to start over from the beginning
Examples:
- The boss rejected our proposal, so we are back to the drawing board.
- This marketing campaign was a total failure. It’s back to the drawing board!
- I got the completely wrong idea — I've had to go back to the drawing board with the whole thing.
- The product launch flopped, so the team went back to the drawing board.
Origin: A person can be back to the drawing board when they realize their original plan is not good and needs to be revised. The subject can be either a person or it.
Synonyms: back to square one, start over