Founder & President | Strategic Coach | 50 Years of Entrepreneurial Coaching | Speaker | 10x Thinker | 50x Published Author
Joined December 2016
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The seeds of what I want to do next are already contained in what I’m doing now.
Finding a new direction doesn’t always require inventing an entirely different future. Often, the clues are already present in the activities, relationships, and opportunities that create the most energy.
The challenge is that those clues can become buried beneath commitments and obligations connected to the past.
To find my next direction, I pay attention to what’s working, what’s expanding, and what I want more of. Then I create space by letting go of what no longer supports that future.
The next opportunity may already be growing.
Sometimes, it simply needs the freedom to emerge.
#Entrepreneurship #FutureFocus #BusinessGrowth #PersonalDevelopment #StrategicCoach
Dan Sullivan retweeted
Casting not Hiring. It's one of the secrets to running a successful business.
I’ve been a client of Dan Sullivan's for nearly a decade. My companies, Igniting Souls® and Instant IP® @realInstantIP , have benefited greatly from his thinking tools, systems, and processes. But I’ve always been curious about what happens behind the scenes at Strategic Coach @StrategicCoach
How have they built and run a successful company for more than three decades? How do they choose the people who deliver the client experience and the people who make it all possible backstage?
Dan and B. Jeffrey Madoff @madoffprod of Madoff Productions explore that approach in their new book, Casting Not Hiring, published by Hay House, Inc. @hayhouse
Think of your business as a theater. Your customers experience what happens front stage. Behind the scenes, people and processes prepare for that experience. Every role matters, including the ones your customers never see.
It’s a practical way to think about building a team that works together to wow your customers and clients. And I get to help take you behind the book.
I’ll be facilitating an exclusive live conversation with Dan and Jeffrey on November 11th, where they’ll share the stories behind the stories BEFORE the official book release on November 17th.
(You'll be the first on the planet to get this exclusive content, BEFORE the book hits shelves.)
Preorder even ONE copy TODAY, and you’ll receive both of these Opening Night bonuses:
(1) The Director’s Cut with Dan and Jeffrey: An invitation to our exclusive, live, 60-minute conversation with the authors.
(2) Dan’s 4 x 4 Casting Tool + Coaching Walkthrough: Instant access to the tool at the heart of the book, plus a coaching video with Dan.
These bonuses are included with a preorder of 1–24 copies. One copy gets you in.
Preorder and claim your bonuses here: castingnothiring.com/
I look forward to taking you backstage.
(There are some other amazing bonuses on that page too, including a trip to New York with a real behind-the-scenes look at Jeff's newest production: personalitythemusical.net)
I’ve never believed that a traditional job description is enough for an entrepreneurial company.
A job description lists activities, responsibilities, and technical requirements.
But it doesn’t explain the working relationship. It doesn’t show someone how they’re expected to grow, how they can make a greater contribution, or what might create friction.
I prefer to think of an entrepreneurial company as a theatrical company.
You’re not simply hiring someone to fill a position. You’re casting them in a role.
That role should provide clarity in four areas:
How should this person perform?
What results should they create?
How can they become a hero?
What behaviors could create unnecessary friction?
At Strategic Coach, strong performance means being alert, curious, responsive, and resourceful.
Strong results mean making activities faster, easier, less costly, and bigger.
Once team members understand their roles, they can begin updating and expanding them themselves. They stop waiting for the entrepreneur to define every next step and start taking ownership of their growth.
Without clarity, people start guessing about what the entrepreneur wants.
Guessing creates defensiveness—and people who are playing defense can’t create.
A company becomes self-managing when every team member takes responsibility for making their role, and their contribution, more valuable.
Give people clarity.
Then give them the freedom to make the role bigger.
#Entrepreneurship #SelfManagingCompany #TeamLeadership #BusinessGrowth #UniqueAbility
Too many entrepreneurs hire the right person for the wrong role.
That’s why Jeffrey Madoff and I included the 4 x 4 Casting Tool in our new book “Casting Not Hiring.” It gives entrepreneurs a clearer way to define a role, align expectations, and create the conditions for top performance.
When every person understands the part they’re uniquely suited to play, the entire company gets better.
Pre-order the book today: castingnothiring.com/
#CastingNotHiring #NewBook #DanSullivan #Entrepreneur #StrategicCoach
I’ve learned that most growth doesn’t happen through one dramatic breakthrough.
It happens through many small steps taken consistently.
Each step creates new information.
It strengthens a capability.
It reveals the next opportunity.
And it provides evidence that progress is possible.
A small step may not feel significant in the moment, but when you look backward over a quarter, a year, or a decade, you can see how those decisions and actions accumulated into transformations you couldn’t have achieved all at once.
The important thing isn’t making every step perfect.
It’s continuing to move.
As long as you keep taking the next useful step, you’re building confidence, increasing capability, and creating a bigger future.
What small step can you take today?
#Entrepreneurship #Growth #Progress #Leadership #StrategicCoach
The best way to free yourself is to put a deadline on the calendar for when that freedom will become real.
When I decided to stop coaching our 10x workshops and focus entirely on Free Zone, I chose the final date well in advance.
That single decision created space in my mind before it created space in my schedule.
Our teams identified the right coaches, managed the transition, and ensured that our entrepreneurs continued receiving transformative value.
Meanwhile, I began imagining what the freed-up time would make possible.
That’s the important distinction:
“Freedom from” only becomes meaningful when it creates “freedom to.”
Freedom to develop new ideas.
Freedom to serve a more advanced audience.
Freedom to focus entirely on your Unique Ability.
Freedom to create a future bigger than anything you’ve achieved before.
Many entrepreneurs become trapped inside structures they created successfully. They continue doing familiar work because it produces revenue—even when it requires them to filter their thinking, restrain their creativity, or remain involved where others could lead.
When you’re ready to make the jump, decide what you’re going to stop doing, put the final date on your calendar, and identify the “Whos” who will make the transition possible.
Then ask your clients and customers a more powerful question:
Not, “What do you need from me?”
But, “What do you want from your future?”
Your next level begins when you give yourself permission to focus on the people, ideas, and opportunities that will take you there.
#EntrepreneurialFreedom #WhoNotHow #UniqueAbility #BiggerFuture #StrategicCoach
Every day, something happens that can irritate me.
Fifty years ago, I could get upset, go into “The Gap,” and stay there for six months.
Today, I still get irritated—but it usually lasts only two or three minutes.
What changed?
I learned to interrupt the reaction by asking myself two questions:
Where did I start with this?
Where am I now?
That shift helps me recognize that I’m making progress instead of allowing one frustrating moment to control my thinking.
Emotional mastery doesn’t mean never getting upset. It means shortening the time it takes to recover and return to a useful perspective.
Like any entrepreneurial skill, it takes practice.
#TheGapAndTheGain #EmotionalIntelligence #Entrepreneurship #PersonalGrowth #StrategicCoach
Dan Sullivan retweeted
Your ambition has grown. Does your current approach give it room to thrive?
Join @DanSullivanSC on November 12 for a free, live virtual introductory workshop.
Step back from your daily demands to explore tools that help you simplify complexity, clarify your direction, and create greater freedom of time, money, relationship, and purpose.
You’ll also hear from Strategic Coach members Aaron Marcum, Christopher Johnson, David Reiling, and Charlotte Johnson—and leave with a personalized action plan for 2027.
November 12, 2026
9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. ET, including Q&A
Live virtual event
Ready to connect your ambition with a clearer path forward? Learn more and reserve your spot:
now.strategiccoach.com/entre…
#Entrepreneurship #BusinessGrowth #EntrepreneurialFreedom #Leadership #StrategicCoach
I’ve always liked Walter Payton’s distinction:
“When you’re good, you tell everyone. When you’re great, they tell you.”
It led me to create a thinking tool called “When Are You Great?”
I’ve found that every business has two important stories.
The first is what you tell the marketplace.
These are the facts about what you offer, how the process works, and the results people can expect. They give someone a convincing reason to pay attention.
The second story is what your customers tell you—and what they tell others.
They rarely repeat your list of services. They describe their experience, the transformation they achieved, and what became possible because of your relationship.
That’s where the compelling offer is revealed.
We need both sides.
We have to clearly explain what we do. But we also have to listen carefully to what people say happens after they participate.
That feedback shows us whether our promise matches their experience. It also tells us what people value enough to share with others.
If customers have nothing meaningful to say, marketing may not be the real problem. The experience may need to become more valuable.
Tell people what you do.
Then let your customers show them why it matters.
#Entrepreneurship #CustomerExperience #BusinessGrowth #ThoughtLeadership #MarketingStrategy
Dan Sullivan retweeted
For more than 30 years, Dave Sanderson built a successful career as a sales executive for major technology companies.
Then he survived the Miracle on the Hudson—and was the last passenger off the plane.
The experience changed his life, but the full transformation became clear when he returned to work. Being asked to step back into his old routine made him realize that the path he had been following was no longer the one he was meant to pursue.
Surviving the flight gave Dave a different focus. It challenged him to take greater ownership of his future and choose a direction connected to a deeper sense of purpose.
Sometimes a life-changing moment doesn’t immediately reveal what comes next.
It simply makes it impossible to keep living the same way.
#Leadership #Resilience #Purpose #Entrepreneurship #Transformation
Dan Sullivan retweeted
🚀 AI isn't just changing business. It's changing what's possible!
@PeterDiamandis and @DanSullivanSC explore how entrepreneurs can use AI to think bigger, unlock new opportunities, and achieve 10x growth.
🎥 Watch: youtube.com/watch?v=ji3DrGMr…
#AI #StrategicCoach #10x
I never plan more than three important things to do in a day.
If I complete a fourth, it’s a bonus.
Long task lists create the illusion that everything matters equally. They divide attention, weaken focus, and make a productive day feel unsuccessful because something is always left unfinished.
I’d rather identify the three results that will create the most progress.
That forces me to decide what’s truly important, what can wait, and what someone else can handle better than I can.
Once those three priorities are clear, I can give each one the attention and energy it deserves.
Productivity isn’t about how many tasks I complete.
It’s about whether I accomplish what matters most.
What are the three most important results you can create today?
#Entrepreneurship #Productivity #Focus #TimeManagement #StrategicCoach
Imitation is how we learn.
Creativity begins when we make what we’ve learned our own.
I’ve always studied people whose performance I admire—not only coaches and entrepreneurs, but athletes, artists, musicians, and historical figures.
I look for the principles behind what makes them unique. Then I translate those principles into my own world and graft them onto my Unique Ability.
That combination creates something new.
This is also how I think about artificial intelligence.
AI can recognize patterns, reproduce styles, and generate language very quickly. But clever imitation isn’t the same as human creativity. Real creativity has personality, energy, and the ability to respond to something unexpected.
My filter for AI is simple:
How will this help me achieve my next 20% increase in productivity?
If it helps me multiply my thinking, improve my communication, or create greater value, it’s useful. If it only imitates someone else’s voice or produces more information, I’m not interested.
In my conversation with Shannon Waller, we discuss why AI won’t make human creativity less valuable. I believe it will make originality, authenticity, and personal expression even more important.
Learn from the people you admire.
Understand the principles behind their success.
Then make those principles completely your own.
#HumanCreativity #ArtificialIntelligence #EntrepreneurialThinking #UniqueAbility #StrategicCoach
Dan Sullivan retweeted
What if your marketing was so useful that prospects trusted you before they ever spoke with you? Dan Sullivan and Joe Polish go LIVE tomorrow on education based marketing. Fri 10/16, 11 AM PT: 10xTalk.com/LIVE
“Casting Not Hiring” is for entrepreneurs who are tired of forcing talented people into roles that were designed without them in mind.
It’s for leaders who want a company that grows through commitment and creativity—not constant supervision.
In this new book, Jeffrey Madoff and I show you how to recognize the right talent, create the right roles, and give every person a clear part in the bigger production.
If that sounds like the team you want to build, pre-order your copy today: castingnothiring.com/
#CastingNotHiring #NewBook #DanSullivan #Entrepreneur #StrategicCoach
My goal is to be more ambitious at 90 than I was at 80.
Many people treat ambition like a gas tank. They assume everyone receives a certain amount at birth, uses it throughout life, and eventually begins running out.
I think ambition works more like a muscle.
When you challenge it with bigger goals, new experiences, and meaningful responsibilities, it grows stronger.
Ambition is also the capability that activates every other capability. It gives you a reason to learn, improve, and create something that doesn’t exist yet.
But your approach has to evolve as your ambition grows.
Early entrepreneurial success may depend heavily on individual effort. Greater success requires teamwork. Eventually, the biggest opportunities come through collaboration—combining your capabilities with someone else’s to create a result neither of you could produce alone.
Your environment matters too.
Maintaining ambition by yourself can be difficult. When you’re surrounded by people who are positively ambitious, thinking bigger becomes easier. Your goals are reinforced instead of questioned.
At 70, I was more ambitious than I was at 60. At 80, I was more ambitious than I was at 70.
The world in front of me isn’t getting smaller.
It’s getting bigger.
#Entrepreneurship #Ambition #Collaboration #BusinessGrowth #EntrepreneurialMindset
If I can’t sell an idea to myself, I don’t try it on anyone else.
Before I ask another person to invest their time, money, energy, or trust, I need to understand why the idea matters.
What problem does it solve?
What value does it create?
Why is it better than the alternative?
And would I make the same commitment I’m asking someone else to make?
If I can’t answer those questions with confidence, the idea isn’t ready.
Conviction can’t be borrowed from an audience. It has to begin with the person making the offer.
Once I’m genuinely convinced, I can communicate with clarity instead of pressure. I’m not simply trying to persuade someone—I’m helping them see an opportunity I already believe in.
Sell it to yourself first.
Then share that confidence with others.
#Entrepreneurship #Sales #Leadership #BusinessGrowth #StrategicCoach
After 50 years of coaching entrepreneurs, I’ve noticed that they tend to be deeply grateful for their working lives.
They understand what it took to create their companies. They also recognize that nothing significant is achieved alone.
They’re grateful for the team members who allow them to elevate their focus, the customers who write them checks for the value they create for them, and the opportunities that make a bigger future possible.
Gratitude has an unusual power:
You can’t be grateful and complaining at the same time.
You can’t be grateful and envious at the same time.
You can’t be grateful and anxious at the same time.
I think of gratitude as a universal negativity eliminator.
But it doesn’t happen automatically. Gratitude has to be created internally through appreciation.
Appreciation means recognizing value.
That’s why every Strategic Coach meeting begins with a Positive Focus. Each person shares something they’re excited about or grateful for.
At the end, everyone identifies what they got out of the meeting.
We start with what’s positive, make progress together, and finish by appreciating the value that was created.
Gratitude doesn’t mean ignoring challenges or pretending everything is perfect.
It gives you the positive foundation to recognize your progress, appreciate the people who contributed to it, and create what comes next.
#Entrepreneurship #Ambition #UniqueAbility #EntrepreneurialMindset #BusinessGrowth
Everywhere I look, I’m being compared to perfection—to an ideal that no one can ever fully reach.
If I allow the outside world to determine how I measure myself, I’ll always feel as though I’m falling short.
That’s why I believe every entrepreneur must develop an important internal skill: the ability to turn any experience into a sense of progress.
I look backward at where I started. I identify what I learned, how I improved, and what I’m now capable of doing.
The world will always remind me how far I have to go.
It’s my responsibility to remember how far I’ve already come.
#TheGapAndTheGain #Entrepreneurship #Progress #Mindset #StrategicCoach
I’ve come to believe that the opposite of ambition isn’t a lack of drive.
It’s envy.
Ambition asks, “How can I create more?”
Envy asks, “How can I make sure someone else has less?”
Envy begins when you compare your life to another person’s visible success without understanding their experiences, capabilities, or sacrifices.
The more you compare, the more their success begins to feel like evidence of your own limitation.
That’s why Unique Ability is so important.
Once you understand that your greatest value comes from the combination of talents, experiences, and activities that make you unique, comparison becomes unnecessary.
Another entrepreneur’s success no longer has to threaten you. It can inspire you, teach you, and expand your sense of what’s possible.
Your environment also matters.
Ambition grows when you’re surrounded by people who are genuinely interested in your biggest goals and who celebrate your greatest successes. In the right community, even failure becomes useful. You learn, recalibrate, and move forward.
Entrepreneurs should be able to be unambiguously ambitious.
Surround yourself with people who don’t need your future to become smaller for theirs to feel bigger.
#Entrepreneurship #Ambition #UniqueAbility #EntrepreneurialMindset #BusinessGrowth
