🍣 This is the real test of your knowledge
Launching Sunday Strategy Shortcuts has revived my appreciation for smart books.
On the one hand, i love the way they can shortcut my knowledge of something.
On the other, let's be real: books are only one way into what true knowledge is.
Bruce Dickinson, of Iron Maiden fame, once said this on a podcast:
Ain't that the truth. And yet, this isn't how we think about our jobs. We assume all we need is second hand exposure.
I often describe knowledge in two ways:
- You know it in your brain
- You know it in your bones
Knowing in your brain is done through gatekeepers. You see part by part.
Google planning. PDF planning. ChatGPT planning (to an extent). Social listening.
Knowing in your bones is done through gestalt. You see the wider pattern.
First hand experience. First party qual and quant. Observing behaviour. Lived reality.
Of course, you need a mix of the two because of business constraints.
But the real question is the ratio we encourage in ourselves and others.
How often do you write strategy based on what's in your brain?
How often do you do it based on what's deep in your bones?
How can you make those ratios work harder?
The real test of your knowledge isn't just how intelligently you can talk about it.
It's in how intensely you feel it as you do.
Salmon Theory, by Rob Estreitinho
Helping savvy strategists swim upstream.
Hey friend – Rob here. This is the last newsletter of the year, and goodness me what a year it's been. I was made redundant. I started a business. I lost my mother. I had my best year ever in terms of cash and confidence building. Ebbs and flows, eh? I hope you have a chance to take a break, genuinely turn off those notifications, and sleep in if you feel like it. I bring below 3x articles i wrote recently, and an event we're running in January. See you in 2025, and thanks for supporting...
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