The Most Aggressive Form of Self-Development

Nothing—and I mean nothing—has stretched me like entrepreneurship.

I've done therapy. I've read the books. I've journaled, meditated, and reflected.

But entrepreneurship is the most aggressive form of self-development I've ever experienced.

You Think You're Building a Business…

But what you're really doing is bumping up against every personal limitation you didn't know you had.

Insecurity? Exposed.

Imposter syndrome? Front and center.

Need for control? Constantly challenged.

Communication gaps? Fully visible.

Mindset blocks? Amplified under pressure.

Running a business doesn't just invite personal growth—it demands it. It puts pressure on every part of you, and the only way through is forward.

And here's the kicker: you don't get to delegate the discomfort. It's yours.

Growth Isn't Optional—It's the Job

Over and over again, I've found myself pushed into unfamiliar territory.

I remember staring at my calendar one day, completely booked with calls and meetings that were eating into family time. Revenue wasn't growing despite my packed schedule. That's when it hit me: I was saying "yes" to things that weren't moving my business forward.

I had to develop the ability to say "no"—not because I wanted to be difficult, but because saying "yes" to everyone was saying "no" to growth. That wasn't a tactical problem. It was a personal one rooted in my desire to please others at the expense of my own priorities.

I've had to make decisions without full information, trust myself when no one else was watching, and lead while actively doubting my own abilities. I've had to develop skills I didn't have yet, accept feedback I didn't want to hear, and confront behaviors that no longer served the business.

Every time I hit a ceiling in the business, I eventually realized I was hitting a ceiling in me.

Because your business can only grow as fast as you do.

The Ceilings Are Personal

At every new stage, I've had to upgrade myself—not just as a founder, but as a thinker, communicator, decision-maker, and leader.

If you'd told me six years ago that I'd be recording weekly YouTube videos and posting on social media daily, I would have called you crazy. The thought of putting myself out there terrified me. But when I moved to Baja and needed to market myself, I had no choice.

I remember asking Dan Martell—who happened to be a client of mine at the time—how he got comfortable on camera. His advice? Go live on social media for 30 consecutive days. It sounded brutal, but I did it. By day 30, I wasn't an expert, but I'd looked silly enough times that the fear had lost its grip on me. What might have taken 30 months of gradual exposure happened in 30 days.

That's looked like learning to think bigger. Letting go of control. Saying no more often. Saying yes more decisively.

And—most of all—recognizing that the version of me who got here isn't the one who will get me there.

It's never just about changing your strategy. It's about changing the person executing it.

These Are the Battles We Fight in Private

Most entrepreneurs showcase the outcomes: the launch, the new hire, the revenue milestone.

But the real breakthroughs usually happen in private— At 2 a.m. when your thoughts won't stop spinning. In the middle of a hard conversation you didn't want to have. Or when you finally admit that the bottleneck isn't your offer—it's your identity.

Recently, I caught myself thinking: “Maybe I'm just not an operations guy. I can whip up marketing strategies and build high performance sales teams and revenue systems, but no matter how much money I throw at it, the internal operations side of my business sucks. So, maybe I’m just not cut out for fixing that part of the business.”

Explicitly saying that to myself was a gut check. I recognized it immediately as a self-imposed limitation—a story I was telling myself that conveniently explained my struggle but also capped my potential. Refusing to accept that as part of my identity led to our most recent breakthrough with MSP Sales Partners.

If you're in that space right now—caught between what you want and who you need to become—I want you to know: I see you.

You're not behind. You're not broken. You're doing the actual work.

What This Means for You

Not every business problem is an identity problem. But the ones that are? They're easy to recognize.

They're the ones that stick around. They're the ones that don't respond to a new tool or tactic. They're the ones you've worked on, reworked, and are still trying to solve.

One of my biggest shifts was truly valuing my time and the work I deliver. For years, I undercharged because I wasn't confident in my worth. Raising my prices wasn't about tactics or market research—it was about acknowledging the value I created for clients and charging accordingly. That mindset shift unlocked new revenue potential that no sales strategy could have achieved.

So if your revenue has been flat for longer than you're comfortable with...

If your team still doesn't operate the way you envisioned—even after hiring, restructuring, and clarifying expectations...

If your operations still feel like a scrap heap built on early-stage hustle—despite all your process work and system upgrades...

If you've hit a plateau that no playbook, no coach, no new tactic has helped you break through...

That's not just a stubborn business issue. That's a signal that the business has reached the edge of what you—as you are today—can support.

And that means the next breakthrough isn't about adding something external. It's about evolving something internal.

And that's not bad news. It's the best news. Because it means you already have access to the solution.

The Real Work

This is the part no one teaches you. The part that doesn't get shared in swipe files or turned into a checklist.

Because it's not about funnels, workflows, or org charts. It's about the person behind all of them.

So if you're stuck, ask yourself:

What part of me needs to grow in order for this business to move forward?

Is it the fear of judgment stopping you from creating content? The people-pleasing habit eating up your calendar? The pricing mindset keeping you undervalued? Or the identity limitation capping your vision of what's possible?

That might mean learning a new skill. Breaking an old pattern. Challenging a belief you didn't realize was limiting you. Or completely redefining how you see your role, your value, or your vision.

And here's the thing: even once you make that shift, the work doesn't stop.

You'll solve new problems. Those new problems will require a new level of thinking, new habits, new leadership. And that version of you will need to evolve too.

That's why entrepreneurship is the most aggressive form of self-development I've ever experienced.

Because with every new level of growth comes a new version of you that has to emerge to support it.

And that's the real ROI of this entire journey.