He was looking to sell his business and wanted to get the best price.
His high-priced consultant told him… “It needs to be bigger.. now”
Soon his friends and everyone else around him were hammering the same message:
“Grow sales. Double revenue. Buyers love that.”
So he did.
He pushed volume. Slashed prices. Took every job he could.
And by the time he “grew” his business, here’s what else he grew:
- His stress
- His workload
- His headaches
Meanwhile, his Margins collapsed. Staff left.
And that high priced consultant who charged him an arm and a leg for this “advice?”
Ghosted him….
Eventually… he closed the company he spent years building.
And had to scramble in his 50s for a new retirement and life plan.
Why?
Because he listened to the crowd of experts instead of someone who took the time and effort to get to know him, his situation and who understood what is needed to sell a business.
It reminded me of last week’s Bears vs. Eagles game.
Every analyst on TV confidently picked the Eagles to win.
Every one.
Eagles. Eagles. Eagles. Eagles by a mile. Eagles covering the spread. Six analysts… six identical predictions.
One even looked like he was wavering to pick the Bears but was pressured not to “be an idiot.”
He caved. Picked the Eagles.
And then the Bears won.
Decisively.
It wasn’t luck. It was domination. As one journalist said, it was a “grass-kicking.”
Everyone who blindly followed the crowd lost money. Everyone who backed the Bears won big.
And that brings us right back to the business owner who wrecked his company.
He didn’t fail because his business was unfixable.
He failed because he followed the crowd.
He listened to the Lamborghini Renting hustle bros and consultants parroting the same tired mantra: “Grow sales at all costs.”
He played by someone else’s playbook instead of his own.
He chased top-line numbers instead of strengthening the one thing buyers actually care about—equity.
Different game. Different objective. Wrong strategy.
Too many business owners make the same mistake.
They copy whatever advice is shouted the loudest.
They assume the “experts” know best.
They ignore what their specific business actually needs.
And like the analysts on TV, these experts are often confident… loud… and wrong.
If you want your business to thrive, not collapse under borrowed strategies, you need a way of thinking built around your business, your goals, and your reality—not someone else’s fantasy playbook.
If you’re done following the herd over a cliff, sign up here for the preview of Falling In Love with Your Business Again.
You’ll be glad you did.
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P.S. I’m not the “systems,” “finance,” or “fix your processes” guy.
I help you fall in love with your business again—Because it finally gives you the life you want today
While setting you up to exit on your terms tomorrow.
Join my list for blunt insights and practical strategies to build a business that gives you your life back – and the power to walk away, when you’re ready, on your terms