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Start Own Move: A Wake Up Guide for Strategic Leaders
Start Own Move is not just a book — it’s your wake-up call.
In a world of relentless transformation, complexity, and distraction, leaders often find themselves overwhelmed by strategy fatigue and execution gaps. This guide strips back the noise and focuses on what truly momentum, ownership, and clarity.
Inside, you’ll
Why leadership behaviour — not just planning — defines execution
How to build rhythm and resilience into your strategy cycles
Practical tools to convert frameworks into daily habits
Real stories from the boardroom to the shop floor
A step-by-step path to embed cultural ownership of strategy
This is a book for leaders ready to reclaim direction, inspire action — and ignite transformation — without waiting for permission.
In a world of relentless transformation, complexity, and distraction, leaders often find themselves overwhelmed by strategy fatigue and execution gaps. This guide strips back the noise and focuses on what truly momentum, ownership, and clarity.
Inside, you’ll
Why leadership behaviour — not just planning — defines execution
How to build rhythm and resilience into your strategy cycles
Practical tools to convert frameworks into daily habits
Real stories from the boardroom to the shop floor
A step-by-step path to embed cultural ownership of strategy
This is a book for leaders ready to reclaim direction, inspire action — and ignite transformation — without waiting for permission.
135 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 30, 2025
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About the author
Robert Smith
1,409 books8 followersLibrarian Note: There are more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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November 19, 2025
“Strategy without #execution is hallucination." — Bill Walsh
It's no coincidence that I turned the final pages of Robert Smith's book, 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘖𝘸𝘯 𝘔𝘰𝘷𝘦, as I was explaining to my #business #strategy students the challenges of transitioning from formulating a strategy to bring your big ideas to fruition to actually executing that strategy. Those of us who have earned our keep as strategists know that all too often, everything falls apart with high fives over the conference (or board) room table.
Been there, done that, got the scars to show for it.
Smith’s 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘖𝘸𝘯 𝘔𝘰𝘷𝘦 is a timely and energizing guide for leaders at any level who share the knowledge — and pain — of being bogged down by constant change, strategy fatigue, and the barrier between planning and execution. The concept is deceptively simple — but its ideas hit hard. Smith argues that leadership is not just about making plans; it’s about behavior, ownership, and building sustainable momentum. You know... like Kotter tried to tell us.
A core tenet of the book is 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆. Smith emphasizes that real progress comes when individuals and teams don’t just accept strategy as a top-down plan, but take ownership of it, embedding its purpose into daily habits and decision-making.
This leads to his second major theme: 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗿𝗵𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗺 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲. Smith encourages leaders to build rhythm into their cycles — regular check-ins, quick wins, and a steady cadence that keeps the energy fueling execution alive.
Finally, he underscores 𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆. Strategy is already complex enough. Adding to that complexity only makes matters worse. Cutting through complexity to focus on the actions that matter, turning high-level frameworks into concrete behaviors, not just idealistic goals.
It’s not enough to craft your brilliant ideas into equally brilliant schemes — leaders have to own execution, build the muscle memory of habit, and drive cultural change that drives toward attainable goals. As Smith writes, “Strategy isn’t a phase. It’s a leadership behavior—lived continuously."
𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘖𝘸𝘯 𝘔𝘰𝘷𝘦 was a timely addition to my bookshelf. Great book that addresses a painfully familiar subject.
It's no coincidence that I turned the final pages of Robert Smith's book, 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘖𝘸𝘯 𝘔𝘰𝘷𝘦, as I was explaining to my #business #strategy students the challenges of transitioning from formulating a strategy to bring your big ideas to fruition to actually executing that strategy. Those of us who have earned our keep as strategists know that all too often, everything falls apart with high fives over the conference (or board) room table.
Been there, done that, got the scars to show for it.
Smith’s 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘖𝘸𝘯 𝘔𝘰𝘷𝘦 is a timely and energizing guide for leaders at any level who share the knowledge — and pain — of being bogged down by constant change, strategy fatigue, and the barrier between planning and execution. The concept is deceptively simple — but its ideas hit hard. Smith argues that leadership is not just about making plans; it’s about behavior, ownership, and building sustainable momentum. You know... like Kotter tried to tell us.
A core tenet of the book is 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆. Smith emphasizes that real progress comes when individuals and teams don’t just accept strategy as a top-down plan, but take ownership of it, embedding its purpose into daily habits and decision-making.
This leads to his second major theme: 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗿𝗵𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗺 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲. Smith encourages leaders to build rhythm into their cycles — regular check-ins, quick wins, and a steady cadence that keeps the energy fueling execution alive.
Finally, he underscores 𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆. Strategy is already complex enough. Adding to that complexity only makes matters worse. Cutting through complexity to focus on the actions that matter, turning high-level frameworks into concrete behaviors, not just idealistic goals.
It’s not enough to craft your brilliant ideas into equally brilliant schemes — leaders have to own execution, build the muscle memory of habit, and drive cultural change that drives toward attainable goals. As Smith writes, “Strategy isn’t a phase. It’s a leadership behavior—lived continuously."
𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘖𝘸𝘯 𝘔𝘰𝘷𝘦 was a timely addition to my bookshelf. Great book that addresses a painfully familiar subject.
Displaying 1 of 1 review