Dan & Ian talk to a listener who’s running a SaaS business that within one year got to $8K MRR. The business is full of potential and opportunities, but the risks involved with having all of your customers come from one channel looms heavily in the background.

They discuss topics like how to build relationships with customers, increase average cart value, how to grow your business when you’re not a sales and marketing expert, and more.

Dan & Ian brainstorm ideas about how this founder can future-proof his business while still maintaining his ideal lifestyle.

TMBA email subscribers can submit their business to be reviewed with Dan & Ian on the pod.

Dan & Ian talk to a listener who’s running a $1M D2C e-commerce business about the challenges and opportunities he faces as he plans for future growth and a potential exit down the road.

They discuss topics like decreasing customer acquisition costs, increasing profit margins, the absolutely essential role of a CFO, and not letting your passion for the product get in the way of your growth.

At the end of the call, Dan & Ian will recommend key next steps this founder should take in order to scale their business effectively and aggressively.

TMBA email subscribers can submit their business to be reviewed with Dan & Ian on the pod.

Tackling one of the biggest problems entrepreneurs struggle with: separating their business from their own narrative and looking at it with fresh eyes.

This episode will uncover the simple but hard truths to every business and reveal the three (and only three) ways to grow any business.

We talk about customer acquisition, order value, retention, risk-free offers, and more.

TMBA email subscribers will get access to the platonic business calculator discussed on today’s show.

We speak to hundreds of entrepreneurs every year through one-on-one coaching and live events.

Many of those entrepreneurs have gone on to become very wealthy, and throughout our conversations with those people, we have found some common threads to the ways that wealthy people behave.

This was one of our most popular episodes of 2019 so we’re bringing it back with updated thoughts.

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In this week's conversation, Dan and Ian discuss 10 ideas that provide valuable insights and strategies for entrepreneurs looking to grow their revenue to $1 Million and beyond.

From years of experience and countless coaching calls, Dan and Ian cover topics such as finding a product with a tailwind, getting out of delivery, hiring a key badass, understanding your business model, optimizing your marketing funnel, and much more…

These strategies can provide a roadmap for entrepreneurs to focus on the most impactful areas of their business and make informed decisions to drive growth.

This week’s conversation revolves around the book 'Crypto Confidential' and explores author Nathaniel Eliason’s experience during the crypto mania.

From the moment he decided to go all-in on crypto and the impact it had on their personal life, Nathaniel delves into the mechanics of farming and the process of launching decentralized exchanges.

Enjoy insights deep insights from the crypto world including off-ramping, the risks and challenges of early wallets, the mindset of crypto whales, the experience of losing and making millions, the rise and fall of the Titan project, and the author's biggest win in developing a crypto game.

Dan and Ian discuss the fundamental principles of change and how they apply to both weight loss and entrepreneurship.

The conversation explores the three key components of successful change: knowledge, accountability, and identity.

Listen in for how these principles are practical and applicable to your business growth, cause ass we know breakthroughs in our business don’t happen through epiphanies, they happen through small and consistent accumulations of change.

Dan and Ian discuss the biggest money problems they’ve seen in their own business and hundreds of other bootstrapped businesses.

Learn how to craft a sustainable financial model, the importance of owner compensation, how to avoid being under-invested, and more.

In this episode, Dan and Ian discuss the credible and reliable ways to build wealth through your business, based on the work of author Keith Cunningham.

The conversation emphasizes building a financially sound foundation for your business by understanding and applying financial principles, planning effectively, managing risks, and maintaining financial discipline.

As Cunningham says, "Building a business without mastering the financial statements is like building a house on the beach. It’s not if the tide will come in, it’s when. And the tide always comes in."

Enjoy this week's episode as you consider how to build a durable business for long-term success!

Dan and Ian explore the concept of power in business and how businesses can transition from being a grind for the owner to having sustainable pricing power.

Derived from the book 'Seven Powers' by Hamilton Helmer, they delve into the idea of cornered resources as a source of power and discuss examples of cornered resources such as patents, unique brain trust, and exclusive partnerships.

You’ll be challenged to consider how you can identify and leverage counter positioning, networked effects, distribution, and brand to sustain margins and pricing power over time.

This is an essential conversation for building and maintaining a competitive advantage in any industry.

Dan and Ian challenge listeners to answer five questions about your business that will help you evaluate how healthy your operations are.

They cover everything from doubling down on what’s working best to effective resource allocation and working “on” your business instead of “in” your business.

You’ll also be challenged to ask yourself: “What would a skilled entrepreneur do with my business?”

Take out your pens and notepad (very important), and consider this episode a free coaching session and a little taste of DC Accelerator.

In this week's episode Dan and Ian discuss the importance of the concept of Labor Efficiency Ratio (LER), to scale your business to a million dollars in revenue.

They highlight the challenge of transitioning from being a craftsperson to a CEO and the importance of building a profitable business model that can operate without the founder's constant involvement.

They continue this concept by focusing on the importance of financial planning and analysis (FP&A) in growing a business.

Having someone to provide structure and make data-driven decisions can lead to some shocking discoveries and help you identify areas for improvement and optimize your business performance.

The conversation concludes with a recap of the DC Mexico event and a call for referrals for future events!

Dan reflects on his trip to Mexico last week where he hung out with 200 founders and listeners of the pod.

Vulnerability, lessons from exiting a business, and a secretive membership called “being parents” were common themes.

Another major topic was the launch of our new coaching program, DC Accelerator. Dan talks about how getting to $1M and beyond takes not just willpower or desire, but most importantly, it takes discipline.

He shares the two tools required to run a business of any size. Whether you’re a 1-person operation of have 1000’s of employees, these two tools remain the same.

Health and wellness is the ultimate productivity hack, impacting every aspect of life.

Adam Gilbert, founder of My Body Tutor, discovered that consistency is key, and accountability, mindset, and personalized plans help clients stay on track. It’s also what sets his business apart.

My Body Tutor has been generating demand for their service for 17 years, having a flawless reputation, and obsessively focusing on getting clients results.

In this episode Adam shares his strategies for pricing demand, how to handle client churn, and balancing family life with his passion.

This week we had the pleasure of sitting down with Barry O'Brien, a global traveler, as he shares his 18-month journey to 15 countries on just $100 a day or less.

Barry tells us stories about his experience in Vietnam, the most surprisingly underwhelming destination he visited, the most expensive and inexpensive destinations, how he saved, prepared, and what he learned in the end.

He discusses his journey from following Dave Ramsey's steps to discovering the FIRE movement and combining the principles of both to pay off $51,000 of debt, and give him the financial freedom to pursue his dream trip.

He talks about the importance of passive income, his philosophy of focusing on one thing that you can do well, the process of obtaining US citizenship, and the challenges and opportunities it presents.

Crafting your value proposition into an irresistible offer is not an easy task. Andrew Jacoby, entrepreneur and visionary behind Growth Era, a thriving outbound sales company, knows this all too well.

Andrew shares his journey, highlighting the pivotal role of Sales Development Representatives (SDRs) in driving business success.

Discover the power of focusing on what you know best and building a business around recurring services as Andrew unveils the concept of risk reversal and its impact on skyrocketing conversion rates.

From navigating the challenges of educating a market to the transition from CEO to operator, Andrew offers practical strategies for building a robust team and fostering deep community connections amidst a nomadic lifestyle.

Tune in as Andrew delves into the core values of moral fiber and virtue in business, underscoring the true essence of freedom and happiness.

Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur or seasoned business leader, this episode promises a wealth of wisdom to elevate your sales game.

Is it possible to bootstrap a high-level business if you’re broke? Listen to Dan & Ian’s take on what kinds of businesses are best to start when you’re starting with basically nothing.

Also, what the hell does a visionary do? Dan suggests that the best visionaries have integrator tendencies.

They’ll consider how Kevin Kelly’s “100 True Fans” can lead to sustainable revenue through a concept called “The Death of the Follower”.

Lastly, Dan pitches a business idea that requires zero startup cost, 3 days a week of effort, and could easily net you $250K.

The hard part shouldn’t be how to implement an OS in your organization. The hard part is answering the question: Are the right people in the right roles at your company?

In this episode, Dan and Ian share their own OS that’s extremely simple. It’s called GPS. They’ll explain how GPS helps you put a plan in place to meet your goals, and deliver on that plan. That’s it.

Also, hiring for specific tasks, the impact of remote work on hiring, and more.

In this episode, Ian and Dan discuss the concept of doing things that don't scale, inspired by Paul Graham's influential article 'Do Things That Don't Scale.' They explore the idea of taking risks and gambling in entrepreneurship, and how it relates to increasing one's locus of control. The conversation covers various strategies for founders, including recruiting users manually, building something fragile, delighting users, focusing on experience, and niche marketing. In this conversation, Ian and Dan discuss Paul Graham's article 'Do Things That Don't Scale' and explore the principal themes and takeaways. They cover topics such as the idea of scaling, fabricating products yourself, consulting and acting as an anchor client, going manual and doing unscalable laborious tasks, the illusion of big launches and partnerships, vectors vs. scalars (ideas and execution), and the temptation to gamble and the importance of locus of control.

Dan and Ian discuss the different phases of bootstrapping a business and the common challenges that arise at each stage. They walk through three phases: “The Mindset” (zero to $250k); “The Scalability Factor” ($250k to 1 million); and “The Enterprise” ($1 million +) to explore everything from adjusting the offer to the marketplace and developing a strong customer base to making a rule that the founder should be responsible for growth up to $5M.

They also explore the crucial role that team composition plays in the professionalization of the company. Finally, they discuss the decision between maximizing profitability and scaling the business.