When Good Is the Enemy—and Growth Stalls

Jim Collins said it best: “Good is the enemy of great.”

And if you’ve ever hit a plateau, you know exactly what that means.

Things started strong.
Momentum was real.
You launched, built traction, found your groove.

But now?
The returns are smaller.
The excitement’s faded.
You’re still moving—but not breaking through.

You’re not stuck at the bottom.
You’re stuck in the middle.

And that’s the most dangerous place to be.

This Is Where Most Companies Flatline

I’ve seen it in billion-peso businesses and 5-person startups.
It happens to tech companies, schools, manufacturers—even NGOs.

↳ They start with a bold mission.
↳ They get some early wins.
↳ Then they get comfortable.

The systems work.
The revenue’s consistent.
People stop asking hard questions.

That’s when good becomes the ceiling.

The World Is Full of “Good” Companies That Stayed There

Nokia once owned the mobile phone world.
They had 40% of global market share.
Then Apple changed the game—and Nokia didn’t adapt fast enough.
Good became irrelevant.

Kodak invented the digital camera.
But they protected their film business instead of reinventing.
Good became obsolete.

Even Yahoo turned down the chance to buy Google for $1 million.
They thought they were already good enough.

This happens at the top.
And it happens on the street corner.

Even the Sari-Sari Store Hits a Ceiling

Let’s go local.

You’ve seen it.
Small businesses that start with fire—selling, serving, grinding every day.
Then… they settle.

↳ As long as they make enough to get by, they stop thinking long-term.
↳ They stay open, but never scale.
↳ They survive, but never lead.

Not because they lack skill—but because they stopped dreaming bigger.

Comfort kills growth.

And you don’t need to fail to fall behind.
You just need to settle.

So What’s Really Going On?

Plateaus aren’t random.
They happen when strategy gets stale.

Most companies keep tweaking tactics—changing the packaging, posting more on social, launching another promo.

But strategy?
It hasn’t changed since Day 1.

And that’s the real issue.

↳ You’ve outgrown the strategy that got you here.
↳ You’re trying to scale with a playbook built for survival.
↳ You’re optimizing what used to work instead of creating what’s next.

You don’t need more hustle.
You need a new lens.

The Shift: From Operational Thinking to Strategic Breakthroughs

Real growth happens when you zoom out.

You start asking:

• What game are we playing now?
• What’s holding us back—and what are we too afraid to change?
• What would a 10x version of this look like?

This is where most businesses hesitate.
Because bold strategy feels risky.
But here’s the truth:

Plateaus feel safe—until the floor drops.

How I Help

As a strategy coach, I help teams break the “good enough” mindset.

I won’t just help you optimize your current model.
I’ll challenge it.

Together, we’ll:

• Reframe the growth problem
• Test bold ideas
• Identify strategic leverage points
• Build a path that makes the old way feel irrelevant

You’ll stop asking how to get “more” of the same—
And start building what’s next.

Good got you here.
But if you want to lead—if you want to grow—you’ll need to let go of it.

The future belongs to those willing to outgrow their own success.

Let’s do it—together.