The Ugly Truth About Most Businesses...

Welcome to the Dave vs. Startups.

Today, we’re diving into the ugly truth about most businesses. It’s something we discuss from time to time on our podcast, and something every entrepreneur and business owner should be thinking about.

Let’s dive in:

If your business falls apart when you take a week off...

Then you don't have a business.

You have a demanding job…

The truth hurts sometimes, right?

That’s okay. It’s an easy fix if you have the right systems in place.

Here are the 3 systems I built that let me step away (and eventually sell my company):

But first, a little backstory…

I built a bootstrapped B2B SaaS company in public safety from $0 to exit.

But before I figured out these systems, I was doing everything myself (along with my co-founder), both of us working crazy hours.

The first system you need:

1. Customer acquisition that doesn't depend on you.

Early on, I was doing all the sales myself.

I had to be in every meeting with CTOs of billion-dollar companies.

Because I was the only one who could sell the vision.

And because a 25-year-old account executive can't have those high-level conversations.

But it was my fault, actually.

The real problem was I hadn't built a clear, repeatable sales process they could follow.

So here's what I did:

I built structured sales materials, demo flows and documentation for my team.

Basically, I systematized the sales process so I no longer needed to be in every deal.

Second system:

2. Scalable service & operations.

I used to handle every customer issue personally.

And my customers loved it, but I became the bottleneck.

The business couldn't grow past my capacity.

So I started hiring people from hospitality, former waiters and restaurant managers.

Because they were masters at handling tough situations, prioritizing urgent needs, and managing multiple demands.

But I didn't just hire them and hope for the best.

I had them study how I handled things, then build systems and processes to scale that level of service.

Third system:

3. A team that can run without you.

My wake-up call was when my entire team quit.

I had failed to build the proper systems and decision-making frameworks.

I was the bottleneck for every decision. That's not scalable.

The fix wasn't complicated:

• Create clear processes

• Document everything

• Trust people to make calls

• Focus on outcomes, not methods

When you give people the tools to succeed, they usually do.

These systems aren't flashy.

But these are the differences between:

• Working 80 hours vs 40

• Being able to sell vs being stuck

• A real business vs a job you created

Build these first.

Otherwise, you'll waste time on non-needle-movers.

Thanks for reading!
Dave