By Liu Liu — in conversation with Agnieszka Rachwał-Müller

When I first sat down with Agnieszka Rachwał-Müller to talk about leadership, one theme kept resurfacing: strategic thinking—and how often it’s misunderstood.

“A lot of people still associate strategy with groundbreaking innovation,” Agnieszka said. “But that’s not necessarily where real strategy lives.”

She’s right. When most people hear the word strategy, they think of something bold and revolutionary. The word evokes images of breakthrough inventions, blue-sky innovation, or the pressure to “come up with something completely new.” I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard leaders, when asked to craft a strategy, respond with: “I have to think of something no one’s ever done before!”

But that’s a fundamental misunderstanding of what strategic thinking really is.

What Strategic Thinking Is Not

Let me be clear: strategic thinking is not about novelty for novelty’s sake. It’s not about locking yourself in a room until you dream up the next iPhone or a moonshot idea no one saw coming. Strategic thinking isn’t about being clever in isolation or forcing originality to prove your value.

In fact, truly effective strategy is rarely about invention—it’s about intelligent integration. The best strategic thinkers don’t try to reinvent the wheel; they improve the wheel’s performance by understanding how it fits into a broader system.

Strategy Begins With Awareness

For me, being strategic starts with a kind of deep attentiveness. You can’t craft a meaningful strategy without a realistic understanding of your environment.

That means observing:

• What’s happening around you
• What resources you have
• What talents your people bring
• What external forces or trends are shaping the space you operate in

Great strategic leaders don’t just daydream about the future—they pay close attention to the present. They connect dots, see patterns, and identify opportunities not because they invent everything, but because they notice what others miss.

Steve Jobs: A Strategic Synthesizer

Take Steve Jobs, for instance—a name nearly synonymous with innovation. But contrary to the myth, Jobs didn’t invent most of the core technologies behind the iPhone or iPod. Touchscreens, portable music players, mobile internet—those things already existed.

Jobs’ genius lay in how he combined them. He took the puzzle pieces that were already on the table and arranged them in a way no one else had. That’s strategic synthesis. It’s not about creating from thin air—it’s about purposeful design.

Strategy Is a Human-Centric, Collaborative Act

As I shared with Agnieszka, real strategic thinking is inherently collaborative. It’s less about being a visionary loner and more about being a curator of ideas, talents, and perspectives.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned working across global teams, it’s that strategy emerges through conversation, diversity of thought, and shared learning. It’s a team sport. The most powerful strategies I’ve seen were shaped by collective intelligence, not by a single “Eureka!” moment.

The Do’s and Don’ts of Strategic Thinking

To help ground this conversation in something practical, Agnieszka and I mapped out a few core principles—simple, actionable do’s and don’ts of strategic thinking.

DO: 

Observe and Listen Deeply

Strategic thinkers start with awareness. They listen more than they talk. They tune into internal team dynamics, customer behaviors, and subtle signals from the environment. Insight begins in silence.

Connect the Dots

Look at what’s already present. Patterns, relationships, and intersections between existing resources often contain the seeds of your strategy. It’s all about seeing how things fit together.

Build on What Works

You don’t have to scrap everything. Start with your existing strengths, trusted systems, and successful partnerships. Reinvent where needed—but evolve from a strong foundation.

Align with the Bigger Picture

Every tactical move should ladder up to your long-term vision. Ask: Does this decision align with our mission? Does it help us move forward sustainably?

Leverage Collective Intelligence

Involve people from different functions, geographies, and backgrounds. The richness of strategy often comes from what you didn’t know you didn’t know.

DON’T: 

Chase Novelty for Its Own Sake

New isn’t always better. Resist the urge to force innovation where it’s not needed. Ask: Is this truly strategic, or just shiny?

Work in Isolation

No one creates a great strategy alone. Don’t disappear to write a 50-slide deck by yourself. Strategy should be co-authored by those who will own and implement it.

Rely on Assumptions

Just because something worked in the past doesn’t mean it will again. Re-examine your assumptions with fresh eyes and updated data.

Get Caught in the Short-Term

Fixing problems isn’t the same as being strategic. If you’re only solving today’s issues, you’re managing—not strategizing.

Overcomplicate Things

A strategy doesn’t need to be convoluted. In fact, clarity is a competitive advantage. Keep it simple, structured, and focused on impact.

Strategic Thinking in Leadership

Today, “strategy” gets tossed around a lot—it’s a word that appears in almost every job description and leadership handbook. But unless we really define what we mean, we risk turning it into a buzzword instead of a practice.

To me, strategic thinking is about more than smart plans—it’s about wise choices. It’s about stepping back to look at the whole system, listening with intention, and moving forward with purpose.

As Agnieszka put it:

“The most effective leaders aren’t the ones with the flashiest ideas—they’re the ones who know how to use what’s already there and turn it into something that moves the needle.”

That’s what real strategic thinking is.

Final Thoughts: Purpose Over Novelty

If you take just one thing away from this conversation, let it be this: strategy is not about being original—it’s about being intentional.

You don’t need to invent the future from scratch. You need to design it—with what you already have, with the people you already trust, and with the deep awareness that comes from seeing clearly.

Because at the end of the day, the most powerful strategies don’t scream “Look how new I am!” They quietly, confidently say: “This is where we’re going—and here’s how we’ll get there.”