Codie A. Sanchez's Linkedin Analytics

I met a guy who left the MLB and bought a $60,000 street sweeping business: • No prior business experience • Found a 75yo owner who wanted out • Did 100% seller financing • Now scaled from $15k/mo to $75k+ I asked him how exactly he did it. Here's what he said: Before living the small business dream, Brandon Dixon lived a different dream... • College baseball at Arizona • Drafted by the Dodgers in 2013 • Played for the Reds, Tigers, and Rakuten Eagles But something was missing. "It pays well, it's fun," Brandon said. "But once you have a wife, once you have a daughter... it wears on you over time." An opportunity emerged in 2021... A CPA friend connected him to a 75-year-old owner with a street sweeping biz. This owner had seller-financed the business. And that buyer defaulted. Everything was falling apart, the owner was tired, and he just wanted the business off his hands. The business checked Brandon's boxes: • Recurring revenue from contracts • Essential service - cities need sweeping • High barrier to entry So Brandon & his friend made a move.. They offered $60,000, fully seller-financed at $2,500/month. How did they come up with that number? The equipment was worth ~$100k-150k. So they offered half that. The seller was motivated enough to take the deal. But the thing about Brandon is he had ZERO business experience. So he structured the deal with that in mind: "At minimum, I'm gonna learn and maybe lose $60k. At most, I have a business that's profitable and I didn't put any money into it." But the first few months were brutal. So how do you turn a sinking ship around? 4 strategies Brandon implemented: 1. WHO Not How He called veteran sweepers with 30+ years experience. Visited their yards. Asked endless questions and spent hours learning how to bid jobs. 2. Relentless Modernization "We learned you can pay money to make money." • 8,000 automated emails monthly • Professional website with SEO • Google ads that converted • Better review systems 3. Getting the Basics Right Boring businesses reward boring habits: Show up on time. Do quality work. Maintain equipment. "We're not the most knowledgeable, but we're the most professional." 4. Never Say No To a Customer • Driver spots an issue on a job site • Brandon reaches out to the client • Client says, "Yes, I want that fixed!" • Brandon subcontracts the work, taking a margin Suddenly a street sweeper gets revenue from asphalt work, line painting, etc... The results when I talked to Brandon last September: Average monthly revenue went from $15,000 → $50,000. They were on pace for $700,000 annual. ↓ You can watch my full video with Brandon here → https://lnkd.in/emXNB_AC

10 tips to build a strong network: ↓ ↓ ↓ Feel free to share if you think your network would get some value from this 😉

I want you to see what you're capable of. So come hang out👇 When: April 8th What: "Your Ownership Roadmap: How To Buy the Perfect Business For You." A live virtual workshop teaching you how to find & evaluate businesses, structure deals, and build your acquisition toolkit. How long: 60 minutes (+ a 30min Q&A with me at the end, if you're so inclined to stay) How much: $Free.99 How you get your invite: Go right here → https://lnkd.in/eauCizAm

You will never become truly free from your business if you don’t... - Hire better team members - Eliminate your key man risk - Stop reinventing the wheel - Build funnels that work harder for you - Increase cashflow - Increase margins - Decrease YOUR time spent I hear you. Let’s make these changes together. May 1 & 2 in Austin, I’m gathering MY top team members to work through the biggest bottlenecks holding YOUR business back. Spots are limited (& you’ll want to make travel arrangements ASAP!!) so grab your ticket today → https://lnkd.in/eTjUD_gX

Real estate vs stocks vs a 3rd path... If you want to preserve your wealth → invest in real estate. If you want to beat inflation → invest in stocks. But if you want financial freedom → invest in a business. And if you want to own a business by the end of 2025, start learning NOW. I’m hosting a free workshop on how to do it. Get details (and save your spot!) here → https://lnkd.in/eauCizAm

9 rules to make your competition irrelevant: ↓ ↓ ↓ If you need the next right move for your business - the real ACTION you need to take - then this event is for you... Hands-on, in-person workshop with other high-caliber owners May 1 & 2. Details here → https://lnkd.in/eTjUD_gX

Best part of your business? The people. Worst part? The people. Business horror story time: I hired an exec, paid her $200k a year + $200k in bonus. She secretly launches 2 side businesses, tries to take our clients to one, and was secretly launching a competing product all within the first 6 months. Yikes. We found out, let her go (obviously), but I had to chuckle because she bankrupted her last company... and then changed her name since she now claims it was a success. Moral of the story... If you're in business, expect it. Protect your house because your biggest costs will always be wrong people trusted. Just me... or have you also had business horror stories?

If you need some time back... Use the SODA Framework: ↓ ↓ ↓ But if you need to find out the who, how, or what holding your business back... Take a look at my upcoming (in-person) scaling workshop I'm hosting with my top CEOs → https://lnkd.in/eFvJHYwa

Paradox of the job market: You need to get experience in order to get the experience you need. Here's how you fix that (& why employers will start using this method at scale): There are 2 types of workers. 1. Centralized. These workers are permissioned. They have degrees, certifications, impressive resumes. "An institution decided I was good and smart and a hard worker. Hire me based on that." 2. Decentralized. These workers are credentialists. They submit proof of work - code built, copy written, deals done. "I did this. YOU can decide if I am good and smart and a hard worker. Hire me based on that." Today, we largely use colleges, company names, and role titles as signals of competence. Soon, just like a blockchain leaves a trail of transactions, employees will leave a trail of work that signals competence. We'll see more of Worker #2. And increasingly, I think they'll out-earn #1. Worker #2 bypasses the chicken-and-egg problem of "experience." You go out and CREATE the experience, instead of waiting for it to happen to you. How can you do this? 3 main ways: • Apprentice - work for free in exchange for learning • Take junior roles - learn your way into earning more • Side hustle - teach yourself skills, practice with projects, then bring them back to the workforce An employer today will maybe ask if you have a degree. They might ask what your major was. They likely won’t ask your GPA. This trend will only continue. Best thing you can do for your career if you're young? Create your own proof of work. Don’t wait for permission.

This (legal) scam has shut down some of the world's biggest brands... Toys R Us Joann Fabric Payless Shoes J Crew Sears Their bankruptcies were all due to 1 thing: Private equity asset stripping. Here's how it works: First: a PE firm buys a company using borrowed billions. They make the purchased company take on the debt – and often buy the company's land, then start charging them rent. For example, Toys R Us took on $5B in debt overnight. Then: Cut costs. Lay off workers, cut back on inventory, stop reinvesting in the business. The PE owners then pay themselves massive amounts after selling the assets. Finally: the company files for bankruptcy. When your favorite stores vanish overnight, ask yourself... Who made money on the way down? (PS: If this enrages you like it does me... follow me @codiesanchez for more on buying & building Main Street businesses. We're bringing back a nation of owners.)

7 harsh truths to help you finally start thinking bigger: ↓ ↓ ↓ Ready to think bigger than your 9-5? Whether or not your job sucks, we all get to the point where we itch for one thing... Ownership. You can call it "being your own boss" or "entrepreneurship" or "financial freedom." We call it taking back Main Street. And here's the exact first step you take: Join me on April 8th. For 60 minutes. Live, online. Completely free. I'll teach you how to: • Find & evaluate small businesses • Structure deals • Avoid the biggest mistakes Save your spot here → https://lnkd.in/eauCizAm

9 things no one tells you about taxes as a business owner: Stressed about what you pay in taxes? Start a business. Whether you run a VC-backed startup or freelance on the side, the US tax code favors business owners over everyone else. Here’s everything you should know: 1 - Business Expenses You can take a deduction for anything you use to run your business.. internet, phone, software, conferences (including travel) Owners can also deduct their home office square footage from their rent or mortgage (which W-2 employees cannot!) 2 - Solo 401k If you have no employees, you & your spouse could each get a $70K tax deduction by setting up a Solo 401k. Unlike a corporate 401k, you fully control this & can invest it in (almost) any asset, even to fund a Roth IRA. 3 - QBI Deduction Owners of pass-through businesses get an automatic tax deduction of up to 20% of their net income. 4 - Credit Card Points Pay all your expenses on a business credit card that gets you a generous amount of points. You can then legally use these points on yourself and your family to travel for free. (Always transfer points to airlines directly to maximize benefit) 5 - Pass-Through Entity Tax (PTET) Most people can't deduct more than $10,000 in state & local taxes from their federal tax return. Except for... business owners. Owners can pay an elective state tax from their business and bypass these limits. 6 - S-Corp If you earn $100K+ in net income, you can set up an S-Corp. This allows you to divide your income into a W-2 salary and profit. You only pay self-employment taxes on the W-2 salary. Which could save thousands of dollars a year. 7 - Hiring your children Once your children get slightly older, you can hire them for your business & pay them a fair wage. They don't pay taxes if they are under the standard deduction, AND you can use the money to fund a Roth IRA in their name & start compounding early. 8 - Cash Balance Plan If you are earning mid 6-figures & want an even bigger tax deduction.. You can pair your Solo 401k with a cash balance plan & get a tax deduction of up to $300k every year (based on your age) It's a complicated structure, but 100% worth it at that level. 9 - The Business Owner Mindset The single biggest benefit of becoming a business owner is not taxes... It's your new mindset. You focus less on penny-pinching, and learn that you can always earn MORE. ↓ ↓ ↓ Want to learn more about these strategies to reduce your tax bill? I teamed up with my friends at Carry to write a free ebook on Tax Hacks the Rich Don’t Share Download it here → https://lnkd.in/ew3VpvdR (PS: Taxes are not the time to diy it. So... highly recommend hiring a pro and NOT taking big swings based solely on info you see online ;))

If you want to win more, fail more. Here are my favorite “failures” from the most impressive companies on earth: 1. Google Glass ($4B Flop) Throwback to when Google thought we'd walk around with computers on our faces. • $2 trillion tech giant • $4 billion project • Still couldn't get people into looking like a creepy cyborg in public I met Astro Telle, head of Google X - their moonshot factory. He talked about the "failure resume" he keeps outside his office to remind himself the only way to win is to first fail. No company embraces failure better than Google. 2. New Coke (Cost: Market Leadership) 1985, Coke changed their 99-year-old recipe to beat Pepsi in blind taste tests. America lost its mind. Coke backtracked 79 days later. Why'd it fail? They optimized for a single metric (taste) and ignored the emotional power of brand. 3. McDonald's Arch Deluxe ($300M Mistake) McDonald's spent $300 million launching a "sophisticated" burger for adults. They literally advertised: "This burger is not for kids." Turns out, nobody goes to McDonald's for sophistication. 4. Apple Newton (9-figure Flop) 1993, Apple launched this personal digital assistant that couldn't actually... assist. Its handwriting recognition was so bad it became a joke on The Simpsons. But without this fail, we wouldn't have the iPhone. Jobs learned what NOT to do. 5. Microsoft Zune ($1B loss) Microsoft saw the iPod and said, "We can do that too!" Apple said... Nope. The Zune arguably had better features, but it was late to the game & couldn't compete with Apple's cultural dominance. ↓ So why am I showing you these failures? Because most of us need to change our relationship with failing. The most successful companies in the world have the most epic mistakes. • Amazon lost $170M on the Fire Phone • Microsoft wrote off a $7.6B loss from the Nokia deal • Tesla's Cybertruck windows shattered during the live demo Yet, we only remember their wins. My personal failure highlight reel: • One of the 1st biz's I bought lost $100k • Lost over $1M on a cannabis investment • Just last year we made the hard choice of shutting down a struggling portco Each one taught me something I couldn't have learned from a “win.” The only people who never fail are the ones who never try anything worth doing... What's your favorite failure? If you don't have any good ones yet, you're not taking enough risk. ↓ PS: Are my posts showing up on your feed but you're not following me? That's crazy. Better fix that → Codie A. Sanchez 😉

Oddly unpopular take: Don't apologize for chasing money. If you are out there hustling... don't apologize for it. You don't have to be interested in brunch. You don't have to slow down and chill. You don't need to say yes to everyone. It's okay if you're in your hustle season. It's okay to be obsessed. It is very hard to change the world when you are broke. It’s okay to ignore everything else until you fix that. Work-life balance when you can afford life.

Here's how to simplify your pitch and 10x your sales: 1. Talk less, sell more. Short sentences = more sales. Hemingway once bet he could write a story in 6 words that'd make you feel something: "For sale: baby shoes, never worn." Your pitch should pack the same punch. 2. Complexity is for people who want to feel smart, not be effective. The worst salespeople make simple things sound complicated. The best make the complex simple. 3. Complexity says, "I want to feel needed." Simplicity limits to only what is needed. 4. Read your pitch out loud. I remember when I'd asked my COO to read the manuscript of my book. He chose to do it aloud. All 258 pages. Ears catch what eyes miss. The final version reads like butter. 5. "Be good, be seen, be gone." This was the best sales advice I ever got. - Good: Deliver value - Seen: Make an impression - Gone: Don't overstay your welcome People buy from those they remember, not those who linger. 7. Speak like your customer, not a textbook. We like to sound sophisticated. "We create impactful bottom-line solutions." But we like to listen to simple. "We help small businesses explode their sales." Which one would you buy? 8. Every word earns its place. Your pitch should be lean and mean. - Be specific - Avoid cliches - Check for redundancy - If it doesn't add value, cut it out 9. Abstract concepts bore. Concrete examples excite. ❌ "We'll increase your efficiency." ✅ "We'll save you 10 hours a week." Paint a picture. 10. People buy on emotion & justify with logic So tap into their feelings: - Fear of missing out - Desire for success - Need for security Then back it up with facts. 11. The "Grandma Test" never fails. If your grandma wouldn't get your pitch, simplify it. No jargon. No buzzwords. Just plain English. 12. Benefits > features. Dreams > benefits. ❌ "Our group hosts 10+ events per year." ✅ "Our program helps you close deals." 🚀 "Let's take back Main Street through ownership." 13. Use power words: - You - Free - Because - Instantly - New These words grab attention and drive action. Two final things to keep in mind... Simplicity isn't just for sales. Apply these principles to: - your business operations - your thinking processes - your next investment - your relationships - your to do list Sales isn't just for car dealerships. You pitch when you: - Negotiate a raise - Interview for a job - Post on social media - Hire someone for a job - Talk to an owner about buying their biz If you found this useful, feel free to share for others ♻️

This is the hiring framework most small business owners never figure out: Unicorns vs Donkeys Unicorns = A players, high performers, self starters... aka, the person you WANT to hire for every role at your company. Donkeys = B and C players, lacking initiative, unmotivated, task-oriented. The truth every business owner knows but hates to face: Donkeys are common. Unicorns are rare. Unfortunately, MOST people are donkeys. And as a smaller-level business, it's very hard to build the profit needed to attract unicorns. So you're left with 2 options. You can either: 1. Build a business that can actively search for unicorns. 2. Build processes so good that donkeys can win the race. Many problems in your business are a WHO problem. But you'd be surprised that solving the HOW often enables the people you have now to succeed. Processes are your secret weapon. Want to steal more notes from 7-figure+ builders on what it takes to get your business to the next level? Spots are limited for my next in-person workshop. Get in today → https://lnkd.in/eFvJHYwa

What they told me about partnerships was bullsh*t. The Disney movies got it wrong. It’s not knights on horses and damsels in distress. Instead, it’s two animals, defining territories, testing boundaries, pushing one another. I wish they would have told the truth. That I’d need to step up, be more, set lines, move some, and allow him to be the wild, strong, hard-edged independent man he is. I wish they would have told him he’d have to back down, lift me up, and allow me to be the spark, the fluid, mercurial, creative woman I am. And sometimes... be late to sh*t because timelines are more like suggestions right 😉 Half the problem today is we try to tame one another. We want men who have six-packs, can throw us up against a wall, leaders of men, and build empires... but we want them to “want” to wash the dishes and fold their underwear properly. Men want women who are sexy, strong, make their own $$, well-dressed, actually like to listen about golf scores but also, who cook them apple pie like their mommies. Extra points if you do it in aprons. The TRUTH... You gotta choose. Do you want the mommy, do you want the docile tame non-threatening man, or do you want the edges? Turns out only edges allow you to sharpen one another. So I’ll choose edges, adventures, questions, and creation any day. We’ve never been given anything the easy way… but man is it more satisfying on the other side of two humans who do the work.

The only statistic you should care about is time-to-action. Improving your urgency redefines your ability to get sh*t done. If: • Next quarter becomes next month • Next month becomes next week • Next week becomes tomorrow... You will make more money. Follow today (not tomorrow 😉) if you need more of this energy in your life → Codie A. Sanchez

You can flatter & pander. Or you can become ACTUALLY likable: • Do what you say you’re going to do • Show your results, not your intentions • Your job isn’t done until THE job is done • Communicate - less words, more meaning • Bring solutions, not complaints • Do the dirty work • Don’t be boring The truth: People like competence. So does money. (Feel free to share if this resonates♻️)