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Agency owners want to get into eCom or info products.
eCom brand owners want to launch SaaS.
SaaS founders are chasing AI.
Everyone’s looking for the next shiny thing.
The next business model.
The next opportunity.
Because they think "that’s where freedom lives".
The reality for most is they haven’t even "earned" freedom in the business they've got.
They're still firefighting. They're still on every client call. They’re still carrying their team on their back.
And then they think stacking another business on top of this chaos will solve the problem? It won’t.
It’s not the business model. It’s the operator.
Until you build a company that runs without you, one that doesn’t collapse the second you take a step back, you’re just dragging your dysfunction into the next thing.
The "Old Model" vs. "The New Model"
Let’s be blunt.
If you're trying to build an agency that runs without you, you're are most likely stuck in the old paradigm.
You think you’re solving problems… but all you’re doing is buying time. Buying time until things break again.
The old (Unsustainable) model looks like this:
Hiring people just to fill gaps, not to own outcomes.
Believing the grass is greener in a different business model (eCom, SaaS, AI… pick your poison).
Chasing odd ideas about what success should look like (hint: it’s not six Loom videos and a Google Drive folder of SOPs).
Thinking ClickUp, Asana or AI are silver bullets (they’re not).
Downloading a bunch of meaningless KPI dashboards
Duct-taping more processes, more SOPs, more accountability systems—without fixing the actual problem.
Thinking in old paradigms: “If I just work harder or add more systems, it’ll fix itself.”
I’ve been there.
For years, I operated like that.
And it kept me stuck.
Scaling felt like pushing a boulder uphill... barely making progress, constantly firefighting.
The new (sustainable) model:
1. What's the essence of the business?
2. What do we need to amplify the essence SO it becomes self-sustaining?
That's it.
When we work with agency founders, we start with a simple question: What’s the essence of your business?
Not your offers. Not your services. Not your tech stack.
The essence.
What’s the Essence?
The essence is the one thing that drives your business forward.
It’s the reason clients choose you over everyone else. It’s the reason they stay. It’s your unique advantage in the market.
It’s the DNA of your agency.
And until you understand it, you will:
Waste time chasing new offers, new niches, new shiny objects.
Keep hiring the wrong people.
Build processes and systems that don’t scale because they’re not aligned with who you are and what you do best.
The difference between good agencies and great agencies isn’t in their tools, their playbooks or even their results.
It's in their understanding of themselves.
Essence = the thing you do better than anyone else + why clients choose and stay with you.
It’s the unique value you deliver and the experience that makes you indispensable. And it’s usually hiding under layers of services, processes and offers.
If you removed the essence, the business would collapse OR would not be able to compete.
Essence answers ONE question:
What’s the one thing this business must do better than anyone else… or it doesn’t deserve to exist?”
Imagine an eCom ads agency.
They think they’re in the business of making ads.
But their essence is their ability to produce and innovate the creatives that stop the scroll and drive conversions.
That’s their edge.
So the entire business model and processes is built on production and innovation of creatives. If they don't lean into it and make it better they won't be able to compete in the market.
How do you know it’s your essence?
Ask yourself:
👉 If I disappeared tomorrow, what part of the business must keep working for the agency to survive AND thrive?
👉 What’s the one capability we can’t not be great at?
👉 If we lost this, would we still be a COMPETITIVE business or just another me-too agency?
Why does essence matter?
Because everything you build: teams, systems, processes—should amplify your essence.
You hire leaders who protect and scale it.
You create playbooks that reinforce it.
You design client experiences that align with it.
If you don’t know your essence, you end up:
Chasing shiny offers.
Hiring random people who aren’t a fit.
Building systems that scale the wrong things.
The essence isn’t always sexy.
But it’s critical.
If you strip everything else away, what’s left?
That’s your essence.
If you’re stuck, if growth feels hard or if your agency feels like it’s spinning its wheels, it’s probably because you haven’t gone deep enough. You’re still living in the 95%.
Want help finding your agency’s essence?
This is what we do. DM me questions.
P.S. Check out this short video where Shane Parrish and Adam R. Karr talk exactly about this concept (obviously I've borrowed it from their conversation).
Resources to go deeper:
Shane Parrish & Adam R. Karr on the essence of high-performing businesses (video above).
Good to Great by Jim Collins → “The Hedgehog Concept.”
First Principles Thinking → Strip everything back to the essentials and build up
The Essence → Amplification Model
Once you uncover your essence, the next step is to ask:
What do we need to amplify the essence?
This is where you build systems and teams that:
✅ Double down on your unique advantage.
✅ Protect and scale what makes you great.
✅ Free you from the day-to-day because the essence is baked into your operations.
Here’s what amplification looks like:
Hiring Leaders who amplify your strengths, not just “fill seats.”
Playbooks and Processes that scale your Zone of Genius so it’s not stuck in your head.
Cadences and Communication Systems that reinforce your culture and standards—without you having to babysit.
Client Selection and Delivery Standards that protect your brand and results so you don’t waste time on the wrong work.
Where founders get this wrong:
You won’t find your essence in a one-hour team brainstorm.
It doesn’t live in your mission statement or your Canva branding deck.
It only reveals itself when you dig deeper - way deeper than most agency founders are willing to go.
And that’s why 95% of agencies are stuck in the middle.
Good, but not great.
Profitable, but not free.
There Are Two Types of Business Problems
Years ago, I kept running into the SAME issue...
Projects weren’t getting done on time and I blamed the team.
So I added more tools, stricter deadlines and new processes.
Nothing changed.Eventually I had to face the reality.
The real problem was me.
I avoided confrontation. I wasn’t setting clear expectations. I was too caught up in doing instead of leading. No amount of Asana or ClickUp templates would fix that.
There are two types of business problems:
❌ Visible Problems: Communication, project management, processes, tools.
✔ Less Visible Problems: Mindset, values, culture.
If you look deeper as operator or a business owner you'd inevitably have to face a pretty harsh truth: the issues you're not willing to address are the issues or weaknesses you have within yourself and the examples you set for the rest.
You're saying operations and organisational problems are hard to solve. I say they stem from root problems that are invisible.
And because the issue requires a somewhat therapeutical approach or/and behaviour change people typically don't even know WHERE to start.
So most operators focus (if they even do) on process improvements because they’re tangible (logical).
But REAL transformations only happens when you’re willing to do the uncomfortable work of addressing what’s beneath the surface
I've done a lot of this type of work and I can recognise when people are avoiding it.
HERE'S HOW TO START SOLVING LESS VISIBLE PROBLEMS:
Audit your business problem but instead of looking at symptoms, trace them to their root causes. Ask: “What’s the belief, value, or mindset driving this issue?”
Recognise your own patterns. If you keep running into the same problems (bad hires, churn, operational bottlenecks) the common denominator is you and/or your leadership team.
Invest in personal transformation as much as business tactics. The best solutions aren’t always a pretty workflow chart. They might be coaching, mindset shifts or cultural realignment.
Freedom is earned. Not bought.
I’ll leave you with this:
You don’t get freedom by switching business models.
You don’t get it by adding a SaaS product or launching an info product (there's right time for everything).
In fact freedom is individual. It means different things to different people.
And that work doesn’t start with tools, processes, or hiring a fractional COO. It starts with you.
With how you lead.
With how you think.
With how you build the operating system that amplifies your agency’s essence whether you’re in the room or not.
Because if you’re not free in this business, you’ll drag the same chaos into the next one.
New model, same operator.
Same problems.
Check out the latest Big Growth Show episode with Nigel Thomas.
A must watch conversation if you want to learn:
→ How to discover and articulate your agency's unique positioning
→ How to raise your prices
→ How to leverage constraint and pressure to innovate faster and scale your agency
→ Why losing your mind (embracing uncertainty) might be exactly what your agency needs to break through growth plateaus
Ready to Build an Agency That Runs Without You?
We’ve helped dozens of agency founders go from firefighting to freedom by building the systems, teams and leadership structure they need to scale without being the bottleneck.
If you’re ready for the uncomfortable but transformational work apply for Strategy Consultation here.
About what we do
At Big Growth Group we help agency owners build high-profit and self-sufficient agency businesses so they can step away from daily operations and focus on strategic growth.
We’re not just consultants who leave you with a list of ideas. We’re also Growth Operators who get in the trenches and work alongside you to deliver real, measurable results.
Are you an agency founder? Want to break free from operations and scale past $1M more easily and strategically?
Listen or watch our podcast "Big Growth Show"
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