What on earth is a Generalist Strategist?
I’ve been thinking a lot recently about what it is that I actually do. People tell you to find your niche. I’ve never quite managed that because I don’t really feel like I fit into any one box. I’m more likely to be the one looking at all of the boxes together to see how we can stack them better…or create little doors between the boxes…or pointing you in the direction of a particular box.
I’ll stop with the box analogy now.
In my quest for freelance self-discovery, I came across Generalist World and I have never felt more seen.
I now know. I am a Generalist.
“A generalist is not just a ‘jack of all trades’ A generalist is an expert learner, problem solver and big picture thinker who can effectively apply these strengths across varied fields and roles. They are skilled at spotting relevant patterns in complexity and are often empathetic and future-focused.”
Specifically, I am a Generalist Strategist and I could be exactly what you need but didn’t know what to Google to find you the answer.
I’ve had a slightly squiggly career that’s taken me through campaign marketing, content marketing, project management, through strategic marketing and digital transformation. I’ve led creative campaigns, rebuilt internal systems, untangled messy processes, and helped teams feel more confident in what they’re doing and why.
At the heart of it, I love solving problems. Especially the ones that don’t fit neatly into a single box.
So…what on earth is a generalist strategist?
It *might* be a phrase I have just started using because it totally describes my skill set…but it actually makes perfect sense.
It’s someone who sees the bigger picture without losing sight of the details. Someone who can zoom out and ask the right questions, then zoom back in to help you figure out what to actually do next. A generalist strategist brings together threads from across disciplines—thinking across brand, operations, people, platforms, and audiences—to make connections others might miss.
Where a specialist might go deep on one area and stick within that area, as a generalist strategist I go broad and meaningful. I make sense of complexity, see patterns, spot opportunities, and also challenge your own thinking. I’m often the one in the room translating between teams, noticing the gaps, and calmly untangling the messier bits no one quite knew what to do with.
If you’ve ever felt like your challenges don’t sit neatly in one lane, or your team needs someone who can bridge ideas and action, chances are you don’t need more specialists. You need a generalist strategist. Specifically, this one.