Every business leader should read this quote about Strategy from Michael Porter on a weekly basis.

“The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.”

This makes the same point as the Steve Jobs quotation: “Focus comes from saying no to a thousand things to make sure we don’t get on the wrong track or try to do too much.”

I won’t repeat all the same points again. Take a look at that quotation. But I’ll add one more: business leaders have to be aware of what their companies are capable of. They have to know when they’re asking too much. They have to know when the next project will shift everything from great to mediocre.

And I’ll repeat one of my favourite sayings: Projects are like bridges: totally pointless until they’re 100% complete. Don’t try to build ten bridges at once.