The New Era of B2B Marketing: Why It’s About to Get Weird (In the Best Way Possible)

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The New Era of B2B Marketing: Why It’s About to Get Weird (In the Best Way Possible)

Marketing isn’t what it used to be—and that’s exactly why it’s working better for those willing to adapt. In the latest episode of the Scale Smart, Grow Fast podcast, Harley Green sat down with Brad Schlachter, Fractional CMO at The Growth Syndicate, to talk about what B2B companies must do to build predictable, scalable, and sustainable growth.

If you’re still thinking growth is all about performance ads and lead volume, you’re already behind.

Preferred listening on the go? Catch the full podcast episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

🎯 Key Takeaways from Brad Schlachter:

1. Retention > Acquisition

Acquiring leads is expensive. But retaining existing customers? That’s where the real ROI lies. Brad emphasizes that reducing churn—especially for SaaS and subscription-based businesses—should be a core growth lever, not an afterthought.

2. Align Brand and Performance

Performance marketing gets clicks. But if your messaging doesn’t align with your brand’s promise, your conversions (and customer trust) will tank. One of Brad’s best examples? A Hallmark ad featuring Betty White. It wasn’t the flashiest creative—but it resonated and converted because it fit the brand perfectly.

3. Find Your “Betty White”

Every brand has that one creative, message, or moment that just clicks with their ideal customer. The key is testing, analyzing beyond vanity metrics, and staying consistent with your brand voice.

4. Do Fewer Things, Better

Too many teams are spread thin across a dozen disconnected campaigns. Brad suggests focusing on 2–3 strategic “marketing pillars” a year—aligning product launches, content drops, PR, and offers into unified, cross-functional campaigns.

5. AI Is a Co-Pilot, Not a Replacement

AI tools (like ChatGPT and marketing agents) are changing how we work—but strategy still needs a human mind. Brad recommends using AI for insights, content drafts, and automation—but keeping high-level customer and growth strategy human-led.

📈 Ready to Rethink Your Growth Strategy?

B2B marketing is evolving fast—and getting a little weird (in the best way). The brands winning today are those who lead with customer understanding, invest in retention, and align every touchpoint with a consistent brand message.

“If you’re only focused on acquisition, you’re leaving serious growth on the table.” — Brad Schlachter

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

Ready to implement smarter marketing strategies without burning out your team? 

Book a discovery call with Workergenix and learn how an Ultimate Executive Assistant can help you execute, optimize, and scale faster.

Like what you read? Get weekly insights on scaling, efficiency, and profitability—straight to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.

Transcript:

Harley Green:

Hey everybody, welcome back to the Scale Smart Grow Fast podcast. Now growth doesn’t happen by accident. It’s engineered through strategy, execution and data. In this episode, Brad Schlachter, Fractional CMO with the Growth Syndicate and full funnel growth strategist shares how B2B and tech companies can align acquisition, analytics and retention to achieve measurable, sustainable results. With experience scaling global brands like Microsoft, Intel and Qualcomm, as well as high growth startups, Brad reveals how to build go-to-market systems that fuel predictable growth. Brad, welcome to the podcast. How are you today?

Brad Schlachter:

Good, thanks for having me.

Harley Green:

Brad, maybe you can share a little bit more about your background, what brought you to helping business leaders achieve great success with their marketing now.

Brad Schlachter:

Yeah, you know, it really starts with always being a marketer started with me being very curious about behavior. I was a psych major in college, and marketing is really about consumer behavior. And so it was always an area of interest for me. Also, at the end of the day, marketing is really about solving problems. How do you grow this brand? How do you pivot something when it clearly needs a change in direction? Solving problems and understanding human behavior has led me to have a career in marketing. As you said, I’ve worked for some bigger companies, mostly earlier in my career. More recently, I’ve worked for more small and medium-sized businesses as a fractional CMO.

Harley Green:

I love what you said about the psychology part. We recently saw this in our own business with our recruiting. We deployed a chatbot to help with the first stage of interviews and we saw the submission process and rate drop. We brought back the old form but simplified it and then just gave an automatic email saying, “Please apply here. We like your resume.” And the rates jumped up again. So I’m sure you’ve seen some similar maybe less than intuitive results with marketing that you could share with us, that give people an example of what that means about human psychology and marketing.

Brad Schlachter:

Yeah, it’s definitely very true. It’s not just what you say, but it’s how you make your customers feel. That’s the brand side of marketing. It’s not just about the rational benefits. Does the brand resonate with someone on an emotional level? That whole psychology aspect is really important and sometimes people don’t pay enough attention to that.

Harley Green:

Now, a lot of people think that marketing success is really about just generating more leads, having a bigger ad budget. How do you define sustainable growth from a marketing perspective?

Brad Schlachter:

Marketing is always different. Every company, the first thing I always try to understand when I start as a fractional CMO is getting alignment on what the business goals are. What does success equal? Because what’s success for one company may be different than for another, depending on the business model, what stage the company is in. Defining success is the first important thing. Then building a marketing plan around: this is where we are now, this is where we want to be, and this is how we’re going to get there. Ultimately, it’s also about having a sustainable model so that you know at the end of the day, you can build something replicable. If you’re going to spend $1, you’re going to get back $2 or $3 of revenue. Building that model that’s consistent.

Harley Green:

When you’re talking to these companies and helping them build out these growth strategies, what are some of the most common gaps that you tend to find, whether it’s in the strategy itself or maybe in the mindset of the leadership team?

Brad Schlachter:

One gap is performance marketing and brand. A lot of startups are very focused on leads, and rightly so. But they sometimes put too much emphasis on acquiring leads and the performance marketing aspect, and they don’t take the time and energy to make sure there’s a true product-market fit. Does the product or service resonate with the target audience or their ideal customer profile? Understanding what’s different and better or special about their product or service. These are short-term, but if you have performance marketing and brand alignment, your customer acquisition cost is going to go down, retention is going to go up, and you’re setting yourself up for long-term success.

Harley Green:

You mentioned connecting customer acquisition with analytics and increasing retention. Why is having that alignment so critical to long-term success?

Brad Schlachter:

Another common thing I see is companies are very focused on leads and performance marketing. Yes, that’s a big aspect of what marketing needs to do. But they don’t spend as much time or energy on the retention aspect. On average, it costs five or six times more to acquire a new customer than to keep an existing one. Especially for SaaS services or subscription-based services, reducing churn or increasing retention is really critical in driving long-term growth and doing it profitably. If you’re driving acquisition and getting leads, but you have a high churn rate, then you have a very leaky funnel, and it’s not sustainable. A common mistake for many companies I’ve worked with is not putting equal attention on retention versus acquisition. Retention is about understanding your customer, keeping them engaged, making sure there’s strong product-market fit, solving problems, and keeping them happy.

Harley Green:

It sounds like there’s a lot of overlap in the considerations that go into outreach from both acquisition and retention. Are there any other tips, strategies, or tools that you recommend or enjoy working with for helping on the retention side?

Brad Schlachter:

It’s really about understanding your customer and having that customer-first mentality. If you have a subscription service or really any service, you need to be doing market research. Talk to your customers. If someone cancels, have an exit survey. Understand why people are signing up and, just as importantly, why they’re leaving. There’s active churn, where people cancel and give a reason—maybe your product doesn’t meet their needs. But there’s also passive churn—people fall off because their credit card was declined or some payment issue. There are things you can do to mitigate that. Have a comprehensive plan where acquiring a customer is just the start. Then it’s about keeping them engaged. If they drop off, understand why and how to potentially get them back.

Harley Green:

Those are awesome ideas. One thing we’ve noticed from the Workergenics side—many of our clients employ executive assistants through our service to be that client care point of contact. They can lead those initiatives because often people don’t think of them as revenue-generating activities. It’s a great opportunity to bring in an affordable executive assistant to lower turnover so your marketing dollars have a higher ROI. I have another question. You’ve worked with major brands and led growth initiatives that achieved major turnarounds and exits. What’s one campaign or pivot that really changed the trajectory of a business you worked with?

Brad Schlachter:

I think it’s partly a mindset. When I was at Hallmark, we had a partnership with Roku. I helped launch Hallmark Streaming Service, now called Hallmark Plus. In the early days, we hadn’t found our best platforms. Roku turned out to be the first where we saw a lot of success. It was easier to use, the audience was older and more female, which aligned with Hallmark’s demographics. Roku’s demographics matched well. We ran an ad for a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie with Betty White. She touched all demographics—young and old loved her. She was our magic creative. Everyone needs to find their Betty White—the content and image that resonates and appeals across quadrants. It helped Roku drive early success for Hallmark Streaming. But also, it’s important for marketing teams to focus on doing two or three big things instead of 100 disconnected ones. For example, do a big push around a Betty White movie launch, a product update, a trade show, or a holiday. Pull multiple levers at once—you get more bang for your buck than doing 100 small things.

Harley Green:

What advice would you give to someone who’s doing all these marketing initiatives but everything feels scattered? How do you guide them to focus on the most impactful activities?

Brad Schlachter:

It starts with realizing that marketing can’t be done in a silo. You have to align with product, content, dev teams. I call them marketing pillars—the two or three big things you’re going to do throughout the year. Sit down cross-functionally and plan: is there a product update, a new UX, new content drop, a trade show, a seasonal event like Mother’s Day? Then, align the marketing campaign around those events. Tie it all together with PR, product updates, offers. Work cross-functionally to pull those levers together.

Harley Green:

Going back to the Betty White example, I’m sure there was a lot of studying and analysis. For business owners who won’t bring in famous actors, what are some strategies they can use to find their “Betty White” in relation to their ideal clients?

Brad Schlachter:

Betty White worked because her ads had a solid click-through rate and represented the Hallmark brand. Other ads had higher click-throughs, more provocative imagery, but lower conversions. Betty White personified the brand, which led to better conversions. When someone clicked on her ad and went to Hallmark’s service, it made sense—there was alignment. It’s not just attention, but delivering on the brand promise. It starts with understanding your customer and testing a lot. Before the Betty White ad, we had many creatives running. Some had higher click-throughs but lower conversions. Finding the right mix takes time.

Harley Green:

You bring up a good point about data. There’s so much marketing data. If someone only looks at click-through rate, they might double down on the wrong ads. How do you help people focus on the most important metrics?

Brad Schlachter:

Click-through rate matters—you can’t scale without standing out. But don’t let vanity metrics drive strategy. A high click-through with a low conversion rate is a waste. You need to look at the whole lifecycle. At Hallmark, it was a subscription service with a free trial. So we looked at click-through rate, then free trial sign-ups, and then conversion to paid customer. Follow the journey to see if the ad really worked. Optimize for metrics aligned with revenue and growth, not just top of funnel.

Harley Green:

One topic I always like to hit on is AI and automation. How do you see these tools reshaping how teams execute and measure growth?

Brad Schlachter:

It’s changing every day. Everyone’s using AI—it saves time and energy. AI is great for analyzing data, helping with content, but you still need a human to drive overall strategy and understand the customer. AI is a co-pilot. It keeps getting better, but right now it’s a tool. We’re also seeing AI agents being set up to automate tasks, especially those that are repetitive or data-heavy. Marketers have used AI for years—machine learning in paid media is AI. Now, all tools have AI assistants to help with processes.

Harley Green:

For leaders listening who want to take action this quarter to have more predictable growth, what’s one thing they can do to turn things around?

Brad Schlachter:

It’s about going back to the basics. Some marketers use the same playbook over and over without focusing on the customer. Know your customer, understand their pain points and journey. Where are people dropping off? Why? Don’t just focus on acquisition. Have a holistic view. Focus on retention. Make sure your brand aligns with your performance marketing. Pay attention to engagement. And lastly, do two or three big things instead of 100 small things. Follow that basic template and you’ll position yourself for sustainable growth.

Harley Green:

Absolutely. Understanding your customer and having real clear focus is definitely great advice for everyone listening. Brad, for those who want to learn more and connect with you, what’s the best way?

Brad Schlachter:

I’m on LinkedIn—Brad Schlachter—and I’m with The Growth Syndicate. Feel free to connect.

Harley Green:

Awesome, thank you so much, Brad. For those of you watching, if you got value today, hit the follow or subscribe button and leave a like. Every rating helps us reach more business leaders who want to grow the smart way. And maybe you know a business owner or colleague who could use this—share the episode with them. It could be exactly what they need. Thanks for tuning in. We’ll see you on the next one.

Brad Schlachter:

Thank you.

Burnout Isn’t a Workload Problem — It’s a Thinking Problem

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Burnout Isn’t a Workload Problem — It’s a Thinking Problem

Leadership burnout is at an all-time high. But according to Dr. Andre Walton, organizational psychologist, innovation expert, and founder of Plan4Change, the root cause isn’t long hours or too much responsibility.

It’s the way leaders are thinking.

In a recent episode of the Scale Smart Grow Fast podcast, host Harley Green sits down with Dr. Walton to unpack why traditional, analytical problem-solving is draining leaders — and how a different approach, called spherical thinking, helps leaders regain creativity, resilience, and clarity.

Preferred listening on the go? Catch the full podcast episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Why Smart Leaders Are Burning Out

Most leaders have been trained to rely almost exclusively on analytical, deductive thinking — drilling down, narrowing focus, and optimizing for efficiency. While this approach is useful, Dr. Walton explains that overusing it creates mental “blinders.”

Under pressure, leaders:

  • See fewer options
  • Feel trapped or reactive
  • Lose perspective
  • Experience chronic stress and burnout

Burnout, Dr. Walton argues, isn’t simply about workload. It’s about a lack of perceived resources and options. When leaders can’t see alternative paths forward, stress compounds — even if the workload hasn’t changed.

The Two Thinking Systems in the Brain

Neuroscience research using functional MRI (fMRI) shows that creative thinking and analytical thinking activate different neural pathways.

  • Analytical thinking is convergent and narrowing
  • Creative thinking is divergent and expansive

Modern leaders are heavily conditioned to suppress creativity in favor of logic and efficiency. Over time, this imbalance doesn’t just reduce innovation — it weakens emotional intelligence and resilience.

What Is Spherical Thinking?

Spherical thinking is the ability to balance and switch between creative and analytical thinking depending on the situation.

Dr. Walton compares it to a jazz musician:

  • Structure and discipline provide the foundation
  • Creativity and improvisation create breakthroughs

Effective leaders know when to analyze — and when to step back, explore options, and think creatively. This balance allows leaders to:

  • Make better decisions under pressure
  • Adapt to complexity and uncertainty
  • Recover faster from setbacks

The Hidden Risk of AI for Leaders

The episode also explores the growing reliance on AI tools in leadership and decision-making.

Emerging research suggests that executives who over-rely on AI may experience declines in critical and creative thinking. When leaders outsource too much cognitive effort, those mental “muscles” weaken.

The solution isn’t avoiding AI — it’s using it intentionally.

Dr. Walton recommends using AI as a thought partner, not a replacement:

  • Ask AI to generate ideas, not just answers
  • Use it to brainstorm, challenge assumptions, and expand perspective
  • Stay actively engaged in the thinking process

Leaders who use AI this way often increase their cognitive capacity rather than diminish it.

Practical Ways to Rebuild Creativity and Resilience

Dr. Walton shares simple, practical ways leaders can re-engage creative thinking daily:

  • Break routines with small, intentional changes
  • Make novel choices instead of default ones
  • Visualize future scenarios creatively, not just logically
  • “Shake the snow globe” to disrupt automatic thinking patterns

These small shifts reopen neural pathways connected to creativity, emotional intelligence, and resilience.

The Bottom Line for Leaders

Burnout doesn’t mean you’re failing as a leader.
It means the challenges you’re facing require a different way of thinking.

Leaders who develop spherical thinking don’t just survive pressure — they perform better because of it.

📚 Connect With Dr. Andre Walton

If you want to go deeper into spherical thinking, creativity, and leadership resilience, here are the best ways to connect with Dr. Walton:

  • 🌐 Organization: Plan4Change
  • 📧 Email:
  • 📘 Book: Creative Thinking: A Coach’s Perspective (International Bestseller, available on Amazon)

If burnout is a thinking problem, the solution starts with better support.

Book a discovery call with Workergenix to learn how an Ultimate Executive Assistant can help you reclaim focus, expand your options, and lead with clarity instead of constant pressure.

Like what you read? Get weekly insights on scaling, efficiency, and profitability—straight to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.

Transcript:

Harley Green: Hey everybody, welcome back to the Scale Smart Grow Fast podcast. Leaders often get stuck in reactive patterns that drain their teams and themselves. Dr. Andre Walton is going to be sharing a game-changing framework for how leaders can shift from burnout to brilliance using spherical thinking, a proven neural strategy for innovation and resilience. Drawing from his multicultural leadership experience and work with top organizations like Virgin Group and the Smithsonian, Dr. Walton is going to unpack how creativity is not a luxury, but a leadership imperative. Dr. Walton, welcome to the podcast. How are you doing today?

Andre Walton: Thank you very much, Harley. I’m doing great, and it’s nice to see you again.

Harley Green: Well, could you maybe share a little bit more about your background and what brought you to doing what you’re doing today?

Andre Walton: Sure. I’ve always had a very close link to creativity. Both my parents were artists of very high quality. My dad was actually a world-renowned artist. I did a lot of sciences and math at high school and promptly left school to get a job as a graphic artist for a publishing company. Somehow or other, I’ve always been attracted to things related to creativity.

In my twenties, I started inventing and patenting things. Over the next fifteen years, I took two of those inventions to become world leaders in their fields. One strand of my DNA is creativity. Another strand is business. And the third one really is education and coaching.

After my entrepreneurial time of life, I decided to go back to school and get my PhD as a mature student, although my friends wouldn’t necessarily agree with that description. My focus was organizational-level creativity.

Since that time, I’ve been helping organizations—you mentioned a couple of them—Virgin Group and the Smithsonian, as well as NASA, Lloyds Bank, and a few others, to become more innovative and to generate spaces that are more conducive to being innovative.

More recently, I’ve been working on this concept of there being two different ways of thinking. This was kind of a theory in the back of my mind twenty years ago. More recently, with functional MRI technology being available, those theories suddenly came to life.

For anyone not familiar with functional MRI, we all know what an MRI is. If you fall down and hit your head, you might get an MRI to check for damage. Functional MRI is exciting because you can actually look at neural pathways lighting up as people think different thoughts.

Those bath-time theories I came up with in the early 2000s were validated when people discovered that there are physically different neural pathways when you’re thinking creatively versus analytically.

That led me to the idea that we have these two neural pathways. When I studied that further, I realized that in the contemporary world we live in, surrounded by enormous levels of complexity compared to what our brains evolved for, we’ve been socialized into thinking in a very deductive and analytical way.

There’s an imbalance. The side of our brain that relates to creative thinking tends to have been suppressed. If you look at how our world has evolved, it’s far more technological than artistic. That imbalance, I believe, has negative consequences.

One of those negative consequences shows up in the rapid increase in burnout, anxiety, and stress disorders. The prevalence of these conditions has gone up and up over the past few years.

One important factor about creative thinking is that it is inherently divergent. Divergent thinking tests are used by social psychologists to measure creativity as a proxy. By divergent, I mean openness.

Imagine being teleported into a completely unfamiliar country. Your mindset would have to be very open. You’d be seeing strange things. When I first went to India, I was sitting in a little three-wheeler taxi driving in and out between huge elephants. It felt surreal. If you dreamed it, you’d think it was strange, but there it was in real life.

You have to accept that things are strange but functional. When you get into analytical thinking, it’s the opposite. People use phrases like “drill down.” Deductive analytical processes encourage you to focus more and more narrowly.

Under stress, that leads to what I call the hamster-wheel effect. It’s like a racehorse wearing blinders. You see the world through an ever-decreasing window.

The brilliance of using creative thinking with people experiencing burnout is that it removes those blinders. People under severe stress or anxiety don’t see options clearly. Their brain becomes so focused on stress that their available options disappear.

Harley Green: There’s a lot to unpack there. I’ve got a lot of questions, and I’m going to try to combine a couple that are related and something we talked about before we started recording. You mentioned that there have been studies recently showing that people who use AI tools a lot tend to have decreased creativity in their thinking. You also mentioned this idea that when we’re trying to solve problems, we’re trained to drill down and get very analytical, which creates blinders. I’ve seen that when trying to use AI to help with challenges, it can feel like the AI itself gets those blinders too. I wonder if that’s connected, that the way we’re thinking gets translated into how we use AI. Can you address the connection between creativity and AI in modern leadership?

Andre Walton: Absolutely. There was a very interesting piece of research uncovered a few weeks ago and reported in Harvard Business Review. The researchers compared two groups: a group of executives who used AI regularly and a group who did not.

They found that the group using AI tended to have poorer results when it came to measuring critical thinking. That got me thinking about why that might be.

The human brain is intrinsically always looking for ways to be efficient, even lazy. We see this across many areas of psychology. If you imagine you’ve employed the most brilliant person in the world, someone with infinite knowledge who can answer any question, you really have two choices.

You can sit back and let them do all the work, or you can say, this is someone I can learn from. The natural inclination for most people is to let the tool do the work.

AI can alleviate the requirement to think creatively or critically. You see this even in casual use. For example, with career clients who need to generate a resume, they can either sit and actively think about what matters in their life, or they can give all the data to AI and let it generate a polished document.

They often think the result looks amazing and stop thinking about it entirely. The cognitive work has been dramatically reduced.

Critical thinking, which is closely related to creative thinking, is a muscle. If you don’t use it, that neural pathway weakens. This is visible neurologically.

Creative thinking will become the differentiator between people who use AI to increase their cognitive capacity and those whose cognitive capacity decreases as a result of using AI.

Harley Green: Can you share examples of how leaders can use AI to help increase cognitive ability and creativity? We talked about resumes as an example of shutting off thinking, but what are some ways leaders can leverage AI to increase creativity and analytical thinking?

Andre Walton: That’s a great question, and this thought process is still developing. But if you put a prompt into AI asking it to solve a problem, you’ll get one type of output. If you instead ask it to generate ideas related to solving the problem, you get a very different outcome.

One gives you an answer that may or may not be optimal. The other gives you a range of ideas you can engage with, react to, and build upon.

Eventually, you might say, now that we’ve explored these ideas, help me refine a solution. The key point is that you’ve participated in the cognitive route to the outcome.

It’s like the difference between asking for an answer versus running a brainstorming session. In brainstorming, people challenge ideas, discard some, keep others, and work within constraints. There’s interaction.

There’s a strong parallel with how AI should be used.

Harley Green: One thing we’ve implemented with our executive assistants this year is training them to use AI as a thought partner. Before asking it to rewrite something, we have them give it a persona and ask it to interview them to gather context and brainstorm solutions instead of producing an answer. The quality of output and client support has increased dramatically.

Andre Walton: That’s a very enlightened approach, and I’m glad it’s produced great results. AI can hallucinate or get things wrong, and if people become overly reliant, they may not notice those inaccuracies.

It reminds me of autonomous cars. If people get too used to them, they forget how to drive manually. If they suddenly rent a car without automation, they can find themselves making dangerous mistakes.

The same applies to AI. Your process keeps people engaged and aware.

Harley Green: I’ve experienced this with driver-assist technology. Sometimes I forget it’s not enabled and assume the car will slow down for me.

Andre Walton: Exactly.

Harley Green: I want to shift to burnout. You’ve spent years studying it. How do you define burnout, and what misconceptions do leaders have?

Andre Walton: Burnout is often not recognized as a distinct condition. It’s usually lumped under work-related stress. Stress is often defined as an external force crushing your ability to cope.

I define stress differently. I define it as a lack of resources to deal with a challenge.

People often ask why burnout happens now and not six months ago, even when circumstances haven’t changed. The difference is internal resources.

Burnout happens when the internal capacity to cope no longer matches the external demands.

This is important because many people believe a vacation will fix burnout. They return feeling slightly better, but quickly fall back into burnout because the underlying issue wasn’t addressed.

Stress doesn’t switch on and off between work and home. It carries across contexts. Burnout is often about whether someone feels they have options.

If people feel stuck in their job and stuck in their personal life, burnout becomes much more likely.

With burnout clients, I focus on the three Rs: recreation, responsibilities, and relationships. These areas must be addressed in both work and personal life.

Harley Green: You talk a lot about spherical thinking. What is it, and how does it contrast with linear or reactive thinking?

Andre Walton: Spherical thinking is about balancing the two thinking styles and being able to switch between them.

Think about a jazz musician. There’s structure, coordination, and discipline. Then there’s improvisation. Knowing when to move between those modes is critical.

Leaders need analytical thinking to run a business, but they also need creative thinking to solve novel problems. Spherical thinking is the ability to choose the right mode at the right time.

Harley Green: How does spherical thinking help increase resilience in the workplace?

Andre Walton: Spherical thinking leads to higher emotional intelligence. fMRI studies show that the neural pathways associated with creativity overlap with those tied to emotional intelligence.

Resilience fails when people feel they lacked the resources to meet a challenge. When leaders use both structure and creativity, they maximize their chances of success.

Even if things don’t go perfectly, knowing you explored all options strengthens resilience.

Harley Green: What simple, practical changes can leaders make to rewire their brain for creativity and innovation?

Andre Walton: The easiest approach is disrupting routines. Small changes matter. Drink a different beverage in the morning. Choose a different meal. Try a new experience.

Another example is visualizing the future creatively. Create vision boards for trips or projects. This allows you to live in the future and see potential problems early.

Creative visualization both engages creativity and improves planning.

Harley Green: Where can people learn more about you?

Andre Walton: They can email me at .

Harley Green: You recently published a book. Can you share a bit about it?

Andre Walton: Yes. Creative Thinking: A Coach’s Perspective became an international bestseller. It explores creativity from early human history to modern leadership and explains how creative thinking is innate and recoverable.

Harley Green: We’ll link to that in the show notes. If you got value from this episode, hit like, follow, or subscribe. Share it with a leader who needs it. Thanks for tuning in, and we’ll see you next time.

How to Avoid Hiring Mistakes When Scaling Your Business (with Lynn Talbott)

by faye.eScale Smart, Grow Fast PodcastPosted on Comments are Disabled

How to Avoid Hiring Mistakes When Scaling Your Business (with Lynn Talbott)

Hiring during a growth phase can feel like a scramble. You’re stretched thin, juggling sales, operations, and your team — and suddenly you need someone yesterday. But rushing the hiring process can quietly sabotage your company’s momentum.

In a recent episode of the Scale Smart Grow Fast podcast, host Harley Green sat down with Lynn Talbott, founder of The Bookkeeper’s Coach, to break down how to avoid the most common hiring pitfalls that hurt growing businesses.

Preferred listening on the go? Catch the full podcast episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Here are the top takeaways every founder needs to hear:

1. Your First 5 Hires Are Make-or-Break

Lynn compares early hires to “cornerstones” of your company. They shape your culture, pace, and scalability. Hiring someone who can’t grow with your business — even if they solve an immediate pain point — will cost you more in the long run.

✅ Tip: Think 3–5 years ahead when hiring. Choose people who can evolve with the company, not just fill a gap today.

2. Don’t Just Delegate—Lead

Founders often struggle with delegation — or worse, fall into abdication (handing something off and walking away). Lynn emphasizes the need to develop leadership in your team. Your hires should lighten your load, not add to it.

✅ Tip: Hire with leadership potential in mind. Can they take ownership, or will you be babysitting?

3. Culture Fit > Technical Fit

Many entrepreneurs rush into hiring someone with the right skills — but overlook cultural alignment. That’s a fast track to team dysfunction.

✅ Tip: Define your mission, values, and team vibe. Then hire people who live them, not just talk the talk.

4. Watch Out for the “Halo Effect”

One of the biggest mistakes? Letting your gut override structure. Entrepreneurs often make a snap judgment and then spend the rest of the interview convincing themselves the candidate is “the one.”

✅ Tip: Use structured interviews with behavioral questions. Stick to a checklist. Don’t wing it.

5. Don’t Hire Just Because You “Trust” Someone

Hiring a friend, family member, or neighbor because you “trust” them — not because they’re qualified — is a common trap Lynn warns against.

✅ Tip: Trust is great, but competency and fit are non-negotiable. Hire based on merit, not convenience.

6. Hire Slow, Fire Fast

If you realize you’ve hired the wrong person, act quickly. Avoid dragging out the pain — it affects your team, your culture, and your momentum.

✅ Tip: Have open conversations early. If it’s not working, make the call and move forward.

Final Thought: Structure Doesn’t Have to Feel “Corporate”

Many founders resist structure, thinking it will kill their creative edge. But according to Lynn, a bit of structure — especially around hiring — actually frees you up to lead and grow.

🔗 Resources & Links

💼 Tired of hiring in panic mode or doing everything yourself?

Book your free discovery call with Workergenix and discover how an Ultimate Executive Assistant can help you escape hiring chaos, delegate smarter, and scale your business with less stress.

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Transcript

Harley Green: Hey everybody, welcome back to the Scale Smart Grow Fast podcast. Growing your business doesn’t have to come at the cost of burnout or chaos. In this episode, Lynn Talbott, a successful founder who scaled and sold her seven-figure bookkeeping firm, shares the most common pitfalls leaders make when scaling and how to avoid them. From hiring too quickly to holding on to work that should be delegated, Lynn offers clear, hard-earned insights to help business owners grow sustainably and build a company they actually enjoy running. Welcome to the podcast. How are you doing today?

Lynn Talbott: I’m doing great. Thank you for having me, Harley.

Harley Green: That’s our pleasure. So Lynn, tell us a little bit more about your background. Tell us about your bookkeeping firm that you started and how you got through that and what brought you to what you’re doing today.

Lynn Talbott: Yes, so I’m sort of a serial entrepreneur. I got a human resources degree and went out and did the corporate world like most people do when they graduate from college. I was in HR. I really liked it, but I knew I always wanted to own my own business. So when I started my business, I called it HR Business Solutions, because I was going to help people with their back-end office doing human resources and maybe some bookkeeping. I started doing HR and found out quickly that entrepreneurs and startups don’t really want to talk to people about HR. They have their own way of doing things and they like to feel like they can make those HR decisions. I don’t need somebody telling me what to do. So quickly my HR Business Solutions company became more of a bookkeeping company simply because that was the need. And that’s what we do as startups—we shift when we have to, right?

Harley Green: I got that. Good pivot there.

Lynn Talbott: Yes. Over the years, I’ve helped hundreds of entrepreneurs at the startup level with their messy HR and bookkeeping—anything in the back office—helping them hire, figure out job descriptions, create handbooks, just creating some structure around when they’re ready to scale. Because when you start to scale, you get pulled in a lot of directions. I find the entrepreneur can get a little bit caught up in “I can do everything. I wear all the hats. I make all the decisions.” There’s something about being an entrepreneur that makes you feel like you can do everything, that you’re just Superman and you have all the answers. But what happens is a couple of years down the road, they find, “Wow, I didn’t do the right hire or I didn’t set up my back office right and now I’m scaling and trying to do a thousand things, but I might not have the right people in place.”

Harley Green: Yeah, I think we’ve all seen and experienced that. One thing you’ve mentioned before is how the first few hires—maybe the first five—can really make or break a business. What makes those early decisions so high-stakes?

Lynn Talbott: Your early hires set the tone for the culture, the pace, and how your business is going to go. I always say your first four hires are like your cornerstones—your building blocks. What does your company need so that you can delegate, be successful, and scale? That involves thinking three years, five years, or ten hires down the road. We all scale at different times. But if you don’t hire the right people at the right time, it can really cost you. You’re too busy growing and you can’t afford to hire the wrong people—those who need to be babysat, or who are constantly battling with you, or aren’t helping you build your dream. One of the top issues I see entrepreneurs make is not taking those first hires seriously. They might hire quickly to fill a need—data entry, marketing, etc.—and while the person might have the skills in the moment, they may not be able to grow with your company long-term.

Harley Green: That’s really impactful. And you mentioned rushing into that first hire because you’ve got this pain point—let’s say marketing, right? You get the marketing person. What are some tips or strategies you’d share with leaders to slow it down a little and make sure that hire is strategic and the right one?

Lynn Talbott: One of the mottos I use is “Hire slow, fire fast.” I remember when I moved from corporate HR to owning my own business, I thought I knew everything and I could hire whoever I wanted. Even with my skills, background, and a degree in HR, I still didn’t heed that advice. I’d find somebody outgoing with great skills, do a quick interview, and off they go. Later, I’d find out they weren’t a culture fit. They were battling things internally. Every startup has a culture—and that culture is you, the entrepreneur. It’s everything you stand for and what you want your company to be. You have to ask, “Is this person going to fit my culture, or am I going to battle with them forever?” Toxic hires can poison your company and bring it down quickly. Entrepreneurs often realize it too late.

Harley Green: What are some tools or interview strategies you recommend to ensure a good culture match? We know how to evaluate technical skills. Are there particular methods for culture?

Lynn Talbott: That’s a great question. It’s hard to discern if you haven’t defined your culture, mission, and vision. I’m assuming your listeners have done that before hiring. They need to remember those during interviews—”Is this person able to meet those goals? Can they fit into this culture?” What I often see is entrepreneurs winging it. They trust their gut. They get on Zoom or a phone call and just start talking. That leads to what we call in HR the “halo effect.” Maybe you liked their resume or talked to them previously. You already decided you want to hire them. So instead of vetting them, you’re convincing them to work for you. You’ve put a little halo on them. No matter what they say, you pivot around it. They may not have the soft skills, the culture fit, or the ability to grow with you. That halo effect is real. It’s happened to me, and it can happen to anybody.

Harley Green: This goes back to how entrepreneurs often think they can do everything—including hiring. Is there a time or situation when it’s better to delegate the hiring to someone else like a professional recruiter?

Lynn Talbott: It depends on who you’re hiring. If you need an operations manager to run everything, yes, you might want to go outside. If it’s a marketing person or virtual assistant, you can probably do that yourself. But even then, you need some guidelines. Before hiring, define the job. What exactly are you hiring for? Is it just marketing, or do you also need someone to manage your CRM, do backend office work, or maybe even sales? When I say things like “job description” to entrepreneurs, they often say, “I left corporate to get away from people like you telling me I need an HR department.” I get it. HR has changed, and structure can feel stifling. But even a quick task list—something simple—can help you focus on who you’re hiring for. Tools like ChatGPT can help with that. And you’ll often think of more tasks while creating that list. Hire someone who can do that job or grow into it. Not everyone will come in ready to do the perfect job.

Harley Green: You’ve worked with teams that skipped defining roles. What problems show up when expectations aren’t clear from the start?

Lynn Talbott: I often get called in as a fractional HR person to talk to employees or departments who are disgruntled. Why? Usually because they don’t have clear roles. They have “free flow”—which entrepreneurs love—but once your company grows beyond 10 people, that starts to cause conflict between departments. People compete for the owner’s attention. If you don’t have the right leadership in place, you’ll be pulled in every direction. If you hire too fast, you might miss hiring people with the leadership skills you’ll need a year from now. If no one owns their tasks or department, you end up spread too thin. Those early hires need to take control and truly manage their areas.

Harley Green: That makes sense. And it leads into the next question. Entrepreneurs often hear “HR” and cringe—it’s not what they got into business for. So how should they think about culture while building a team without becoming too corporate?

Lynn Talbott: Everyone will have their own opinion and culture style. There’s no one-size-fits-all. But the owner sets the tone. What do you stand for as an entrepreneur, and how do you share that with your team? One company I worked with gave their team books that reflected their culture. They’d have lunch meetings to discuss them and give PTO for finishing the book. It was well received. It created open conversations and stronger communication. Not everyone will love that, but it worked for them. The key is to be intentional.

Harley Green: That’s a great example of strong culture. If someone has their culture in place and their team aligned, what’s the next step to build a strong interview process? How do they grow the business fast without hiring mistakes?

Lynn Talbott: Don’t wing it. Use an interview sheet with specific questions. In HR, we use behavioral questions—past behavior predicts future behavior. Ask how they handled certain situations, or how they performed under pressure. If you ask about a past role and they start with, “My boss was terrible,” believe them—that’s how they’ll treat you too. Their answers reveal how they behave, not just what skills they have.

Harley Green: Great segue into red flags. What are some red flags founders shouldn’t ignore, especially when desperate for help?

Lynn Talbott: One big red flag is hiring people close to you. It’s common—your spouse, child, mother, or sister-in-law doing your marketing because she’s a stay-at-home mom. Founders often say, “I can trust her, I’ll teach her.” That usually turns into chaos. Just because someone is trustworthy or nice doesn’t mean they’re qualified. I’ve had to “rescue” many startups because a family member was doing the books but didn’t know what they were doing. Avoid hiring just based on trust or familiarity.

Harley Green: Let’s move to another area—handing off tasks. At what point should a founder bring in a right-hand person, like an executive assistant or COO?

Lynn Talbott: As soon as possible. You’re already working 40, 50, 60 hours a week. You need to lead, sell, and drive vision—not clean up CRMs on weekends. The biggest mistake is not delegating. We tell ourselves, “I can do it in 10 minutes,” and push things to Saturday. But by Monday, you’re too busy again. If you want someone to be your operations manager, CFO, or take over finances, develop leadership early. Hire people who own tasks, not those who push them back to you. Delegate soon and develop leadership beneath you.

Harley Green: Great advice. As we wrap up, what’s your top advice for a founder who realizes they’ve hired the wrong person? How can they recover without losing momentum?

Lynn Talbott: Be honest. Sit down and talk to them. If you’ve had open conversations before, this will be easier. If you hate confrontation and want them gone, it’s tougher. But don’t let someone stay if they’re not pulling their weight, fitting your culture, or helping you grow. Hire slow, fire fast. Say, “This isn’t working, I’m going in a different direction.” And make it clean. Have someone else cut off access to systems. Laws vary by state, but act quickly before things escalate.

Harley Green: Lynn, you’ve shared incredible strategies today. If people want to connect with you, what’s the best way?

Lynn Talbott: You can find me at coachingbookkeepers.com. We have a training circle where we coach bookkeepers to scale and sell their bookkeeping firms.

Harley Green: If you got value from this episode, hit like and subscribe so you don’t miss future strategies to help you scale smarter. Share this with a business owner or colleague—it could be just what they need right now. Thanks for tuning in. See you on the next one.

How to Turn Your Team into a High-Performing Asset (Without Burnout)

by faye.eScale Smart, Grow Fast PodcastPosted on Comments are Disabled

How to Turn Your Team into a High-Performing Asset (Without Burnout)

If your team is your biggest investment, why aren’t they delivering your biggest return?

In a recent episode of the Scale Smart Grow Fast podcast, host Harley Green sat down with Katie Close, transformational leadership coach and founder of Self Mastery, Entrepreneur Evolution. Katie shared a powerful 6-part framework that helps leaders transform their teams into aligned, efficient, and high-ROI assets—without burnout or bloated headcounts.

Preferred listening on the go? Catch the full podcast episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Here’s what growth-minded founders and executives need to know:

1. Strategic Clarity Drives Everything

Vision isn’t just a poster on the wall. According to Katie, strategic clarity must be embedded into daily operations and decisions. Without it, you risk hiring misaligned team members and wasting energy on low-ROI activities.

2. People Need Defined Roles and Accountability

Too many leaders expect new hires to “figure it out.” Katie emphasizes clear role definitions, consistent processes, and aligned expectations as key drivers of performance and satisfaction.

3. Process Before People

Before hiring, first fix your systems. Throwing more people at unclear workflows only creates expensive inefficiencies. Align structure and operations before expanding the team.

4. Hire Support for the Visionary

Visionary leaders often live on the edge of growth and chaos. Hiring an executive assistant or integrator helps bring structure to vision, translating ideas into execution and freeing the visionary to focus on innovation.

5. Emotional Intelligence is Non-Negotiable

Leadership isn’t just strategy—it’s psychology. Katie highlights how subconscious beliefs and unprocessed emotions can sabotage leadership. Emotional intelligence helps leaders stay grounded, navigate setbacks, and maintain the energy needed to inspire others.

6. Start With Honest Conversations

Want to improve your team’s performance? Start by asking: “What’s working, what’s not, and what should we change?” Katie calls this the “1% conversation”—a simple practice that catches small issues before they become big problems.

“Scale smart before you grow fast.”

Katie’s final advice? Optimize the human side of your business. Emotional patterns, clarity gaps, and poor delegation habits are the silent killers of growth. Get intentional, get honest, and start leading smarter.

Learn more about Katie Close’s coaching and framework at https://katieclose.com

Want a high-performing team without the burnout? 

Workergenix pairs you with an Ultimate Executive Assistant to bring clarity, systems, and execution to your vision—book a free discovery call today.

Like what you read? Get weekly insights on scaling, efficiency, and profitability—straight to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.

Transcript:

Harley Green:
 Hey everybody, welcome back to the Scale Smart Grow Fast podcast. Now, if your people are your greatest investment, why aren’t they delivering the strongest ROI? In this episode, Katie Close, Transformational Leadership Coach and founder of Self Mastery, Entrepreneur Evolution, shares how business leaders can align strategy, structure, and emotional intelligence to unlock their team’s true potential. Drawing from over two decades of experience, Katie reveals six key framework items that help transform expensive overhead into consistent high performance enabling growth without burnout. Katie, welcome to the podcast. How are you doing today?

Katie:
 Hi Harley, thank you. Yes, well.

Harley Green:
 Great, now Katie, maybe you can share a little bit more about your background. What brought you to helping others with their people now?

Katie:
 Well, my husband and I, when we got married, we had these master degrees and we had envisioned ourselves in the workplace to some degree, but he had this stirring for entrepreneurship. So very quickly we are building a moving company from scratch. We got a truck and now we’re building a company. I was a little bit surprised about how emotional that journey was because if I’m getting straight A’s through a master’s program, why am I not figuring out business? It actually required something distinct from us. We went through some highs and lows that we weren’t expecting.

We then got into the transformational work of people in nonprofits, because I was very inspired by that. Organizational leadership, yes, but really keying in on the individual. I often say that team is made up of I’s. They just all get together and figure out how to harmonize and become an efficient organization for the intended purpose or mission.

When I really started to take my time with individuals and actually individuals that were on the brink of severe challenges—and through a nonprofit, it was a lot of drug and alcohol addiction—and those people, they need to change. You don’t have the convenience of when or how or if. It’s now. It’s essential.

Watching that transformation, I saw how much of it occurred at a subconscious and emotional level. Then I started to apply a lot of that for business. We draw out our patterns. Especially if we have margins, we just allow them to be eaten up by overhead. I know you guys just recently had a podcast about increasing head count, just more people as if that’s going to solve what people. What are they going to have to feel, think and exchange in the organization?

I started doing that for us. We opened up another business—we had sold our moving one—but we opened up a lawn and landscaping one. People saw the transformations that were occurring and started asking me to coach. Again, I love people. So I was happy to do that. And I’ve continued to do that as we’ve had a number of other businesses. We’ve sold some, building other ones, looking to buy one again recently.

I go in and help other businesses with those underlying dynamics that often get lost. We know ourselves, right? I don’t know, Harley, if you’ve ever experienced this, but you’re like, I’m doing a new workout program, or I’m going to get up at the same time every day, or I’m going to do my work blocks. The idea of it’s good, but our emotional patterns sometimes overtake all of that.

Imagine wanting to change the entire patterns and habits of a whole organization—not just yourself, but the whole thing. That’s, I think, where there’s so much underlying potential, but there’s so much work to be done.

Harley Green:
 Absolutely. I love what you said about the challenge of changing this whole organization when we struggle just to keep consistent ourselves. One of the things you say is that people are both your greatest expense and greatest return. What makes that alignment so critical for leaders who want real ROI from their team?

Katie:
 Well, if we bring it back to yourself, we watch a lot of our own internal patterns play out. We’re sometimes very hard on ourselves, on our mistakes, on our patterns. But we have to realize we are—especially if you’re a visionary or one of the key elements—you are one of the greatest assets to your business: your energy, your clarity, your patterns. As you start to believe that, you can start to believe that in your people. But it doesn’t mean it’s just automatic.

There are a number of elements going on. A lot of time people just say, I’ll put in a new person. This person’s driving me nuts. I loved them at first, get them out of here. It’s like dating. You ever see somebody fall in love and the person could do no wrong? They hire them on the first meeting. No real plan or strategy. Just a good feeling. And then they’re out. They’re not doing what I said. I can’t stand it anymore. Get out. Hiring somebody else. Then that person looks like the last. Bob looks a lot like Billy who looks a lot like Luke.

We actually have a way of being that can either make people very expensive for us or make people really optimized and beneficial for us.

Harley Green:
 Yeah, let’s talk about that. Let’s talk about your framework, the six key elements in your framework. What do those consist of?

Katie:
 We have to be clear on where we’re going. Vision, mission, strategic clarity—if you write it down and put it in a drawer, it’s a start, but often gives a false sense of engagement. There’s a decision every day to live out that clarity. Am I going in the direction I intend? What is or isn’t moving me there? I love quarters because every quarter you can reassess. Every day might be too much, but strategic check-ins help.

Then we have our people, but we’re really choosing them in light of the strategic clarity. A lot of times we think someone will just come in and fix something, but people appreciate clarity and a bit of structure. Visionaries often don’t like being told what to do, but others want direction and structure. That makes for a great organization.

Transparency is another one. We need to be okay with micro mistakes. With good measurables, we facilitate clarity and quick responses to breakdowns. Then we solve root problems—this is where emotional intelligence is key. It takes intentionality, not just fire-fighting. We need process and execution with consistency, building new habits. Otherwise, you’re just adding more people without clear direction or impact.

Harley Green:
 Yeah. One thing we found in our business was going from chaos to having clear job descriptions, responsibilities, and procedures. There was less chaos, more done, and everyone was happier.

Katie:
 Exactly.

Harley Green:
 Of the elements you just talked about, is there any one in particular that has the most impact when not in place? What red flags can people watch for?

Katie:
 They’re all important, but strategic clarity and the ability to execute it regularly stand out. You can’t just write it and put it away—even putting it on the wall isn’t enough. It must be in the habits of your people. If you can integrate it daily, people start to figure it out and embody it.

It’s hard to scale if people have to read you all the time. That’s why having an operational person or executive assistant to bridge the gap is essential. Visionaries iterate a lot. Not everyone wants to live on the edge with them. An assistant can stabilize execution, allowing the visionary to keep creating.

Harley Green:
 What would you say to that visionary who doesn’t have an assistant yet? How do you communicate the benefits?

Katie:
 This year I’ve had a true executive assistant. My day is full of creativity and new decisions. I’m less bogged down, and I didn’t realize how much the little stuff was wearing me out. Yes, it’s a bit of a risk, but I’d talk to a visionary using words like “risk,” “return,” “creativity,” and “freedom.” That’s what they want.

I also host twice-monthly workshop calls for a visionary and their assistant or integrator. They both need to be there. Visionaries are bigger-than-life people—they often undervalue that stabilizing role. We’re often in survival mode, thinking we have to bring in the money, make stuff happen. But we need structure and people who can create that calm.

Harley Green:
 You mentioned freedom and time. Sometimes visionaries feel guilty when their assistant is working and they’re at their kid’s ballgame. What would you say to that?

Katie:
 Great question. Guilt is often systemic—it’s not always just your feeling. It could come from cultural or family conditioning. Maybe you were told you’re lazy if not busy. We need to recognize that conditioning.

Visionaries need to focus on their energy. That’s the most valuable thing. If going to the ballgame re-energizes you and you come back with more clarity and drive, that’s invaluable. But if you check out and don’t come back energized, then yeah, maybe it’s an issue. Your job is to 

Harley Green:
 That leads into another question. How does emotional intelligence factor into team optimization?

Katie:
 We have this prefrontal cortex where we set goals and get strategic, but a big driver in our brain is the limbic system—our emotions. We are moved by how we feel: respected, powerful, free. Tools like the Predictive Index and Culture Index help uncover work motivators.

Money can only motivate so much. Emotional intelligence allows leaders to notice and work through things like burnout, stress, disappointment, regret—all of which affect creativity and leadership. Ray Dalio said, “Pain plus reflection equals progress.” We need to reflect to grow.

Harley Green:
 So when aligning people, strategy, and systems, what mindset shifts do leaders need?

Katie:
 Let’s play with this. When you take on more systems, part of you probably goes, “Woohoo,” especially if you don’t have to build them. But is there a part of you that resists?

Harley Green:
 Definitely. Sunk cost fallacy comes to mind. “It’s worked this far, why change it?”

Katie:
 Okay, so why change what’s working?

Harley Green:
 If the ROI is better—if it helps us or our clients more—then it’s worth it.

Katie:
 Have you had it work out?

Harley Green:
 Yes, in our lending business we switched platforms, and it’s been great.

Katie:
 If it hasn’t worked out, there’s still something to learn. Sometimes we don’t reflect on what went wrong. That’s where expensive entrepreneurial education becomes valuable if we show up for it. Reflect and evolve.

Harley Green:
 What are some examples of subconscious issues holding leaders back?

Katie:
 I had a client who loved freedom and thought everyone wanted the same. They hired salespeople with no structure, thinking autonomy equals performance. But it was abdication, not delegation. The hires weren’t held accountable, and it blew up. One hire even reminded the client of his father. It was subconscious patterning playing out.

Harley Green:
 Wow.

Katie:
 We all have those patterns. The subconscious says, “I got you,” whether that’s brushing your teeth or repeating emotional cycles. We have to examine which patterns serve us and which don’t.

Harley Green:
 What’s one practical step leaders can take this week to start that shift?

Katie:
 Have a safe, honest conversation with each person on your team. Ask: What’s working? What’s not? What would you change? You don’t have to implement it all, but it gives you awareness. We call it the “1% conversation.” Catch the issue at 1% before it becomes a 50% problem.

Harley Green:
 Katie, thank you so much for sharing these actionable strategies. Where can people connect with you?

Katie:
 Visit katieclose.com. I offer coaching for both the executive and their organization. We do group work every quarter around the six elements. Harvard Business Review says a $10M business can lose $2M yearly in operational inefficiencies. If $2M motivates you, come check it out.

Harley Green:
 If you got value from this episode, hit like and subscribe so you don’t miss future strategies to help you scale smarter. Share this with someone who needs it. Thanks for tuning in!

Marketing Without Strategy Is Costing You More Than You Think

by faye.eScale Smart, Grow Fast PodcastPosted on Comments are Disabled

Marketing Without Strategy Is Costing You More Than You Think

If you’re a small business leader juggling roles and drowning in “random acts of marketing,” this one’s for you. In our latest episode of Scale Smart, Grow Fast, Harley Green sat down with Sara Nay, CEO of Duct Tape Marketing, to talk about why marketing strategy must come before tactics and technology—especially AI.

Preferred listening on the go? Catch the full podcast episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

🎯 Why Most Marketing Fails Small Business Owners

Many founders approach marketing with a to-do list: “We need a new website, some paid ads, maybe some SEO.” But as Sara shares, without a clear strategy, you risk spending thousands with little return—and a lot of frustration.

Her team often steps into companies spending $10K+ monthly on marketing with no idea what’s working. Sound familiar?

🧭 What Strategic Marketing Actually Looks Like

Sara breaks down a proven process that includes:

  • A marketing and brand audit
  • Ideal client interviews
  • Competitive research
  • Messaging development
  • Customer journey mapping
  • A focused execution calendar

This foundational work brings clarity, confidence, and control—and often helps businesses do less with better results.

🤖 Don’t Just “Do AI” — Train It on Strategy

With AI tools like ChatGPT trending, Sara warns against adopting them without intention. Instead:

  1. Align business and marketing goals.
  2. Identify your team’s gaps.
  3. Choose AI tools based on specific objectives.
  4. Train AI with your brand voice, values, and strategy.

Smart AI integration enhances your marketing—it doesn’t replace strategy.

🧠 From Doers to Managers: Elevating Your Marketing Team

Sara also emphasizes helping teams evolve by:

  • Auditing their roles
  • Identifying tasks AI can support
  • Upskilling them into strategy-focused roles

Bringing in a fractional CMO (like Duct Tape Marketing offers) can help founders stay in their zone of genius while giving their team the guidance and structure to succeed.

🚀 Take Action: Start with Strategy

If you’re scaling a business and overwhelmed with marketing decisions, here’s Sara’s advice:

“Don’t rush into AI or shiny tools. Start with your business goals, then build a marketing strategy that supports them. Everything else should flow from there.”

🔗 Resources from Sara Nay:
 • Duct Tape Marketing
 • The Unchained Model
 • Connect with Sara on LinkedIn

⏳ Ready to Focus on Growth, Not the Grind?

Schedule a free discovery call to see how an ultimate executive assistant from Workergenix can free up your time to focus on what really drives growth.

Like what you read? Get weekly insights on scaling, efficiency, and profitability—straight to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.

Transcript

Harley Green: Hey everybody. Welcome back to the Scale Smart, Grow Fast podcast. Now in today’s fast-paced business world, growth without intention leads to exhaustion and missed opportunities. In this episode, Sara Nay, CEO of Duct Tape Marketing, shares how leaders can scale strategically by aligning their marketing efforts, leveraging AI, and building a team that thrives. With over a decade of experience advising thousands of business owners, Sara offers a grounded, actionable approach to sustainable growth that protects your energy and maximizes your impact.

So thank you for being on the podcast today. How are you doing?

Sara Nay: I’m doing well. Thank you for having me on. Excited to be here.

Harley Green: Tell us a little bit more about your background. What brought you to Duct Tape Marketing in this role of helping other people with their marketing?

Sara Nay: Duct Tape Marketing as a business has been around for about 30 years. I actually joined the team back in December 2010 as an intern. I had graduated college, done some traveling, was a ski bum and went to South America for a while, four months or so, and came back and didn’t really know what I was going to pursue. So I started honestly as an intern saying, “Marketing sounds interesting. Let’s see where this goes.” Obviously, it stuck. I’ve been around for about 15 years now in the company. Even though I started as an intern back in the day, I’ve moved throughout the company through multiple different roles. I was community manager for a while, account manager. I served as fractional CMO to our clients for a while, COO, sales. Most recently, last year, I moved into the seat as CEO. I’ve been involved in all the different areas of a marketing agency at this point and have learned a lot along the way.

Harley Green: I can imagine. That is quite the journey and I think it speaks to a great business if it’s able to keep someone as talented as you there that long and have all this experience. That’s really impressive.

Sara Nay: Thank you. I caught the bug. Our founder, John Jantsch, is really passionate about serving small businesses. So back when he started Duct Tape Marketing, he saw that marketing was really complicated and confusing for small businesses to buy because they just really didn’t even know what they were buying in a lot of cases. So he set out on a mission to make marketing as simple and practical to the small business space as possible. I’ve really been passionate about that myself now over the years. As I said, I’ve been in the sales role for a while and I’ve seen so many small businesses come to us frustrated that marketing doesn’t work. They’ve tried to hire different agencies. They’re spending all this money. They’re getting complicated reports with no actual customers and all that stuff. So I’ve heard all of these stories myself. I’ve also then walked through taking someone from frustrated with marketing to then creating a strategy, to them understanding the what and the why behind the things they’re doing. I’ve seen that transformation. So that’s caused me to become very driven and passionate to help those small businesses as well.

Harley Green: I think you really are speaking to a lot of the pain points people feel with marketing there. What are some of the examples of strategies that you employ that help marketing stay simple and still impactful?

Sara Nay: A lot of times people will come to marketing companies and they’ll say something like, “I need a new website” or “I need to launch paid ads” or “I need tactics,” essentially. What we’ve always said is strategy needs to come before any tactics. Now we’re even shifting to say strategy needs to come before tactics and technology, because now people are diving into AI without the proper strategy in place. Marketing strategy has so many definitions. We usually work with clients in an initial 30 to 45-day engagement where we are doing things like a marketing and brand audit to get a baseline of their marketing and brand today. We’re interviewing some of their best clients. We are doing competitive research to ultimately develop ideal client profiles or personas and then core messaging. Step one and two of marketing is you need to understand who you’re talking to and what message resonates with them. Then we move more into the planning phase of strategy, which is mapping out the customer journey, mapping out a content strategy, identifying the four to six biggest growth priorities over the next quarter, and putting that all into an execution calendar. A lot of times when I talk to businesses, they’re like, “Yeah, I have a marketing strategy,” and they have a list of tactics. Like, “We’re going to do this, this and this.” That’s a piece of marketing strategy. It’s an important piece, but you need all of the stuff that goes on the front end. If you’re telling me you need to be focused on Meta ads, but your clients aren’t on Facebook, it probably doesn’t make sense. Also, you need to understand what messaging actually resonates with them as well. That’s where I see a lot of people waste money on marketing. They’re just on these channels spending. They don’t have any idea if it’s working or not, but they haven’t put the work in on the front end. A lot of times when you go through creating a marketing strategy, you can actually simplify what you’re doing from a marketing perspective and focus on the right channels with the right message at the right time to your ideal clients.

Harley Green: What are some of the biggest surprises people you’ve worked with have had as they’re going through this process and having this strategy developed, whether it’s finding details about that ideal client or what technologies or platforms they should be using? I’m curious, what are some of those aha moments they’ve had when working with you?

Sara Nay: It’s maybe less “aha moments” and more so clarity is what they’re getting. A lot of small businesses out there are just spending money on marketing. Then I ask them, “Are these channels working for you? Are you hitting specific goals? What are you tracking? Should you keep doing these things?” A lot of times they don’t know. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve started working with a small business when we back up and do strategy, and maybe they’re spending $10,000–$15,000 a month across all of these different channels. When I ask them why, they say, “Because we’ve always done it and we don’t know what’s working and we need to be on these things.” It’s not always ah-has, it’s more about putting clarity behind the why. Analyzing and actually getting metrics and tracking set up. Then understanding what’s working and shifting the budget towards that versus being spread thin across all the channels. So it’s really more of a clarity, confidence, and control thing than anything.

Harley Green: One thing you mentioned is having that strategy before technology, especially with AI coming in and everyone being like, someone said I should use AI in marketing. What kind of advice do you have for people when it comes to making those marketing decisions and staying focused when there are shiny tools everywhere?

Sara Nay: We have a process that I think makes sense for that. A lot of small businesses right now are bringing in AI solutions like ChatGPT. Everyone on their team is doing it differently. There’s no consistency, there’s no proper training for the AI or for the team on how to use it effectively. There are no systems and processes in place. All of a sudden, these teams are confused and creating noise. It’s really important to take a step back. Just like bringing in technology and tools without a reason complicates things. We often say: take a step back, understand the business strategy. What’s the business trying to accomplish? Then map the marketing strategy from there, then analyze your team strategy. Then you can start to say, okay, if these are our specific goals and priorities for the next quarter, here’s who we have in place already as humans. What AI systems can we layer below them? Then you’re bringing in AI to accomplish a specific goal versus just bringing in AI for the sake of it. Once you’ve identified the right tool, say ChatGPT for content repurposing, then you need to train AI on your business—your vision, mission, values, ideal clients, your messaging, how you want to be seen in the world. You give AI that context so when it starts creating or helping with repurposing, it’s on-brand. Your tone of voice matches. You create the strategy, train AI on it, and then have systems in place so your team uses AI consistently rather than everyone doing their own thing.

Harley Green: So having that strategy upfront actually makes it easier to leverage these tools then, because you’re able to take that information that you’ve already developed, feed it into tools like AI, and get much better outputs.

Sara Nay: Yes, and you can even use something like ChatGPT to help with strategy creation on the front end. The important thing is that you’re giving AI the context on your business. I see a lot of stuff on LinkedIn or different platforms where it’s clearly AI-created and generic. That’s a problem when businesses use AI without direction. But if you give AI the context of your business, your viewpoints, values, stories—then it can help you create content that still tells your story. One of our favorite uses of AI is to create a video on a topic you want to be known for, then feed that into AI to repurpose it into different formats. It’s still coming from you. AI just helps you turn that video into emails, blog posts, social posts, and all the things. You’re getting more bang for your time spent, but the core is still you, not generic AI filler.

Harley Green: Great advice. You talked earlier about the business goals and strategy and aligning those things. Where do you see most businesses getting stuck when trying to align marketing with business goals?

Sara Nay: Unfortunately, too many businesses think of them as separate things. They think, we have business objectives and goals over here, and marketing is over there. It’s all siloed. We have a marketing strategy pyramid and the bottom layer is the business strategy. We can’t think about marketing until we understand what the business is trying to accomplish. One example: in sales and onboarding with new clients, I’m always asking things like, what’s your current revenue? Your one-year goal? Your three-year goal? Hopefully, they know the answer. If not, they need to figure that out before we move forward. If I don’t know how aggressive their growth goals are, I don’t know how aggressive we need to be in marketing. If they’re aiming for fast growth, we need a bold marketing push. If they want to streamline and grow steadily, we can be less aggressive but more focused on systems and stability. We also factor in their mission, vision, and values—those need to be part of the marketing strategy and content production because we should represent the brand how they want to be seen. So again, I don’t think of them as separate. It’s business strategy first, then layer marketing strategy on top.

Harley Green: That’s absolutely right. They’re totally connected. Now, many of our listeners are probably wearing multiple hats in their business. What is your approach to building these systems and helping marketing teams that actually support that visionary at the top?

Sara Nay: One of my favorite exercises is having everyone on the team—including the business leader—do a time audit. People don’t love it, but it’s important. Write down everything you’re doing consistently: tasks, priorities, skills. Then analyze: are these things increasing in value because of AI, staying stable, or decreasing? From there, focus your time on the increasing-value work. Bring in AI to support the stable or decreasing tasks. It’s a great way to assess how AI fits in your business. It’s also powerful for your team. There’s a lot of uncertainty when AI enters: “Am I being replaced?” “Will I have to work harder?” If you walk them through this, they’ll see you’re using AI to elevate their role, not erase it. You’re helping them focus on strengths and future-proof their careers. When you identify skill gaps, you know where to invest in training. Marketing teams especially are going from doers to managers. They used to write everything, run SEO, manage ads themselves. Now they manage AI platforms. They’re not managing people, but they are managing systems—which is a different skillset. We’ve invested in helping our team become better communicators, strategic thinkers, and leaders.

Harley Green: I love that. That’s something we always recommend with our clients as well. It’s the exact same process—where can you leverage AI, and maybe there are some things that AI can’t do just yet. That’s where an executive assistant can come in, and maybe they can be the one who helps manage the AI tools as well to help those visionaries stay in that strategic space.

Sara Nay: Yes, exactly. And one thing that I think helps tremendously is bringing in a fractional CMO. That’s something we offer. A fractional CMO creates the strategy, oversees execution, and owns the budget and metrics. Often, in small businesses, the CEO becomes the default CMO because they can’t afford a full-time one. They may not have marketing experience, but they’ve learned enough to get by. Maybe they have one marketer under them who they’re trying to manage. When we come in, we work alongside the CEO so they can stay in the CEO seat. We run the marketing department with them. We spend the first 30 to 45 days mapping out the business strategy, marketing strategy, and team strategy. Then we move into a long-term retainer where we’re really running the department, ensuring execution, and up-leveling any internal marketers who are doing the hands-on work.

Harley Green: Do you work with companies who already have in-house marketers? Do you help manage and guide them as that fractional CMO, or does it have to be your team doing the work?

Sara Nay: We provide a lot of flexibility because every team structure is different. In some cases, we’re the fractional CMO and we have a full execution team—so we’re acting as a fractional marketing department. In other cases, the client has one or two marketers already. We stay in the fractional CMO role and up-level those internal marketers by layering AI systems below them and plugging any gaps. Maybe they don’t have a technical developer—we can fill that need with project-based support. We’re flexible and adapt to the team’s needs.

Harley Green: Very nice. I imagine that’s a huge relief for a lot of those leaders who are wearing all those hats. Maybe you could share some examples of the positive changes those leaders have experienced working with you—when they no longer have to wear that CMO hat themselves.

Sara Nay: I’m really big on the idea of staying in your zone of genius. A lot of people start businesses not because they want to be marketers, but because they’re passionate about something else. Yet they end up becoming the marketer by default. When we come in, we ask strategic questions—what lights you up? What does success look like a year from now in your role? If we can get clarity on that, then we do everything we can to take marketing off their plate. They still need to be involved in key decisions, understand the metrics, and do quarterly planning. But we handle the daily grind so they can focus on what they do best.

One recent example: we worked with a home service company. The CEO had one marketer on staff, but it was a friend with little marketing experience—eager and growth-minded, which was great. They hired us to create the strategy and partner with the CEO while taking over managing the marketer. We helped upskill her and built an AI system underneath her to support content production—landing pages, ad copy, email campaigns, eBooks. She went from doing things manually without guidance to having a fractional CMO mentor above her and an AI content system below. Now she can grow her skills and work at a higher capacity.

Harley Green: Speaking of building those skills, it sounds like you’ve got a great program for helping people level up. How do you help teams adopt a growth mindset, especially when they’re navigating all the change and uncertainty with marketing, tech, and AI?

Sara Nay: I think growth mindset is something people usually either have or don’t. But you can create an environment that encourages it. That’s one of our company values, and we hire for it. We design our interviews to determine whether someone is growth-minded. That’s crucial in marketing—it changes so fast. Once they’re on the team, we support that mindset through things like our bi-weekly “Lead and Learn” meetings where we present new topics on AI and discuss how we can apply them. We also do a monthly book club, reading books on various topics and talking about implementation. So it starts with hiring the right people and then giving them space and tools to grow continuously.

Harley Green: Nice. What is one leadership habit that’s helped you scale with clarity and calm, and how might our listeners apply it to their own businesses?

Sara Nay: Communication. I started as an intern, so I’ve been in a lot of roles. One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned in leadership is the power of communication. When assigning a task, don’t just say, “I need this done.” Explain why it matters. How does it connect to other goals? How does it impact the team or client? Also, meet with your team regularly. Be available. Do thoughtful quarterly reviews. Really invest in those conversations. Listen. That kind of open, consistent communication is what’s made our company culture strong. We support each other, and that starts with how we communicate.

Harley Green: I love that. That’s something we’ve observed too. Leaders who have regular check-ins and clear communication get the best results. The ones who don’t delegate, just dump tasks with no context, tend to get frustrated with poor outcomes.

Sara Nay: Exactly. And there’s a saying: “Don’t throw good people at bad systems.” That’s why, in our onboarding process, we start with daily meetings no matter the role—even part-time contractors. We do daily check-ins during onboarding, then move to every other day, then twice a week, and eventually once a week. The more time and attention you give someone in their first 30 days, the better set up they are for long-term success.

Harley Green: That’s so smart. I’m a huge fan of a 30-60-90 day onboarding plan. It’s been a game-changer in our business. It helps leaders stay clear on what they’re handing off and helps team members know what’s coming. It’s super powerful.

Sara Nay: Absolutely.

Harley Green: As we wrap up, what’s one thing you’d like to share with leaders today—something they could take action on this week to make a big impact on their marketing?

Sara Nay: What we talked about earlier. AI is here. You should be using it in your business, no matter your industry—but don’t rush in. Take a step back. What are your four to six biggest business priorities for the next quarter? Hopefully, you’re doing quarterly planning. Look at your team, then decide which AI tools make sense. Don’t just sign up for everything. Breathe, analyze, and bring it in strategically.

Harley Green: Love it. Sara, if people want to continue the conversation or learn more about your business offerings, what’s the best way to connect?

Sara Nay: We have a page on our website: https://dtm.world/growth. There are a bunch of free resources there. I’m also very active on LinkedIn—just search for my name, Sara Nay.

Harley Green: Awesome. Thank you so much, Sara. And for those of you listening, if you got value from this episode, do one quick thing—hit like and subscribe so you don’t miss future episodes to help you scale smarter. And if you know a business owner who could use this information, share this episode with them. It might be exactly what they need. And if you’re listening on a podcast platform, leave us a quick rating. It helps us reach more leaders just like you. Thanks again, and we’ll see you in the next episode.

Your Website Is Speaking—Here’s How to Finally Listen (And Scale Smarter)

by faye.eScale Smart, Grow Fast PodcastPosted on Comments are Disabled

Your Website Is Speaking—Here’s How to Finally Listen (And Scale Smarter)

Your website isn’t just a digital brochure—it’s a goldmine of insights that most business leaders overlook. On the Scale Smart Grow Fast podcast, host Harley Green sits down with digital strategy expert Philippa Gamse, author of Website Wealth and founder of Websites That Win, to discuss how smart leaders can turn web analytics into strategic growth tools.

Preferred listening on the go? Catch the full podcast episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

🔍 Why Web Analytics Matter More Than Ever

Philippa, a digital veteran with 25+ years of experience, explains that modern web analytics goes far beyond bounce rates and page views. Today, you can:

  • Track video watch time
  • Review screen recordings to understand user behavior
  • Analyze on-site searches to uncover product or content gaps

And it’s not about tracking every metric—it’s about tracking what matters.

💡 Turn Insights into Revenue

Here’s the gold: your website search bar is a marketing research tool in disguise. Philippa shares real-world examples where analyzing what users searched for (but didn’t find) led to new product ideas and service offerings.

She also stresses the importance of understanding user intent and mapping your site’s outcomes (like email signups or content engagement) to clear business goals.

🚫 Mistakes to Avoid

  • Overanalyzing everything. Focus only on metrics tied to actionable business outcomes.
  • Expecting exact numbers. Due to privacy settings and AI traffic, your analytics reflect trends, not absolutes.
  • Ignoring calls to action. Content that ends without a next step is a wasted opportunity.

🤖 How AI Is Changing Analytics

From traffic source labeling (AI bots now show up!) to predictive analytics, tools like Google Analytics 4 are evolving fast. But AI still can’t replace human strategy and creative decision-making. Think of it as a powerful intern—not your marketing director.

✅ Start Here: One Smart Move

Philippa’s challenge to leaders:
👉 If you’re not using analytics, start today.
 👉 If you are, use it to answer good questions—not just to stare at traffic numbers.

Tracking a few meaningful metrics tied to real business outcomes can unlock faster, smarter growth.

📚 Resources from Philippa Gamse

🔹 Your business can only grow as fast as your clarity. Don’t let busywork bury your potential.

Schedule a free discovery call with Workergenix and discover how a strategic executive assistant can help you focus on what truly moves the needle.

Like what you read? Get weekly insights on scaling, efficiency, and profitability—straight to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.

Transcript

Harley Green: Welcome back to the Scale Smart Grow Fast podcast.Now your website is speaking to you. Most leaders just don’t know how to listen. In this episode, Philippa Gamse, digital strategy veteran and author of Website Wealth, a business leader’s guide for driving real value from your analytics, shares how decision makers can use web analytics to uncover hidden opportunities, eliminate waste, and make smarter business moves.

With over 25 years of experience consulting on high-performing websites around the world, Philippa offers some simple, jargon-free strategies that turn data into actionable insights and growth.

Philippa Gamse: Hi Harley, I’m great. How are you?

Harley Green: I’m doing wonderful. Now, tell us a little bit more about your background. How did you get into doing website analytics?

Philippa Gamse: Well, this tells you that I’ve been around a little while, but I’ve been using the web for a long time. Before Google Analytics, I had a friend where I live in Santa Cruz who made a very early analytics program called ClickTracks. It was the most intuitive, easy-to-use, graphically helpful program that helped small businesses understand what was going on with their websites. I loved it and got involved. I loved analytics and the whole concept. Then Google came along with Google Analytics, which was free, unlike my friend’s program. That was the end of that, but I was hooked on analytics. So that’s where it started.

Harley Green: You’ve been in digital strategy and analytics for a long time, as you mentioned. How has your approach to web analytics evolved, and why would you say it’s more relevant than ever for leaders today?

Philippa Gamse: Because of the power of how you can program it. It used to tell us fairly basic stuff like how many people come to your website or bounce rates. Now we can go much deeper into user behavior. We can look at screen recordings showing how users move about on the page. We can figure out how much of a video people watch. Analytics is supposed to be anonymous, so we don’t know exactly who is on the site, but we can understand visitor behavior. That helps us give visitors what they want, which makes them feel good about what we do—ultimately leading to more conversions.

Harley Green: You mentioned all this information from analytics. I’m sure a lot of people listening might feel overwhelmed. What’s the first thing they should look for that actually moves the needle?

Philippa Gamse: When I work with clients, I tell them you don’t have to look at analytics yourself—find someone who can help. But you, as the business owner, must know what your website is supposed to do. Your site could be selling products, building authority, showcasing videos or podcasts, growing your email list, or supporting customers. Whatever its purpose, you have to be clear on it first. That allows us to measure whether it’s achieving those goals. Looking at numbers without context doesn’t help. My favorite question is, “So what?” You’ve got X number of visitors—so what? Are they the right visitors? Did they do what you wanted them to do? That’s what matters.

Harley Green: One thing you talk about is hidden gems in web analytics. What are some surprising insights that businesses often overlook?

Philippa Gamse: Once you’ve sorted out the basics, you can explore more. One of my favorite tools is the on-site search engine—tracking what users search for on your website. It’s a fantastic source of marketing research. It tells you the language people use, which is helpful if you’re in an industry with technical jargon. It also shows you demand for things you may not offer yet, which could lead to new products or services. You might also identify new target markets by tracking where visitors come from. You can find leaks where people leave when they shouldn’t. Calls to action are crucial—blogs, for example, should always end with a next step. Don’t miss opportunities to further engage visitors.

Harley Green: That’s so smart—using data you already have. On the flip side, what are some of the biggest mistakes leaders make when trying to use analytics to guide business strategy?

Philippa Gamse: A big one is having unrealistic expectations. There are constraints, especially with privacy rules. Analytics data represents a sample, not the full picture. Some users won’t be tracked, and different tools measure things differently. Analytics should not be your official tool of record—that’s your CRM. Trying to reconcile numbers between tools can be frustrating and isn’t usually helpful unless there’s a significant discrepancy.

Harley Green: I’m sure there have been changes with AI and crawlers. How should we interpret analytics differently now?

Philippa Gamse: I use Google Analytics mostly. We’re now seeing AI traffic sources show up in reports. You can tell how visitors reached your site—from search engines, social media, email, and now, AI. Google Analytics also uses AI to highlight anomalies or traffic peaks. While it might just tell you something obvious like a newsletter spike, it can also generate charts and graphs more efficiently. But AI can’t replace the human element—like deciding to launch a new product based on user behavior. That creative strategy still needs a person.

Harley Green: Awesome. How should people start integrating web analytics into their broader business planning?

Philippa Gamse: It should be a core part of your strategy. Analytics can inform predictive models—for example, estimating inventory needs for e-commerce. You should evaluate if your current strategy is working and use data to guide future moves. Make it part of your ongoing business planning.

Harley Green: As companies grow and gather more data, when does it make sense to delegate analytics tasks?

Philippa Gamse: Don’t try to measure everything. Measure what matters—metrics you can act on. Focus on solving one problem at a time. If you’re changing multiple things at once, it’s hard to know what caused the change. It’s better to track a few current priorities and test them thoroughly.

Harley Green: You’ve taught at business schools and consulted internationally. What’s one mindset shift that helps leaders become more data-driven?

Philippa Gamse: Let the data speak for itself. Politics still exists in business. Sometimes, the highest-paid person’s opinion (the HIPPO) dominates, even when they’re wrong. Show them the data. If something isn’t working and you can quantify the potential losses, it’s easier to get buy-in for change. Trusting the data is a critical mindset shift.

Harley Green: How often should business leaders look at their website data? Daily, weekly?

Philippa Gamse: It depends. If you’re launching products or running ads, monitor it closely. Social media ad performance often under-delivers, so watch it. If things are stable, you can check less often. Tailor your cadence to what’s going on in your business.

Harley Green: I’ve heard of situations where ad companies and analytics data don’t align. That can really affect trust and accountability.

Philippa Gamse: Absolutely. Analytics gives you visibility and helps hold vendors accountable. If you’re investing in ads, you need to know if they’re delivering results.

Harley Green: For someone underusing their website, what’s one action they can take this week?

Philippa Gamse: If you’re not using analytics, get them installed—otherwise, you’re flying blind. If you are using them, use them to answer meaningful questions. Don’t just glance at traffic spikes and assume everything’s fine. Be strategic—pick a few key goals and measure how well your site supports them.

Harley Green: Excellent strategic tips today, Philippa. If people want to connect or learn more about your book, where should they go?

Philippa Gamse: The book is called Website Wealth: A Business Leader’s Guide to Driving Real Value from Your Analytics. It’s jargon-free, full of stories and examples. My website is WebsitesThatWin.com, and I’m happy to connect on LinkedIn.

Harley Green: Thank you again. We’ll have those links in the show notes. If you got value from this episode, hit like and subscribe so you don’t miss future strategies to help you scale smarter. Share this episode with a colleague who needs to hear it. And if you’re on a podcast platform, leave us a quick rating—it helps more business leaders find the show. Thanks for tuning in!

How to Build a Personal Brand That Converts with Erik Cabral

by faye.eScale Smart, Grow Fast PodcastPosted on Comments are Disabled

How to Build a Personal Brand That Converts with Erik Cabral

Your personal brand is more than just a logo or a tagline — it’s the foundation of your business growth. In a recent episode of Scale Smart, Grow Fast podcast, Harley Green sat down with Erik Cabral, founder of OnAir Brands, to talk about how entrepreneurs can harness clarity, podcasting, and mission-driven branding to create lasting impact.

Preferred listening on the go? Catch the full podcast episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Why Clarity is Non-Negotiable

Erik’s first lesson is simple but powerful: clarity creates momentum. Many entrepreneurs suffer from shiny object syndrome — chasing too many ideas at once and burning out. Instead, Erik advises narrowing your focus: define who you are, who you serve, and what problem you solve. Without clarity, your message won’t connect, and your brand won’t convert.

Personal Brand as the Umbrella

If you run multiple businesses or projects, your personal brand becomes the umbrella. Erik points to leaders like Elon Musk and Tony Robbins, whose personal brands open doors for all their ventures. By building your brand DNA around your values and mission, you allow your audience to connect with you first, making it easier to introduce new offers, services, or businesses later.

Podcasting: The Ultimate Growth Tool

According to Erik, podcasting is more than content — it’s a networking and growth engine. Instead of “picking someone’s brain over coffee,” podcasting allows you to lead with value by giving guests a platform to share their message. It’s also a long-term play: success comes not from three episodes, but from consistent creation and commitment.

To stay sustainable, Erik emphasizes systems and delegation. Entrepreneurs should focus on their strengths and eventually outsource editing, design, and promotion — freeing time to run the business while the podcast works as a powerful marketing channel.

Turning Clients into Brand Champions

Your best marketing asset is often your satisfied clients. Erik encourages entrepreneurs to turn happy customers into brand champions by collecting testimonials, referrals, and even co-created stories. These champions amplify your message and build credibility far faster than ads or self-promotion.

Faith, Mission, and Erik’s Book

Erik’s journey also highlights the importance of a mission bigger than yourself. His book, Be Your Brand to Glorify God, reframes personal branding as a way to serve others and lead with values, not ego. For him, success is about creating impact through service — and entrepreneurs can do the same by aligning their brand with purpose.

Key Takeaways for Entrepreneurs

  • Clarity comes first: Define your mission, audience, and values.
  • Personal brand > business brand: Build trust in you, then extend it to your ventures.
  • Podcast strategically: Use it for value, networking, and long-term growth.
  • Delegate smartly: Free your time by outsourcing tactical tasks.
  • Turn influence into opportunity: Leverage testimonials and client stories to scale credibility.

🚀 Ready to build a brand that converts? Start by defining your values with Erik’s free Core Values Worksheet at www.beyourbrandNOW.com.

🔹 Your business can only grow as clear as your brand. Don’t let busywork hold you back from building influence and opportunity. Schedule a free discovery call with Workergenix today and learn how to delegate smarter so you can focus on growing your personal brand

Like what you read? Get weekly insights on scaling, efficiency, and profitability—straight to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.

Transcript

Harley Green:
 All right, hey guys, welcome back to the Scale Smart Grow Fast podcast. Your personal brand is one of your most powerful business assets, if you know how to use it. In this episode, Erik Cabral, founder of OnAir Brands and trusted advisor to Fortune 100 and Inc 5000 companies, shares how to craft a message that connects, build a brand that converts, and leverage podcasting to grow your business. With over 25 years in brand strategy, Erik’s going to offer a proven mission-driven framework for turning clarity into momentum and influence into opportunity. Erik, thank you so much for coming on the podcast. How are you doing today?

Erik Cabral:
 Fantastic, Harley. Thank you so much for having me.

Harley Green:
 It’s our pleasure. Now, Erik, tell us a little bit more about your background. How did you get into marketing and doing podcasting?

Erik Cabral:
 Yeah, it was not by design for sure. Corporate America and school, traditional college and finding my way up the corporate ladder was a wonderful way to make a living. Creating artwork and logos in the beginning, very early stages of my career, was my first. I’ll never forget, Harley, a postcard — like a four by six postcard that was going to go direct mail. They called it that for all the kids out there who don’t remember mail. But yeah, you would get these postcards and I was like, “Mom, look,” and I took a stack of them. I was like, “Look, my first printout, there are hundreds of thousands of these out there.” And then eventually the coolest thing was seeing my work on billboards driving down a highway. I would see, “Look, I designed that billboard. How cool.” So that was really my background. I just loved designing, loved graphic design. At the time they called it commercial arts and people would ask, “What’s that?” But eventually all these tools became more and more familiar — Adobe and all these guys. And when I finally left after 21 years in corporate America, I was so done. I wanted to retire, at least from the art world. And I got into, of all things, real estate investing. And my wife was like, “You don’t know anything about real estate. What are you talking about? What are you doing?”

Harley Green:
 You.

Erik Cabral:
 And I was like, I just want to build wealth. I was in a wealth creation phase of my life. And I was very focused on how can I get there very quickly. You know, I lost 20 years not knowing anything about finance, being financially illiterate. And I was like, “Oh, I read this book from Robert Kiyosaki, Rich Dad Poor Dad,” and then eventually read Cash Flow Quadrant. I was like, “Oh, wait a minute.” In this quadrant he’s talking about the employee, which was me for the majority of my years. And then it was like, now you need to own a business or become an investor. So there were all these different avenues. I was like, I want to own a business and I want to become an investor. And I want to make passive income. So that’s really where it all started. And once I jumped into the investing community, I realized that the one thing that they had in common was an abundant mindset. And I came from the opposite — completely scarcity-minded environment where it was dog-eat-dog, everybody was just against each other. And it was really bizarre to be around people that wanted to help you. Especially the most successful people would always end the conversation with, “How can I help you? How can I provide more value in your life?” And that was the game changer. And I just said, I need to be around these people and I need to record these conversations I’m having in the hallways for my sake, so I can remember these conversations and just extract value out of it. And that turned into a podcast and people started to point to me like the guy recording a conversation as the podcast guy. And it wasn’t necessarily a podcast at the time. So that’s really where it all started.

Harley Green:
 I love that growth and transition and especially the abundance mindset. And it really has shown through in your success and how you’ve helped others too now. Speaking of that, you’ve helped build so many brands. What would you say is the first thing you look for when helping someone define their personal or business brand?

Erik Cabral:
 The first thing I look for is how much clarity they have. A lot of us can have all these ideas, but they’re not very focused. If you have a lot of great ideas and a lot of what we call in the entrepreneurial world shiny object syndrome, then your focus and lack of clarity will spread you thin. I was guilty of this for sure because I started four companies out of the gate. I was so excited to be out there, Harley. I was like, I’m going to create a real estate empire, then I’m going to build a media agency, then I’m going to have an event company and a coaching company. Literally all these things I was doing at the same time thinking that was cool, that was trendy, that hustle-and-grind mentality. And it didn’t serve me. It really hurt me in the long term. Now, I benefited greatly from it for sure because it made for a lot of connections. All the people that you may have mentioned in my bio were a result of me creating all that. But it was a quick avenue to burnout. There was no way I was going to sustain that. So eventually over the years, I had to shut down one, two, three and eventually all the companies so I could focus on one. So that’s the first thing I look for when I speak to an entrepreneur who’s all over the place: What are we focusing on? What do you have complete clarity on? And who do you serve? Like who is the audience for that particular product that you have? Because yes, I understand successful entrepreneurs have four, five, six businesses and they’re running them all successfully. But for this particular one, what is the message? What is the clear mission? And who does it help? That is typically the very first thing that I look for.

Harley Green:
 How do you help other entrepreneurs that you’re working with who might be in that same situation you were in, with the hustle culture of, “I’m going to do four or five different businesses because that’s cool”? How do you help walk them back from that and get that clarity?

Erik Cabral:
 I’m a huge proponent of your personal brand and ensuring that if you have multiple businesses, even more so the reason you should focus on your personal brand. Because then everything sits and falls under that umbrella. Let’s take Elon Musk, for example. He’s got The Boring Company, Tesla, the solar company — multiple companies. Same thing with Tony Robbins. I think he always boasts, he’s like, “I’m running 186 businesses right now.” He literally has tons of businesses that he’s involved in. But the umbrella of Tony Robbins is what sits at the top: his personal brand. So I always try to encourage our clients or prospects who have multiple businesses and want to talk about everything — if you want to do that, and you don’t want to take my advice, let’s build a personal brand that has its own systems and your beliefs so that people can fall in love with you. And then when they’re ready, they’re going to raise their hand and go, “Hey, Harley, I love when you talk about family. I love when you talk about homeschooling,” whatever it is that you want to talk about that clearly identifies who you are so they can identify with those values. Now they’re like, “I didn’t know you had this type of company. I didn’t know you had that type of company.” It opens the door for the conversation. So when they’re ready, they want to do business with you — the person, not the company.

Harley Green:
 Speaking of that personal brand, is it more important to focus on your personal mission and values, or do you help people think more about the ideal client they want to connect with? Do you tailor it to resonate with them, or is there some kind of in-between?

Erik Cabral:
 Our process is typically to really boil down who you are, because a lot of people you’d be surprised don’t know who they are. Or if they do, they’ve never verbalized it and they’ve never put them into single-word values, which helps them to communicate. That’s what we’re all about: we have to communicate and we have to communicate clearly. Because if we don’t understand our mission and how we serve people, then how are others supposed to understand as well? So we have to gain clarity first and then we can help and serve more people. For example, I have tons of people in my network that love to do cold plunges, heat therapy, all this biohacking. But say they’re real estate investors, and then they’ll often come to me and go, “Erik, man, everybody’s reaching out to me. I’m getting so much feedback. But why is everybody asking me how to build a cold plunge in their garage?” And then I look at their feed and I’m like, “Because all you’re doing is talking about cold plunge therapy.” Is that what you want to do? Do you want to build a lifestyle business brand? “No, I’m a real estate investor.” Then stop talking about the things you don’t want to serve or solve. So that’s the biggest challenge. I want to make sure our clients, number one, know who they are and what the brand DNA is for them. And then we can really dive into who they serve.

Harley Green:
 Well, and speaking of that clarity and who you serve, what are some other common branding mistakes that even smart businesses make and how can they fix them?

Erik Cabral:
 It’s this — where they try to create a message for everybody. That’s a huge one. Especially if you’re coming out of the gate as a new entrepreneur, you don’t want to alienate or push out potential buyers, customers, or clients. And I get that, I was the same way. But at some point, you’re going to have enough case studies and enough wins where you can start to identify the common thread throughout all of the people that you’ve been helping. For instance, years down the line after we started producing a lot of podcasts, I zoomed out and then looked at all the clients. I was like, “Oh, they’re all men. They’re all middle-aged. They’re all family men. A lot of them are Christians.” I was like, this is my avatar. These are the guys who I’ve been creating podcasts and serving over the past three, four years. So then that became one of our avatars. I can speak directly to that person to the point where I’ve given them a name. I know what they eat. I know what they do on their time off. I know what type of cars they drive. Those are the type of things where we can get really granular so that when you do record and you do create messages, you’re speaking specifically to the person you know you can help.

Harley Green:
 Speaking of speaking to the person you can help — podcasting is obviously a huge part of your strategy. Why do you see it as such a powerful tool for brand building and business growth?

Erik Cabral:
 Gosh. When I started not too long ago in 2017, it was still, “Hey, can I take you out for a cup of coffee, Harley, and pick your brain?” And when I started building my real estate portfolio, it wasn’t just kids or younger people. It was anyone that saw me having success relatively quickly. They’d say, “He bought a multifamily building in less than a year.” So people were asking me out to coffee. It got to the point where I was like, let’s just have a call. And then I started to look up to others as well. Like, how did you get there? I want to get to 24 units, I want to get to 100 doors. And I would ask for their time. But coffee is never really that enticing. But a podcast is — “Would you be interested in having a conversation on my podcast?” At the time I could confidently say it was 100% yes. Everyone would say yes to that. It’s such a wonderful opportunity for you to lead with value and say, “Hey, I have a platform for you to speak your message to my community” versus “You want to have coffee?” where I’m just pulling knowledge from you but not really giving any value back. Podcasting is such a great vehicle for creating value for others and putting it out there. Everybody wins with a podcast.

Harley Green:
 With podcasting and someone building their personal brand, do you have a recommendation or guidelines when it comes to deciding whether to have your own podcast, do the podcast guesting circuit, or a combination of both? How do you help people navigate that?

Erik Cabral:
 A combination is the best strategy. But the question comes down to bandwidth — how much time do you have? Starting a podcast is easy, but it’s also hard. In 2021, we had the biggest spike in creating podcasts for our clients. Everybody wanted a podcast after 2020. Everyone was bored at home. And then it went down. In 2022, podfade is what we call it. People don’t make it past three months or 12 episodes. What I find is that podcasts can be easy to start — low-hanging fruit — but really challenging and difficult to maintain because people lack systems, processes, and teams. If you’re a solopreneur, at some point you’re going to have to pass this off to a team, whether you develop your own or hire a company like ours. Podcasts are a long-term play. You can’t go in and say, “I’m gonna start a podcast for three to six months and see how it goes.” No, you have to commit. Just like YouTube — you have to commit to 100 videos before you see the fruit that comes from all that hard work and energy you’re pouring in. So yes, go in with a long-term mindset, have a budget for it, and don’t wing it. Develop systems and processes if you’re doing it yourself so that you can document and pass this off to an editor because it’s not sustainable otherwise. You need to run your business in order to have success, but the podcast can be used to support that. The podcast has to lead with value and entertainment. Information is abundant everywhere, but if you can be entertaining and bring your unique perspective, that’s what draws people in.

Harley Green:
 So when someone knows they’re good, they’ve heard you say, “It’s not easy, you have to stick with it,” but it’s still hard — what are some tips or strategies you offer people to stick with podcasting for the long term and not burn out or get bored of it?

Erik Cabral:
 Looking for unrealistic results can really deter you long term. Instead, flip the coin and say, “Who can I help and who can I serve?” Look for those stories and opportunities when you’re creating your content. For example, years into my podcast journey, a listener reached out to me. He shared, “Thank you for sharing the story about how you had to fold one of your companies because I am in the process of doing that and I’m alone. I felt like such a loser, and hearing you — who I see as a success — made me feel like there’s a community. Thank you.” I still live off the fumes of that conversation. That’s the value I’m providing. If it helped one person, imagine all the people who didn’t reach out. Always take those stories, put them in your back pocket, and use them as fuel to continue on your journey. It’s not about ROI, it’s about who you are helping, who you are serving, and how you’re inspiring people to keep going even when it feels hard.

Harley Green:
 I love that story of getting feedback and how it’s still motivating you today. I get the same thing — random texts from someone in my network who I had no idea was listening to the podcast, saying, “Really loved that episode with Erik, talking about these things.” So I encourage all of you listening to podcasts — shoot a text or an email to the host of the podcast you’re listening to. It goes so far and helps keep the podcasts you like and support going. It’s an amazing thing. So really appreciate you bringing that part up, Erik.

Erik Cabral:
 So true. Yeah.

Harley Green:
 Talking about the effort that goes into these podcasts — it can be very time-consuming, not just the number of episodes but also processing, managing guests, editing, publishing, promoting. At what point do you typically see it makes sense to start handing off some of that process to a service like yours, or maybe an assistant?

Erik Cabral:
 If you have a budget, figure out what that is. In our intake form, we try to figure out if clients qualify to work with us or if we can serve them at the highest value. We’re $2,500 a month at minimum, with other services above that. At minimum, I need to know if you have $30,000 to invest annually in what we do. If not, it may be best for you to hire a bunch of VAs to do this, whether they’re $5 to $8 an hour. But make sure you check their work carefully. Everyone’s going to say they have editing skills and design skills. Ask for samples. Some people have even sent me our own work as their sample. Get referrals, ensure that the work is truly theirs. If you build your own team, you’ll need at least someone skilled in editing videos — that’s a different beast — and someone skilled in design. Not just basic Canva design, but someone who can make it shine. If you’re just starting out, don’t let polish hold you back. Figure out what your budget is, even if it’s $100 a month. Find someone to help you and start to take those little things off your plate so you can focus on building your business, doing sales, and doing marketing versus tactical tasks.

Harley Green:
 One thing you talk about is building brand champions — people who can amplify the message. What’s your take on that and how can companies do that intentionally?

Erik Cabral:
 Brand champions develop over time when you continue to serve your clients at the highest possible level. Those are basically your testimonials and case studies. Whenever you go to someone that you served and ask, “How did I do?” and they say, “You’re amazing,” that’s the perfect opportunity to say, “Hey, can I get a testimonial from you? Can you record something really quick, like right here and say that again?” And then from there, you start to realize you can actually leverage that to become a brand champion for you. Because then you can continue to ask them, “Do you know anyone like you that needs our services? Do you know anyone like you that could help us grow?” For sure they love you, right? And you’ve probably given them super discounts. Typically, in the earlier stages of business, they’re getting a really good deal, they’re grandfathered in so to speak. Those are the brand champions you want to continue to build. Just love on them, continue to serve beyond the agreement that you had, and it will happen over time for sure.

Harley Green:
 If someone hasn’t been really thinking about or familiar with this concept of brand champions, but they’ve been established for a few years and have some clients, what’s a good way to try to bring that up with clients who might be happy but haven’t come forward yet? Or if they did come forward in the past and the business wasn’t ready to capture that appropriately, what would you suggest?

Erik Cabral:
 If it’s a client that is no longer your client, you can still reach out. Reach out to a bunch of them and say, “Hey, I’m looking to grow my business. If you enjoyed working together, would you mind referring someone like you that we can help?” And then if you do that enough, someone will hopefully be willing to record a testimonial for you or at the very least, write a review. Here’s another hack: I’ll write the testimonials for some of my clients that I know are super busy — in their voice. This was before AI, but now you could really do it with AI. You can say, “Write a review of my services in their voice.” You can even take a blog article or something they’ve written and put it into ChatGPT, and then it’ll draft it. Keep it short, just a sentence or two, and then send it over to them. For example, in my book I have six quotes, of which only one I had to do this for. I knew him very well, and I said, “Hey Rami, I know you’re busy. I know you’ve been meaning to do this. I did it for you. Here are three options all in your voice.” He looked at them, said, “These are great,” and made some edits. It got him started, and it lit the fire. People have even done that for me — they’ll say, “Hey Erik, here’s a review I wrote in your voice.” That’s when I realized, wow, this is effective and really helpful.

Harley Green:
 That’s a smart hack. Well, you mentioned your book, Erik. Tell us a little bit more about it.

Erik Cabral:
 Three years ago, I committed to writing a book. I signed up with Chandler Bolt’s Self-Publishing School. It was a $5K program; I didn’t do the $10K option where they handle everything. What they gave me was a monthly coach and access to a library of content. But I realized monthly coaching wasn’t my thing. I sat on it for three years, and the real issue was I didn’t feel interesting or worthy enough to write the book. Every time I read it, I thought it was terrible. It was all about me. But through my faith journey, I realized personal branding doesn’t have to be egocentric. In Christianity, it’s not about us — it’s about God. So I shifted the whole theme of the book to glorify Him, not me, and everything started to flow. I wrote the book in less than 24 hours after that realization. The book is called Be Your Brand to Glorify God. It’s about building your personal brand and company around your mission to serve — just like Jesus did when He washed His disciples’ feet. In business, we should do the same: love on our clients, serve them, and make the world better. The book is about giving Him the glory, not building for our own egos.

Harley Green:
 That’s powerful. Thank you so much for sharing these incredible tips and strategies, your story, and your book as well. If people want to learn more about you or get a copy of the book, what’s the best way for them to get in touch?

Erik Cabral:
 For sure. Go to www.beyourbrandNOW.com. You can see the book there, and you can actually download a free core values worksheet we mentioned earlier — a simple exercise to start identifying your core values so you can put them out into the world. That’s at www.beyourbrandNOW.com.

Harley Green:
 Awesome. For those of you listening, we’ll have the link in the show notes. If you got value from this episode, do one quick thing: hit like and subscribe so you don’t miss future strategies to help you scale smarter. And maybe you know a business owner or colleague who could use this information — share the episode with them. It could be exactly what they need right now. And if you’re listening on a podcast platform, leave us a quick rating. It helps us reach more leaders like you. As always, thank you for tuning in. We’ll see you on the next one.

 Why Most Leaders Struggle to Scale—and What to Do Instead

by faye.eScale Smart, Grow Fast PodcastPosted on Comments are Disabled

 Why Most Leaders Struggle to Scale—and What to Do Instead

Despite their relentless effort, many leaders find themselves stuck.

The problem isn’t laziness—it’s focus. In our latest episode of Scale Smart Grow Fast, host Harley Green sits down with leadership strategist Liz Weber to explore why even the most dedicated leaders can stall growth—and how to fix it.

Listen to the full conversation on your favorite platform:
[Spotify] | [Apple Podcasts]

1. Stop Doing What You Were Good At

One of Liz’s most eye-opening insights? Many executives are still doing tasks from previous roles—tasks they were once praised for. But those habits now limit their impact. To scale effectively, leaders must evaluate what to stop, start, and delegate based on their current level—not their comfort zone.

2. Use the ‘Zoom Room Test’ to Diagnose Culture Issues

If the vibe in a meeting shifts when the CEO enters, there’s a deeper problem. Liz calls it the “Zoom Room Test”—a simple way to assess whether your team feels safe giving feedback and sharing ideas. High-performance cultures don’t shift with hierarchy—they thrive on openness.

3. Feedback Is Fuel—Not Fire

Too often, feedback is sporadic or fear-based. Liz emphasizes the need to build systems and habits that normalize two-way feedback. This not only boosts morale—it’s a cornerstone of retention in today’s tight labor market.

4. Strategic Planning Isn’t Bureaucracy—it’s Leverage

When done right, strategy isn’t just a plan—it’s momentum. Liz advises clients to create clear 30- to 90-day priorities that cascade across departments. Without alignment, teams work in silos. With it, they build exponential momentum.

5. Don’t Fear AI—Leverage It

Digital transformation starts with mindset. Liz challenges leaders to reframe AI not as a threat, but as a force multiplier. Many already use it (think: smart assistants), but don’t call it AI. Getting comfortable with automation is now table stakes for growth.

Whether you’re leading a startup or steering a legacy firm through change, one thing is clear: your leadership must evolve as fast as your business.

👉 Ready to shift your focus, align your team, and delegate like a pro?

Schedule a discovery call with Workergenix today and start scaling smarter.

Like what you read? Get weekly insights on scaling, efficiency, and profitability—straight to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.

Marketing Isn’t Broken—It’s Misunderstood

by faye.eScale Smart, Grow Fast PodcastPosted on Comments are Disabled

Marketing Isn’t Broken—It’s Misunderstood

In today’s crowded digital space, marketing fatigue is real. You’re pouring effort into campaigns, chasing leads, and tweaking CTAs—but still not seeing the ROI you hoped for. The problem? Your marketing is likely rooted in logic, not behavioral science.

In our latest Scale Smart, Grow Fast podcast episode, Harley spoke with Gee Ranasinha, CEO of Kexino and behavioral marketing expert. His message was clear: Marketing fails not because it’s broken—but because it forgets how people actually buy.

Listen to the full conversation on your favorite platform:
[Spotify] | [Apple Podcasts]

🧠 System 1 vs. System 2: Why Emotion Wins

Gee explains that effective marketing must appeal to both fast, emotional thinking (system 1) and slower, rational decision-making (system 2). Most campaigns today over-index on logic and under-deliver on emotional resonance.

Think of your strongest memories—they’re tied to emotion. That’s how branding works too.

🎯 The 95-5 Rule: A New Lens on ROI

Only 5% of your audience is actively ready to buy. The other 95%? They’re passively absorbing brand signals. The lesson? Stop focusing all your effort on the “right now” buyer. Build memory structures with brand awareness so you’re top-of-mind when that 95% enters the market.

🔻 Bland Marketing Is the New Epidemic

AI-generated content is making everything look the same. Gee warns that in a sea of sameness, brands that zag while others zig will win. If you don’t stand out, you’re just helping your competitors by reinforcing their message.

📈 The Real Job of Marketing

Marketing isn’t just about features and funnels—it’s about emotional positioning and psychological relevance. When you blend empathy with strategy, your marketing doesn’t just attract. It sticks.

👤 Connect with Gee: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ranasinha/
 🌐 Learn more at: https://kexino.com

🔹 Want to market with impact—and lead with clarity?


Stop chasing tactics and start focusing on what works. Our AI-powered executive assistants at Workergenix help optimize your routines and free up your mind for high-level strategy and growth.

Schedule a discovery call to shift from marketing guesswork to strategies that truly resonate and convert.

Like what you read? Get weekly insights on scaling, efficiency, and profitability—straight to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.

The Financial Blind Spots Holding Your Business Back (And How to Fix Them)

by Harley GreenScale Smart, Grow Fast PodcastPosted on Comments are Disabled

The Financial Blind Spots Holding Your Business Back (And How to Fix Them)

As a business owner, you’re focused on growth, delivering results, and keeping your customers happy. But if you’re not keeping a close eye on your finances, you could be leaving money on the table—or worse, losing it without realizing it.

In a recent episode of the Scale Smart, Grow Fast Podcast, we sat down with Cheryl Heller, founder of Pillar One Consulting, to discuss how entrepreneurs can take control of their financial health, eliminate hidden inefficiencies, and make smarter business decisions.

Listen to this episode on the go! Tune in on your favorite services and never miss valuable insights to help you scale smarter and grow faster.

🎧 Cash Flow Mistakes That’s Costing You – Spotify

🎧 Cash Flow Mistakes That’s Costing You – Apple Podcasts

Why Most Business Owners Struggle with Finances

Many entrepreneurs avoid their financials, only checking in when tax season rolls around. But waiting too long can lead to poor cash flow management, unexpected expenses, and missed opportunities for growth. Cheryl’s advice? Start by removing the emotion from your numbers.

“Your financials are just data—use them to inform your next steps, not as a source of stress.”

By regularly reviewing financial reports, you can spot unnecessary expenses, optimize pricing, and create a long-term strategy for scaling your business.

Key Financial Mistakes (and How to Fix Them)

✅ Pricing Without Data – Too many business owners set prices based on competitors instead of their own costs and profit margins. Calculate your true costs before setting a price.

✅ Cash Flow Neglect – Profit on paper doesn’t always mean money in the bank. Understanding cash flow ensures you have the funds needed for growth, payroll, and unexpected expenses.

✅ Ignoring Receivables – A slow-paying client can quietly drain your business. Implement systems to track outstanding invoices, enforce payment terms, and follow up on late payments consistently.

✅ Overlooking Recurring Charges – Small, unused subscriptions add up over time. Reviewing your expenses monthly can prevent unnecessary spending and increase profitability.

How Business Owners Can Regain Control

1️⃣ Check Your Numbers Monthly – Don’t wait until tax time. Set aside time each month to review key financial reports like your cash flow statement and profit margins.

2️⃣ Implement Smart Systems – Use QuickBooks, Excel, or other tools to track spending, monitor revenue trends, and forecast future needs. If you don’t have time, delegate financial tracking to an AI-powered executive assistant who can ensure accuracy and consistency.

3️⃣ Know Your KPIs – At minimum, track your gross margin (profit after direct costs) and days sales outstanding (how long it takes clients to pay). These numbers impact your bottom line more than you think.

4️⃣ Build Financial Reserves – Unexpected downturns happen. Having a cash reserve of at least 3-6 months of expenses can protect your business from disruptions.

Want to Scale Without Financial Stress?

Getting a grip on your finances is one of the smartest moves you can make as a business owner. If financial overwhelm is holding you back, our Ultimate Executive Assistants at Workergenix can take bookkeeping, invoicing, and expense tracking off your plate—so you can focus on growth.

Take control of your business finances and free up your time—schedule a discovery call today to see how our AI-powered executive assistants can help you streamline operations and scale smarter.

Like what you read? Get weekly insights on scaling, efficiency, and profitability—straight to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.