📚 3 Books on Strategy, Impact & Vision
Strategy begins in your head. And in everyday life. Here are my 3 book tips on strategic thinking: From observation to clear positioning and bold forward thinking. For better marketing.
Hi 👋 I’m Florian Schleicher. This is the FutureStrategies newsletter. Thank you so much for reading along 💚
Really good strategy projects start with a change of perspective.
A new point of view.
An "I've never seen it like this before" moment that sets everything in motion.
That's why I love books that do just that.
That get by without buzzwords.
That ask uncomfortable questions - and provide practical answers.
So if you're looking for inspiration for your summer reading list about marketing and strategies - here it is:
Three books that show that strategic thinking doesn't originate in an ivory tower - but in everyday life.
In close observation.
In clear positioning.
And in thinking boldly ahead.
Because strategy is not a PowerPoint - it is a way of thinking that provides orientation and creates direction.
1️⃣ Lead from the Future by Mark W. Johnson & Josh Suskewicz
Perfect for:
Managers, strategists, innovation managers.
Shows why and how vision guides action - not just inspires.
Johnson & Suskewicz show how to move from vision to a clear plan - instead of getting stuck in day-to-day business.
A strategic book - in the best sense of the word.
The subtitle "How to Turn Visionary Thinking Into Breakthrough Growth" says it all in this book, which quickly became one of my favorite strategic books.
While other books explain how to solve problems, this one shows how to think about the future. And not as a vision poster. But as an entrepreneurial discipline: planning backwards from the future.
„Most companies are trapped in today. Visionary companies act from the future.“
Mark W. Johnson & Josh Suskewicz
For me, the book is a good counterpart to the reality of short-term reactivity, which is unfortunately often characterized by quarterly reports and marketing meetings. It encourages long-term thinking - an absolute necessity for good strategy work.
Our coming decade will be far too turbulent for conventional, present-oriented marketing strategies. Marketing managers, CEOs, sustainability managers and innovation managers need to look back from the future, but act now.
A good add-on: The book is full of real case studies from companies such as Amazon or Nestlé and makes it clear how to think in scenarios, translate them into business models - and derive growth from them.
I have been using the future-back process in my marketing and strategy workshops for some time now. The examples in the book have helped me to refine my own method.
2️⃣ Do/Interesting: Notice. Collect. Share. by Russell Davies
