Part 1: "20+ business owners. Same mistake. Don’t let this be you.”

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You Didn’t Start a Business.

You just created yourself a job.

That’s the hard truth I’ve had to share with over 20 business owners I’ve spoken with in the past two weeks.

Every single one of them was drowning.
Not because their business wasn’t making money…
Not because they weren’t smart enough…
But because they were caught in the trap that most entrepreneurs fall into.

They built something amazing, but instead of gaining freedom, they became the bottleneck.

And if you’re honest, you might be there too.

Let me break down the three biggest mistakes I kept seeing (and the one change that bought me back 20 hours of my week).

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• Part 1: The Busy Badge of Honor

  I have spoken to 20 business owners in the past two weeks and here is what I’ve learned.

  When I jump on these calls, the first thing I always ask is:
  “How are things going?”

  The answer is almost always the same: "Man, I’m just slammed." "I’m wearing 10 different hats right now." "If I could just get caught up, I’d finally be able to…”

  Here’s the thing: being busy has become a badge of honor. We tell ourselves it means we’re doing something right.

  But it doesn’t.
  Busy is a sign of mismanagement.
  Busy is what stops you from creating real freedom.

  Think about it—did you start your business so you could:

  • Work 60–80 hours a week?

  • Miss dinner with your family?

  • Become the person who’s always “too busy”?

  Of course not. You started to build wealth, impact, and freedom.

  But what happens is this: entrepreneurs believe they’re saving money by doing everything themselves. In reality, they’re paying the highest price—time.

  Here’s the truth I had to tell one business owner:
  “You’re not an entrepreneur right now. You’re an overpaid employee with a terrible boss… yourself.”

  The moment you stop seeing “busy” as a badge of honor, you finally create space to work ON the business instead of remaining stuck IN it.