One of the ideas that I got which was very useful from the Walter Isaacson biography on Steve Jobs was this: do not be afraid to self cannibalize yourself. If anything, that is a better road to success.
For example, props to Apple for making the iPhone SE, with the same processor power as the iPhone Pro. In theory, it seems like a self cannibalization strategy. But in actuality, it is an insanely smart move. People who really want to flex that they have the newest and greatest iPhone ignore the iPhone SE, and spend her money on the iPhone pro instead. Yet, people who have not yet made the jump to Apple, will ditch their android and Samsung phones to get an iPhone SE, at the great price. And the reason why this is wise is that they will eventually enter the Apple ecosystem, buying the Apple AirPods, Apple Watch, MacBook laptops, subscribe to the Apple services, etc. It is similar to Amazon, who either sell their Amazon products at a loss, or at a break even point, because they’re not seeking to make money from the products, but from the service. Maybe similar to how Facebook also sells the oculus virtual reality headset either at cost, or at a loss, to just get more people into virtual reality, and purchasing content on the oculus store.
Therefore, as a life strategy, do not fear self cannibalization. Let us consider, you’re rich enough, strong enough, and stout enough to handle it.
For example, giving away your stuff for free. Taking an open source strategy is a sign of strength, which superficially seems like self cannibalization, but that’s up for long-term success.