Shawn Freeman

Technology Coach & Founder | Proven technology leadership to help you grow a profitable future proof business.

You’re not just running an MSP. You’re building something bigger. 

But right now, it feels like you’re stuck working in the business instead of leading it.

You’re juggling too many roles, managing clients, fixing daily issues, and trying to grow your monthly recurring revenue. The competition is fierce, and figuring out how to break through feels overwhelming.

I get it because I’ve been exactly where you are.

In 2011, I founded my own MSP. It started small, with all the typical struggles. Feeling trapped in the day-to-day grind, pricing uncertainty, struggling to delegate effectively, and the constant stress of finding quality clients. But through relentless refinement of systems, positioning, and leadership strategies, I scaled that MSP to seven figures. In 2020, I successfully exited with a high-value acquisition.

Now, as the founder of Impactful MSP, I help ambitious MSP owners like you achieve sustainable, long-term growth, without burning out or getting lost in the weeds.

👉 Here’s the truth:
Your technical skills aren’t the problem. The real challenge is building a business that runs profitably, consistently, and without you trapped in the day-to-day grind.

You don’t need random tactics or one-size-fits-all frameworks.

You need proven strategies, clarity, and the right mentorship to:
✅ Define a mission, vision, and core values that guide every decision you make.
✅ Scale your MRR fast with systems that work, no fluff.
✅ Stand out in a crowded MSP space with a unique differentiator.
✅ Attract and retain high-value clients who pay what you're worth.
✅ Simplify operations so you stop being the bottleneck.

You know you're capable of more, but you're unsure of the next step.

That's why you need me:
I've lived the MSP journey. I’ve felt the stress of unpredictable revenue, tough client churn, competing in a saturated market, and the struggle to lead while overwhelmed. But I also cracked the code to breaking through, and I’ve helped MSPs scale to seven figures and beyond using my coaching methods.

My clients have:
→ Increased MRR by 25%+ within months.
→ Closed larger, more profitable deals with ideal clients.
→ Built scalable systems that run without micromanagement.

This isn’t theory. It’s battle-tested strategy from someone who’s been in the trenches.

If you're serious about becoming the go-to MSP in your market and ready for predictable, scalable growth, send me a DM with the word 'IMPACT' and let’s talk about your next level.

No fluff. No hype. No BS. Just results.

Vice President - Alberta

Success Is A System

Over 20 years of helping individuals, celebrities, SME's and FTSE businesses achieve outstanding success through mentoring and strategic advisory.

https://mikegreene.co.uk/

Master Mentor and strategic advisor

Cambridgeshire Chambers of Commerce

Chairman (Peterborough & Stamford)

Cambridge children’s hospital

Helping to Raise £100m for a brand new World leading Children’s Hospital in Cambridge

Fundraising Ambassador

Brightfield Residential

Managing Director - Brightfield Residential

Trade Mastermind

Chairman

Working with individuals and businesses for rapid growing business and/or wealth by building strategy maps and supporting the ongoing execution of the plans

High performance Business Mentor

GrowthMentor

Providing 1:1 mentoring for entrepreneurs starting and growing their own businesses through GrowthMentor, a curated platform of invite-only startup and growth marketing mentors which have proven experience in their fields. Join to find your next mentor » www.growthmentor.com

1-2-1 Mentor/coach

Brightfield group

property investor/developer

Allia Future Business Centre Peterborough

Entrepreneur In Residence

Mike Greene  Investments (Primarily property) & Growth Accelerator

Providing a platform to connect sophisticated investors with high return opportunities . Mentoring management team and boards to develop and deliver against clear strategic plans.

Hand-picked Opportunities:
From hundreds of business proposals, Mike Greene Investments carefully selects only the best opportunities, strong management teams and a proven track record to present to its network.

Strategic Partnerships:
Mike Greene Investments raises finance from experienced investors, family offices and investment funds with the potential to add great value not only from growth capital but often expert, strategic and management advice.

Rigorous Preparation:
Companies receive thorough preparation and regulated finance advice prior to presentation, with Mike Greene Investments working via Envestors to prepare full due diligence packs and detailed investment notes to facilitate detailed assessment.

Practical Experience:
Mike Greene Investments are working with experienced finance advisors with practical business experience. All advisors have had direct involvement in either owning or investing in business and know exactly what it takes to start, manage, raise funding grow and sell businesses (primarily property based/focussed).

Growth Partner:
Acting as a long term investment partner, Mike Greene Investments profiles, engages and monitors investments through to exit, often advising on further funding rounds through growth cycles.

Online Investor Platform:
Mike Greene Investments’ intuitive investor platform enables investors to access a secure dashboard and track, monitor and manage equity investments, whilst staying in touch with company management and fellow shareholders.

FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) authorised and regulated via Envestors

CEO & Founder

Investor/Fundraiser. Invested: Shazam, Chargemaster, NeyBer, BOLT, Sonus, Veropath, Jropp.com

Working with, and mentoring, boards and Individuals to develop clear strategic plans to optimise their business now and in the future

Investment & Funding platform, CEO, Hon Dr Edu, Various NED roles, Entrepreneur and investor

After successfully building and exiting a multi-million international consultancy, I now sit as an advisor, NED, and mentor to 40+ businesses.

My years in business have taught me that success is simple.

Using systems, anyone can grow a business reliably and predictably. 

Want business clarity and actionable steps to success? Here’s how we can collaborate:

Mentorship (100% satisfaction guarantee - no questions asked.)
Public Speaking 

Find out more at  https://mikegreene.co.uk, or DM me.

Mike Greene (Success Is A System)

You're not overwhelmed. You're unfocused.

"I'm so overwhelmed."
No, you're not.
You're unfocused.

Overwhelmed means too much to do.
Unfocused means trying to do everything at once.
Big difference.

You're not overwhelmed by work.
You're overwhelmed by distraction.

Your day:
- Check emails 47 times
- Scroll social media
- Start 5 tasks, finish none
- Jump between priorities
- React to everything urgent
- Plan nothing important

That's not overwhelm. That's chaos.

Focus looks like:
- One priority. Complete it. Move to next.
- Block distractions.
- Ignore the "urgent" that isn't important.

You have time.
You're just spending it on 20 things instead of the 3 that matter.

Stop doing more.
Start doing less, better.

Pick 3 things today that actually move the needle.
Ignore everything else.

You'll achieve more by doing less.
Focus beats overwhelm every time.

What are your 3 priorities today? Not 10. Three.

Dr Mike Greene

Helping established business owners regain control of their business & life without hype, hacks, or bullsh!t. Built, scaled, & exited 7-figure businesses in 20 countries. Channel 4 Secret Millionaire. Deputy Lieutenant.

To all my Irish friends, and to the Irish community around the world.

Quite possibly the most sociable people on the planet.

Hardworking. Loyal. Friendly. Fun.
What more could you ask for?

Wishing you all a fantastic St. Patrick’s Day. 
Cheers to you 🍀

Helping established business owners regain control of their business & life. No hype. No hacks. No bullsh!t. Built, scaled & exited 7-figure businesses across 20 countries. Channel 4 Secret Millionaire. Deputy Lieutenant

The More You Give
The More You Get

The More You Take
The More You Need

The first 2 days of this week, alongside normal business life, 
I had the privilege (as a DL of Cambridgeshire) of officiating at a British Citizenship Ceremony on behalf of the Lord-Lieutenant, representing His Majesty The King.

28 people.
16 countries.
One commitment.

To live here.
To contribute here.
To build a life here.

Moments like that remind you how fortunate we are.

Yesterday I attended the formal opening of the incredible Young Technicians Academy, Peterborough

An inspiring place created for young people who may not thrive in traditional academic environments.

But who absolutely thrive in:
Creativity
Technology
Practical skills
Finding their voice

For many of them, this kind of environment doesn’t just educate them.
It changes the direction of their life.

I love what I do in business.
Building companies.
Mentoring founders.
Helping people grow.

But the icing on the cake…
Is contribution.
→ Supporting others
→ Opening doors
→ Helping people believe in themselves

The more you give, the more connected you feel.
Success is not just what you build.

It’s what you contribute

I'm not here to be your friend...
I'm here to make you uncomfortable enough to change.

Most people say they want growth.
Very few actually want the process that creates it.

Growth isn’t gentle.
It’s not cosy.
It’s not comfortable.

It’s the hard conversations.
The accountability you’ve avoided.
The habits you refuse to face.
The standards you’ve allowed to slip.

A good mentor doesn’t stroke your ego.
A good mentor holds up a mirror and shows you the truth...
even when it stings.

Not because they don’t care.
But because they care enough to challenge you.
Push you.
Expose the excuses.
And demand the version of you that you’ve been hiding.

If you want comfort, buy a cushion.
If you want growth, find someone who won’t let you stay the same.

Stop romanticizing the struggle. Rich people don't wake up at 4am because they love it.

LinkedIn is full of "hustle" content.

"I wake up at 4am every day!"
"I work 18-hour days!"
"Sleep is for the weak!"

Cool story.
You're not building a business. You're glorifying burnout.

Rich people wake up at 4am when they need to.
Not because they romanticize the grind.

They wake early to:
- Build systems so they don't have to later
- Get ahead while competition sleeps
- Solve problems that make 4am unnecessary
Then they stop.

You're waking at 4am because:
- You have no systems
- You're working IN not ON
- You're inefficient
- You think suffering = success

It doesn't.

Sustainable success looks like:
Work hard when you need to build the foundation.
Then work smart when the systems are running.

Not:
Work yourself to death forever and brag about it online.

Nobody successful romanticizes the struggle.
They survived it, then systematized their way out of it.

The 4am wake-ups were a means to an end.
Not a lifestyle to brag about.

If you're still grinding 18-hour days after 5 years:
You haven't built a business.
You've built a prison.

Work hard to work less later.
Not hard forever.

Are you building systems or just romanticizing struggle?

AI can write your emails. It can't replace your expertise. 
Know the difference.

AI is a tool.
You are the asset.

Too many people act like AI suddenly makes them unstoppable. It doesn’t. If you didn’t understand your customers, your craft, or your market before, AI won’t save you now.

AI can tidy up your inbox.
It can’t fix a lack of backbone, judgement, or experience.

Your edge isn’t the software you use.
Your edge is the years of graft, the mistakes you turned into lessons, and the instincts you’ve earned the hard way.

So use AI to speed up the boring stuff.
But don’t kid yourself - the real value comes from the person at the keyboard.

Tools evolve. Experts adapt.
That’s the difference.
Know it. Own it. Use it.

Tracey Emin says the wealthy should be 
taxed more to keep museums free.

Let’s deal in facts.
- The top 1% already pay 30% of all UK income tax.
- The top 10% pay over 60%.
- The top 50% pay roughly 90%.

Around 36% of adults pay NO income tax at all.
That isn’t ideology.
That’s HMRC data.

Now look at it in real terms.

Someone earning £50,000 might contribute roughly £12k in income tax and NI.

Someone earning £1 million will contribute around £425k in tax.

That is not a slightly higher percentage.

That is 30 to 35x more in actual cash going into the system.

And when it comes to charity, around 70% of declared donations come from people earning over £100k.

So the idea that the wealthy are somehow freeloading on the cultural system simply doesn’t stack up.

Now, a slightly cheeky question:
- Is paying to preserve Tracey Emin’s messy bed the best use of public money?

Or is this really about asking a small minority to carry even more of the load?

For the record, I came from a working-class background.
- I expect to pay more.
- I’m willing to pay more.
- I DO pay more

That’s how a progressive system works.

But there is a tipping point.

I already know several business owners who have left the UK:
- Taken their capital.
- Taken their annual high spend.
- Taken their tax contributions.

If your answer is “good riddance”, do the maths first.

If someone paying 30x more tax leaves, who replaces that revenue?

It won’t be the bottom third who pay none.

It will be the middle.

And this isn’t red or blue politics.
It’s arithmetic.

Entrepreneurs who build £1m, £5m, £10m businesses don’t do it by accident.

They create jobs.
They pay VAT.
They pay employer NI.
They fund pensions.
They fund arts through philanthropy as well as tax.

So here’s the real question.

At what point does “fair contribution” become “economic self-harm”?

Genuine question:
- Do you believe the wealthy are already paying enough?
or should we keep increasing the burden and risk shrinking the very base we rely on?

Let’s debate it

This will sound harsh. Read it anyway:
Most business owners don’t fail.
They slowly suffocate inside a business they built.

Not because they’re lazy.
Not because they’re incompetent.
But because the business now demands more of them every year.

Revenue’s coming in... profit isn't moving.
The diary’s full.
Cash flow looks “fine”.

Yet:
• You’re working harder than ever
• Margins aren’t where they should be
• Decisions feel reactive, not strategic
• And stepping away feels impossible

Here’s the part most people avoid saying out loud.

If your business only grows when you push harder, it isn’t scalable.
It’s a well-paid job with pressure baked in.

I’ve built and scaled businesses across the UK, Europe, the US, Australia, and New Zealand.
I’ve exited. I’ve failed. I’ve rebuilt. I now mentor owners from £200k to £600m.

The pattern is always the same.

Growth doesn’t come from more effort.
It comes from clarity, structure, and systems.

Hop on a quick no obligation call/zoom,
one-2-one with me,
and i will show you:
• Where SME owners are actually stuck
• Why effort isn’t the problem
• What needs fixing first if you want scale without burnout

If any of this hit a nerve:

👉watch the 1min video
- DM me for a no pressure chat

No motivation.
No theory.
Just the truth most people avoid.

What a wonderful post to see - thank you so much for your kind words Francis

It is an honour to have attended events with you in your term as High Sheriff of Cambridgeshire  and as a DL in Cambridgeshire 

I am genuinely moved to read such a wonderful and unexpected, but greatly appreciated post 🙏

View company: High Sheriff of Cambridgeshire

As my year as High Sheriff of Cambridgeshire draws to a close, I want to record my sincere thanks to Dr Mike Greene DL.

Mike brings a rare combination of clear, practical #business judgment and genuine #public #service. Whether supporting local enterprise through the Cambridgeshire Chamber of Commerce, mentoring leaders with honesty and discipline, or championing fundraising for @Cambridge Children Hospital,  he consistently focuses on what matters: #responsibility, #outcomes, and #people.

What I have valued most is his steady, no-nonsense approach, encouraging others to regain control, build systems that last, and lead with integrity rather than noise. That calm clarity is a real gift to our county.

Thank you, Mike, for your time, your commitment, and the example you set.

#HighSheriffCambridgeshire #CommunityLeadership #MentoringBusiness #CharityCambridge

RIP ChatGPT.... Hello Claude.
I've been using several AI tools most days for a while now 
My 'go-to' was CHATGPT but recent code changes have made it virtually useless (IMO)
Claude is now my primary tool

Here's Why and what i kept running into with Chat. 
- Ask it two questions back to back and it forgets the first one ever happened. - - Upload a document you need it to work through and it either loses it or ignores it completely and just starts guessing. 
- Ask it to actually read something and it jumps straight to code like it's trying to look busy.
...It has gone from top of the pile to a complete time waster and I say that as someone who was a massive fan until recently.

The one that frustrates me most is the word count. Feed it anything over 3,000 words and it starts to fall apart. Claude will sit with 150,000 words and work through an entire book with you, no problem.
The restrictions have crept up. 
The memory issues are real. 
The processing power is severly restricted.
The quality has dropped.

This is purely my own experience and others may see it differently.
What are you finding?

Beautiful...
...Humility and appreciation costs nothing but communicates everything about a person
🙏

LinkedIn Top Voice | Personal Branding Strategist & Executive Mentor | 81M+ Views | Helping Leaders & Founders Build Authority that Converts.

How Do You Treat People?

A person's true character is not seen when they are winning. It is seen in how they treat someone who cannot fight back. We often get caught up in our own stress and pressure. We forget that the people helping us have feelings too. It is easy to be kind to a boss or a big client. It is much harder to stay calm when things go wrong, and you are talking to someone you think is below you.

We have all had moments where we let our anger take over. We shout or act coldly because we know that person will not shout back. But power is not about how loud you can yell. Real power is about how much respect you can show when you are at your limit. When we treat others with dignity, we are actually showing respect for ourselves. We are choosing to be a person who builds others up instead of tearing them down.

Next time you feel like snapping at someone who is just doing their job, take a breath. Remember that every person you meet is carrying their own heavy load. A small bit of kindness costs us nothing, but it means everything to the person receiving it. Let us try to be the reason someone feels seen and valued today.

How do you stay calm when the pressure is high?

#Empathy #Kindness #Compassion #WorkCulture #Inspiration

You're a tradesperson, not a charity. Stop giving free quotes that take 2 hours.

How many free quotes did you do last week?
How many converted?

You spent 10 hours doing quotes. 3 converted. 7 were time-wasters.
You just worked for free for 14 hours.

Here's what's happening:
- People call 5 tradespeople. Get 5 free quotes. Pick the cheapest.
- You spent 2 hours measuring, calculating, writing proposals.
- They chose the guy who's £200 cheaper and going out of business.

A 2-hour quote costs you:
2 hours working time (£200-400)
Fuel (£20)
Writing time (£100-200)
Total: £320-620 per quote. You give away for free.

Charge for quotes. £150-300 minimum.
"But people won't pay!"
Good. Those are time-wasters.

Serious customers will pay.
Because they know quality costs money.
Refund it if they book the job.

You'll lose bad business (price shoppers).
You'll keep good business (customers who value expertise).

Stop being a charity. Charge for your time.

How many free quotes went nowhere last month?

Networking is NOT working?
Most people in business understand the importance of networking.
...But in most cases its more NETwasting than NETworking

You hear the quote all the time:
Your network is your net worth.

I get it.
But for most people, networking simply is not working.

Why?
Because they are not networking.
- They are socialising.
- They walk into the room.
- They scan the crowd.
- They spot someone they know.
- They make a beeline.

Same person.
Same conversation.
Same outcome.
Safe. Comfortable. Easy.
And completely pointless.

The key word in networking is WORKING.
You have to work it.

If you want results, do the opposite of what most people do.
→ Speak to people you have never met before
→ Have a clear 30 second pitch
→ Be ready with a one minute explanation
→ Carry business cards
→ Ask questions first
→ Listen more than you talk
→ Seek to understand before trying to be understood

Too many people become networking junkies.
Two events a week.
Three events a week.
Driving miles.
Spending money.
...WASTING time

And achieving nothing.

They are not networking.
They are net 'wasting'.

If you walk into a networking event without intent, focus and a clear outcome in mind, you are wasting your time.

Networking is a skill.
And like any skill, you either get good at it.
Or stop pretending it is helping your business.

I had a business owner sit across from me last week.

Turning over £1.2M. Team of 14. Decent profit on paper.

But he hadn't taken a holiday in three years.

His wife barely sees him. His kids know him as the guy who's always on his phone. He told me he wakes up at 4am most days. Not because he's hustling. Because he's anxious.

I asked him one question.

"If you disappeared for a month, would the business still function?"

He went quiet. Then: "Honestly? It'd probably fall apart within a week."

I recognised it immediately. I'd been in exactly that place.

My first business nearly broke me. When I rebuilt, the one thing I was determined to do differently was stop being the single point of failure. The business that eventually sold for eight figures? I could step away for a month and it kept running without me. That's precisely what made it worth buying.

Most founders I work with don't realise it yet, but the moment you stop being essential to daily operations is the moment the business becomes genuinely valuable.

If you disappeared tomorrow, how long would yours keep going?

Great post.

The key line for me is this:

“When you prioritise shareholders over products, you eventually lose both.”

It speaks to something I see in SMEs every week.

When you optimise for short term numbers
You start compromising long term value.

When margin becomes the obsession
Innovation quietly takes a back seat.

When finance leads the conversation
Customer experience often leaves the room.

Now let me be clear.

Strong financial discipline is vital.
Cash flow matters.
Return on capital matters.
Governance matters.

But numbers are the result.
They are not the cause.

Great products create demand.
Demand creates revenue.
Revenue creates profit.
Profit creates shareholder value.

Reverse that sequence
And you start engineering outcomes
Instead of earning them.

In fast moving markets
Risk avoidance feels sensible.

But breakthrough rarely comes from playing safe.

Boards, founders and CEOs need balance.

Protect the downside, yes.
But never at the expense of product, innovation and customer obsession.

Because once the culture shifts from building value
To extracting value
The decline has already started.

What do you think?
Product first.
Or shareholder first.

Wealth Manager (Your very own personal Investment Manager & Financial Adviser all in one person). All views are personal. Fellow of CISI (Chartered Institution of Securities & Investment) 2026 will be the year of SILVER

Apple just lost more money in 4 months than most countries make in a year.

$1.1 trillion gone because Tim Cook made the exact decision Steve Jobs refused to make for 14 years. 

Warren Buffett called it brilliant. Jobs called it poison.

How Apple's greed is finally backfiring:

From 2021–2023, Apple was the world’s most valuable company.
Today?

Third — behind Nvidia and Microsoft.
In just 4 months, Apple’s value dropped 28%.

That’s $1.1 trillion gone. But this story started in 2011.

When Steve Jobs stepped down, he told Tim Cook: “Don’t ask what Steve would do… just do what’s right.”

Jobs believed:Great products → great stock prices.

Cook believed: Great financial engineering → great stock prices.

The shift was immediate. In 2010, Jobs had $27B in cash.

Warren Buffett suggested:
 • Acquisitions
 • Dividends
 • Stock buybacks

Jobs refused dividends and buybacks.
His focus?

“Increase enterprise value.”
But in 2012, Cook launched Apple’s first dividend and buyback program.
Planned: $45B.

Actual spend: $80B.
Buffett invested heavily.

He never invested under Jobs.
Apple had transformed.

The culture changed too.
Jobs visited the design studio daily.

Cook, Monthly.
Jonathan Ive lost influence.

When Ive wanted a $25M fashion show for Apple Watch, finance rejected it as “unnecessary.”

For the first time, design answered to finance.
Innovation slowed.

From 2014–2017, iPhone 6 → 8 looked nearly identical.

Instead of breakthrough products, Apple leaned into price increases.

Under Jobs:
iPhone stayed at $650 for 7 years.

Under Cook:
 • iPhone X launched at $1,000
 • Flagship models hit $1,200
 • Average iPhone price rose from $657 (2016) to $974 (2024)

Revenue climbed.
So did dependence on financial strategy.

Then came AI.
Apple pioneered Siri in 2011.

By 2017:
 • Siri accuracy: 62%
 • Google Assistant: 90%

When ChatGPT launched in 2022, Apple lagged behind.

In 2023, Apple’s AI team requested 50,000 GPUs.

Cost: $10B.
Cook approved.

Finance blocked it.
Reason:
“Make existing chips more efficient.”

That same year?
Apple spent $77B on stock buybacks.

In 2024, buybacks hit $110B.

Meanwhile:
 • Amazon spent $85B on R&D
 • Google $45B
 • Meta $39B

All now lead in AI.
Jobs feared this exact scenario.

When you prioritize shareholders over products, you eventually lose both.

Cook grew Apple’s market cap 10x.

But critics argue innovation weakened.

A company that once reshaped industries now struggles to lead the next wave.

'But they're really nice' – Great. Are they any good at the job?

"Should I fire them?"
Why?
"They're not hitting targets, they're slow, they make mistakes..."

So fire them.
"But they're REALLY nice!"

Who cares?
This isn't a friendship club.
It's a business.

Nice doesn't pay the bills.
Nice doesn't close sales.
Nice doesn't deliver quality work.
Performance does.

You're keeping someone because:
- They're friendly
- You like them personally
- They've got kids
- You feel guilty

Meanwhile:
- They're costing you money
- Your good staff are covering for them
- Standards are slipping
- Customers are noticing

"But they try really hard!"
Effort without results is just expensive activity.

You're not running a charity.
You're running a business.

Being nice is great.
Being nice AND competent is what you need.
One without the other doesn't work.

Fire the nice incompetent person.
Hire someone who's nice AND good at the job.

Both exist. Stop settling.

Who are you keeping because they're "nice"?

'I'll start on Monday' is why you're in the same place you were last Monday.

"I'll start the diet on Monday."
"I'll call those leads on Monday."
"I'll raise my prices on Monday."

It's Thursday. What happened last Monday?
Nothing.
Because Monday never comes.

There's always a reason:
- "Monday was busy, I'll start next week."
- "Not the right Monday."
- "Let me prepare a bit more first."
Translation: You're procrastinating with a calendar.

Monday isn't magic.
It's just another day you're using to avoid starting today.

Six months from now, you'll still be saying "I'll start Monday."
Still in the same place.

Winners start now.
Not Monday. Not next week. Not when it's perfect.
Now.

Thursday at 3pm is as good a time as any to make the call, raise the price, have the conversation.
Start today. Messy. Imperfect. Scared.

52 Mondays from now, you'll either have results or more excuses.

What are you waiting until Monday to start?

Let me send you a proposal' is where deals go to die.

Sales call going well.
They're interested. Asking questions. Engaged.
Then you say: "Great! Let me send you a proposal."
Deal dead.

Here's what actually happens:
- You send the proposal.
- They say they'll review it.
- You follow up: "Did you get my proposal?"
- "Oh yeah, just need to look at it..."
- Three weeks later: Still "looking at it."

Why?
Because proposals let them procrastinate.
"Send me a proposal" = "I'm not ready to decide"
And you just made it easier for them to avoid the decision.

Here's what winners do:
"I could send a proposal, but let's make sure we're aligned first."
"What would need to be in there for you to move forward?"
"If the price is right, are you ready to start next week?"

Get the commitment BEFORE the proposal.
Not after.
If they won't commit verbally, they won't commit on paper.
The proposal just delays the inevitable rejection.

Close on the call.

"So if we can deliver X by Y date for £Z, you're ready to go?"
"Yes."
"Perfect. I'll send the paperwork today and we'll get started."

Proposal = Confirmation, not pitch.
Stop using it as a delay tactic.

How many proposals are sitting "under review" right now?

Stop setting goals you don't have systems to achieve.

"I want to hit £500k this year!"
Great. How?
"Uh... work harder? Get more customers?"

That's not a plan.
You're setting goals without systems to achieve them.

Goal: £500k revenue
System needed:
- Lead generation that produces 100 leads/week
- Sales process that converts 10%
- Average order value of £2k
- Delivery system that handles 10 jobs/week
- Team of 5 to execute

Got those systems?
No?
Then your goal is a wish.

Most people:
Set ambitious goals in January.
Do nothing different in February.
Wonder why they're in the same place in December.

Winners:
Set the goal.
Build the systems to achieve it.
Execute the systems daily.
Hit the goal inevitably.

Your goal isn't to hit £500k.
Your goal is to build systems that make £500k inevitable.

Stop setting goals.
Start building systems.

What systems do you need to build to hit your goal?

The hardest business decision I ever made was letting my brother go.
He was my first hire. There from day one. Worked his arse off when we had nothing, and I'll never forget that.

But the business outgrew him. And I knew it for six months before I did anything about it.

I kept him because he was family. Because of everything we'd been through together. Because the idea of that conversation with my own brother kept me awake at night.

Meanwhile the team around him was frustrated. He'd come in late occasionally; nothing dramatic, but nobody said a word because, well, he was the boss's brother. Standards were quietly slipping. Good people were starting to feel like the rules didn't apply equally to everyone. Because they didn't.

I was protecting one relationship at the cost of everyone else's.
The day I let him go was one of the hardest of my life. But I did it. And I'd do it again.

Here's what that experience taught me, and what I've seen confirmed hundreds of times since working with other founders.

Winning teams only have the best players. Not the most loyal. Not the ones who've known you longest. Not family. Not your best mate from school. Not the neighbour who did you a favour once.
The BEST players.

Hiring someone because of their connection to you rather than their ability to do the job doesn't just hurt the business; it's ultimately not fair on them either. 

You're setting them up to be resented by the people around them.

Who in your business is in a role because of the relationship rather than the results?

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Shawn Freeman

Mike Greene (Success Is A System)

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taplio

The Battle

Shawn Freeman

Mike Greene (Success Is A System)

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Mike Greene (Success Is A System)'s LinkedIn Performance

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Performance ScoreMike Greene (Success Is A System)'s LinkedIn Performance