---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Breaking an old business model is always…"
description: "\"Breaking an old business model is always going to require leaders to follow their instinct. There will always be persuasive reasons not to take a risk...."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_business_breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always_2791043.jpg"
---

#  Breaking an old business model is always going to require…

![“Breaking an old business model is always going to require leaders to follow their instinct. There will always be persuasive reasons not to take a risk. But if you only do what worked in the past, you will wake up one day and find that you’ve been passed by.” quote by Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_business_breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always_2791043.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_business_breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always_2791043.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_business_breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always_2791043.jpg)

> “Breaking an old business model is always going to require leaders to follow their instinct. There will always be persuasive reasons not to take a risk. But if you only do what worked in the past, you will wake up one day and find that you’ve been passed by.”

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Leaders must trust intuition to break outdated models despite persuasive risk‑averse arguments.

**In simple terms:** Instinct guides innovation over past success.

Key Takeaway

Follow gut to innovate.

Themes

innovation leadership risk

Mood

inspirational cautious

Type

strategic motivational

When to use this quote

- product development
- strategic planning
- organizational change

Key Concepts

disruption intuition

Questions to Reflect On

- When to trust intuition?
- How to balance data and instinct?

A Different Perspective

Risk‑aversion can protect stability; gut may fail.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Business models](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business-models/) [Instinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instinct/) [Leader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leader/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Persuasive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persuasive/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Risk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/risk/) [Wake up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wake-up/)

## Related quotes

> [A lot has been written about the Internet bust. From my point of view, it's quite clear the Internet isn't a category; the Internet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/a-lot-has-been-written-about-the-internet-bust-from-my-point-of-view/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [Breaking old habits is hard and sometimes feels impossible. Rather than focusing on breaking old habits create new ones and the old ones will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/breaking-old-habits-is-hard-and-sometimes-feels-impossible-rather/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Breaking old habits isnt impossible. Just hard...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/breaking-old-habits-isnt-impossible-just-hard/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [It's hard for some people I understand. Breaking old habits is a bitch but that's why people grow up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-hard-for-some-people-i-understand-breaking-old-habits-is-a-bitch/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Breaking old habits and making better ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/breaking-old-habits-and-making-better-ones/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Breaking old habits and forming new ones always takes time, but it is worth it in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/breaking-old-habits-and-forming-new-ones-always-takes-time-but-it-is/)

[Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/)

> [Breaking old habits can be hard, take it one step at a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/breaking-old-habits-can-be-hard-take-it-one-step-at-a-time/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Breaking old habits takes time. It's a process, so don't be so hard on yourself that you become discouraged and give up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/breaking-old-habits-takes-time-it-s-a-process-so-don-t-be-so-hard-on/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Breaking Old Habits...The little things are the primary difference between being good and being great!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/breaking-old-habits-the-little-things-are-the-primary-difference/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [In law, especially back in '95 when I was breaking in, it was much more of an old boys' network.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megyn-kelly/in-law-especially-back-in-95-when-i-was-breaking-in-it-was-much-more/)

[Megyn Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megyn-kelly/)

> [Breaking old habits is hard but you're worth it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/breaking-old-habits-is-hard-but-you-re-worth-it/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Breaking with old friends is one of the most painful of the changes in all that piling up of a multitude of small distasteful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dos-passos/breaking-with-old-friends-is-one-of-the-most-painful-of-the-changes/)

[John Dos Passos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dos-passos/)

> [Slowly but surely, breaking old habits one by one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/slowly-but-surely-breaking-old-habits-one-by-one/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [As business models evolve, as the way you distribute content evolves, as the ability to do things online changes in terms of pricing or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-kotick/as-business-models-evolve-as-the-way-you-distribute-content-evolves/)

[Bobby Kotick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-kotick/)

> [In my experience, in the real-estate business past success stories are generally not applicable to new situations. We must continually reinvent ourselves, responding to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akira-mori/in-my-experience-in-the-real-estate-business-past-success-stories-are/)

[Akira Mori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akira-mori/)

## More by Clayton Christensen

> [But actually theory is very practical. Gravity is a theory, for example. It allows you to predict that if you step off a cliff…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/but-actually-theory-is-very-practical-gravity-is-a-theory-for-example/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [In our lives and in our careers, whether we are aware of it or not, we are constantly navigating a path by deciding between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/in-our-lives-and-in-our-careers-whether-we-are-aware-of-it-or-not-we/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [Many of the factors that we think will cause motivation, such as fair pay and a good manager, won't make you love your job.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/many-of-the-factors-that-we-think-will-cause-motivation-such-as-fair/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [People in private equity complain that they have so much capital and so few places to invest. But you have lots of entrepreneurs trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/people-in-private-equity-complain-that-they-have-so-much-capital-and/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [If you're successful and growing, you can manage any way you want to. Growth makes so many dimensions of management easier. It's when growth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/if-you-re-successful-and-growing-you-can-manage-any-way-you-want-to/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [A sustaining innovation makes better products that you can sell for better profits to your best customers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/a-sustaining-innovation-makes-better-products-that-you-can-sell-for/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [Purpose must be deliberately conceived and chosen, and then pursued.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/purpose-must-be-deliberately-conceived-and-chosen-and-then-pursued/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [The mistake that makes launching a venture expensive is when you try to make a disruptive technology so good that it can compete on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/the-mistake-that-makes-launching-a-venture-expensive-is-when-you-try/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [What you need is a fundamental humility - the belief that you can learn from anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/what-you-need-is-a-fundamental-humility-the-belief-that-you-can-learn/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [This is why I belong, and why I believe. I commend to all this same search for happiness and for the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/this-is-why-i-belong-and-why-i-believe-i-commend-to-all-this-same/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [I think this is one reason why the Lord invented the Internet - so members can teach one another how to succeed in assignments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/i-think-this-is-one-reason-why-the-lord-invented-the-internet-so/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [Because these firms listened to their customers, invested aggressively in new technologies that would provide their customers more and better products of the sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/because-these-firms-listened-to-their-customers-invested-aggressively/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [At the beginning of almost every industry, the available products and services are so expensive to own and complicated to use that only people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/at-the-beginning-of-almost-every-industry-the-available-products-and/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [Management has to provide the coordinating mechanism between what the supplier provides and what the user needs in not-good-enough situations where product architecture is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/management-has-to-provide-the-coordinating-mechanism-between-what-the/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

> [When you're thinking about your next product or current product and wondering how to make it different so you don't have competition, understand the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/when-you-re-thinking-about-your-next-product-or-current-product-and/)

[Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

[Explore all 166 Clayton Christensen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/)

## More Business quotes

> [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/)

[Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/)

> [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/)

[Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/)

> [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/)

[Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/)

> [Many early-stage entrepreneurs make one simple mistake: Describing this 'big picture' in vague concepts and words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-nagaraj/many-early-stage-entrepreneurs-make-one-simple-mistake-describing/)

[Sunil Nagaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-nagaraj/)

> [Nobody has a crystal ball, and part of evolving a business plan is to say, 'I might have said we're going left, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-kavanaugh/nobody-has-a-crystal-ball-and-part-of-evolving-a-business-plan-is-to/)

[Ryan Kavanaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-kavanaugh/)

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

> [ “\[S\]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-the-possible-irrelevance-of/)

[Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/)

> [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/)

[Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/)

> [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [ If the State does not acquire supremacy over \[vast private\] enterprises, it becomes their puppet, and they become the real State. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/if-the-state-does-not-acquire-supremacy-over-vast-private-enterprises/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

> [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/)

[Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/)

> [I'm not into business at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-mercury/i-m-not-into-business-at-all/)

[Freddie Mercury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-mercury/)

> [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/)

[Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/)

[Browse all 39,016 Business quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Breaking an old business model is always going to require leaders to follow their instinct. There will always be persuasive reasons not to take a risk. But if you only do what worked in the past, you will wake up one day and find that you’ve been passed by.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Clayton Christensen"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always-going-to-require-leaders-to/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Business"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always-going-to-require-leaders-to/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_business_breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always_2791043.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_business_breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always_2791043.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_business_breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always_2791043.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Breaking an old business model is always going to require leaders to follow their instinct. There will…” — Clayton Christensen",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Clayton Christensen",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Breaking an old business model is...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always-going-to-require-leaders-to/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/breaking-an-old-business-model-is-always-going-to-require-leaders-to/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
