Put Yourself Out of Business
Disrupt your current model before changing behavior makes it obsolete.
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~ongoing to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 95%
The framework treats deliberate self-disruption as practical risk management rather than reckless innovation. First, identify the channel, product, or convention that currently supports the business but could weaken as consumer behavior changes. Next, monitor emerging alternatives and run contained experiments before the existing model fails. The experiments are expected to include misses; their purpose is to develop knowledge, capability, and optionality while the core business still generates resources. Evidence from those tests then determines which new approaches deserve more investment. By repeatedly challenging its own assumptions, the business reduces dependence on yesterday's success and avoids waiting for a competitor or technological shift to force an emergency transformation.
Origin
Extracted from The Jasmine Star Show, where Gary Vaynerchuk connected his early adoption of websites and online video to the need for continuous business innovation.
Core principles
- 01Past success can become a source of strategic blindness.
- 02Consumer behavior matters more than industry convention.
- 03Small experiments reduce the risk of forced disruption.
- 04A business must challenge its own winning channels.
How to run it
- 1
Find the fragile dependency
Identify the product, platform, or acquisition channel whose disappearance would most damage the business. Measure how much revenue and customer access depend on it.
Pro tip Start with anything responsible for a disproportionate share of leads or sales.
Watch out Do not mistake current profitability for long-term durability.
- 2
Map the behavioral shift
Look for changes in how customers discover, evaluate, and buy solutions. Focus on present behavior rather than industry nostalgia or speculative hype.
Pro tip Observe customers directly instead of relying only on peer consensus.
Watch out Avoid becoming obsessed with distant technology while neglecting changes already happening.
- 3
Run contained experiments
Test alternative channels, offers, or formats at a scale where failure is affordable. Define what evidence would justify another iteration or additional investment.
Pro tip Design experiments that teach you something even when they do not produce immediate revenue.
Watch out An experiment that cannot fail without threatening the company is too large.
- 4
Invest behind evidence
Compare the alternatives with the existing approach and expand the ones showing genuine customer response. Build competence before the old model becomes untenable.
Pro tip Move resources gradually while the core business can still finance the transition.
Watch out Do not demand mature-channel performance from a first experiment.
- 5
Repeat before comfort returns
Revisit the company's core dependencies regularly and challenge the next assumption. Make self-disruption an ongoing operating habit.
Pro tip Schedule recurring reviews so experimentation does not disappear during strong quarters.
Watch out Stopping after one successful transition recreates the same vulnerability.
In the wild
A local retailer dependent on directory advertising notices customers moving online. While directory leads still arrive, it builds a website, learns search marketing, and tracks online inquiries. The business shifts spending only after the new channel demonstrates demand.
→ The retailer develops a viable acquisition channel before directory demand collapses.
A company receiving most leads from Google tests educational content and visibility within AI-assisted discovery tools. It records which questions prospects ask and restructures its material so those questions can be answered outside a traditional search-results page.
→ The company becomes less vulnerable to a decline in conventional search traffic.
Common mistakes
Protecting the legacy channel
Leaders defend a familiar channel because it still generates revenue, leaving no alternative ready when behavior changes.
Betting everything on one experiment
Self-disruption does not require an uncontrolled gamble; experiments should be small enough to fail safely while still producing useful evidence.
Confusing novelty with consumer demand
A fashionable technology is not automatically useful. The deciding factor is whether present or emerging customer behavior supports it.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for established entrepreneurs and teams whose revenue relies heavily on one platform, channel, product, or established practice.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal for teams facing an immediate cash crisis that cannot safely fund even small experiments.
From the transcript
“if you don't put yourself out of business, someone else is going to do it for you.”
“you need to try to do different things that might not work.”
“you need to innovate new things for you, because if you don't, someone else is going to do it, and then you're going to be…”
From the episode
Get Attention and “Embrace the Dirt” for Success with Gary Vee