Think for yourself
See more clearly
Make better decisions
Live on your own terms
Speaking
Training
No buzzwords. No | bullshit.
I’m Alicia McKay: writer, speaker, and straight-talking strategist. I help readers, leaders, Councils, and conferences be more strategic.
Read my essays, book me to speak, or check out the Not An MBA leadership programme.
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New this week
Latest · Wednesday 11 November
Don't waste my time with 100%
Completion and quality are negotiable variables
I've always admired a CEO who would respond to Councillor requests with: 'Would you like an A, B, or C job done of that?'
Genius: making quality a variable. I've shared this gem with leaders for years now, and perfectionists (once they stop clutching their pearls) are delighted at the permission slip to do things shitly sometimes.
Yesterday in a training workshop, I learned about someone who specifies how "done" they need something before they see it next: 25%, 50%, 80% etc. Their catchphrase:
'Don't waste my time with 100%'
I am delighted to add this to my arsenal.
This is great for the people doing the work, who don't need to panic about making everything perfect behind the scenes, going to effort the receiver couldn't possibly notice or value. They're less likely to push themselves too hard to meet a deadline, or leave others hanging.
It's also great for the people waiting on the work, who have a clearer understanding of what they're waiting on, and their expectations in the right place. It's frustrating to ask someone for help, then get something back that's way off-base.
Negotiating quality and completion puts you on the same page and right-sizes the pressure you put on yourself or others. Marvellous. Give it a crack.
Til next week,
AM
About Alicia McKay
I’m a former foster kid, teen mum, and high school dropout who talked my way into university at 17.
Since then I’ve worked with over 120 organisations and some of New Zealand and Australia’s most senior leaders, written three books, trained thousands of people in strategic skills, and facilitated strategic change at places like Auckland Council and Crown Law.
These days I read, write, and teach. I read over 100 books a year, have written Wednesday Wisdom each week since 2018, and graduated 500+ leaders through Not An MBA.
From foster care to own boss: how a teen mum defied the odds. — NZ Herald, 2025
My philosophy
Strategy isn't something you have. | It's something you do.
I love strategy. It's the underdog's greatest asset! But corporate culture has ruined it with buzzwords and documents. Bleurgh. Strategy isn't a thing; it's a behaviour. Dream big, get clear on what matters to you, then turn your ideas into reality through aligned daily choices. Simple (but not always easy.)
Everything you'll find here - essays, tools, videos, and training - will help you become more strategic. Think for yourself, see more clearly, make better decisions, and live on your own terms.
“When the world feels like it’s being driven off a cliff, Alicia helps you grab the wheel.” Michael Sharpe, reader
Writing
I read widely, think deeply, and write plainly.
I've been reading and writing my way to sense since I was a kid. When I'm facing a tricky problem or the noise in my head is too loud, I pick up a book, go down a rabbit hole, and put it on the page. A few years ago, I realised this wasn't just a weird quirk, but one of the most valuable things I had to offer.
Strategy and writing are the same sort of job. Both of them start with a hunch or a question, both get messier before they make sense, and both make the world feel more manageable by the end. I bring the same skills to my essays as I do to my workshops: digging into context, asking curly questions, sorting through what matters, and deciding what to do with it.
My writing brings together my professional experience, bogan voice, and manic nerdery to put a complex world into plain English.
Wednesday Wisdom
A free weekly newsletter on strategy, systems, work, and society. Every Wednesday since 2018.
Friday Flurry
For paid members. A behind-the-scenes peek into what I’m reading, thinking about, and working on, every second Friday.
These are a drop of sanity and therapy for me on days when I am on edge. — Idil Kaplan
Your analysis always makes me think, while being really readable and direct. Thank you! — James Adams
You keep it real, there’s no BS. Every time I read one of your emails, I’m like ‘Yes!!!’ The topics you cover are interesting, relevant, and you get my mind cranking. — Sam Hope
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Weekly ideas about strategy, systems, work, and society. Read by over 11,000 people.
An eight-week live online course for experienced leaders working in complex, changing systems. Learn the five skills of strategic leadership from You Don’t Need An MBA.
By the end, students:
- Respond more confidently to change and uncertainty.
- Set firmer boundaries around their time and energy.
- Make better, smarter decisions.
- Tackle systemic issues in their organisations.
- Lead more authentically and with greater passion.
More than 500 senior professionals have graduated from Not An MBA since 2021, from councils and government to construction, banking, FMCG, science, and tech.
Not An MBA shifted my thinking to be wider than me and my team, to think at an organisational level. I needed this course. I wish I had enrolled earlier. — Veronique Gibbons, Pinnacle Midland Health Network
Books
Three books on strategy, change, and leadership.
From Strategy to Action
You Don't Need An MBA
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