From Panic to Profit: What I Shared on the Business Leader Podcast
In my recent feature on the Business Leader Podcast with Josh Dore, we explored one of my favorite topics: what it really takes to turn a struggling business around. Over my career, I have led organizations from under a million dollars to billions, and the lessons I have learned about leadership, clarity, and resilience are universal.
When you are running a company, the need for a turnaround can sneak up on you. Everything can look fine until suddenly it is not. You realize growth has stalled, cash is tight, and the team has lost focus. That is the moment where leadership matters most.
Knowing When to Fire Yourself
One of the hardest truths in business is that sometimes leaders outgrow their own companies. I have seen it countless times, and I have even lived it myself. Most of us are not serial CEOs. We build something from scratch, we nurture it, and at some point, we become the very reason it cannot grow further.
There is no shame in recognizing that. The greatest gift in leadership is self-awareness. Knowing what you are great at and what you are not is essential. You do not need to do it all yourself. There are people who can take what you built and help it flourish.
The best leaders I have worked with have had the courage to “fire themselves” from the CEO role when they realized someone else could take the company further. That kind of humility can save a business and even create the next stage of its growth story.
The CEO’s Job: Define the Goal
One thing I have always said is that if your team cannot clearly state your company’s goal, that is not their fault, it is yours. Every time I take over a new organization, I sit down with the leadership team and ask one question: “What is our goal?”
You would be amazed how rarely everyone gives the same answer. One person says revenue, another says market share, another says new products. But if the team is not aligned around a single clear objective, how can you expect them to reach it?
Clarity is power. When everyone knows the true destination, they can finally start moving in the same direction.
How We Turned a Pandemic Crisis into 48 Percent Growth
During the pandemic, I took over a company that was in real trouble. Our people had gone remote, communication had broken down, and the business was bleeding cash.
On my first week, I walked into our Columbus, Ohio office, only to find the power company turning off the electricity. Not because we did not have the money, but because no one had been there to pay the bill. That moment told me everything I needed to know about where we stood.
We had 90 days of cash left. So, we gathered the team, faced the reality, and built a plan to save ourselves. The result? We turned the company around and grew it by 48 percent in just 18 months. That happened because we were brutally honest about where we were, clear about where we were going, and relentless in execution.
You Are Not Failing, You Are at an Inflection Point
When you hit a wall as a leader, it is easy to fall into imposter syndrome or think you have failed. But needing a turnaround does not mean you failed; it means you reached an inflection point. It is a signal to evolve.
You have already accomplished what many never will — you built something that works. Now it is about scaling, transforming, and preparing the business to thrive without you being in every detail.
If you broke your leg, you would not try to fix it by reading a medical book and grabbing a knife. You would see a doctor. Business is no different. Find help — a coach, a peer, a trusted advisor — and get back on the path to growth.
The Power of a Single Win
If you take one thing away, let it be this: just make something happen. Write down your top ten priorities, cross off nine, and focus on one.
When you and your team rally around a single, meaningful goal and achieve it, everything changes. People feel ownership again. They start to believe.
You can either be the company that had its power turned off, or the company that turned it back on. Choose to be the one that turned it back on.
Final Thoughts
That is what From Panic to Profit is all about: rediscovering clarity, leading with confidence, and creating momentum in the moments that matter most.
No matter how tough things get, remember that leadership is not about never falling — it is about how you rise, how you bring your team with you, and how you turn crisis into opportunity.
