Most business problems aren’t about effort. They’re about timing.
Leaders often make the right decisions, just at the wrong time.
They implement complex systems too early, or hold on to “what’s always worked” for too long.
They overhire, underhire, or burn out their best people trying to scale what was never designed to scale.
And it’s not because they’re careless or unskilled.
It’s because they’re solving today’s challenges using strategies from a different phase of growth.
Growth Has a Pattern
Over the last three decades, I’ve worked with organizations across size, industry, and geography—and I’ve found one thing to be consistently true:
Growth follows a predictable lifecycle.
And knowing where you are in that cycle changes everything.
I call it the Lifecycle of Movement. It’s a model that outlines the distinct phases businesses move through as they grow. Each phase requires something different from your leadership, your team, and your approach to talent.
Here’s a simplified look:
1. Launch
You’re building from the ground up. Everyone’s all-in, wearing multiple hats, and figuring it out as you go. Chaos is normal and energy is high.
2. Muscle
Now you’ve got something that works, but it only works because you’re working it. Growth is happening, but it’s powered by grit and heroic effort. Most leaders I meet are still here, even if they’ve scaled past startup.
3. Transition
Things are getting too big for brute force. You start to feel drag. Decisions take longer. People are unclear. This is where complexity creeps in and where many teams get stuck.
4. Facilitation
You’ve started shifting from doing to directing. Roles are clearer, systems are helping – not hindering – and growth starts to feel smoother.
5. Optimization
This is where intentional scaling happens. You refine, repeat, and extend what works across people, products, and places.
The Danger of Misidentifying Your Stage
Each stage is valuable. Each has its own lessons. But the problem arises when you operate from the wrong one.
Here’s what that looks like:
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You hire for scale when you’re still muscling and overload the business.
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You systematize too soon, and lose the agility that got you here.
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You micromanage in a phase that requires leadership delegation.
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You underestimate your team’s fatigue, because you think effort is the issue.
When leaders misunderstand where they are, they apply pressure instead of making progress.
So, What Stage Are You In?
If your business feels stuck, messy, or harder than it should… it’s worth asking:
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Are you leading the right way for this stage of growth?
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Are your people aligned with where the business is going, not just where it’s been?
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Are you focused on momentum or are you just muscling through?
Understanding your current phase doesn’t just clarify what’s happening. It gives you a roadmap for what’s next.
So let me ask:
Where are you on the Lifecycle of Movement?
And more importantly: what needs to shift for you to move forward?
