The Strategic Blind Spot
One of the most common traps leaders fall into - especially those who rose through the ranks by being strong doers - is mistaking the how for the what. They dive into the tactical weeds, detailing execution before aligning their teams around the bigger picture. This not only creates confusion, but also undermines buy-in, accountability, and momentum.
The What
- The vision
- The outcome
- The strategic direction
The How
- The implementation
- The methods
- The tools and processes used to get there
Both matter—but confusing the two is a recipe for stalled initiatives and disengaged teams.
Why Leaders Get Sucked Into the How
- Comfort zone: It’s easier to talk about tools, timelines, and steps than to face ambiguity or sell a vision.
- Fear of failure: Obsessing over details gives the illusion of control.
- Urgency bias: Quick wins and deliverables feel more tangible than alignment or clarity.
- Background as experts: Many leaders were promoted for being excellent executors. Old habits linger.
When leaders default to how before earning agreement on what, they lose the forest for the trees. The result?
Resistance. Misalignment. Shallow execution.
And when things fail, teams say: “I never really understood why we were doing this in the first place.”
Define and Sell the What First
A compelling what rallies people. It answers:
- What are we solving?
- Why does it matter?
- What does success look like?
- What changes for the customer, the company, or the team?
This is where vision, strategy, and storytelling come in. Leaders must spend time painting the picture before prescribing the brushstrokes.
“Leaders who lead well start with clarity. They involve their teams in refining the what, and then, once alignment is secured, they collaborate on the how.”
Warning Signs You’re Stuck in the How
- You’re getting lost in workflows, tools, or templates while the goal remains fuzzy.
- Team members ask “Why are we doing this?” halfway through a project.
- You keep iterating execution plans, but nothing feels “right.”
- You’re frustrated that people “don’t get it.”
Flip the Pattern
Pause
Step back from the tactics.
Reframe
Ask yourself—what is the transformation we want?
Clarify
Distill the message into a compelling “why now.”
Engage
Communicate the what clearly, consistently, and repeatedly.
Then co-design the how: Bring in experts, managers, and teams to operationalize.
In Summary
Leadership is not about having all the answers—it’s about asking the right questions.
The what inspires. The how empowers. Great leaders do both, but they always start with the what.
Don’t rush to the how before you’ve earned agreement on the what. That’s not just a project risk—it’s a leadership failure.