An Exit Strategy

The best way to make progress is often to immerse yourself in the right industry, environment, and circle of people. This might touch on environmental design, but what came to mind was to frame it as an exit strategy—not as in running away from something, but leaping toward something new.

That “something” could be:

• A new job

• Moving to another country, state, city, or town

• Pursuing a business idea or model

We’ve all heard the classic examples:

• If you want to act, go to Los Angeles.

• If you want to innovate, go to Silicon Valley.

• If you want to write, go to New York.

These aren’t just clichés. They’re shorthand for the truth that location and environment can act as multipliers — the right place exposes you to the right people, the right signals, and the right challenges.

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Incredible Story

In Arnold’s documentary, he shares how—long before he ever set foot in America—he believed he belonged there. In the first episode, Athlete, he recounts traveling from Austria to Germany, then to the UK, and finally to America. Wherever he went, he built small pockets of environmental design: training alongside the best, entering competitions, and surrounding himself with people who gave direct, unfiltered feedback.

Every contest, every judge’s comment, every loss or win gave him inputs to refine his training. This was not abstract improvement — it was visible, measurable, and constant.

His Arrival in America

When Arnold arrived in America, he was already talented, but the competition there revealed a new reality — there were athletes on his level and others far ahead. At one point, he lost the Mr. Olympia title to competitors widely regarded as superior. They were stronger, more defined, and in some cases more experienced on the global stage.

This could have been discouraging, but Arnold treated it as data. The loss showed him exactly where his weaknesses were. It exposed gaps in his physique, his posing, and even his mental preparation. The defeat became a mirror — one that reflected the hard truth that his current methods weren’t enough to win at the highest level.

Instead of retreating, he doubled down. He adjusted his training regimen, refined his diet, and studied his rivals in detail. He looked at what they were doing differently — the angles, the presentation, the pacing — and integrated those lessons into his own system. Within a short time, he came back stronger and reclaimed the Mr. Olympia title, beginning a streak of victories that would define his legacy.

Clear Inputs in a Noisy World

Clarity rarely comes from sitting still. In stagnant environments, feedback loops are slow, inconsistent, or invisible. You can work hard without knowing if you’re improving, chasing the wrong things without realizing it.

The right environment changes that.

• It shortens the feedback loop.

• It forces comparison against higher standards.

• It makes the gaps in your skills impossible to ignore.

Arnold’s story is a perfect example. That initial loss in America wasn’t a setback — it was an accelerated feedback loop. It showed him exactly how far he had to go, and that clarity made the path forward obvious.

The Exit Plan

An exit strategy, in this sense, is not an escape but a deliberate jump into an environment that exposes the truth about your abilities. The fear of making the leap often comes from a fear of losing clarity, of being unable to “see the signal” once you leave what you know.

But in reality, clarity often increases once you step into a space where the stakes are higher and feedback is unavoidable. The discomfort isn’t a bug — it’s the feature that accelerates growth.

Arnold didn’t have a detailed blueprint of how Austria-to-America would turn into bodybuilding championships and Hollywood stardom. What he had was a North Star — a long-term vision that guided him — and the willingness to keep placing himself in environments where clarity was unavoidable.

Bringing It Home

In a noisy, complex world, your environment decides how visible your inputs will be. A poor environment hides them; a great one makes them impossible to miss. The leap — your “exit strategy” — is how you get there.

The question isn’t whether you’ll feel uncertain. You will. The question is whether you’re willing to trade the comfort of murky signals for the sharp, sometimes uncomfortable clarity that comes from standing among the best.

Your North Star won’t move. But you might have to.

Thank you for reading.

Lefa Gabonthone