As evening reading goes, I often find myself immersed in business literature rather than culinary books. While I can easily whip up a Sunday roast, lengthy ingredient lists tend to overwhelm me.

The recipes that appeal to me are those that keep things straightforward. This aligns with my perspective on business strategy: if you complicate it, you risk losing focus. The formula for success should be concise enough to be summarized in 20 words or fewer, requiring you and your team to collaboratively address three key strategic questions.

First, identify what you value most about your work — the core purpose that drives both you and your business. Next, determine what you believe you can excel at globally or at least within the UK — the unique attribute that distinguishes you and captures the attention of your target audience. Finally, consider how to integrate these elements to create a profitable venture; in essence, what fuels your business economically?

Your strategy should emerge from the intersection of these three insights, and thorough discussion will enhance its quality. Once established, distill your collective strategy into a 20-word mantra that resonates with everyone in your organization, making it easy to remember, communicate, and act upon.

Recently, we undertook this exercise at the Business Leader network, formulating our strategy as: “We inspire our founder and CEO members to accelerate their growth through curated learning and exclusive content.” While this guiding principle seems straightforward, crafting it was far from easy. My journey with HomeServe is marred by missteps rooted in my zeal for chasing every good idea, detracting from a focused strategic approach.

I realize now that I should have invested more time in defining our strategic direction rather than diving into new initiatives, like partnering with retailers for furniture warranties or launching smart home devices to rival Google Nest. These ventures faltered because they strayed from our successful core strategy: a home-assistance membership model supported by recurring subscriptions and credible partnerships with utility brands to facilitate international expansion.

In retrospect, I should have heeded the advice of AG Lafley, former CEO of Procter & Gamble, who authored the insightful book, Playing To Win, which emphasizes the importance of making clear strategic choices for competitive advantage, helping consumers recognize your brand, and pinpointing your focus and resource needs.

Once a strategy is set, your team needs to further refine it by crafting a single-page list of critical do’s and don’ts — the operational practices that will bring your strategy to life.

At HomeServe, we drew inspiration from Southwest Airlines, whose innovative low-cost strategy has influenced many in the industry, including easyJet and Jet2. We analyzed their “recipe card,” which outlined essential commitments rather than mere tactics. For instance, Southwest operated only Boeing 737s, simplifying maintenance and operations by eliminating in-flight meals and assigned seating. This straightforward philosophy resonated with us: avoid overextending and diluting your focus. Maintain a habit of reassessing whether activities align with your strategy; if they don’t, eliminate them and keep an ongoing not-to-do list.

Moreover, the durability of Southwest’s recipe card, developed in 1978 and adhered to for nearly three decades with few modifications, illustrates the strength of a well-formed foundational strategy that gradually adapts over time.

For a strategy to be effective, it should be simple and adaptable as it evolves during execution. Consistent fundamental shifts in your business model indicate potential issues.

Throughout the past decade as a public entity, HomeServe has modified less than 20 percent of its core strategy and recipe card, maintaining significant consistency. This disciplined approach has enabled us to implement our strategy effectively and cohesively. If you find yourself altering more than a fifth of your strategic direction, it’s a sign of a lack of focus.

Before this point, your business model should have undergone enough trial and refinement. There’s no need for radical transformation; instead, strive for continuous evolution, akin to Apple’s trajectory following Steve Jobs’ passing in 2011. Despite concerns about Apple’s innovation post-Jobs, the company succeeded in evolving its offerings with AirPods, smartwatches, and cloud services based on a solid foundational strategy.

An exemplary retail success story, Next, owes much of its growth — with shares rising 45 percent in the past year — to Lord Simon Wolfson’s ability to adapt the company from physical stores to online and now offering distribution for other fashion labels. Like us at HomeServe, they have embraced a gradual process of adaptation and learning; in our case, we shifted towards replacing boilers rather than solely providing breakdown insurance. It’s essential to strike a balance between strategy and execution — too much focus on execution leads to busywork, while excessive strategic contemplation breeds indecisiveness. I recommend a 50-50 approach: establish your strategy first, execute it, and then continue to evolve and implement iteratively. When executing, ensure that every employee understands the priorities. Reflect on whether all staff members are familiar with the succinct strategy statement, as this knowledge equips them to make sense of their roles. In our international efforts, we localized certain aspects while ensuring that our core strategy and frameworks remain consistent. Ultimately, similar to a well-crafted recipe, your strategy should be universally applicable regardless of your location.

Richard Harpin is the founder and chairman of HomeServe and Growth Partner.