Forced moves first
A forced move is a cell that has only one legal fill. Find those before you hunt a clever pattern.
In Sudoku, that is the last empty cell in a row, column, or box, or a digit that has only one place left. In Star Battle, it is a row, column, or region with only one open cell. In Binary Puzzle, it is a line that already has its half, or two identical symbols that would make three in a row.
Write the forced ones. Each fill creates the next. Do not sit on a hard idea while a forced cell is waiting.
If nothing looks forced, read the board again, one group at a time. Most stuck boards still have one. You do not need to guess. The how-to for Sudoku, Star Battle, or Binary Puzzle names the first scans.