All Episodes

In this episode, I talk with Brittany Berger about establishing boundaries in her business so she can ensure that she has the capacity needed to help her clients go beyond just working smarter to a better version of productivity. Key Take-Aways: Opting-out of the normal method of doing one-on-one business Defining business success in ways that are not necessarily tied to profit or revenue Checking email twice a week to focus on deep work and self-care Managing energy and focus by doing the hardest thing first, preserving the most energy for sustainable productivity Reinforcing boundaries with clients Creating friction with your social media to free up space in business

Michelle Warner and I talk about how we both use opting-out as a tool to help our clients become more profitable and efficient. Key takeaways: How Michelle uses an 80/20 framework to harnesses creative energy How she helps clients start optimizing as a company The compounding effects of doubling down on a single project Looking to the art world for inspiration Building our awareness in our business with tracking and mindfulness practices

If you can’t figure out how to break the ceiling and scale your business, then you should listen to this podcast with ScaleSpark Founder, Susan Boles. Key takeaways: Why the tech that promises to make your life easier can just be another complication Why your business needs processes Why writing a list allows you to keep it simple How to simplify your process to get paid by opting out Why opting out is such a powerful tool Future guests on the podcast for the opting out theme

In this podcast episode Susan is on the receiving end of the interview, talking to Tara McMullin about using software to scale. Key takeaways: The basis for business default decisions Why hiring more people won’t fix an operational capacity problem Mistakes small business owners make using software to expand their capacity Susan’s audit process for each individual business to figure out what software could help them How to implement a new software system painlessly

If you haven’t heard of the powerhouse that is Pia Silva, founder of Badass Your Brand, then you’re in for a treat. Key takeaways: Break the ceiling by breaking the default agency model Why project management tools don’t work for every business Using a lead product and a bullseye product The freedom of transparent pricing Figuring out your pricing strategy Increase your price as you increase your value Why the big agency model can’t work for smaller businesses

Business designer Michelle Warner talks about how to make that all-important decision of crossing the chasm from experimentation mode to a business model that's designed to grow. Key takeaways: Why business design is a hybrid approach to creating a business model Why Michelle moved from a multi million dollar tech startup to business design The symptoms of knowing when you’ve hit the ceiling The decisions entrepreneurs make over and over again How to choose your business priorities

There’s the business you COULD run, and there’s the business you SHOULD run. How do you know when you’re just in “the dip”, or when you’re running a business that’s never going to be the business that you want to run and it’s time to do something else? We discuss this with Margo Aaron, cohost of #HAMYAW and author of That Seems Important. Key takeaways The difference between the business you could run and the business you should run You need to find the intersection between your business model and your personal disposition Don’t measure your worth based on other people's benchmark success Part of entrepreneurship is making things up

Allow me to introduce this very first episode of #BreaktheCeiling, the podcast where we'll talk about how you might structure your #smallbusiness, or even why you're in the business you're in in the first place. On Break the Ceiling we’re going to talk about financial decisions, hiring decisions, even technology decisions, and give you some ideas to consider. But mostly, I just want you to start asking yourself, ‘why did I make this choice and does it still serve my business?’ My first guest in the series is Tara McMullin, the host of the #WhatWorks podcast, a top small business podcast that's been recommended by Forbes and Entrepreneur. Tara is a podcaster, writer, and a small business community leader. With over a decade of experience helping thousands of small business owners grow their business, she believes that no one person has the answer to “what works” in small business. Tara is also the person who came up with the name for this podcast. Join us on today’s podcast as we discuss why the #defaultdecisions you make at the beginning of your small business may actually be limiting your ability to grow, and why not every framework or management tool works the same for each business. We also discuss how to know when you’ve hit the ceiling and what you can do to overcome it. I hope you enjoy listening.