《战略与肥胖的烟民》（Strategy and the Fat Smoker）是任何对战略规划与执行感兴趣之人的宝贵资源。梅斯特借用了“肥胖的烟民”这一有力的个人隐喻，来说明一种常见问题：我们知道该做什么，却难以真正做到。烟民明知吸烟有害健康、应当戒掉，正如企业明知应当专注于自身的核心能力、提供出色的客户服务并与员工保持牢固的关系，然而许多企业却未能做到。
"Strategy and the Fat Smoker" is a valuable resource for anyone interested in strategic planning and execution. Maister uses the powerful personal metaphor of a "fat smoker" to illustrate the common problem of knowing what we should do but struggling to actually do it. The smoker knows that smoking is unhealthy and should quit, just as businesses know that they should focus on their core competencies, provide excellent customer service, and maintain strong relationships with their employees, yet many fail to do so.