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STRATEGIES FOR RESILIENT ENTREPRENEURS

Why Escalation Is Every Entrepreneur’s Worst Move

Q told Bond always to have an escape plan. For entrepreneurs, the best escape plan is avoiding escalation beyond what can be repaired.

5 min readMay 28, 2026

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Q told Bond always to have an escape plan. For entrepreneurs, the best escape plan is avoiding escalation beyond what can be repaired.
Source: Wikipedia

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At the end of the James Bond movie “The World Is Not Enough”, James Bond asks Q if he is planning to retire soon.

Q lowers himself into a trapdoor in the floor and delivers his final piece of advice to 007:

“Now, pay attention, 007. I’ve always tried to teach you two things. First, never let them see you bleed. Second, always have an escape plan.”

This article is about having an escape plan, but not quite in the sense that you might imagine. I’m not talking about scenario planning and forecasting, having a plan B, or anything like that.

I’m talking about escalation. Or rather, how to escalate in a way that keeps an escape plan alive.

Geopolitics

Escalation is en vogue in geopolitics these days. Just look at the Iran war. Irrespective of your political position, it’s fair to say that it was easy…

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Tom Vogel
Tom Vogel

Written by Tom Vogel

Tech entrepreneur, active reserve officer, father of three. Hard-won insights on leadership, entrepreneurship & crisis management. No AI, no fluff, no promos.

Startup Stash
Startup Stash

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