How to Kill Your Own Company

What really kills a company?

Last night at our Thriving in the Age of Disruption VIP evening, Dr. Nadya Zhexembayeva asked a question that stopped the room:

“Why do some companies collapse under pressure while others use it to grow?”

It isn’t technology that kills companies. It’s timing, and denial. We tell ourselves that once things “settle down,” we’ll innovate. Once the market stabilises, we’ll invest. Once our people have recovered, we’ll rethink, but that “once” never comes.

Because what if this, the constant motion, the chaos, the curveballs, is the new normal? Dr. Nadya’s research spanning two decades and thousands of organisations shows one simple truth:

Turbulence isn’t a storm to outlast; it’s the weather pattern we live in.

“If you start reinventing when things are already falling apart, you have a 10% chance of recovery.”

That means the real courage lies in reinventing when things are still working. When growth is good. When your team is comfortable. When it feels too soon.

Because if you don’t kill your own company, the market will.

The most remarkable leaders understand this isn’t a threat; it’s an invitation. They see disruption not as a wave to ride but as a rhythm to move with. They make reinvention part of their operating system, something that happens in the everyday, not just in a crisis.

They stay curious about what’s changing beneath the surface. They listen to the edges of their organisation, the interns, the front-line staff, the customers who complain, because that’s often where the future first whispers. They ask, What’s trying to emerge here? What are we pretending not to see?

Dr. Nadya reminded us that the companies that endure are those that practice continuous renewal, not reinvention as an event, but as a muscle. They design their structures to bend, not break. They build cultures where questioning is rewarded, not punished.

The irony is, the more a company grows, the harder this becomes. Systems calcify. Success makes us cautious. But that’s exactly when reinvention matters most, when you’ve got the most to lose.

Because reinvention is not about changing who you are. It’s about remembering why you started, and having the courage to evolve that purpose for what’s next.

So ask yourself:
If your company disappeared tomorrow, what would the world truly miss?
And if the answer doesn’t come easily it’s time to start reinventing.

🎥How to Kill Your Own Company

In just 13 minutes, you’ll see why the biggest threat to your business isn’t disruption, it’s the belief that tomorrow will look like today.

Watch the video above.