I’m the type of person who doesn’t like to beat around the bush…so let’s get straight to it:
The #1 thing holding most business owners back from working less and profiting more?
It’s not your overflowing to-do list.
It’s not your team.
And it’s definitely not that you need another productivity app.
It’s your business model.
Wait… what is a business model, anyway?
Your business model is the foundation of how your business runs — how you create, deliver, and capture value.
It’s the engine behind everything in your business — your offers, pricing, delivery, and operations. It’s the engine behind your whole business ecosystem.
And if that engine is built around your constant presence and relentless hustle? Then freedom will always feel just out of reach.
Because here’s the truth no one tells you:
Freedom doesn’t come from working faster — it comes from working differently.
Let’s explore how this shows up for service-based entrepreneurs like you, and most importantly — how to fix it.
The Biggest Mistake: Building a Business That Depends on You 24/7
Many service providers unknowingly build a business that demands their constant input.
You’re the face, the brain, the scheduler, the strategist, the admin, and the deliverer… sound familiar? (For me, I ended up being the one who cleaned the toilets).
At that point, you’re not running a business. You’re running an exhausting job — and the boss (that’s you) never gives you a break.
This often looks like:
- A frenzied calendar/agenda that has you running in multiple directions daily
- No clear communication boundaries
- Daily firefighting instead of forward momentum
- Guilt about taking time off
If this sounds like your reality — please hear this:
It’s not a personal failure. It’s a design flaw.
How This Mistake Tanks Your Profit (and Steals Your Freedom)
Here’s the thing — a business built around you has a built-in ceiling.
Your time is limited. Your capacity is limited.
So if your revenue depends on you being available for every sale, session, or success… growth becomes capped.
Worse?
The moment you want to take a vacation, care for a loved one, or (gasp!) rest — the whole system stalls.
And that, my friend, is not freedom. That’s a business trap.
The Freedom-First Fix: Redesign Your Business Model
If you want to work less and earn more, you don’t need to hustle harder — you need to restructure smarter.
Here are 5 ways freedom-first entrepreneurs build their businesses differently:
1. Write out a clear and specific definition of success BEYOND revenue!
A vision for how you want to live your life is how you create your definition of success. Once you decide what you want from life, then you can build a business to generate the income that will give you the life and the freedom you want.
Then your VISION becomes your decision filter. In other words, it’s as simple as asking…. Does this (podcast, FB post, etc) get me closer to my vision – definition for success?
If not – you don’t do it!
It’s about getting super clear, intentional and purposeful about what you want to build.
After my runaway retreat, I realized that my business needed to give me much more free time to look after my daughter and the money to pay for extra medical expenses. Then I could build the business that would provide that for me.
2. Build a Capacity-Conscious Calendar
Let’s stop glorifying “busy”! A full calendar isn’t a badge of honour — it’s often a sign of misaligned priorities.
A freedom-first schedule includes:
- CEO time (for growth, not just grind)
- Creative time (for visioning, not just doing)
- Boundaries (because your weekends and evenings matter)
- Buffer time (because… life happens)
- Self-care time (because you need to put on your oxygen mask first)
Show me your calendar and I can tell how much freedom you actually have!
3. Be the leader of your business, the CEO – not Chief Everything Officer.
Entrepreneurship isn’t a solo sport. If you want more revenue and more freedom, you need to LEAD the team and not be the bottleneck.
In a freedom-first business, the CEO
- Sets the vision
- Ensures that the team understands their role in achieving the vision
- Leads the team
4. Systematize & Streamline Everything You Can
Freedom doesn’t mean doing more. It means doing less, better.
It means doing things once and letting systems take it from there.
Think:
- Automated onboarding
- SOPs for repeatable tasks
- Repurposed marketing content
- Delegation of $10 and $100/hour tasks
These systems don’t just buy back time — they buy back your brainpower and your capacity.
5. Work on growth mode activities (versus maintenance mode)
Let me ask you a question, if you audited where you spend the majority of your time – would it be doing maintenance mode activities such as your inbox; invoicing; customer service; social media posts, client work?
OR are you leveraged and spending the majority of time doing CEO level activities (or growth mode activities) such as marketing, business strategy, personal development, sales conversations, networking and speaking? This is where freedom-first business owners spend their time – leveraged and growth mode!!!
The Good News?
You can shift.
You can rebuild.
You can create a business that supports your life — not consumes it.
And I want to help.
And since I know you prefer actionable information with workbooks, I know you’re going to LOVE this new free training!
🎯 [Download the FREE Focus 2 Freedom Training Here]
This 6-part, on-demand series walks you through how to:
- Identify your biggest time and profit leaks
- Reclaim your week with simple, strategic CEO habits
- Build a business model that scales sustainably (and sanely)
- Design your schedule for profit AND peace
No fluff. Just practical, proven tools to finally create the freedom you set out to find when you started this journey.
Yes, you can do this,
Diana
P.S. Think you might be ready for a freedom-first shift? Here are 5 signs to watch for:
- You feel guilty taking a day off
- Your revenue is rising… but your life feels heavier
- You’ve hit a client cap and can’t take on more without burning out
- You have a team — but you’re still the bottleneck
- You’ve invested in tech and systems… yet still feel stuck in the day-to-day
If you’re nodding along — you’re exactly who this training was built for.
👉 [Grab the Focus 2 Freedom training here.]
