LEVEL TWO: $1M to $5M
FIRST TEAMS, FIRST SYSTEMS STAGE 

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Robyn Anderson, Founder of JAM AI and creator of Club JAM. One of the fastest-growing AI communities helping small business owners actually understand and implement AI into their day-to-day operations. 

After building 17 different AI courses around tools that quickly became obsolete, Robyn realized the real opportunity wasn’t selling information… it was building a community that could evolve alongside the speed of AI itself. 

Now, with hundreds of members inside Club JAM, Robyn helps entrepreneurs use tools like Claude, ChatGPT, NotebookLM and AI agents to save time, streamline operations, and scale smarter, even while balancing motherhood, consulting, speaking gigs, and building the business mostly between 4:30AM and school drop-off. 

If you’re trying to understand AI without getting overwhelmed, build smarter systems, create leverage in your business, or simply keep up with how fast technology is changing...  this episode is for you! 

Let’s dive in,
with Robyn Anderson: 

• why she almost gave up trying to keep up with AI 
• the biggest mistake she made building 17 AI courses too early 
• why Claude is becoming the go-to AI tool for business owners 
• how she creates custom AI-generated podcasts for herself every day 
• the simple prompt every business owner should try immediately 
• how AI can help build systems, SOPs, marketing, and operations 
• why community became more valuable than selling courses 
• the truth about AI “slop” and fake AI content online 
• why personal brands should stop relying on AI avatars 
• how she built a growing AI business while raising two kids 
• the hidden challenge of hiring people into AI-powered businesses 
• how she uses AI to save massive amounts of time every single day 
• the emotional AI interview process that made members laugh and cry 
• why speaking for free became the growth engine for her business 
• how to start using AI without feeling overwhelmed 

The Business Game is proud to partner with HighLevel, the all-in-one CRM and marketing platform built for growing businesses  High Level’s software will drive your customer retention and your profits through the stratosphere - so click here for your 14-day free trial:
https://www.gohighlevel.com/?fp_ref=ribu88 

This episode contains affiliate advertising. The Business Game Group is a GoHighLevel affiliate. If you sign up through the link in the show notes, we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL 3: $3M – $8M 
DELEGATION & EARLY LEADERSHIP STAGE 

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Chad G. Bauer, owner of SR&B Advertising, a second-generation agency leader navigating the pressure of modernising a 60-year family business without losing the legacy that built it. 

After stepping into the company founded by his father, Chad realised the biggest bottleneck wasn’t the market... it was himself. In this episode, he shares the hard lessons around delegation, building a leadership layer, letting go of control, and evolving from founder-operator into a true CEO. From difficult conversations with his father to creating systems that allowed the business to run without him being involved in every decision, this episode is packed with practical insights for founders stuck in the messy middle of growth. 

Let’s dive in
with Chad G. Bauer: 

• Why self-awareness changed Chad’s leadership style  
• The moment he realised he was the bottleneck  
• Building managers and leadership structure for the first time  
• Hiring systems that filter out the wrong people fast  
• The pressure of inheriting a family legacy business  
• Why “scaling isn’t about doing more”  

If you’re trying to step out of the day-to-day, build a stronger team, and grow without carrying the entire business on your back... this episode is for you.

The Business Game is proud to partner with HighLevel, the all-in-one CRM and marketing platform built for growing businesses  High Level’s software will drive your customer retention and your profits through the stratosphere - so click here for your 14-day free trial:
https://www.gohighlevel.com/?fp_ref=ribu88

This episode contains affiliate advertising. The Business Game Group is a GoHighLevel affiliate. If you sign up through the link in the show notes, we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL 1: $0 – $1M  
STARTUP & SURVIVAL STAGE 

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Laura Campbell, Founder of Hip Surfer, the Australian baby product brand transforming how parents carry their children. 

What started as a side hustle during maternity leave quickly became something much bigger. After struggling with chronic pain and finding existing baby carriers uncomfortable, Laura decided to create her own solution. Three years later, Hip Surfer has grown into a seven-figure business stocked in airports, theme parks, resorts, and retail locations across Australia and beyond. 

We asked Laura about building a product business while raising young children, scaling from a simple idea into a nationally recognised brand, and the realities of being a solo founder when every department still runs through you. 

From late-night Meta ads and manufacturing challenges to viral social media moments and stock shortages, Laura shares the highs, lows, and lessons from building a business that's helping thousands of families around the world. 

Let’s dive in,
with Laura Campbell: 

• Why a personal health challenge led to creating Hip Surfer 
• The customer feedback that proved she had more than just a baby product 
• How she went from a $30,000 goal to blowing past $100,000 in her first year 
• The reality of doing your own marketing, manufacturing, accounting, and operations 
• How leveraging relationships opened doors into airports, resorts, and theme parks 
• The viral reel that generated millions of views, and a stock crisis 
• Why investing in coaching and business communities accelerated growth 
• The hidden challenges of being a solo founder 
• What it takes to scale a product business while raising a family 

If you're building an e-commerce brand, launching a product business, balancing entrepreneurship with family life, or trying to turn a side hustle into something bigger, this is the episode for you.

The Business Game is proud to partner with HighLevel, the all-in-one CRM and marketing platform built for growing businesses 🚀 High Level’s software will drive your customer retention and your profits through the stratosphere - click here for your 14-day free trial

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL 1: $0 – $1M
STARTUP & SURVIVAL STAGE

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Ian Stephens, one of Australia’s leading sales psychologists, speaker, author, and performance coach who has worked with businesses in 29 countries around the world

Before becoming an internationally recognised sales expert, Ian spent years fighting to keep his business alive — borrowing money from his parents, selling his car, and even selling his house to stay in the game. Along the way, he learned some hard truths about cash flow, mindset, systems, and what really happens when business owners get desperate.

We asked Ian why sales often get harder when you need them most, how limiting beliefs quietly sabotage business growth, why most founders focus on goals instead of systems, and the lesson every entrepreneur needs to hear about building a business that doesn't rely entirely on them.

Let's dive in
with Ian Stephens:

• Why sales feel harder when you need them most 
• How pressure shifts your behaviour (and costs you deals) 
• The link between mindset, cash flow and performance 
• Why systems matter more than motivation 
• The mistake most business owners make under pressure 
• How to stay effective when everything feels urgent 
• The shift from operator → scalable business model 
• What’s coming next with AI and customer expectations 

If you’re in a season where things feel tighter than usual, this episode will give you clarity on what’s actually going on... and what to do next. 

Connect with Ian:
LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/ianstephensspeaks
Website - enrichacademy.com.au

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL 2: $1M – $3M
FIRST TEAM, FIRST SYSTEMS STAGE 

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Dustin Snyder, Founder and Chief Advisor of WayForward, the company helping organisations uncover the hidden behavioural systems driving turnover, disengagement, low performance, and leadership problems inside teams. 

After leading a 600-person manufacturing turnaround, Dustin realised something most leaders never see: employee behaviour isn’t random, it’s the rational output of the systems leaders create around people. That insight led him to build SWIM (Strategic Workforce Insight Mapping), a framework designed to help executives diagnose the real root causes behind workforce problems instead of treating surface-level symptoms. 

In this episode, Dustin breaks down why most engagement surveys fail, why frontline behaviour almost always traces back to leadership, and why companies spend far more time understanding customers than they do their own employees. 

He also opens up about the difficult transition from founder-operator to CEO, the painful lessons of scaling beyond himself, and why “killing your ego every morning” became one of the biggest unlocks in his growth journey. 

Let’s dive in,
with Dustin Snyder: 

• Why employee turnover creates hidden financial damage most businesses never measure  
• The leadership behaviours teams subconsciously copy  
• Why fear-based decisions are almost always the wrong ones  
• The scary process of niching down and saying no to revenue  
• How documenting his process led to writing his book Sink or Swim  
• The system-thinking cheat code founders can use to scale faster  

If you’ve ever struggled with culture, delegation, leadership bottlenecks, or building a business that can grow beyond you, this episode is packed with insights you’ll want to hear. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL THREE: $3M to $8M:  

DELEGATION AND EARLY LEADERSHIP 

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Melanie Warner, founder and CEO of Defining Moments Press. 

After rebuilding from $3.6 million in debt to multi-millions in just 18 months, Melanie has turned personal adversity into a scalable business model that helps entrepreneurs turn books into client acquisition systems. 

What started as a frustrating battle with traditional publishing evolved into the Seven Figure Book Method. A system that helps experts turn authority into scalable revenue. 

We asked her how she rebuilt after losing everything, why most founders build personality-driven businesses that can’t scale, and what it really takes to transition from being the face of the company to building systems that grow without you. 

Let’s dive in, 
with Melanie Warner: 

• How she rebuilt from $3.6M in debt to multi-millions 
• Why traditional publishing failed her 
• The real business model behind a “book funnel” 
• Why personality can only build the first million 
• The systems required to scale beyond founder-led growth 
• How to stop selling to strangers and attract ideal buyers 
• The transition from solopreneur to CEO 
• Why systems beat hustle at every stage of growth 
• What building authority really looks like in 2026 

If you’re building an expertise-based business, trying to scale beyond yourself, or looking to turn your knowledge into a real growth engine... this episode is for you. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL FOUR: $8M to $20M
GROWING PAINS & OPERATIONAL COMPLEXITY 

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Melissa Drew, Founder and CEO of InSite BUILD, a construction management firm delivering complex government and institutional projects across the Mid-Atlantic. 

After a 20-year career leading large-scale construction projects for national contractors, Melissa launched InSite BUILD and landed a $53 million project almost immediately, forcing the company to operate at a level most businesses take years to grow into. 

Melissa shares the realities of scaling inside the construction industry, why relationships became the foundation of her business, and the leadership lessons she learned after losing key team members during a difficult growth phase. She also explains why empathy has become one of her greatest advantages on job sites, and how she’s building a culture that prioritises both accountability and humanity in a traditionally tough industry. 

If you’re trying to scale a business, build strong culture, lead teams under pressure, or grow without compromising your standards? This episode is for you! 
 

Let’s dive in,
with Melissa Drew: 

• how she landed a $53M project at the very start of the business 
• the leadership mistakes that cost her valuable team members 
• why relationships matter more than anything in construction 
• what “bonding capacity” really means — and why it limits growth 
• how empathy improves safety, performance, and accountability 
• the realities of leading in a male-dominated industry 
• why culture matters most when money is on the line 
• the systems and structure she invested in from day one 
• how to keep startup teams motivated during difficult growth phases 
• why treating people like humans creates better performance 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL TWO: $1M to $3M:  

FIRST TEAMS, FIRST SYSTEMS, FOUNDER LED 

In today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Mark Story, construction consultant, turnaround specialist, and founder of Commercial Construction Services LLC. 

For nearly 40 years, Mark has worked on high-stakes construction projects across government infrastructure, stadiums, data centres, and large-scale commercial developments, often stepping in when projects were already heading off the rails. 

In this episode, Mark breaks down why most project failures begin long before construction starts, the hidden dangers of weak systems and poor planning, and why compliance becomes unavoidable as businesses grow. 

He also shares the realities of running a founder-led consultancy, the pressure of carrying accountability on major projects, and the lessons he’s learned helping teams recover when timelines, budgets, and trust are all under pressure. 

If you’re building a service business, managing complex projects, or trying to scale without becoming the bottleneck yourself, this episode is packed with practical lessons. 

Let’s dive in,
with Mark Story: 

• Why most project failures begin before the work starts 
• The hidden cost of weak systems and poor planning 
• Why compliance becomes unavoidable as you grow 
• How founders accidentally become the bottleneck 
• Lessons from rescuing failing projects under pressure 
• What Level 2 founders should implement earlier 
• Leadership, accountability, and managing chaos at scale 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL 6: $50M – $150M
GOVERNANCE, DATA & SERIOUS INFRASTRUCTURE

In today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Jesse Vidrine, Founder of Vidrine Pharmaceutical Group and President & Co-Owner of Boudreaux’s New Drug Store, a pharmacist-owned compounding pharmacy that has exploded from a small local operation into a national business licensed across 45+ U.S. states. 

After buying the pharmacy just weeks before COVID hit, Jesse and his wife Kylie faced what sounds more like a disaster movie than a business journey: denied by 9 banks, a Category 4 hurricane, floods, ice storms, and moments where payroll nearly didn’t get paid. Somehow, through all of it, they scaled the company over 800% in just 24 months. 

In this episode, Jesse breaks down what it really takes to scale inside one of the most tightly regulated industries in the world, where there’s no room for mistakes, compliance is everything, and growth only happens if your systems, people, and leadership evolve fast enough to survive it.

If you’re building a business under pressure, navigating rapid growth, or trying to scale without breaking the machine, this episode is for you.

Let’s dive in,
 with Jesse Vidrine:

•  how they survived COVID, hurricanes, floods & near-bankruptcy 
•  why patients, not doctors, changed healthcare forever 
•  how they grew from 6 employees to 100+ 
•  the real reason most founders fail under pressure 
•  why “risk it for the biscuit” became their business philosophy 
•  how AI and automation are transforming modern pharmacy operations 
•  why peptides could become bigger than the GLP-1 boom 
•  the leadership lessons that come from scaling in a zero-mistake industry

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL 1: $0 – $1M
STARTUP & SURVIVAL STAGE

Andrew Whittle is the Co-Founder of Being Wear, a gender-free, sensory-friendly underwear brand inspired by his daughter’s experience with ASD and ADHD.

In this episode, Andrew shares how a personal family challenge turned into a startup, the lessons he’s learned building an early-stage brand, and the realities of trying to grow without massive resources or outside capital.

From product simplification and repeat customers to founder burnout and financial pressure, this episode is an honest look at what Level 1 of business really feels like.

Let's dive in
with Andrew Whittle:

•  Sensory-friendly clothing & underserved markets 
•  Starting a business from personal experience 
•  Bootstrapping a brand 
•  Startup pressure & uncertainty 
•  Product-market fit 
•  Early-stage growth challenges 
•  Founder mindset & resilience 

If you're building a brand, testing product-market fit, or looking for practical insights from someone making it work, this is the episode for you.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL 1: $0 – $1M
STARTUP & SURVIVAL STAGE
In today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Andrea Tortella, Founder and CEO of Thrad – the company building advertising infrastructure for AI, placing ads directly inside conversations with large language models.

After working at Perplexity and becoming obsessed with the shift from browsing to answers, Andrea realised the internet was changing fast — and that traditional advertising models might not survive the AI era. Now, Thrad is already serving millions of ads globally, working with everyone from startups to Fortune 500 brands.
Building from the centre of Silicon Valley’s AI boom, Andrea shares why advertising inside AI conversations is inevitable, how conversational AI is completely changing the internet, and what it’s really like building a startup in one of the fastest-moving industries on earth.

If you’re building in AI, marketing, SaaS, or trying to understand where the internet is heading next… This episode is for you.

Let’s dive in, with Andrea Tortella:
• why the internet is shifting from browsing to AI answers
• the real reason AI products will need advertising to survive
• what ads inside ChatGPT-style conversations actually look like
• why “bad ads” ruined advertising’s reputation
• how conversational AI could completely change marketing
• building a startup at the centre of Silicon Valley’s AI boom
• the challenge of creating a category that doesn’t fully exist yet
• why speed is becoming one of the biggest advantages in marketing
• the unconventional marketing stunt that helped put Thrad on the map
• how AI could change the relationship between brands and customers forever

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL ONE: $0 to $1M: STARTUP & SURVIVAL STAGE 

In today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Lori Ana Valentin, analytical chemist, former forensic scientist... and Founder of Radiant Journey, where she helps scientists, engineers, and high-performing professionals navigate burnout, leadership pressure, and the hidden psychological cost of high-stress work. 

After years working inside the State Police Crime Lab analysing homicide and criminal cases, Lori began noticing the emotional toll that exposure to trauma was having on professionals behind the scenes – and decided to do something about it. 

Now building a business while balancing full-time work and single motherhood, Lori shares what vicarious trauma actually looks like, why high performers silently carry emotional pressure for years, and how emotional intelligence became the unexpected skill that transformed both her leadership and her business. 

If you’re building a business, carrying pressure behind the scenes, or trying to perform at a high level without burning yourself into the ground… This episode is for you. 

Let’s dive in,  
with Lori Ana Valentin: 

• what vicarious trauma actually is — and why most people miss it 
• how working homicide cases affects people behind the scenes 
• why burnout often isn’t the real problem 
• the hidden psychological cost of high performance 
• how COVID exposed emotional pressure people were already carrying 
• building a business while working full-time 
• balancing entrepreneurship and single motherhood 
• why emotional intelligence became her biggest advantage 
• the leadership side of stress nobody talks about 
• how to recognise when pressure is silently affecting your life 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL FIVE: ORGANISER
$20M to $50M 

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Tim Vipond, Co-Founder and CEO of Corporate Finance Institute, a global education platform training finance professionals in over 200 countries. 

After building a $20M+ business off the back of SEO and digital distribution, Tim shares how he turned content into a global growth engine, and why scaling an education company is far more complex than it looks from the outside. 

If you’re trying to scale your business, expand globally, integrate AI, or build something that doesn’t rely on you day-to-day, this episode is for you. 

Let’s dive in,
with Tim Vipond: 

• how SEO became the growth engine behind a global business
• why certifications outperform traditional online courses
• what actually breaks when you scale into 200+ countries
• the real challenge of pricing a product globally
• how AI is changing both the way they operate, and what they sell 
• the leadership shift from operator to CEO at $30M+ 
• what founders get wrong about scaling digital education 
• how to think about distribution before product 
• the hidden complexity behind ‘simple’ online businesses 
• what could stall the next phase of growth – and how to avoid it 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL SEVEN: GLOBAL LEADER
$150M to $500M

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Jay Aldebert, Chief Growth Officer at International Services Inc, and a profit strategist who has analysed more than 80,000 privately held businesses over the past 25 years. 

Having generated billions in consulting outcomes, Jay shares why most business owners don’t actually understand how their company makes money...  and how focusing on growth instead of profit is quietly destroying businesses at every level. 

If you’re trying to scale your business, improve cash flow, increase profitability, or build something that creates real long-term value - this episode is for you! 

Let’s dive in, 
with Jay Aldebert: 

• why most businesses struggle with profitability (even at high revenue) 
• the truth about cash flow, debt, and working capital 
• why growth alone won’t fix your business 
• how to design profit instead of hoping for it 
• the biggest financial mistakes founders make when scaling 
• why accounting is a lagging indicator — not a control system 
• how to build a business that actually creates value 
• what determines the real worth of your business 
• why selling more won’t solve underlying problems 
• how to think about profit, structure, and long-term wealth 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL FOUR: SCALE BUILDER
$8M to $20M 

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Ben Gilliland, Founder of Future Proof Property Intelligence, a business tackling one of the biggest and fastest-growing threats facing homeowners today: the collision of climate risk and insurance. 

With over 37 million homes already at extreme risk, and $22 trillion in real estate on the line, Ben breaks down what’s actually happening behind rising premiums, insurers pulling out of entire regions, why most people still don’t see it coming - and what his company is doing to help. 

If you own property, are scaling a business in a complex market, or are trying to build something that requires real-world behaviour change… This episode is for you! 

Let’s dive in, with Ben Gilliland: 

• why climate risk and insurance risk are now the same conversation 
 • what’s really happening when insurance companies pull out of neighbourhoods 
 • how millions of homes could become uninsurable over the next 20 years 
 • the real reason most homeowners aren’t taking action yet 
 • how AI is being used to assess and fix property-level risk 
 • why this problem is bigger than construction – and requires system-level thinking 
 • the tension between homeowners and insurers (and why both sides are right!) 
 • what breaks first when you try to scale across multiple industries 
 • how this could trigger foreclosures, housing instability, and mass migration 
 • what needs to happen now to prevent a much bigger crisis 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL TWO: $1M to $3M: EARLY BUILDER

In today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Sarah Forrai, Co-Founder of Contour Cube, the viral tool designed to make facial icing easy and accessible for everyone.

With organic endorsement from Kendall Jenner, over 1 billion views on social media, and features in GRAZIA and the Daily Mail, Sarah breaks down for us how she created the viral moments that skyrocketed her brand - and the reality behind the scenes of trying to capitalise on that momentum.

If you’re building a product, hiring your first team, or trying to turn attention into predictable revenue… This episode is for you!

Let’s dive in, with Sarah Forrai:

• how a 3D-printed prototype turned into a $3M+ business
 • what actually happens when your product goes viral overnight
 • why views and demand don’t guarantee stability
 • the moment they had millions watching… but no product to sell
 • how they collected 20,000 emails while out of stock
 • why supply chain nearly broke the business
 • the reality of scaling with a lean team
 • what most founders misunderstand about “demand”
 • how social media can build or break a product business
 • what it takes to turn momentum into something sustainable

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL FOUR: SCALE BUILDER

What does it actually take to build a business when capital is tight, competition is high, and every mistake gets amplified as you grow?

In today's episode of The Business Game, we're chatting with Justin Giuffrida, co-founder and CEO of Citizens, a rapidly growing Australian café brand redefining coffee culture in the United States.

In this conversation, we’re talking with Justin about what happens when you push past the early wins and start dealing with real complexity. From opening a café in New York with just $74,000, to scaling across multiple cities, to now preparing for major expansion, Justin tells us all about the shift from scrappy startup to structured growth.

From learning how to hire properly, to building systems that remove the founder as the bottleneck, to managing culture and consistency across locations, Justin breaks down what it actually takes to scale without breaking the business.

If you’re building a business, managing a growing team, or navigating the challenges of scaling operations, this episode is for you.

Let’s dive in with Justin Giuffrida:

• why most founders get hiring wrong
• why Citizens runs 123 interviews (!) to find the right hire
• how to build systems that scale beyond the founder
• why founders become the bottleneck and how to fix it
• how to maintain culture while scaling across locations
• what it really takes to raise capital and expand
• the leadership shift from operator to CEO
• how to use mentors to shortcut years of mistakes
• the biggest risks when scaling too quickly
• what changes when complexity starts to compound

Chapters

00:00 – Building a Café with $74K
 03:30 – Spotting the Opportunity in the US
 06:10 – Opening with No Money
 12:50 – From Launch to Line Out the Door
 17:30 – Knowing the Model Would Scale
 22:30 – Systems Behind Multi-Location Growth
 29:20 – Why Hiring is So Hard
 36:30 – Raising Capital and Scaling Fast
 49:00 – The Founder to CEO Shift
 01:02:00 – Mentors, Growth, and Long-Term Vision

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL TWO: EARLY BUILDER

What does it actually take to build a business where the biggest risk isn’t your product… but people? 

In today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re talking to cybersecurity expert Robert Siciliano to break down what’s really happening as AI reshapes fraud, deception, and trust – and why most businesses are completely unprepared for it. 

Robert tells us the risks now that AI has removed all the obvious red flags of scams, making deception feel completely real – from voice cloning to deepfakes – and why the biggest vulnerability in any business isn’t its technology, but its people who can fall victim to these scams. And on top of that, we go deep with Robert on what it actually looks like to build a business around your own expertise. 

From operating as a solopreneur, to learning how to sell your knowledge, to navigating the collapse of income during COVID, Robert shares the reality of stabilising a business when you are the product. 

Let’s dive in, with Robert Siciliano: 

• Why AI has made scams almost impossible to detect  
• The dangerous gap between security awareness and real behaviour (and the need for a strategic human firewall) 
• How apathy exposes both individuals and businesses  
• What it really takes to build systems when you’re still doing everything  
• How to start scaling expertise beyond yourself  

If you’re in the early stages of building a business, hiring your first team, or trying to turn your expertise into something sustainable… This one is for you!  

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL ONE: STARTUP & SURVIVAL

What does it actually take to build a business where execution isn’t the problem… but you are?

In this episode of The Business Game, Rachel Losser, founder of Losser Consulting Solutions, shares what it really takes to build a consulting firm focused on one thing most businesses struggle with: getting things done.

In this conversation, we're chatting with Rachel about about what happens when you realise that not every client is worth keeping, that growth comes from saying no more than yes, and that the biggest bottleneck in your business… is often you.

 From learning how to fire the wrong clients, to building systems that don’t rely on the founder, to creating accountability across teams, Rachel breaks down what it actually takes to move out of chaos and into control - and how to get out of your own way in the process.

If you’re building a business, hiring your first team, or trying to stop being the bottleneck in your own company? This episode is for you!

Let’s dive in, with Rachel Losser:

• why bad clients don’t get better… they get worse
 • the moment she realised she was the bottleneck
 • how saying no leads to better opportunities
 • why “ready for change” and actually changing are different
 • how to build trust while still holding accountability
 • the simple system that keeps projects moving forward
 • why most founders delay the conversations that matter
 • how to scale without turning into a micromanager
 • the real reason projects fail in growing businesses
 • what it takes to move from doer to leader

Chapters

00:00 – The moment Rachel knew she could do it better
02:02 – Firing clients and why it changed everything
03:25 – How to spot bad clients early
06:23 – Why clients don’t actually want change
08:26 – “I am the bottleneck”
10:15 – Training a team without losing control
11:42 – The “reverse micromanager” problem
13:22 – Turning custom work into scalable systems
16:00 – Why founders hold onto work under pressure
39:00 – The real shortcut: good work gets more work

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL TWO: EARLY BUILDER

What happens when your business is growing… but your fundamentals are quietly breaking underneath you?

In this episode of The Business Game, Carla Penn-Kahn, co-founder of ProfitPeak, shares what it really takes to build and scale a company in one of the fastest-moving spaces in business, AI-driven and agentic commerce.

This isn’t just a conversation about growth; it's a conversation about what happens when the numbers look good on paper, but the reality behind the scenes tells a very different story. From making $200K in revenue but not being able to pay payroll, to hiring the wrong people because they were the best available at the time, Carla breaks down the moments that most founders do not talk about, but all eventually face.

Carla shares the reality of building from zero for the first time after previous successful turnarounds, this time in a new category and a new market with no brand awareness, as well as her personal lessons from building from scratch. From learning (the hard way!) that you can't run a company like a family, to shifting from earning trust to giving it first, Carla talks us through how her leadership style has evolved across multiple businesses... and what it takes to build a team that can keep up with the speed of an AI-first world.

If you're building a business, hiring your first team, or trying to move out of the chaos of early growth... This episode is for you! 

Let's dive in, with Carla Penn-Kahn:

• why making revenue does not mean you have cash
 • the $200K payroll mistake that changed everything
 • how unclear messaging can stall growth and how to fix it
 • why problems in business happen hourly, not daily
 • hiring the wrong people and why it is often unavoidable early
 • the role of resilience in surviving constant setbacks
 • the leadership shift from “nice founder” to real CEO
 • why trust is given first, not earned over time
 • how AI is changing e-commerce and decision-making
 • what founders need to build now to stay competitive

Follow The Business Game for more real conversations with founders building across all levels of business. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL THREE: EMERGING CEO 

What does it actually take to build a company where mistakes have real-world consequences? 

In this episode of The Business Game, Ryan Hawley shares the story behind Odin Industries, a global organisation operating across healthcare, insurance, and legal systems in some of the most complex and high-stakes environments in the world.  

This isn’t just a conversation about scaling a business. 

It is a conversation about what happens when you scale inside systems that are regulated, international, and unforgiving, where decisions affect people’s health, claims, and livelihoods – and there is no margin for error.  

Ryan talks openly about building in war zones, navigating global operations, and the reality of growing fast without breaking the machine. From learning how to delegate as a self-confessed control freak, to managing risk across multiple countries, to keeping a team aligned under pressure, this episode reveals what it actually takes to operate at a global level.  

If you are scaling a business, building across borders, or trying to step into true leadership, this episode is packed with hard-earned lessons. 
 

We cover: 

•  how Odin Industries was built from frontline medical experience
•  the moment Ryan chose to build systems instead of stay inside broken ones
•  scaling quickly without letting operations collapse
•  why delegation is the only way to buy back time
• managing risk across international and regulated environments
• what almost broke during rapid growth and global expansion
• the leadership shift required to run a high-stakes organisation 

Follow The Business Game for more real conversations with founders building across different levels of business. 
 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL 2: EARLY BUILDER

What does it actually take to build a premium product business? 

In this episode of The Business Game, Lindsay Scherr Burgess shares the real story behind Green Wallscapes, from early side hustle beginnings to becoming a trusted supplier for major commercial clients across North America. 

This is not just a conversation about design or product. 

It is a conversation about what founders really face when they try to build something premium: pricing, systems, quality control, people issues, operational pressure, client delivery, and the constant tension between growth and protecting the brand. 

Lindsay talks openly about the bottlenecks that nearly broke the business, the importance of process, the reality of hiring, and why the next phase of growth depends on getting the right operator into the company. 

If you are building a premium brand, product-based business, or founder-led company, this episode is packed with practical lessons. 

We cover: 

• how Green Wallscapes began 
• when the business started to feel real 
• the credibility that came from major clients 
• the hidden pressure behind scaling a premium offer 
• why systems changed everything 
• hiring frustrations and founder bottlenecks 
• the next level Lindsay is building toward 

Follow The Business Game for more real conversations with founders building across different levels of business.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

LEVEL 1: OWNER OPERATOR

Today’s episode is a conversation with Dr Avinish Reddy, founder of Elevated Medical, on building a premium healthcare practice around longevity, preventative medicine, and proactive patient care. 

Avi explains how traditional healthcare is mostly reactive, while his model is focused on helping patients improve their long-term health before disease appears. He also shares what it takes to turn medical expertise into a high-trust, high-touch business. 

This episode covers: 

• Building a preventative healthcare business 
• The meaning of Medicine 3.0 
• Creating a premium concierge model 
• Shifting from doctor to founder 
• Pricing, trust, and integrity in a noisy health market 
• Why time and capacity are the biggest growth bottlenecks 
• How AI could reshape healthcare operations 
• The business case for personalized care 

If you’re a founder, operator, doctor, consultant, or premium service provider, this episode is packed with insights on trust, positioning, and building a business around expertise. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Neil Ateem, founder of Multiplier Agency, joins The Business Game to break down what really happens when an agency starts scaling and the founder becomes the bottleneck. 

After generating more than $300 million in client revenue, Neil shares the real mechanics behind crossing into 7 figures, building a delivery team, handling the pressure of fixed costs versus variable income, and learning that more clients does not always create a better business. 

This episode is not about surface-level marketing talk. It is about the real founder decisions that shape whether an agency becomes scalable or stays fragile. 

In this conversation, we cover: 

• The journey from freelance-style delivery to a real agency model 
• What changes when you move from sub-$1M to 7 figures 
• The first hires that made scale possible 
• Why perfectionism keeps founders stuck too long 
• What nearly broke Neil during growth 
• The decision that changed the business model 
• Why recurring revenue and subscriptions matter so much 
• The mistake founders make when they chase short-term projects 
• What it really means to become a CEO instead of the doer 
• The cheat code for agency owners stuck two years behind the next level 

If you are building an agency, scaling a service business, or trying to step out of founder overload and into true operational growth, this episode will give you a practical look at what actually breaks, and what actually works, when agencies scale. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Most business owners start their company for freedom — but end up building something that only works if they are there holding it together. 

In this episode of The Business Game, Wayne Hutchison breaks down why so many owner-operators become trapped inside their own business and what it actually takes to build systems that remove the founder as the bottleneck. 

Wayne has spent more than 20 years helping founders shift from working insane hours to building businesses that generate profit without problems — where systems, leverage, and better decision-making replace hustle and burnout. 

This conversation explores the real mechanics of scaling a business beyond the founder. 

In this episode you’ll learn: 

• Why the “hero owner” mindset traps founders in their own business
• The difference between working harder vs building leverage
• What “profits without problems” actually means in practice
• The simple experiment Wayne used to expose the real bottlenecks in his business
• Why systems — not motivation — create sustainable growth
• The biggest myth around work-life balance for entrepreneurs 
• Why many founders unknowingly recreate the same job they tried to escape 
• How AI is becoming a new form of leverage for business owners 
• Why most business advice pushes founders into burnout instead of scale 

If you’re an owner-operator trying to move from doing everything yourself to building a business that runs, this episode is packed with practical insights on systems, leverage, and sustainable growth. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Robby Cobbs, founder of Tech My School, joins The Business Game to break down the founder mechanics behind scaling a nonprofit. 

After moving to Puerto Rico, Robby discovered schools operating without libraries, computers, or modern systems. What started as helping one school quickly turned into helping dozens. 

But scaling a nonprofit creates a unique challenge for founders. Demand grows faster than funding, every new school adds cost, and relying entirely on donations can create long term instability. 

In this episode we discuss: 

• The moment Robby realized the system was broken 
• How Tech My School scaled from one school to dozens 
• The fundraising realities of running a nonprofit 
• Why donations alone cannot sustain growth 
• Building service based revenue alongside the mission 
• Leadership lessons from running a lean mission driven team 
• The systems required to modernize education 

If you're building a nonprofit, social enterprise, or mission driven organization, this episode breaks down what it actually takes to scale impact sustainably. 

Contact Robby
LinkedIn - linkedin.com/robertcobbs
Website - techmyschool.org

Sponsor
Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com 

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!   

Stay tuned for more exciting episodes!  

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Customer experience is often misunderstood in business. 

Many founders think it simply means good service, but true customer experience is the sum of every interaction a customer has with your brand-  before, during, and after a purchase. 

In this episode of The Business Game, former theme park CEO Mark Shaw explains how businesses can turn customer experience into a powerful growth lever that drives higher reviews, stronger loyalty, and long-term revenue. 

Drawing on his experience transforming Adventure World from one of the lowest-rated theme parks in Australia into the top-rated attraction in the country, Mark shares the leadership decisions, systems, and cultural changes that made the difference. 

In this conversation you’ll learn: 

• Why customer experience drives measurable revenue growth 
• The connection between employee experience and customer loyalty 
• How improving review scores directly impacts profitability 
• The leadership role required to build a customer-first culture 
• Why recruitment is the most powerful lever in customer experience 
• How small operational details create unforgettable experiences 
• How AI will impact customer experience without replacing human connection 

If you're building a service business, managing a growing team, or trying to improve retention and brand reputation, this episode offers a practical look at the systems behind great customer experience. 

Sponsor
Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!   

Stay tuned for more exciting episodes!  

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Yega Kumarappan, Co-founder and CEO of Paperflite, joins The Business Game to explain how AI is reshaping the SaaS landscape and why the traditional advantages of software companies are disappearing. 

Paperflite is a sales intelligence platform that helps sales teams close deals faster through prospect intelligence, content intelligence and conversation intelligence. 

But in today’s AI driven world, building software is no longer the hard part. 

Yega explains why distribution, industry depth and high performance teams are now the real competitive advantages. 

In this episode we discuss: 

• The true meaning of SaaS and why it is simply a billing model 
• How Paperflite helps sales teams convert deals faster 
• Why AI is compressing decades of innovation into years 
• The shift from creator economy to distribution economy 
• Why verticalisation is becoming essential for SaaS products 
• The leadership evolution founders must go through as they scale 
• The mistake founders make when they step too far away from their companies 
• Why the boring operational work is where real business success happens 

If you are building a SaaS company, launching a startup or scaling a technology product, this episode provides a clear look at the real mechanics behind modern SaaS growth.

LinkedIn - Yega Kumarappan
Website - Paperflite.com

Sponsor 
Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com 

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!   

Stay tuned for more exciting episodes!  

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

David Feinman, co-founder of Viral Ideas, shares the real story behind scaling a $200 startup into a 90-person global creative agency, including losing 80% of revenue overnight and rebuilding from scratch. 

In this episode, we unpack: 

• Scaling productized creative services 
• The theory of constraints in growing companies 
• How to avoid bottlenecks at 30+ staff 
• Manager vs maker schedules 
• Public scorecards and performance culture 
• Building systems that scale creative output 
• Why ego kills growth 
• The leadership shift from doer to CEO 

This conversation is essential listening for founders scaling creative agencies, media businesses, or global service teams. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Julian Goldie (Goldie Agency, AI Profit Boardroom) explains how he used AI systems and automation to scale a global agency to multi-million revenue, build a 30+ person team, and grow a second business to over $1M/year in under 12 months. 

This episode covers the real founder mechanics behind scaling: AI content engines, lead generation systems, delegation, sales playbooks, and the uncomfortable realities of cash flow, profit margin, and hiring mistakes that slow growth. 

You’ll learn:
• How AI search (ChatGPT/Perplexity) is changing SEO and customer acquisition 
• Why AI search often sends less traffic, but higher-converting clicks 
• The content automation strategy Julian uses across multiple platforms (YouTube, LinkedIn, Reddit, X) 
• The leadership moves that unlocked growth: account managers + sales systems 
• The hard cash lesson: payroll bounced when cash flow wasn’t tracked properly 
• When founders should hire accounting/finance support 
• Why hiring “hypothetical roles” kills margin and creates chaos 
• A Level 1–2 cheat code: time tracking for delegation and quality control 
• Tools Julian relies on: GoHighLevel CRM and system consolidation 

If you’re scaling an agency, building a service business, or trying to transition from founder doing everything to CEO building systems, this is an actionable conversation on automation, revenue operations, and sustainable growth. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Learn how founder and M&A advisor Patrick Rogers (Elkridge Advisors) helps small and mid-sized business owners buy businesses, source off-market deals, and scale faster through acquisitions in 2026. 

Patrick Rogers, Managing Partner at Elkridge Advisors and host of the High Performance CEO Podcast, joins The Business Game to explain how small and mid-sized founders can scale through acquisitions, without needing a $100M balance sheet. 

Elkridge Advisors helps owners access strategies traditionally reserved for large corporations, and in 2024 surpassed $500M in value generated for clients. 

In this episode, we break down: 

• Why acquisitions can outperform organic growth 
• How to build your acquisition “buy box” 
• Why off-market deals beat public listings 
• The most common mistakes first-time buyers make 
• Why SBA underwriting kills momentum (and how to prevent deal fall-through) 
• The truth about “funny money” and what banks actually lend against 
• How AI is changing which businesses are safe to buy in 2026 
• Patrick’s predictions: biggest opportunities and biggest traps for buyers 

Sponsor  

Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com  

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!  

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

You Don’t Need Higher Standards; You Need Lower Ones. In this episode, we unpack the counterintuitive mindset shift of “sustainably low standards” and why trying to leap from fear to love, is what’s keeping so many founders stuck. 

Todays guest is Joe Pane. Joe is degree qualified in psychology and sociology and has worked in the field of human behaviour since 2006. He is the creator of the Emotional Fitness Formula, a practical framework for mastering uncertainty, and has trained more than 7,000 mindset coaches over the past 20 years. 

This episode covers: 

• Founder burnout and identity collapse 
• The three pillars: money, relationships, health 
• Why sustainable growth requires emotional stability 
• The psychology of fear-based decision making 
• Rebuilding standards without self-sabotage 
• Becoming who you were meant to be 

If you’re navigating pressure in multiple areas of life while trying to grow your business, this conversation offers clarity without cliché motivation. 

Sponsor 

Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com 

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today! 

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Holly Fowler, founder and CEO of Wable, shares the real story behind building a neurodivergent-first social networking app from scratch — without a tech background, without a blueprint, and while navigating the mental pressure of startup life. 

What began as an idea during lockdown turned into Wable: a platform designed for the neurodivergent community that connects users for dating, friendship, inclusive jobs, and accessible venues. In this episode, Holly breaks down how she validated the idea, built her first MVP offshore, rebuilt the entire app, raised multiple rounds of capital including a Series A, and expanded into the US market. 

We also unpack the realities of raising money as a young female founder in tech, handling investor rejection, learning to pitch, scaling internationally, and building with limited marketing budget , including the Times Square billboard strategy that triggered global press. 

This is an honest conversation about startup anxiety, burnout, perfectionism, leadership growth, and what it really takes to build a mission-driven tech company. 

Topics covered: 
• Startup founder mental health 
• Building and rebuilding an MVP 
• Raising capital in Australia 
• Series A funding 
• Neurodiversity in tech 
• Social networking app development 
• Startup marketing and PR strategy 
• Scaling into the US market 
• Leadership lessons for first-time CEOs 

If you're a founder, aspiring entrepreneur, or building a purpose-driven tech company, this episode will give you practical insights and a realistic look at what scaling actually feels like. 

Sponsor

Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com

__________________________________________________________________________

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Have questions or suggestions? Reach out to us at www.thebusinessgamepodcast.com

Stay tuned for more exciting episodes!

____________________________________________________________________________________________

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Most founders chase “freedom”  then accidentally build a job they can’t escape.

In this episode, Joe Rare, founder of Level 9 Virtual and a serial entrepreneur, shares how he builds and scales businesses by systemising operations, delegating fast, and refusing to be the bottleneck. Joe breaks down his philosophy of building businesses around lifestyle (not the other way around), why the founder usually slows everything down, and the key hires that buy back your time, especially an Operations Director and an Executive Assistant who removes email from your life entirely.

We also get into: outsourcing realities, building repeatable back-office architecture across companies, why “reinvest everything” keeps owners stuck, and how Joe thinks about building wealth through assets outside the business.

Find Joe: JoeRare.com | Joe@JoeRare.com

Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com

__________________________________________________________________________

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: : https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 

The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

QR Codes Are Dead - This ‘Tapp’ Tech Gets 40% Engagement and in this episode, Ishita Agarwal breaks down how NFC-powered Tapp technology is transforming post-purchase marketing, increasing customer engagement by up to 40%, and helping eCommerce brands dramatically improve retention and lifetime value beyond traditional QR codes and loyalty programs.

Retention is the lever most eCommerce brands know matters,  but don’t know how to move without endless discounts, loyalty points, and spammy email blasts.

In this episode, we’re joined by Ishita Agarwal, Founder & CEO of Tapp, a platform reinventing post-purchase by turning it into interactive, member-like experiences, using AI to transform existing brand content into games, quizzes, polls, and challenges that drive real engagement.

We unpack why the first purchase is just the beginning, why traditional loyalty often fails in commerce, and how Tap’s NFC Tapp Tags are massively outperforming QR codes.

A must-listen for founders, marketers, and operators who want higher LTV through better experience, not bigger discounts.

Sponsor

Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com

__________________________________________________________________________

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: : https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 

The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

AI Just Made Global Sourcing 10x Easier. Here’s How (With SourceReady CEO Ricky Ho)

Global sourcing is confusing, expensive, and stacked against small businesses — but AI is starting to change that.

In this episode of The Business Game, we sit down with Ricky Ho, CEO and co-founder of SourceReady, to unpack how artificial intelligence is transforming the way products are sourced, manufacturers are discovered, and suppliers are evaluated.

Ricky shares insights from building and selling a previous supply-chain startup (after raising $22M in venture capital), and explains how SourceReady uses customs data, automation, and AI agents to uncover real factories and eliminate the endless back-and-forth that founders hate.

We talk about why sourcing is often a bigger barrier than marketing, how AI compares thousands of suppliers faster than any human team, and why the future of global trade still needs humans in the loop.

This conversation also dives into leadership, fundraising lessons, product-market fit, and why business should be viewed as an infinite game — not something you “win” once.

Sponsor

Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!

Have questions or suggestions? Reach out to us at www.thebusinessgamepodcast.com

Stay tuned for more exciting episodes!

____________________________________________________________________________________________

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Most AI Is Useless - Here’s How Businesses Actually Win With It: Bart Puszko (Blue Seas AI) joins us to cut through the noise and share what actually works when applying AI inside a business.

AI is moving fast but most businesses are chasing the wrong things.

In this episode of The Business Game, we’re joined by Bart Puszko, founder of Blue Seas AI, to cut through the hype and explain how businesses should actually be using AI. Bart shares why most AI tools are just rebranded versions of ChatGPT, why AI won’t fix broken systems, and how poor implementation can hurt brands and revenue.

We dive into real client stories, AI failures, automation wins, and the mindset founders need to adopt to use AI effectively without burning time, money, or trust. If you want a practical, grounded view of AI for business, this conversation is a must-listen.

Sponsor

Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Have questions or suggestions? Reach out to us at www.thebusinessgamepodcast.com

Stay tuned for more exciting episodes!

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Ads are everywhere, and people hate them. But what if advertising didn’t have to be annoying?

Phil Ohren, co-founder of Intender, joins The Business Game to explain why modern advertising feels broken, and how founders can rebuild marketing around how people actually behave. Phil shares his framework of Intent, Interest, and Interruption, why mass marketing is having a midlife crisis, and how brands should shift budgets toward the audiences most likely to act.

We also dive into why organic reach is dying, how ad frequency can turn brand love into brand hate, and why earned media + PR may become a major advantage as AI changes search and buying behavior. If you’re relying heavily on paid ads, or trying to scale without burning your audience out, this episode is a must.

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Sponsor

Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save:: https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 

The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate. 

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Cash flow can make or break your business. In this episode of The Business Game Podcast, a panel of experienced founders share practical advice on money management, profitability, and sustainable growth.

The conversation focuses on real world lessons around staying lean in the early stages, knowing your numbers, avoiding unnecessary expenses, managing debt, and making smarter financial decisions as a business owner.

You will learn:

•  How to protect cash flow when starting and scaling
•  Why simplicity and focus drive profitability
•  How to read and use financial statements
•  Why bookkeeping is a strategic advantage, not an admin task
•  How subscription tools quietly drain your business
•  How to review expenses and cut waste
•  Why minimizing debt increases long term cash flow
•  How founders should think about investing and financial security

This episode is essential listening for entrepreneurs, small business owners, startup founders, and anyone responsible for managing business finances.

Sponsor
Thanks to Trafftrak for sponsoring today's episode. They keep businesses on track so your schedule never hits a red light!
Head to trafftrak.com to get started without adding stress.

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details  easier than ever! 

Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!

Have questions or suggestions? Reach out to us at www.thebusinessgamegroup.com
Stay tuned for more exciting episodes!

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

When David Socha was broke and outbid at the last minute, one integrity-driven decision turned disaster into over $1M in free advertising and ultimately saved the company.

David Socha has been in business for over 30 years, building Beverly Hills Teddy Bear Company into a global plush powerhouse. In this conversation, David shares the early near-collapse that became a breakthrough, when a competitor outbid him for a radio personality and his business fell off a cliff. What happened next (a lesson in integrity) changed everything.

David also unpacks the hardest modern bottleneck: COVID, when revenue dropped more than 80%, forcing a full rebuild and a shift to a 100-year legacy plan. 

If you’re building in a fast-moving market, this episode is a masterclass in persistence, leadership, and long-term strategy. 

📍Connect with David:

LinkedIn: David Socha

Website: plush.com

Sponsor

Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Have questions or suggestions? Reach out to us at www.thebusinessgamepodcast.com
Stay tuned for more exciting episodes!

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

The Industrial AI Advantage Nobody Explains is the conversation every fintech leader needs right now, because the next wave is not just AI, it is what happens when security, compliance, and real world impact collide.

Arthur Miller is a fintech leader with a rare background. He started in military intelligence and national defense research, then moved into the private sector to build and scale secure systems, including real time payments across thousands of financial institutions. Now, as founder and CEO of Fiqis, Arthur is focused on micro lending, AI, post quantum encryption, and making core banking integrations more secure and seamless.

In this episode, Arthur explains why compliance is the minimum bar, how to lead technical teams without crushing innovation, and why AI is an enhancer, not a replacement. He also shares what is changing in cybersecurity as attackers use AI, and why quantum computing could become the next major wave in fintech.

Key topics:

• Security lessons from defense that fintech leaders can apply today
• Building technical teams with autonomy, trust, and psychological safety
• AI in software delivery and why the new standard is speed plus verification
• AI driven attack vectors and how the good guys stay ahead
• Post quantum security and what quantum computing means for encryption
• How to evaluate new technology without getting distracted by hype
• Leadership under pressure and staying human while delivering results

Connect with Arthur

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arthur-miller-64b32165/

Website: www.fiqis.com 

Sponsor

Tala Offshore connects businesses with top tier remote talent across admin, customer service, and SaaS development. Build a stronger team without adding stress. Visit talaoffshore.com

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!

Have questions or suggestions? Reach out to us at www.thebusinessgamepodcast.com

Stay tuned for more exciting episodes!

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

KEYWORDS/TAGS

industrial ai, fintech ai, fintech security, post quantum encryption, quantum computing, ai in cybersecurity, ai compliance, financial institutions, real time payments, zelle engineering, secure software development, enterprise architecture, ai for developers, technology leadership, building engineering teams, innovation vs compliance, vendor evaluation, closed loop ai, ai attack vectors, cybersecurity strategy, fintech trends 2025, startup leadership, engineering culture, psychological safety, remote engineering teams, micro lending, peer to peer lending, core banking integrations, thebusinessgame, businesspodcast  

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

She stopped chasing viral trends - and that’s when the real growth began.

Join us for this unmissable flashback episode of The Business Game featuring Kennedy Logan, founder of Soboard Socials, as she breaks down the real strategies behind sustainable social media growth.

In this powerful conversation, Kennedy shares proven techniques to help you:

* Skyrocket brand awareness without burning out

* Build genuine trust with your audience

* Drive real conversions (not just likes)

* Create content that actually connects

* Understand and use the social media funnel effectively

Leverage platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Threads, and LinkedIn for both B2B and B2C growth

We also dive into:

* The biggest mistakes brands make on social media

* Why Instagram Stories are a secret weapon for trust-building

* How to balance short-form vs long-form content

* Why authenticity beats virality every time

If you're a business owner, marketer, founder, or creator who wants smarter growth (not just more posts), this episode is for you.

Connect with Soboard Socials:
Website: soboardsocials.com.au
Email: soboardsocials@gmail.com 
Website: soboardsocials.com.au 
Instagram: soboardsocials

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

The Unsexy Business That Went Viral on Shark Tank, proves you do not need a trendy industry to build a scalable company, you need systems, clarity, and the courage to keep going when it gets messy. 

Susan Toft, founder and CEO of The Laundry Lady, sharing how she scaled a simple service into a platform powered business with nearly 500 contractors across Australia and New Zealand and a growing presence in Canada.

Susan walks through the real bottlenecks behind growth including building the right tech while bootstrapping, surviving major life disruptions, and learning how to delegate before the business could truly scale. She also explains why Shark Tank became marketing gold and how she reframed the story from laundry service to scalable platform so investors could understand the opportunity.

If you are building a service business, hiring contractors, or trying to scale while staying true to your values, this episode is packed with practical lessons on systems, leadership, and sustainable growth.

_________

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate. 

_________

Thanks to Tala Offshore for sponsoring this episode. For all your remote staffing needs, visit www.talaoffshore.com 

_________

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

The “Industrial AI” Advantage Nobody Explains, Dave Howden explains why casual AI use is not enough and how businesses create real advantage by pairing AI with their IP.

In this episode of The Business Game, Dave Howden from SupaHuman AI shares a clear, strategy-led view of industrial AI and how organizations are using it to reduce cost, increase speed, and improve quality at the same time.

We discuss why most AI adoption fails, where the biggest opportunities exist for mid-market businesses, and why leadership and strategy matter more than tools.

Key takeaways:

• Consumer AI versus industrial AI
• Why IP is the real source of advantage
• Real examples of productivity gains
• The leadership challenge behind AI adoption
• The future of knowledge work in an AI-driven world

Connect with Dave Howden - SupaHuman AI:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/supahuman-ai 
Website: supahuman.com 

_________

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today! 

_________

Thanks to Trafftrak for sponsoring todays episode. They keep businesses on track so your schedule never hits a red light! Head to trafftrak.com to get started 

_________

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Justin Lund shares the exact mindset and delegation shifts that took him from $200K a year to $5M in profit per month, without burning out or working more hours.

Justin Lund joins The Business Game to break down the identity shifts founders must make to scale without getting trapped inside their business.

We dive into Justin’s Freedom Flywheel—a framework for sustainable growth built on doing less, leveraging systems, and delegating in the right sequence. Justin also explains “drift” (how entrepreneurs can be busy yet not truly building), the red flags your business is becoming a prison, and the costly lessons that come from avoiding the numbers.

What you’ll learn:

• Why most entrepreneurs delegate out of order
• The telltale signs you’ve built a business you can’t leave
• How “drift” shows up even when you’re grinding nonstop
• The mindset + systems shifts that unlock real leverage

Justin’s definition of winning? Freedom.

Connect with Justin Lund - Propel:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-lund-propel/
Instagram: www.instagram.com/itsjustinlund/ 

_________

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate. 

_________

Thanks to Tala Offshore for sponsoring this episode. For all your remote staffing needs, visit www.talaoffshore.com 

_________

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

In this Flashback Episode of The Business Game, hosts Jamie and Dan revisit a standout conversation with Joshua Altman, founder of Beltway Media, to unpack the psychology behind messaging that sells versus messaging that quietly kills trust and conversions.

Joshua, a fractional Chief Communications Officer, explains how behavioral science and analytics shape perception in both B2B and B2C communication. From brand trust to reputation management, this episode breaks down why logic alone doesn’t persuade, and how the right words influence decision-making at a subconscious level.

Whether you’re a founder, marketer, or leader responsible for how your business is perceived, this episode offers timeless insights that are even more relevant today.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why certain words trigger action while others repel buyers
• How psychology impacts messaging more than features or logic
• The role of perception in building brand trust
• How to align internal and external communication
• Why clarity beats cleverness in high-stakes messaging

This is a must-listen if your marketing sounds right… but isn’t landing.

Connect with Beltway Media:
Website: https://beltway.media/
LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuaialtman/

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today!

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

In this episode of The Business Game, hosts Steve Plummer and Lisa DeAngelis sit down with Steven Woods, founder and CEO of Stirlingshire, to unpack how the financial system really works and why many everyday investors feel left behind.

Steven shares his journey from Kansas City to Wall Street, walking away from a lucrative advisory career with no safety net, and the hard lessons he learned along the way, including what it’s like to lose seven figures in a single day. He explains why much of modern finance is unnecessarily complex, how incentives inside large firms shape investor outcomes, and why transparency and alignment matter more than ever.

The conversation also explores Steven’s simple “grocery store” analogy for understanding the stock market, why people often underestimate how much money they’ll need in the future, and how technology and AI are changing the role of financial advisors - making them more effective rather than obsolete.

Whether you’re a founder, advisor, or someone trying to build more confidence around money and investing, this episode offers a grounded, honest perspective from inside the industry.

You’ll hear about:

• Steven Wood’s path from Wall Street intern to founder & CEO
• Why he built Stirlingshire to better align advisors and clients
• What losing seven figures in a day teaches you about risk
• Why finance often stays opaque and who benefits from that
• The biggest money assumption most people get wrong
• How AI is improving advisor decision-making and efficiency
• The mindset shift beginners need to start investing sooner
• Lessons elite institutions don’t teach about running real businesses

Connect with Steven Woods - Stirlingshire:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stirlingshireinvestments/ 
Website: https://www.stirlingshire.com/ 

_________

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate. 

_________

Thanks to Smoothx for sponsoring this episode.  Smoothx, your global power connector, Visit  https://www.smoothx.com/ to get started.  

_________

This episode is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

What if the best leadership advice isn’t to lead at all?

In this episode of The Business Game, we explore a powerful, counterintuitive approach to leadership, leading from the bottom, prioritizing connection over content, and having the hard conversations most leaders avoid.

Our guests share why leadership isn’t about hierarchy or ego, how avoiding small issues creates big problems, and why servant leadership builds stronger, more resilient teams - especially in modern, distributed workplaces.

If you’re a founder or leader who wants to build trust, clarity, and real momentum, this episode will challenge how you think about leadership.

Connect with our Guests:

Shantanu Bhattacharya, Founder & CEO of Cyber Cure:
Website: https://siometrix.com/
LinkedIn:   / shantanuprofile  

Annabel Hay, Founder & CEO of Clutch Glue:
Website: https://clutchglue.com/
LinkedIn:    / annabel-hay-a057ba125  
Socials: @annabel_hay ‪@clutch_glue‬ 

Stacey Hylen - Business Coach & Certified AI Consultant:
Website: https://staceyhylen.com/
LinkedIn:   / staceyhylen

Ryan Cassin, Co-founder of Superpowers:
Website: https://superpowershq.com/
LinkedIn (Ryan):   / ryancassin  

Curtis McCullom - Bespoke Human Potential Coaching:
Website: https://www.bespokehumanpotentialcoac...
LinkedIn:   / curtis-mccullom   

Greg Wilkes - CEO of Develop Coaching:
Website: https://developcoaching.co.uk 
https://developcoaching.com.au 
https://develop-coaching.com  
LinkedIn:  
Facebook:   / developcoach   
Instagram:   / greg.wilkes.coach   
LinkedIn:   / greg-wilkes

_________

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today! 

_________

Thanks to Smoothx for sponsoring this episode.  Smoothx, your global power connector, Visit  https://www.smoothx.com/ to get started.  

_________

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Your Sales Team Isn’t the Problem. Your Leadership Is - and in this episode, Drew Norton breaks down why almost every stalled business comes back to the person at the top.

Join The Business Game, A Podcast That Moves The Needle as we sit down with business coach and co-founder of The Everyday Leader, Drew Naughton. 

From leading yourself before you lead anyone else, to fixing broken sales teams and toxic dopamine loops, Drew breaks down why almost every growth problem can be traced back to leadership or systems – and what to actually do about it. If you’ve ever blamed “the market” or “there are no good people out there”, this conversation will hit uncomfortably close to home in the best possible way.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

* Why every stalled business usually has one of two root issues: leadership or systems (and how to tell which one you’re really facing).
* The 3 A’s of leadership Drew uses in high-pressure moments – Acknowledge, Ask, and Agreements – to calm chaos and move teams forward.
* How to build and keep a high-performing sales team, from hiring and culture to training and real accountability (beyond “just sell more”).
* The dark side of dopamine for founders and sales leaders – and how Drew rewired his habits, health, and family life after chasing targets nearly broke him.
* What “leadership creates freedom” actually means, and why your people should feel less anxious – not more – when you walk into the room.

Connect with Drew Norton - The Everyday Leader:
Website: https://theeverydaysalesleader.com/ 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/theeverydaysalesleader/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theeverydaysalesleader/

_________

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today! 

_________

Thanks to Tala Offshore for sponsoring this episode. For all your remote staffing needs, visit www.talaoffshore.com

_________

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

This ONE shift saves $1M+ by owning your tech stack instead of renting SaaS tools in real estate.  

In this episode, we sit down with Christopher Wise, President of Wise Capital, to explore how owning your tech stack, building in-house proptech, and using AI, IoT and predictive maintenance can transform Class C multifamily and affordable housing. 

From his background in Naval Special Warfare and law, to building property management platforms and hardware that beat off-the-shelf solutions, Chris explains why the future of real estate investing, property management and asset protection is a systems and intelligence problem—not a construction problem. 

Perfect for real estate investors, syndicators, fund managers, property operators and founders across the US, Midwest and beyond who want to future-proof their portfolio against the coming AI and tech corrections.



In this episode, you'll discover:

* How Chris Wise builds $40 smart locks in-house instead of paying $1,200-$6,000 for third-party property technology solutions
* AI predictive maintenance that caught a $1 million foundation problem before purchase using software instead of traditional inspectors
* Why Class C multifamily properties (20-60 units) offer hidden investment opportunities that institutional investors and mom-and-pop shops both overlook
* The truth about conversational AI in property management—how to avoid hallucinations and implement automation that tenants actually use
* Why owning your tech stack protects you from future corrections—lessons from a Navy SEAL turned attorney turned PropTech founder on building vs. renting technology

Connect with Christopher Wise - Wise Investment:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-wise-wiselawllc/
Website: https://www.investwisecap.com/

_________

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate. 

_________

Thanks to Trafftrak for sponsoring todays episode. They keep businesses on track so your schedule never hits a red light! Head to trafftrak.com to get started 

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Leadership Expert Dave Clare Reveals Why "Growth" Is Actually KILLING Your Business

Join The Business Game, A Podcast That Moves The Needle. In this episode, they sit down with leadership expert and Circle Leadership CEO Dave Clare to talk honestly about what modern leadership really takes. Dave shares why “growth at all costs” and hustle culture burn out good people, how to line up culture, strategy and leadership so they actually support each other, and why purpose has to be more than words on a wall. If you’re a founder, CEO or leader who wants a team that performs without everyone living at the office, this conversation will hit home.

In this episode, you'll discover:

* Why "fake it till you make it" is the worst leadership advice and what to do instead to become an authentic leader
* How growth-focused businesses fail and why evolution-first strategy creates sustainable success without burnout
* The difference between corporate slogans and true business purpose—and why purpose must drive every decision
* Dave Clare's monkey bar theory for letting go of old habits to grab new leadership opportunities
* Why knowing doesn't equal doing in leadership development and how to bridge the gap between knowledge and transformation

Connect with Dave Clare - leadership coach:
Website: https://www.circleleadershipglobal.com/
LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/prophetforpurpose/?enhance=null

_________

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today! 

_________

Thanks to Tala Offshore for sponsoring this episode. For all your remote staffing needs, visit www.talaoffshore.com 

_________

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

How to Escape the 80-Hour Work Week: Kirsten Graham's Outsourcing System

Join hosts Kalena Stano and Steve Plummer on The Business Game, a podcast that moves the needle as they sit down with Kirsten Graham, co-founder of Six Figure Business Coaching. They uncover the outsourcing strategies that transform overwhelmed entrepreneurs into empowered business owners. Kirsten reveals why burnout is optional, how to hire virtual assistants before you hit breaking point and the exact systems that help small business owners delegate effectively without losing control. 

In this episode, you'll discover:

* Why hiring when you're maxed out is a disaster
* The cultural communication mistakes that sabotage virtual assistant relationships
* How SOPs (standard operating procedures) become the backbone of scalable growth
* Why treating your business like a business means delegating your $5/hour tasks
* Real client success stories: from 3 years of backlog bookkeeping to podcast launches in weeks

Connect with Kirsten Graham - Six Figure Business Coaching:
Website: https://sixfigurebusinesscoaching.com/ 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirstengrahamsfbc/ 

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate. 

Thanks to Trafftrak for sponsoring todays episode. They keep businesses on track so your schedule never hits a red light! Head to trafftrak.com to get started 

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Join hosts Steve Plummer and Kalena Stano on The Business Game, A Podcast That Moves The Needle. 

In this episode, they sit down with 40-year sales veteran Walter Crosby, CEO of Helix Sales Development and host of the Sales and Cigars podcast, to unpack what truly separates elite sales performers from the rest. From surviving 400 cold calls a day in New York City commercial real estate to building high-performing sales teams across the US, Australia and beyond, Walter reveals how to sell without losing your soul, rewire your mindset for rejection, and turn sales into a values-driven, high-revenue career. Perfect for business owners, entrepreneurs, sales leaders, SDRs, B2B sales teams, and founders who want more pipeline, better conversions, and sustainable revenue growth.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

In this episode, you’ll discover:

* Why over 50% of salespeople should quit (and how to know which side you’re on)
*The mindset shift that turns constant rejection into six-figure sales success
* How to build a high-performing, ethical sales culture that doesn’t burn people out
* The real difference between being liked vs. being respected in sales conversations
* How great sales leaders use coaching, fundamentals, and motivation to drive revenue growth year after year

Connect with Walter Crosby - Helix Sales Development:
Website: https://helixsalesdevelopment.com/ 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/walterlcrosby/ 

_________

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today! 

_________

Thanks to Smoothx for sponsoring this episode.  Smoothx, your global power connector, Visit  https://www.smoothx.com/ to get started.  

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

From living in his car to running a multi-million dollar PR agency, here's how JJ Carter turned credibility into cold, hard cash.

Join hosts Kalena Stano and Steve Plummer on The Business Game, a podcast that moves the needle, as they sit down with JJ Carter, founder and CEO of GLDN PR. Learn JJ's proven strategies for getting featured in top publications like Forbes, Business Insider, and major podcasts without paying for placements. Plus his unique approach to crisis management, social media content strategy, and turning PR into actual revenue growth for your business.

In this episode, you'll discover:

* How to build credibility and authority online in 30 days using free PR strategies and podcast appearances
* The 33% content framework for LinkedIn and social media: credibility-driven, authority-driven, and personality-driven posts
* Why traditional PR firms fail to move the needle and how to use media placements to increase revenue and close sales
* JJ Carter's exact playbook for starting from zero: landing Forbes features, press releases, and building third-party validation
* Crisis management secrets: how to respond to negative publicity, handle controversy, and turn disasters into opportunities for brand growth

Connect with JJ Carter - Founder of GLDN PR:
Website: https://www.gldnpr.com/ 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jj-carter-aa293119b/

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate. 

Thanks to Trafftrak for sponsoring todays episode. They keep businesses on track so your schedule never hits a red light! Head to trafftrak.com to get started 

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

What if you could charge 40% more than your competitors and only work 90 minutes per week in your business?

Join hosts Steve Plummer and Lisa DeAngelis on The Business Game, a podcast that moves the needle, as they sit down with Vance Morris, ROI specialist and founder of the Deliver Service Now Institute. Vance reveals how he transformed Disney's world-class customer experience systems into a blueprint for small business success. Whether you're in professional services, trades, or any commoditized industry, this episode delivers actionable strategies for customer experience excellence, business automation, premium positioning, and marketing differentiation that will transform how you compete in your market.

In this episode, you'll discover:

* How to win customers in the first 7 seconds using Vance Morris' "Moment Zero" customer experience framework
* Why systems create freedom—the exact process Vance used to reduce his business involvement to just 90 minutes per week
* Premium pricing strategies that allow you to charge 40% more than competitors without losing customers
* Disney's secret to customer loyalty and how to adapt theme park experience principles for Main Street businesses
* The apples-to-oranges comparison chart that eliminates price shoppers and positions you as the only choice in your market

Connect with Vance Morris - Deliver Service Now Institute:
Website: https://vancemorris.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vancemorris

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today! 

Thanks to Tala Offshore for sponsoring this episode. For all your remote staffing needs, visit www.talaoffshore.com 

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

What if the key to exponential business growth isn't working harder, but releasing the baggage holding you back?

Join hosts Kalena Stano and Steve Plummer on The Business Game, a podcast that moves the needle, as they sit down with Curtis McCullom, founder of Bespoke Human Potential Coaching and former #1 sales performer worldwide. Curtis reveals his transformative approach to mindset coaching, NLP (neuro-linguistic programming), and accelerated change for CEOs. This episode is packed with sales strategies, mindset shifts, personal development techniques, and actionable business growth tactics for ambitious leaders ready to become the best version of themselves.

In this episode, you'll discover:

* Why Curtis quit on the day he became #1 in the world and how self-sabotage blocks even the most successful entrepreneurs
* The subconscious mind technique that clears 35 years of limiting beliefs, negative emotions, and imposter syndrome in a single 3-hour session
* How dropping the mask and embracing authentic leadership makes you magnetic to clients and increases sales performance exponentially
* The truth about money mindset blocks, hustle culture, and finding balance as an entrepreneur without sacrificing business momentum
* Why every coach needs a coach and how to identify blind spots that prevent CEOs and founders from reaching their next income level

Connect with Curtis McCullom - Bespoke Human Potential Coaching:
Website: https://www.bespokehumanpotentialcoaching.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/curtis-mccullom/ 

Thanks to Tala Offshore for sponsoring this episode. For all your remote staffing needs, visit www.talaoffshore.com 

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate. 

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

From business collapse to coaching builders toward $10M, Greg Wilkes knows what it takes to scale without the burnout.

Join hosts Kalena Stano and Steve Plummer on The Business Game, a podcast that moves the needle, as they sit down with Greg Wilkes, CEO of Develop Coaching and bestselling author. If you're a builder, trader, or construction business owner struggling to step off the tools, this episode is packed with actionable strategies you can implement immediately.

In this episode, you'll discover:

* Greg's 6-month framework for stepping off the tools without killing your business
* The business collapse mistake that cost him everything (and how to avoid it)
* Why mastering leverage beats working harder when scaling to $10M
* The hiring system that spots bad fits in 30 days, not 6 months
* How to shift your identity from tradesperson to true business owner

Connect with Greg Wilkes - CEO of Develop Coaching:
Website: https://developcoaching.co.uk 
https://developcoaching.com.au 
https://develop-coaching.com  
LinkedIn:  
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/developcoach/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greg.wilkes.coach/ 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-wilkes/

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today! 

Thanks to Tala Offshore for sponsoring this episode. For all your remote staffing needs, visit www.talaoffshore.com

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

What if one simple strategy could unlock $700,000 in hidden revenue you're leaving on the table right now?

Join hosts Steve Plummer and Kalena Stano on The Business Game, A Podcast That Moves The Needle, as they sit down with business growth strategist and certified AI consultant Stacey Hylen. Stacey reveals how entrepreneurs can uncover hidden profits, scale without burnout, and build businesses that support their lifestyle. This episode is packed with actionable business coaching tips, pricing strategies, client acquisition methods, and the frameworks that have helped her clients boost sales by up to 178%.

In this episode, you'll discover:
* The $700,000 "come on back" strategy to re-engage past clients and unlock instant revenue
* The dream 100 method Chet Holmes used to land premium clients (and how you can use it too)
* Why entrepreneurs undercharge and how to triple your rates without losing clients
* The resourcefulness principle: it's never about lacking resources, it's about being resourceful
* How to find hidden profits through strategic upsells (one question increased sales 48% in a month)

Connect with Stacey Hylen - Business Coach & Certified AI Consultant:
Website: https://staceyhylen.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/staceyhylen/

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate. 

Thanks to Tala Offshore for sponsoring this episode. For all your remote staffing needs, visit www.talaoffshore.com

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

Struggling to scale your business without sacrificing your freedom? This episode changes everything.

Join hosts Kalena Stano and Steve Plummer on The Business Game, a podcast that moves the needle, as they interview Ryan Cassin, co-founder of Superpowers and author of "Superpowered." Learn how to hire executive assistants, scale your business with Filipino virtual assistants, and achieve freedom and growth as an entrepreneur. 

In this episode, you'll discover:

* The 3 Ps framework for hiring the perfect executive assistant
* Why you should delegate UP instead of down (mindset shift that changes everything)
* How Ryan interviews 2,000+ candidates to hire just 4 top-tier EAs
* The "body doubling" technique to crush procrastination and get deep work done
* Why your EA should lead the relationship (but you're still the boss)

Connect with Ryan Cassin, Co-founder of Superpowers:
Website: https://superpowershq.com/
LinkedIn (Ryan): https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryancassin

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today! 

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

What happens when you go viral overnight, crush Shark Tank, and then watch a major retailer almost sink your entire business?

Join hosts Kalena Stano and Steve Plummer on The Business Game, a podcast that moves the needle, as they sit down with Annabel Hay, founder and CEO of Clutch Glue, the world's first patented clothes adhesive that's revolutionizing the fashion industry. From going viral with 9 million views overnight and selling $160K in 12 hours, to mastering Shark Tank with 350 million views across platforms, Annabel shares her raw, unfiltered journey of building a globally recognized brand from scratch.

In this episode, you'll discover:

* Annabel's exact Shark Tank preparation process including 6 mock pitch nights with 60-70 people that led to all sharks wanting to invest
* Guerrilla marketing tactics that cost under $100: Taylor Swift concert activations, marathon sponsorships, and stadium vending machine strategies
* How to build a founder-led brand without influencers or paid advertising and achieve 350 million views organically
* The brutal truth about retail partnerships
* Product development secrets: investing $35K over 4 years in R&D to create a globally patented water-soluble adhesive formula

Connect with Annabel Hay, Founder & CEO of Clutch Glue:
Website: https://clutchglue.com/
LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/annabel-hay-a057ba125/
Socials: @annabel_hay  @clutch_glue  

Want to clip long-form content into shorts in one click? Receive 25 % off OpusClip, the same tool we use to turn episodes into shareable clips. support the show and save: https://www.opus.pro/?via=93d640 The Business Game is proud to be an official OpusClip affiliate. 

Thanks to Tala Offshore for sponsoring this episode. For all your remote staffing needs, visit www.talaoffshore.com

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level. 

90% of business problems are actually money problems in disguise.

Join our hosts on The Business Game, a podcast that moves the needle, for this special Shortcuts episode where we look back at previous guests to share their best insights on money, funding, and financial strategy. This episode unpacks critical wisdom on startup funding, venture capital strategies, cash flow management, tax optimization, and the truth about raising capital versus bootstrapping your business. 

In this episode, you'll discover:

* Why 90% of CEO challenges come down to sales and revenue - and how to fix it
* The funding vs bootstrapping debate - when to raise capital and why "too much money" can hurt your business
* Queensland's $130M Venture Capital Development Fund - accessing government-backed startup funding
* Tax strategies saving businesses $31,000+ annually - proactive planning that actually works
* What investors really look for in seed stage startups - beyond the pitch deck
* Escrow technology revolutionizing small business cash flow - solving the payment cycle problem

Connect with our Guests:

Megan Eichhorn and Tayla Morris -
Website: https://www.taymefg.com.au/
LinkedIn:  / tayme-financial-group 

David Blanch and Audun Fiskerud -
LinkedIn (David) : https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-blanch-4170514b/
LinkedIn (Audun): https://www.linkedin.com/in/audunfiskerud/

Emily Price -
LinkedIn:   / itsemilyprice   
Tallystone: https://www.tallystone.com 
Business LinkedIn:   / tallystone  

Mykhaylo Shaforostov - 
Website:  https://www.crankshaft.ai/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/myks/

Michael Uadiale - 
Website:  https://www.smeedcpa.com/
LinkedIn:   / smeedcpa  
Instagram:   / michael_uadiale  

Stacey Bullman - 
Website: www.imnotmadatyou.com
LinkedIn:   / stacey-bullman-business-coach  
Instagram: Imnotmadatyou_ 
facebook: Imnotmadatyou 
Youtube: Imnotmadatyou3397 

Paul Veric - 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-veric/

We're excited to be able to offer our Business Game community an affiliate link for their HubSpot sign ups! HubSpot is the #1 CRM tool on the market - making managing clients and customer details easier than ever! Using our link to get started on Hubspot helps to support our work here at The Business Game: http://go.try-hubspot.com/Z6Eq50 start your free trial today! 

Thanks to Tala Offshore for sponsoring this episode. For all your remote staffing needs, visit www.talaoffshore.com 

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing through these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting our work.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business.

Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap.

For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework?
Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com

It's time to Level Up!

We’ll see you at the next level.