Here’s a question I want you to seriously consider.
If you were starting your business today, knowing what you know about the current market, would you build it exactly the same way?
Same offers? Same pricing? Same target audience? Same marketing strategy? Same delivery model?
If the answer is no, then I have another question for you.
Why are you still running it that way?
I’ve been asking myself some uncomfortable questions recently, because I’ve come to the realisation that the next phase of my business is going to require a different version of me. I suspect the same is true for many of you.
Not necessarily a version that works harder, posts more content or attends more networking events. But one that is more innovative, commercially aware, adaptable and willing to challenge the very foundations of what has been built.
The market has moved. Have you?
Last week, I was looking back at a PESTLE analysis I’d completed a few years ago. For those unfamiliar, PESTLE examines the Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental factors that can influence your business.
What struck me was just how differently I would answer some of those questions today, particularly around politics and technology.
Think about how much has changed in just a few years.
The economic environment is different. Customer expectations are shifting. Technology is transforming entire industries. And the way people perceive, access and pay for expertise is changing.
Yet how many of us are still relying on the same business models, strategies and assumptions that worked three or four years ago?
I’ve certainly been guilty of it.
Sometimes we become so focused on running our businesses that we stop paying enough attention to the environment we’re running them in.
We assume a quiet period will pass. We tell ourselves that sales will pick up. We remain optimistic that things will improve. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big believer in optimism.
But optimism is not a business strategy and hope is not a substitute for understanding your market.
The AI question we can’t afford to ignore
I’ll be transparent. I have a complicated relationship with AI.
I use it, I recognise its benefits and I can see the extraordinary opportunities it creates for productivity, innovation and accessibility. But I also have concerns about what happens when we become so dependent on technology that we stop developing our own ability to think critically, solve problems and exercise judgement.
That’s a conversation for another day. For now, there’s a commercial reality I cannot ignore.
Why would someone pay me £1,500 for my experience, expertise and strategic insight when they could pay approximately £18 a month for access to ChatGPT and ask it many of the same questions?
Now, I know there are very good reasons why working with an experienced strategist can deliver something fundamentally different from interacting with an AI tool, but here’s the uncomfortable part.
Knowing your value and communicating your value are two very different things.
If a prospective customer cannot clearly understand why your offer is worth significantly more than a cheaper, faster or more convenient alternative, you have a problem. That problem isn’t exclusive to business consultants.
Whatever industry you’re in, if technology can now deliver part of what you sell more cheaply or efficiently, you need to be asking yourself what makes your offer worth paying for.
Is it your judgement? Your experience? Your ability to implement? Your relationships? The access you provide? The outcomes you help people achieve?
Or, more importantly, are you making that value obvious to your customers/clients? Because simply telling people that you’re experienced, passionate or good at what you do is no longer enough.
Your customers are changing too
Something else I’ve noticed is that people appear to be becoming much more discerning about where they spend their money.
Some are holding on to their cash, delaying decisions and attempting to figure things out themselves rather than investing in support that could accelerate their progress.
At the same time, others are still spending significant amounts of money, particularly with people and brands they know, trust and perceive as valuable.
That contradiction is interesting.
It suggests that the question isn’t always whether people have money to spend, but what they’re prepared to spend it on and who they’re prepared to spend it with.
Which raises another uncomfortable question.
Has your business evolved to reflect what your customers value today, or are you still selling what they valued yesterday?
While we’re questioning things, let’s talk about the founder bottleneck.
If you’re still personally responsible for every major decision, every sale, every client relationship and every operational problem, how exactly is your business supposed to evolve when you’re consumed by keeping it running?
You cannot continually innovate a business you never create the space to think about.
Don’t wait for a recovery. Prepare for a different reality.
I’m not suggesting that everyone needs to throw away their business model and start again.
Some businesses are performing exceptionally well. Others are experiencing temporary challenges rather than fundamental problems.
But whether your business is thriving or struggling, you have a responsibility to understand why.
If sales have declined, is it because demand has changed? Has your positioning become less relevant? Are competitors offering something better? Has your customer acquisition strategy stopped delivering? Or are you simply experiencing a difficult trading period?
Those are very different problems requiring very different solutions.
If your business is performing well, what are you doing to protect that success as the environment continues to evolve?
The biggest risk isn’t necessarily that your business model stops working overnight. It’s that it becomes progressively less effective while you convince yourself everything will eventually return to normal.
The opportunity ahead
Here’s what excites me.
We’re approaching 2027 with access to technology, markets and opportunities that would have been unimaginable to many small business owners a decade ago.
We can explore international markets without immediately establishing a physical presence. We can use technology to improve efficiency, experiment with new delivery models and reach audiences that were previously inaccessible.
We can rethink how we package our expertise, build communities, collaborate and create value.
But we have to be willing to let go of the assumption that what got us here will automatically get us where we want to go.
So, as we move towards the end of 2026, I want to challenge you to do something more meaningful than simply setting another collection of revenue goals for January.
Interrogate your business model.
Look at the external environment. Revisit your value proposition. Examine how your customers’ expectations have changed. Question your assumptions. Identify where technology presents opportunities and where it presents threats.
Then ask yourself:
What would I need to change today to build a business that is still relevant, competitive and profitable three years from now?
Because 2027 shouldn’t simply be about doing more of what you did in 2026.
It should be about doing more of what works, stopping what doesn’t and having the courage to explore what comes next.
The next version of your business is waiting, but it might require you to stop being so attached to the last one.