CEOs have immense responsibilities, and among their most critical duties is ensuring their organizations remain forward-thinking. In business, there is no equilibrium. If you’re merely maintaining, you’re declining. That’s why a recent statement from Siemens CEO Roland Busch is particularly interesting. During a conversation on LinkedIn’s This Is Working with Daniel Roth, Busch stated, “The best time to change everything is when you’re at your peak.”
Most leaders wait until disruption, decline, or external pressures force their hand. However, Busch and Siemens, with 320,000 employees across 150 countries, demonstrate that continuous reinvention can be a strategic advantage. Staying agile keeps organizations ahead through innovation and adaptability. Whether in personal well-being, leadership development, or organizational strategy, great leaders don’t wait for change to happen to them—they initiate it. The more successful you become, the harder you must fight against complacency. Take sports as an analogy. Back-to-back championships are rare because sustained dominance requires reinvention. With that in mind, here are three benefits for CEOs and leaders to disrupt themselves before external forces do it for them.
1. Success Can Breed Blind Spots
Success, paradoxically, can plant the seeds of downfall. History is full of examples—Blockbuster and Kodak in business and various military campaigns where overconfidence led to failure. Whether in business, warfare, or personal growth, decline often happens gradually, then suddenly.
Busch’s perspective aligns with this reality. He states, “It’s when you’re working, you have a good environment, a good team, and it’s all great… This is the time when you should think: I have to make another transformation.” Many leaders and companies become attached to what’s working, but today’s success is merely the result of past decisions—it doesn’t guarantee future relevance. Complacency doesn’t just erode your leadership abilities and effectiveness—it seeps into your workplace culture and performance. High-performing leaders assume change is inevitable and stay ahead of it.
2. Only The Paranoid Survive
Business and sports share a fundamental truth: you’re only as good as your last game. While studying competitors is essential, the most formidable opponent is often within—your own mindset. Mark McCormack, IMG founder and author of What They Don’t Teach You at Harvard Business School, described this as the “Business Paradox”: “The better you think you are doing, the greater should be your cause for concern.” Success can breed overconfidence, leading leaders to underestimate emerging threats.
Intel’s founder and former CEO Andy Grove shared in his book Only the Paranoid Survive that “Business success contains the seeds of its own destruction.” This philosophy shaped Intel’s ability to anticipate industry shifts and avoid stagnation. Similarly, Amazon’s “Day 1” philosophy emphasizes constant iteration, ensuring they never become complacent. Even when thriving, great leaders think like underdogs. They scan for vulnerabilities, test assumptions, and refine strategies. Sun Tzu’s philosophy applies here: “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.”
3. Control the Narrative
Many organizations operate reactively—changing only when crises demand it. But waiting until you have to change means losing valuable ground. Busch illustrates this with Siemens’ strategy: “Over a year ago, I thought, ‘Well, Siemens is doing well. We are growing fast.’ I said, ‘Hold on a second. You have to now ignite the second wave to really transform our company.'”
Companies and leaders that fail to embrace proactive reinvention risk irrelevance. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos described this as the “Day 2” problem—where a company shifts from innovation to stasis, followed by decline. Controlling the narrative requires breaking free from today’s identity and focusing on who you must be for tomorrow’s challenges. Netflix exemplified this by pivoting from DVDs to streaming before the market forced the change. Leaders who anticipate the future don’t just adapt to change—they shape it.
Don’t Let Success Become A Trap
Busch also shared that, as an introvert, he worked to overcome this trait before it became a limiting factor. Whether in personal health and growth or organizational leadership, waiting until circumstances demand change is a losing strategy. Elite leaders don’t just survive change—they create it. The year is still young. Are you disrupting yourself or waiting to be disrupted? If everything is going well, what’s your next move?