From pivot to evolution: how reframing changes everything

How reframing "pivot" as "evolution" changes everything for founders

During a recent Resilient Growth Playbook conversation, Jarvis founder Royden Greaves said something that completely reframed how I think about business growth. He doesn’t use the word "pivot". He prefers "evolution."

"You could say a seed pivoted into a tree and into bearing fruit. Or that a caterpillar pivoted into a butterfly. But really, that’s just nature evolving."

This really resonated with me. If I applied the usual startup language to Scale Up, I’d have to say I’ve "pivoted" multiple times, from fractional CMO to building expert teams to evolving into a fractional talent network. But that’s not what happened.

I didn’t pivot. I evolved.

Each stage built on what came before. Each step deepened our ability to serve the same core mission: helping startups grow through better marketing. And I see the same with the founders I work with. Those who embrace evolution build stronger businesses. Those who think in terms of pivots often carry the weight of feeling like they’ve constantly got things wrong.

Why “Pivot” Carries the Wrong Message

“Pivot” implies you took a wrong turn. That your original plan was flawed. That you're starting over. But most successful startups build on their foundations rather than scrap them. They evolve.

And when founders view change through that lens, they move faster, communicate more clearly, and stay truer to their purpose.

Evolution Is a Better Analogy for Growth

Royden’s nature metaphor captures it perfectly. A seed doesn’t pivot into a tree, it evolves through clear stages:

• Seed: potential and early hypotheses
• Sapling: establishing structure
• Tree: resilience and maturity
• Fruit: delivering value at scale

It’s the same with the best startups. Growth comes in distinct phases. But the DNA stays the same.

Let me show you what that looks like in practice.

Yolt: Evolving from Consumer App to B2B Engine

Yolt started as a direct-to-consumer app helping people manage their finances. We grew fast, attracting over one million users.

But when we tested a marketplace revenue stream and it didn’t deliver, we didn’t panic. We didn’t call it a failed pivot. We evolved.

We realised the real asset was our backend tech - the infrastructure we’d built to serve a million people. So we shifted focus from D2C to B2B, packaging our technology and selling it to banks.

The mission - helping people manage their money - didn’t change. The delivery model evolved to better serve that mission at scale.

Snugg: Partnering for Impact

Snugg launched with a goal to make homes more sustainable. They started D2C, working directly with homeowners.

The model worked but to reach more people, faster, they evolved by partnering with banks. Those partnerships gave them scale, kept them aligned to their purpose, and delivered measurable results: two funding rounds and a spot on Innovate Finance’s radar.

Again, no pivot. Just natural progression.

Scale Up: From One CMO to a Fractional Team

When I started Scale Up, I was a solo fractional CMO. I worked hands-on with startups that needed strategic marketing leadership but didn’t have the budget or scope for a full-time hire.

It worked, until it didn’t.

As clients grew, they needed more: specialist support in areas like data, content, and paid media. I couldn’t deliver world-class execution across every channel.

The traditional response might’ve been to pivot. Launch an agency. Return to full-time work.

But instead, I evolved into we. I built a fractional team around my CMO offering, starting with insight and data leads, then content, and performance. Each person added capability to the mission we were already delivering on.

We didn’t move away from the vision. We evolved it.

Now, every stage builds on the last: from solo CMO, to fractional teams, to a wider expert network. That evolution didn’t reset the journey, it accelerated it.

Why This Mindset Shift Matters

The language we use shapes how we think. “Pivot” suggests failure. “Evolution” suggests progress.

When you view change as a series of sharp turns, it’s easy to lose confidence, second-guess decisions, and struggle to bring others with you.

When you frame it as evolution, you:

• Stay anchored to your purpose
• Build confidence through progress
• Communicate clearly to investors and teams
• Maintain momentum through change

This shift isn’t just semantic. It changes how you build.

Embrace Iteration, Not Perfection

An evolution mindset unlocks several advantages:

Faster learning: You test, adapt, and refine—without waiting for the perfect plan. Greater resilience: Setbacks don’t derail you—they refine your model. Stronger storytelling: It’s easier to share a journey of growth than explain constant U-turns. Mission-led growth: You stay focused on your purpose, even as your tactics change.

A Practical Framework for Startup Evolution

If you're scaling a startup, apply this lens to your journey:

1. Know your core purpose What’s the fundamental change you want to make in the world? That’s your startup’s DNA.
2. View each phase as a learning experiment Every business model is a stage - not a verdict. It helps you test how best to deliver on your mission.
3. Recognise natural progressions When new opportunities emerge, ask: is this helping us serve our mission more effectively?
4. Build compound advantage Let each stage make the next stronger. Reuse what works. Learn from what doesn’t.
5. Frame change as evolution Help your team, investors, and customers see the logic in your growth, not the drama.

The Compound Power of Evolution

Every example in this post has something in common: each company built its next move on what came before.

• Yolt’s user base enabled its B2B move
• Snugg’s D2C insight powered its bank partnerships
• Scale Up’s CMO work shaped its fractional team model

No resets. Just stages of growth.

That’s the power of evolution, it compounds (we all know about compound interest right?). Each phase becomes a launchpad for the next.

From Caterpillar to Butterfly

Royden’s analogy of a butterfly still sticks with me.

A caterpillar doesn’t become a better caterpillar - it transforms. Yet it’s not a pivot. It’s evolution. It’s exactly what it was meant to become.

Your startup might go through transformations that feel radical. That’s fine. What matters is staying rooted in your purpose.

Every change in my business - from solo to team, from client work to network - wasn’t a reinvention. It was a natural extension. I couldn’t have planned every stage. But by staying close to the mission, each new stage emerged at the right time.

My Challenge to You

Next time someone asks about a change in your business, don’t say you pivoted.

Tell them how you evolved. Show how each step has made the next one possible. Keep your mission at the heart of the story.

Confidence doesn’t come from sticking rigidly to the plan. It comes from trusting the process and allowing each phase to shape the next.

Because startups that last aren’t the ones that get it right the first time. They’re the ones that evolve with purpose.

What stage is your startup in right now? What’s the next natural evolution on your journey? Drop me a message—I’d love to hear where you’re heading next.

Have a great day!

Lucy