A client walked away.
And overnight, roughly 40% of the agency’s revenue disappeared.
We’d hired heavily to service them.
Our payroll was manageable
But only if everything went perfectly.
It didn’t.
People had to be let go. The founders had to confront the fact that maybe we weren’t as invincible as we thought.
And that wasn’t even the hardest part.
A few years later, we hit another wall.
We went nearly four years without meaningful growth.
Same revenue.
Same effort.
Same feeling that we were working like crazy but getting nowhere.
That’s when something had to change.
In my conversation with Aric Whiteley, we unpacked what happened next and some of the lessons completely changed how I think about running an agency.
We get into:
The co founder rule that finally stopped them from endlessly debating decisions
Why “speed to decision” can matter more than getting things perfect
How they created accountability without constantly stepping on each other’s toes
And there’s one part of our conversation about partnership dynamics that really stuck with me.
Especially if you have 2+ founders.
Catch the full episode on The Agency Uplift Podcast
- Sean
P.S. Whenever you're ready, here are 3 ways I can help:
Get free access to Agency Uplift → frameworks, tools, and training I've built for agency founders. Get free access
Get out of client management → install my free Account Manager management system in under 10 minutes. Set it up free
Build a better agency with me → join a small group of agency founders implementing these systems together. Learn about the coaching group