What a Card Game Taught Me About Business Strategy

In another life, my Friday nights were spent battling mystical monsters and casting arcane spells. Magic: The Gathering (MTG) is a collectible card game where you play as a powerful wizard, dueling opponents with a deck full of spells, creatures, and enchanted artifacts.

Deck-building is a core part of the game — it shapes the strategies you can use to defeat your opponent. In my quest to stack the odds in my favor, I came across a concept that stuck with me: the idea of Win More cards.

Since you have limited resources to play cards each turn, every card in your deck needs to matter. Ideally, you want cards that help you advance your position — whether you’re behind, at parity, or ahead.

Win More cards are the ones that only shine when you’re already winning. When you’ve got your opponent on the ropes — more creatures, more resources, more control — these cards help you press the advantage and overwhelm.

That might sound great (and it can lead to flashy, satisfying victories), but in most games, these cards are dead weight when the match is close or you’re struggling. They don’t help you stabilize or recover — and drawing one in a tight spot can cost you the game.

Because your deck has limited slots, competitive players learn to avoid Win More cards. Instead, they prioritize cards that are useful in any situation — not just the easy ones.

The more I played, the more this idea stuck with me — and not just in games. Win More thinking shows up in business too. These are the strategies, decisions, or investments that look impressive when everything is going well, but fall flat (or even backfire) when times get tough.

Just like in MTG, resources in business are limited — time, budget, energy, talent. So the strategies you choose need to help you whether you’re scaling up, holding steady, or clawing your way back from a rough quarter. The flashiest moves aren’t always the smartest ones.

Win More Strategies in Business

A classic example is over-investing in brand polish or premium PR when core operations aren’t solid. It’s like launching a slick new ad campaign or hiring a high-profile spokesperson — while your product is still buggy, or customer service is a mess.

Sure, when you’re already winning, this kind of flex can amplify momentum. But if you’re struggling to retain customers or meet demand, it doesn’t help — and can even backfire by raising expectations you can’t deliver on.

Another common move is when a business scales aggressively before truly nailing product-market fit. They hire fast, expand to new markets, or burn capital to “blitzscale.”

It works beautifully when demand is real and consistent — but if the foundation isn’t steady, you’re left with high burn, a bloated org, and not enough traction to justify the size.

Then there are businesses who focus on chasing vanity metrics — social media followers, press mentions and app downloads. These numbers look good, but don't necessarily translate to revenue, retention or product-market fit.

It's easy to celebrate when you're are on a roll, but when things get tight, they offer zero strategic value. You can't pay salaries with TikTok views or Facebook likes.

When things are going well, there’s often a temptation to over-engineer — to add more features, more tools, more complexity. But feature creep leads to bloated products that confuse customers, slow down development, and distract from what actually drives value.

Like Win More cards, these extra features are often beloved by internal teams or power users — but they don’t help you win new customers, and they won’t save you in a downturn. You’re better off with a lean, reliable deck than one packed with flashy, situational spells that only shine in ideal conditions.

Build a Resilient Strategy — in Games and Business

In Magic: The Gathering, the best players learn to build decks that can handle any board state — not just the easy ones. They avoid Win More cards in favor of those that offer flexibility, consistency, and impact whether they’re ahead or behind.

The same logic applies to business strategy. It’s tempting to pursue big, flashy moves that look great when things are going your way. But true resilience comes from focusing on what works in the messy middle — when growth stalls, competition heats up, or the market turns.

In the end, it’s not about playing to win more — it’s about playing to win no matter what. Flashy strategies might get the spotlight, but it’s the reliable plays — the gritty, unsexy ones that hold under pressure — that actually win the game.

Strong fundamentals like efficient operations, great customer service, and disciplined cost management may not be glamorous, but they’re the bedrock of every successful company.

So whether you’re building a deck or a business, ask yourself: Will this help when I’m behind? Or is it just for show when I’m ahead?

Take a moment to evaluate your current strategies. Are they built for resilience, or are they 'Win More' plays? What 'gritty, unsexy' plays can you double down on today?

Because when the game — or your business — is on the line, Win More won’t save you, but a solid foundation will.