Microsoft has shafted every single partner its had. Secondly, it was in decline. Thirdly, it's a very unpopular brand.
So your first step is to rule out Microsoft.
The other thing you don't do is tell people your two main platforms are dead. Especially when one of them was easily the best phone operating system at the time, your first product based on it was done, was beautiful and would end up with some of the most positive reviews in the history of the industry.
Now maybe it would never have attracted developer support but in spite of being a dead-end phone that Nokia refused to sell in their main markets, it still sold 1-3 million units.
Personally, I would have supported Android and Meego on the same hardware: default Android but dual boot and shared data. Meanwhile, I'd have bought out OpenMobile or Alien Dalvik and got Android apps running on Meego, just as Jolla have on Sailfish.
Would it have worked? Not necessarily, but it's not hard to see the N9 selling 3+ million units and that's a good enough start for anyone. They had the best hardware division period and some nice software up their sleeves. They also had prototype Meego tablets. Symbian would have tailed off more slowly.
At best, you can say that, things looked different then than they do now. Android and Apple were at the height of their popularity. Blackberry 10 was "due". Microsoft may have stayed relevant if they hadn't messed up Windows 8 and sold the Surface (Pro) at cost.
Also, who looks more incompetent, Elop with his $25m sale-of-Nokia bonus or the board of directors?