focus on 1 place of the board and start to expand your land.

if you start in the middle, work your way to a side and then start to expand your land.

if you have 1-3 pieces of land and there are big people on the board, stay small don't say anything and build up. (cuz you never know when you'll win a game). you also might want to make a truce so that you can have someone to protect you.