Over two decades of working across industries and markets, I’ve seen a truth that transcends business: people bring their human nature into their work—with all its habits, biases, and behaviours. The same fears, shortcuts, and aspirations that appear in personal lives also manifest in the professional world, whether we’re aware of it or not.

The corporate need to silo, specialize, and compartmentalize everything—while well-intentioned—often leads to fragmentation, confusion, and, ultimately, redundancy. The problem? Siloed thinking strips work of its most essential layer: human truth. This over-specialization creates positioning frameworks and templates that look clean on paper but fail in practice.

I’ve worked primarily with CEOs and founders—the people tasked with creating something entirely new. These are ambitious, sharp, and visionary leaders who, ironically, often struggle to articulate what they feel in their gut. They know something, sense it, but can’t name it.

This is where frameworks fail, and textbooks fall short. Because positioning—at its deepest level—isn’t just about “strategy” or “market fit.” It’s about understanding people: their identity, vision for the future, and place in the world.

To do this well, I’ve learned you can’t start with theory. You must start with empathy. You meet them as humans first:

• You understand their context—who they are, what shaped them, and what drives them.
• You ask what they’re building—not just a product but a new reality they want to bring to life.
• You see the problem not as “business” but as behaviour: Why do they feel stuck? What trade-offs are they avoiding? What truths are they resisting?

For the nerds, in science, we call this a human-centred approach. Research in behavioural economics and neuroscience tells us that personal and professional decisions are driven by emotions and intuition first, then rationalized later.

Nobel Prize-winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman describes this in Thinking, Fast and Slow: humans operate primarily in “System 1”—the fast, intuitive, emotional mind. Business frameworks cater to “System 2”—the slow, logical, deliberate mind. However, positioning that resonates requires us to bridge the two: to connect emotionally and clarify rationally.

Empathy and deep human understanding also unlock clarity. It’s why great positioning often feels obvious in hindsight—like Red Bull is performance or Tesla is the future. These aren’t mechanical constructs from frameworks; they’re intuitive truths rooted in understanding human identity and aspiration.

Positioning begins here: not with spreadsheets or stakeholder matrices, but with people—understanding them deeply enough to capture what they couldn’t articulate themselves. I’ve seen time and again that when you connect with founders’ vision and identity at a personal level, you can help them own territory in the mind.

In a world of corporate silos, performative strategy, and jargon-laden frameworks, we need to return to this first principle: humans first, business second. Only then can positioning move beyond theory into something living, resonant, and real.

We’ve all experienced moments where we act out of alignment with our values—saying one thing, doing another, and feeling the discomfort it creates. Businesses, made up of humans, struggle with the same tension.

This brings us to a deeper truth: most businesses—and the people leading them—struggle to see themselves clearly. In the noise of frameworks, benchmarks, and tactical fixes, they lose sight of what they fundamentally are. It’s not for lack of effort or intelligence; it’s because introspection is hard.

Human nature prefers action over reflection. The discomfort of confronting identity—of deciding what you will be and, equally, what you will not be—often drives businesses toward surface-level solutions that feel productive but solve nothing.

This is why I keep coming back to a simple but profound idea:

“Remember who you are.”

It’s not just a line from The Lion King; it’s the essence of positioning. True positioning isn’t something you construct; it’s something you uncover. It’s not about what you say—it’s about what you are. When businesses remember this truth, every decision flows naturally, and every action reinforces it.

When I challenged April Dunford, one of the most respected voices in positioning, I stumbled upon something far deeper than the debate about tactics versus strategy. (Also, feel free to dive into the comments on LinkedIn.)

At its heart, this was about identity—not what businesses do, but who they are. Along the way, I uncovered how companies often confuse surface fixes with meaningful progress and why organizational resistance, internal politics, and unnecessary jargon obscure positioning’s most powerful truth.

Let’s get into it.

The Surface vs. The Truth

April Dunford’s frameworks are undeniably useful. They help companies—especially in B2B software—define their value props, identify competitive alternatives, and articulate their market fit. These tactical tools help teams make decisions in real-time.

But positioning isn’t what you do—it’s what you are.

It’s not about clever value propositions or categories. It’s about owning mental territory that shapes every action, decision, and innovation.

Tesla doesn’t “position” cars. They ARE the future of transportation.
Red Bull doesn’t “position” energy drinks. They ARE human performance.
Volvo doesn’t “position” safety features. They ARE safety itself.

Notice how none of these companies need to say it.
Their actions prove it.

As Rory Sutherland puts it, “The problem with logic is it kills off magic. A great brand or a great idea isn’t always the most rational or obvious one—it’s the one that owns a place in people’s minds.”

This is where businesses stumble: they confuse tactical positioning (describing a product) with fundamental positioning (owning a place in the mind). The former is more straightforward to grasp because it’s visible. But positioning done right runs deeper. It’s identity—the core truth that aligns every product, message and move.

What people don’t tell you is they crave certainty and simplicity—even when it’s false. Surface solutions provide comfort because they appear clear and actionable, while deeper truths require discomfort, reflection, and ambiguity.

In relationships, it’s easier to blame surface behaviours (“You don’t text me enough”) than confront root causes of disconnection (“We’ve grown apart because we’ve changed as people”). Like tactical positioning, focusing on surface issues feels actionable but ignores the fundamental question: What do we want to be for each other?

So why does this fit? Just as relationships require clarity of identity and purpose, businesses need positioning to define what they are—not just fix surface symptoms.

Startups and the Tactical Trap

For startups, especially in the ‘B2B SaaS’ world, the allure of tactical positioning is almost irresistible. The reasons are understandable: early-stage businesses are often resource-strapped, chasing product-market fit, and under immense pressure to demonstrate quick wins to investors. In this environment, frameworks and templates feel like lifesavers—simple, actionable, and fast.

But here’s the catch: tactical positioning only works when it’s rooted in a clear identity. Without a strong foundation, startups risk falling into what I call the “tactical trap.” (Read ‘Uber for X‘)

The tactical trap happens when startups mistake execution for identity. They pour energy into refining their value propositions, building customer personas, or crafting messaging, but these efforts remain surface-level if they’re not tied to a deeper understanding of what the business truly is.

Consider the common startup mantra: “We’ll figure it out as we go.” While agility is important, this mindset can lead to a reactive approach to positioning. Founders pivot messaging to please early customers or mimic competitors, hoping the market will tell them who they are. But markets don’t define businesses—businesses define themselves.

The Cost of Tactical Default

Startups that default to tactical positioning face long-term risks:

1. Fragmented Identity:
   As messaging shifts to suit different audiences, internal alignment erodes. Teams lose sight of what the company stands for, leading to inconsistent decisions across product, marketing, and sales.
2. Market Confusion:
   When a startup tries to be everything to everyone, it fails to own any specific mental territory. Customers can’t differentiate it from competitors, and investors struggle to see its unique value.
3. Misaligned Growth:
   Tactical decisions may drive short-term wins but often create growth paths that conflict with the startup’s true potential. Scaling becomes harder when foundational identity questions remain unanswered.

The Better Path: Identity-Driven Positioning

For startups, the solution isn’t abandoning tactics—it’s anchoring them in identity. Before diving into frameworks, founders must ask:

• Who are we? What’s the core idea or value we want to own in the market’s mind?
• What’s our vision? What future are we creating, and how does this shape everything we do?
• What are we not? What trade-offs are we willing to make to stay true to this vision?

Startups that begin with these questions build a foundation that guides every tactical decision. Instead of pivoting reactively, they grow intentionally. Also, start with what instead of why.

A Startup That Got It Right

Take Slack, for example. In its early days, Slack didn’t position itself as just another workplace communication tool. Instead, it owned the mental territory of “making work life simpler, more pleasant, and more productive.” This identity wasn’t just messaging—it shaped the product’s design, tone of voice, and user experience.

Slack’s focus on simplicity and joy wasn’t a tactic; it was its core identity. This allowed it to resonate deeply with users and build loyalty that extended far beyond its feature set.

A Reminder for Startups

The early days of a startup are chaotic, but they’re also the best time to define who you are. The tactics will follow naturally when identity leads. Tactical positioning is a tool; identity-driven positioning is the compass.

Startups don’t need to know everything, but they must know themselves. Otherwise, they risk getting lost in the noise, chasing short-term wins at the expense of long-term greatness.

The Verb vs. The Noun

During the debate, a critical distinction emerged:

Positioning isn’t a verb—it’s not just something you do.
Positioning is a noun—it’s something you are.

When businesses treat positioning as an exercise—value props, messaging workshops, category design—they reduce it to a tactical action. They check the boxes, follow the framework, and mistake activity for progress.

This creates an illusion of movement. The slides look sharp. The messaging feels clear. But without fundamental alignment around who you are as a business, all that effort remains surface-level.

The map is not the territory.

You can update positioning statements endlessly, but unless the business proves its position through its behaviour, nothing truly changes.

What is happening under the hood? People define themselves through actions instead of identity because it’s easier to do than to be. True identity demands commitment, while action allows flexibility and avoidance of accountability.

Think of someone training for a marathon who says, “I run to stay fit.” Compare that to someone who says, “I’m a runner.” The first sees running as an action, something they do occasionally, while the second sees running as the core of their identity. One view is temporary; the other is enduring.

Businesses that treat positioning as something they “do” are like hobbyist runners. They lack consistency, commitment, and endurance. True positioning—“We are safety,” “We are the future”—is enduring because it’s tied to identity.

Corporate Theater and Performative Progress

Chris Argyris, in his work on Double-Loop Learning, shows how organizations default to surface-level fixes to avoid uncomfortable truths. This happens in positioning all the time.

Here’s what it looks like:

Teams hold positioning workshops that focus on what to say, not who they are.
Leaders demand progress, so teams deliver new slides, new messaging, or new categories.

Everyone looks busy. Boxes get checked. Templates get filled. A deck is uploaded to a digital Narnia never to be seen again.

But beneath the surface, the business remains confused and misaligned. Why? Because the harder questions remain unanswered:

1. What territory do we want to own in the mind?
2. What do we need to stop doing to claim it?
3. How do our actions prove this position every day?

Performative progress feels good because it’s visible, immediate, and safe. Real positioning work—where companies confront trade-offs and embrace specificity—is uncomfortable. It forces leaders to abandon possibilities, say no to opportunities, and take risks.

“Most companies are perfectly designed to get the results they’re currently getting.” – Peter Drucker

Truth is, humans are wired for performance—appearing competent matters as much as being competent. It’s why we polish our resumes, stage perfect Instagram moments, or play roles in social settings. Performative effort provides validation, even when it doesn’t produce real outcomes.

Think of a student who spends hours highlighting notes instead of understanding concepts and feels productive but hasn’t learned anything. Highlighting is corporate theatre for studying—visible effort without actual progress.

In reality, businesses often default to performative positioning (workshops, slick slides) because it feels productive. Real positioning—questioning identity, making trade-offs—is harder, like grappling with the concepts rather than highlighting the textbook.

The Language Trap

Unnecessary jargon compounds the problem. Terms like brand positioning, product positioning, and market positioning dilute simple ideas. There’s no need to add modifiers. Positioning is positioning.

The battlefield is singular: the mind.

As Al Ries, the founder of positioning, said: “Positioning is not what you do to a product. Positioning is what you do to the mind of the prospect.”

When companies overcomplicate positioning with layers of language, they fragment their identity:

• Product teams chase one position.
• Marketing claims another.
• Sales tells a different story.
• Leadership holds yet another vision.

The result? Confusion, misalignment, and a business that struggles to connect with the people it serves.

Positioning should be simple: Who are you, and what concept do you own in the mind? Everything else follows.

“A genius hits a target no one else can see. A poet hits a target everyone can see but no one else can hit.” — Arthur Schopenhauer. Great positioning is like poetry—it’s simple, obvious, and undeniable once you see it.

Overcomplication is a defense mechanism. People use jargon and complex terms to mask insecurity, avoid clarity, or signal expertise. Simplicity, on the other hand, requires confidence and deep understanding.

Philosophers often say, “If you can’t explain it to a child, you don’t understand it yourself.” When someone hides behind terms like “quantum socio-political theory,” they’re often masking confusion. By contrast, Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have a dream” speech used simple language to convey profound truths.

Businesses invent terms like “brand positioning” and “market positioning” to complicate simple ideas. Real positioning, like a great speech, is clear and resonant because it comes from deep understanding.

Action Proves Position

The companies that “get it” don’t just talk about their position—they live it.

• Tesla’s position as the future of transportation drives every choice: EV charging networks, gigafactories, direct-to-consumer sales.
• Red Bull’s position as human performance shows up in everything: extreme sports, record-breaking events, and Formula 1 sponsorships.
• Volvo’s position as safety shapes product design, advertising, and culture.

“You are what you do, not what you say you’ll do.” – Carl Jung

These companies don’t need to say, “We’re the safest,” or “We’re the future.” Their actions make it undeniable. This is what businesses miss when they reduce positioning to messaging. True positioning drives action—and action, in turn, reinforces positioning.

When you know who you are, decisions become effortless. The territory is clear, so every move aligns naturally. Words don’t define who we are—actions do. Humans instinctively trust what people show, not what they say.

Imagine a parent who says, “Family is my priority,” but consistently misses their child’s events sends a clear message. Conversely, someone who rearranges their work schedule, shows up, and spends intentional time demonstrates their true priorities without needing to declare them.

Tesla, Red Bull, and Volvo don’t need to “say” their positions because their actions prove it. Like a committed parent, their behaviour aligns with what they stand for.

The Double-Loop Learning Problem

Why do so many businesses avoid this deeper work? Chris Argyris offers insight: organizations are wired for single-loop learning. They detect surface errors—like weak messaging or unclear categories—and rush to fix them.

But they resist double-loop learning—the process of questioning assumptions, confronting norms, and addressing root causes.

In positioning, this shows up as:

1. Leaders avoiding trade-offs because they fear being “too specific.”
2. Teams prioritizing visible activity (workshops, templates) over deeper alignment.
3. Organizations settling for short-term fixes instead of long-term clarity.
   The irony? Businesses waste more time and energy on surface-level fixes than they would confronting the truth.

People avoid confronting foundational problems because it threatens their identity or forces change. This resistance often comes from fear—fear of failure, rejection, or admitting past mistakes.

Like, someone struggling with weight may jump from diet to diet (surface fixes) without questioning deeper habits or emotional patterns driving their relationship with food. Double-loop learning would require asking: “Why do I eat this way? What am I avoiding or soothing?”

In positioning, businesses jump from one messaging fix to another instead of asking foundational questions: Who are we? What are we willing to sacrifice to own this mental territory? Addressing surface problems avoids the fear of confronting harder truths.

Respect the Tools, But Go Deeper

April Dunford’s frameworks are valuable. They provide structure for tactical decisions. But they are tools, not the work itself. Frameworks help you describe the territory. Positioning helps you own it.

The real work of positioning starts with first principles:

1. Who are we?
2. What mental territory do we want to own?
3. How do our actions prove this position relentlessly?

Without answering these questions, frameworks are empty.

Remember Who You Are

Positioning is about identity. It’s not something you do; it’s something you are.

When I challenged April Dunford, I wasn’t rejecting tactical tools. I was pushing for something deeper. Tools are useful, but they can’t replace the hard work of confronting uncomfortable truths, aligning your business, and proving your position through every choice you make.

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Identity gives people direction and resilience. When people forget who they are—under stress, in uncertainty—they become reactive, inconsistent, and lost.

In The Lion King, Simba becomes aimless and avoids his responsibilities because he forgets his identity. Only when he remembers who he is—“the son of Mufasa”—does he reclaim his purpose and act decisively.

Businesses behave like Simba when they lose sight of their positioning. They chase markets, tweak messaging, and react to competitors. But businesses that “remember who they are” act clearly and confidently, no matter the conditions.

So, as Mufasa said, “Remember who you are.”

Positioning isn’t a thing you do. It’s a truth you live.

So, remember who you are. Own your position. And let everything else—your strategy, your products, your culture—flow naturally from there.

Because in the battle for minds, the strongest position is always the one you are, not the one you’re trying to claim.

PS — April, will you unblock me on Linkedin?

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