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# Kelford Labs Daily: Is the opposite silly?
- URL: https://kelfordinc.com/kelford-labs-daily-is-the-opposite-silly/
- Published: 2023-12-05T11:24:05.000Z
- Updated: 2026-01-27T17:22:51.000Z
- Description: Making real choices.
- Author: Joel Kelly
- Tags: Daily Labs, books, strategy, position, different, decision

*“My test for whether a stated choice is actually a strategic choice is whether or not the opposite of the choice is stupid on its face.*

*For example, the opposite of the choice to be customer-centric is to ignore customers entirely, which is stupid on its face.*

*Since strategy is the act of making distinctive choices that position your organization uniquely to win, by definition a choice the opposite of which is stupid on its face is not a strategy choice.”* — [Roger Martin](https://medium.com/the-innovation/is-the-opposite-of-your-choice-stupid-on-its-face-5b247ffd7f94)

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**This is why being “better” is not a strategy. Because nobody is claiming to be worse.**

If the opposite of our strategy, our position, or our advertising claim doesn’t make sense—or is downright silly—it shows we’re not actually making a choice.

We’re just making noise.

But if someone else could stake out the opposite position, the opposite strategy, or make the opposite claims, *then* we have something.

***We’ve* made a choice, which means the *customer* gets to make a choice.**

Which means we can be the *very best* option for someone in particular.

Not just vaguely “better”, but truly unique.

**By making choices that set us apart.**

🧠

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