable ski runs, as they are on well-groomed snow and are relatively easy to ski. They often start right at the top of the mountain, where you get the most panoramic views, and they also pass through the attractive lower tree-lined slopes, all of which look even better on a sunny day.

Ski tour operators keen to sell ski holidays refer to ‘well-groomed corduroy blue runs which will flatter your style.’ As skiers, we always want to feel that they look good as we make endless turns down a mountain. Blue runs help us to get that feeling. That, due to our hard work and practice, we have made progress.

Of course, many people can’t wait to get off the blue runs and test themselves on the steeper red and black runs. Most ski resorts offer various runs displayed on colourful maps at the bottom of each ski lift. It is all about making the right choice based on our abilities. With time, determination and practice, we can eventually master the most challenging slopes, but it is unwise to try them before we are ready.

Just as you can have a great ski holiday by avoiding the more challenging ‘red’ and ‘black’ runs, so you enjoy embracing ‘strategy’ without needing to explore every complex theory and framework.

Enjoying strategy is about building confidence by getting into good routines, keeping it simple, getting clarity and direction and then seeing the transformation.