Maybe your strategy is failing because you don’t have anything worth executing, suggests Freek Vermeulen in Many Strategies Fail Because They’re Not Actually Strategies. Or maybe it’s because your strategy isn’t really a strategy at all, but rather an objective you hope to achieve or a barrier you want to overcome or a list of your priorities:

Many so-called strategies are in fact goals. “We want to be the number one or number two in all the markets in which we operate” is one of those. It does not tell you what you are going to do; all it does is tell you what you hope the outcome will be. But you’ll still need a strategy to achieve it.

Vermeulen’s post isn’t written for lawyers, but it will remind them that while “getting more automotive work” may be their objective, it is not a strategy they can execute. What’s more, his insight into the elements of a meaningful strategy will help you understand how to make yours successful. Read it, then get planning. You’ll be glad you did.