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Resistance to change

If you want people to move,
here’s a wild thought:

Light them a path they actually want to walk.

Of course, you could try other methods:

→ Print it on coffee mugs and call it culture.
→ Film a dramatic launch video with slow-motion drone shots.
→ Add a leaderboard to “gamify engagement.”
→ Blame “resistance to change.”
→ Hope they’ll just “get it” eventually.

And sometimes that works.

But mostly, it doesn’t.

People move when the direction feels right and makes sense to them.

Make that obvious, using plain and simple words, and there’s no need for motivational theatre.

Keep lighting the path!

There’s no aha without a huh.

You can’t lead with answers if no one’s asking the question.

That’s the mistake many communicators make.
They jump straight to the solution.
→ The vision.
→ The strategy.
→ The next step.

But no one’s leaning in.
Because no one’s wondering.

If your message doesn’t start where they are, e.g. from
→ a tension they experience,
→ a question they have,
→ a doubt they feel,
they might not be open for your answer.

It’ll sound like noise.
Even if it’s brilliant.

If there’s no “huh?”,
there can’t be an “aha!”.

Now, here’s where it gets interesting. Often these things are hidden.

It’s a tension they can’t name but is clearly there.

Or a question they don’t know they have but is obvious once you articulate it.

Perhaps it’s a doubt they don’t have words for but is clearly bugging them.

Putting that into words and leading your announcement from there is the difference between communication that makes sense and one that also feels right.

It doesn’t start where you want them to be.
It starts where they are.

Keep lighting the path!

How the Macintosh team became unstoppable

When a team aligns on a PATH they passionately believe in, they become unstoppable.

That’s the whole premise of “The PATH to Strategic Impact”. And the Macintosh team proves it beautifully. Here are some quotes from an old documentary:

“Everybody just wanted to work, not because it was work that had to be done, but it was because something that we really believed in” – Rony Sebok

“We all wanted exactly the same thing. And instead of spending our time arguing about [it] we just went and did it.” – Andy Hertzfeld

“I’m certainly not doing it for Steve Jobs. I’m doing it for something that I think is a much greater good than that. And that’s the chance to change something, really, honestly, truly, for the better.” – Michael Murray

Most employees would feel lucky if their business had a concise strategy at all. Let alone one that’s so clearly articulated that the entire team wholeheartedly embraces it.

But that’s exactly what Steve Jobs managed to do.

He found words that laid out the path for everyone to see very clearly:
→ Where are we headed?
→ Why does this matter?

Words that were deeply heartfelt and transformative to the team.

And then?
He stepped back and trusted his team to figure it out.
(A terrifying thought for many managers.)

Lighting the PATH isn’t about persuading people to do the work.

It’s about resonating so strongly that they can’t help but travel it – because it’s fully aligned with their passion and dedication.

Keep lighting the path!

Play by the Rules, Lose by the Rules

A football team that just stands there, waiting for the ball, is technically playing by the rules.

But of course, they’ll lose.

A tennis player who only returns easy shots but never runs for the tough ones? Same story.

Winning takes more than just following the rules.

That’s why good coaches push their players to stretch, go for every ball, never let an opportunity slip, and dare to take the bold shots.

But what’s obvious in sports is often overlooked in business.

It’s not enough to communicate the rules.
(Actually, you’d be surprised how many don’t even do that.)

Few take the time to find the words that push their team to stretch, take initiative, and go for bold shots.

Let alone words that make the stretch feel obvious, necessary, and worth it.

Not effortless.
But inevitable.

That’s why the Transformative Principle in the PATH framework is so important.

What’s one bold move your team hesitated on? Could a tweak in your language have made the choice easier?

Keep lighting the path!

A moment for reflection

You’re invited! The 2nd edition of “The Leaders Light the Path Session” is happening on Feb 11th.

It’s a free, hands-on gathering for leaders who want to communicate with clarity and impact.

Participants of the first session have called it a relaxed format and a great moment for reflection.

Don’t expect a lengthy presentation and over-complicated frameworks. We’re more interested in conversations and real, actionable ways to help you find better words.

This time, we’re applying lessons from my latest book “The PATH to Strategic Impact”:

→ Simple strategies to turn ambition into progress
→ How to encourage people to challenge the norm
→ Why heartfelt words are underestimated in business

Feb 11th | 11am Eastern · 5pm CET | Zoom

Whether you’re building something new, scaling a big idea, or simply looking to maximize the impact of your communication, this session will help you do it with focus and clarity.

It’s highly interactive, in a small group setting with like-minded peers.

Would love to see you there.

Seats are limited, though! Reserve your spot by simply replying to this email (I prefer the process as plain and simple as possible).

Keep lighting the path!

3 out of 10

Since launching “The PATH to Strategic Impact,” I’ve been collecting results from the (anonymous) online self-assessment included in the book.

One of the questions is this:

“Can team members (at all levels) articulate the strategy in their own words without losing its essence?”

Less than 3 out of 10 participants answered “yes” to that question (28.6% to be precise).

Think about that. In the vast majority of companies, the team doesn’t know what the strategy really is.

It gets worse. Another question asks:

“Are team members able to independently translate the strategy into actions without having to consult leadership?”

21.4% answered “yes” to that one.

In 4 out of 5 companies, the team doesn’t understand what the strategy means for the everyday choices they need to make.

I bet that’s hardly a surprise for you.

But then again, if the gap is so obvious, why does it persist?

It’s certainly not because leaders don’t care.
Or because teams are incapable.

It’s because communicating a strategy to make it actionable actually takes more effort than most of us realize.

As leaders, we know the strategy inside out. It’s obvious to us. It’s tempting to assume that communicating it will be just as straightforward.

But it’s not. To the team, it isn’t obvious.
The language of the boardroom just doesn’t cut it.

We need to speak their language, make it actionable, and find heartfelt words that transcend the dry & corporate language of most strategy documents.

Here’s the good news: this is solvable.

It’s why I wrote “The PATH to Strategic Impact” … to give you the tools to bridge the gap and turn your team into a strategic force.

If you want 2025 to be the year your strategy finally makes an impact, the holidays might be the perfect time to give it a read. (It’s a short read and very actionable with plenty of case studies and extensive online resources to get you started.)

You’ve already done the hard part—building the strategy. Now it’s time to make it work.

PS: Want to quickly assess how your communication stacks up? Here’s the 2-minute self-assessment.

Cleaning up the mess

Let’s say it straight: The world of strategy can be messy.
But your communication should not reflect that mess.

I mean, organizations of more than a handful of people are inherently complex.

With many balls to juggle, difficult decisions to make, and diverging interests to balance.

On top of that, the world is changing fast, which turns business success into a moving target.

Decisions need to be made swiftly despite incomplete information, competing interests, and uncertain outcomes, considering an arsenal of factors in ever-changing conditions.

Here are four ways to clean up the mess:

Plain and Simple Communication
Strip away the jargon and complexity. Make the message easy to grasp and impossible to misunderstand. If it’s not simple, it won’t spread.

Actionable Focus
A strategy is meaningless without making clear which actions follow from it. Focus on what people can do to move forward, not just the bold vision they should aspire to.

Transformative Resonance
Encourage bold moves. You’re not going to make a difference with baby steps. Your words need to inspire the leaps.

Heartfelt Connection
When your strategy aligns business goals with the personal their goals of the team, it unlocks their full potential.

Or, in short: light the PATH!

How 2 Transformative Words Skyrocketed a Business

Who doesn’t love bold success stories?

The leader who inspired a movement.
The team that turned a company around.
The strategy that changed everything.

It seldom works.

But Alcoa’s story is truly remarkable.

It’s the story of how two words turned a struggling company completely around – leading to staggering results.

And it’s absolutely the stuff Hollywood movies are made of: They were laughed at, only to prove everyone wrong.

It’s a bit longer than usual so I put it into a short PDF. Download Alcoa’s story here as a free download. It’s totally worth your time.

PS: This is the final of a series of four case studies, one for each of the four PATH principles. Download all of them here.

A costly myth

There’s a costly myth out there: That the best strategies are intellectually dense and complex.

But here’s the truth about strategy:
→ It’s not a measure of intelligence.
→ It’s a measure of action.

You don’t judge a strategy on how brilliant it looks on paper. You judge it on how well it guides people’s actions.

Which is why communication plays such a crucial role.
But one that’s often treated as an afterthought.
(If at all.)

As Alex M H Smith writes in the foreword to my book:

‘A well-communicated bad strategy is a hell of a lot better than a poorly communicated good one.’

He’s absolutely right.

Forgive me for being direct here, but great strategies don’t make an impact through what they were supposed to do when they were presented in glossy PowerPoints. They live through the actions people actually take.

The problem is often not the strategy itself.
They are indeed brilliant, smart, intelligently created.

It’s that they’re not communicated clearly enough.

Which means that all the hard work that went into creating the strategy is wasted.

Because – let’s face it – a strategy that isn’t understood, embraced, and acted upon, might just as well not exist.

The best strategies are the ones that light the PATH for everyone involved to take action.

PS: In my new book “The PATH to Strategic Impact”, you’ll learn how some of the world’s most successful businesses communicated their strategies for maximum impact – and how you can do the same.

How to find the one line that makes your strategy unforgettable

The most impactful teams are often aligned around a single, powerful idea – what I like to call a Core Credo.

Here’s how you can find yours.

Step 1: One Thing, Not Everything – What’s the Non-Negotiable?

Most leaders try to capture everything in their strategy – every detail, every priority – but that’s how you end up with abstract language that no one remembers or follows.

Your Core Credo’s job isn’t to capture everything. It’s the anchor for your idea in your mind. It expresses the spirit of the strategy, the true core. What’s that one thing that, if you get it right, will make the biggest difference?”

Example: For a company who thinks they can win by being the most efficient operator in their industry, the essence might be to ‘move fast.’ Not ‘be innovative,’ not ‘explore every option’—just ‘move fast.’

Ask yourself, ‘If I could only communicate one thing to everyone on the team, what would it be?’ That’s your starting point.

Step 2: If They Can’t See It, It’s Not There

A Core Credo isn’t meant to be clever or cryptic. It’s got to be so clear that anyone, anywhere on the team, gets it immediately.

Example: When Southwest created their Core Credo, they didn’t choose a fancy statement about efficiency. They weren’t satisfied by a fuzzy statement like “move fast”. They chose two clear and powerful words: ‘Wheels Up!’

These two words capture the strategy in a way everyone can visualize. When the wheels of a plane go up, it’s visual proof that the job is done. It’s a line that’s impossible to miss.

Try saying your Core Credo out loud. If it takes you longer than a few seconds, or you feel the need to explain it, it’s too complicated. Simplify it until it clicks. Think of it like the refrain of a song everyone loves – a few words that are simple, strong, and easy to pass along.

Step 3: Does It Make Decisions Easier—Or Just Sound Good?

A Core Credo’s job is to guide choices, not to sound good. Think of it like this: When a team member faces a tough call, your Core Credo should give them an intuition for what’s right.

Example: Southwest’s Core Credo, ‘Wheels Up,’ wasn’t just catchy. It made decisions easier at every level, from how fast crews worked at the gate to how leaders planned routes. Every choice aligned with getting those wheels up in the air.

To test yours, imagine situations your team faces every day. Would your Core Credo make the choice clear? If it doesn’t, refine it until it does.

—

Crafting a Core Credo isn’t easy, but get it right, and you’ll have something more powerful than any strategy document. You’ll have a guiding light, clear and memorable like a refrain that
 everyone knows by heart and that
 becomes part of your company’s DNA.

There’s more on the Core Credo in my book ‘The PATH to Strategic Impact’.

Spread the Word

Picture of Dr. Michael Gerharz

Dr. Michael Gerharz