In this episode, we’re joined by Mike Goldman, a leadership team coach, to talk about finding the business model that will work for you, building warm leads, and hiring the right team to scale your business.

Mike opens up about his career leap into the coaching business, the vital role of his wife’s support in his journey, and the power of credibility and warm referrals in connecting with the right leads.

This is your reminder that deciding not to quit is how you win. Start being proactive today, create a bedrock foundation of relationships and referrals, and develop your team’s talents as a leader.

Come and join me in this episode of The Coaching Equation: From Management Consultant to Million-Dollar Coach: Mike Goldman's 20-Year Journey from Financial Hell to 7-Figure Success

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Mike Goldman is a leadership team coach, bestselling author of two books, Breakthrough Leadership Team and Performance Breakthrough, and host of The Better Leadership Team Show. He’s a TEDx speaker and speaks internationally to groups of business leaders, such as the Young Presidents Organization, Vistage, and the Entrepreneur’s Organization. During his 30+ year coaching and consulting career, he has worked with clients including Disney, Verizon, CHANEL, and Polo Ralph Lauren. His insights have been featured in Forbes, Fast Company, and Chief Executive Magazine, and he is widely regarded by CEO’s as the expert on building great leadership teams. As both coach and speaker, Mike is on a mission to help CEO’s grow their business and have more impact while creating a more engaging, fulfilling environment for their team using his Breakthrough Leadership Team approach.

Connect with Mike Goldman!

Website: https://www.mike-goldman.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikegoldmancoach

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mgoldman10/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mikegoldmancoach

X (Twitter): https://x.com/mgoldman10

Ryan Lang is the CEO of EMPIRE Partners and Quantum Empire, and a highly sought-after performance coach and consultant. He helps establish business owners, coaches, and thought leaders transform from elite practitioners to transformational leaders by building businesses on five critical pillars instead of one wobbly leg. Over 20 years, he has guided 1000+ professionals to predictable, profitable growth using his Whole Performance Coaching methodology—combining sales mastery, strategic marketing, and human optimization principles that create lasting stability.

Connect with Ryan Lang!

Website: https://www.ryanrlang.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/realryanlang/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-lang-b46a545b/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ryan.lang.984

Learn more about Empire Partners:

Website: https://empirepartners.net/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.co

Episode Summary: Ryan Lang and Brook Bishop break down their proprietary "Path to Mastery" framework - a four-level sequential approach that prevents service-based entrepreneurs from making costly business mistakes. Drawing insights from Alex Hermozi's $81M launch, they reveal why most business owners fail by jumping stages and how following the proper sequence from Startup to Stability to Success to Mastery creates sustainable, scalable service businesses.

Key Takeaways:

• (01:55) The foundation of Path to Mastery: How Maslow's hierarchy, real estate leadership models, and Tony Robbins' commitment to mastery converged into this framework
• (07:33) Bruce Lee's principle applied to business: "Fear not the man who's practiced 10,000 kicks one time, fear the man who's practiced one kick 10,000 times"
• (15:55) The technology trap at startup level: Why a $2,000/month tech stack kills more service businesses than competition
• (21:13) The client avatar breakthrough: Why "I can help everybody" is the fastest way to marketing failure and lead wastage
• (30:50) Strategy and psychology shifts: The two mandatory changes required every time you level up in business
• (43:50) Mastery misconception: Why you don't need to master every area of your business - just master finding elite talent

Notable Quotes:

• "Competition is for losers. We have made an incredible business out of finding the right people and partnering with them strategically." (38:09)
• "If you are not willing to network, build referrals, and meet people, get out of the service business today." (28:34)
• "You cannot afford to wing it with sales when you're starting a business because you don't get as many at-bats." (23:40)
• "Simplicity scales. Complexity does not scale." (17:13)
• "The foundation of your business should be referral, word of mouth, warm network relationships. If you do this at a high level, you will never go hungry." (25:51)

Resources Mentioned:

• DISC Personality Assessment
• "Who Not How" by Dan Sullivan and Ben Hardy
• Tony Robbins' Six Human Needs framework
• Path to Mastery PDF visual framework
• Empire Partners live event

Ready to identify where you are on the Path to Mastery? Don't let another year pass stuck in the wrong sequence. Whether you're drowning in startup overwhelm or plateaued at success, reach out to Empire Partners for a strategic assessment.

Email support@empirepartners.io with "PATH ASSESSMENT" in the subject line and we’ll send you the quiz.

Connect with Empire Partners: Subscribe to The Coaching Equation Podcast and leave a review to help more service-based entrepreneurs discover the sequential path to business mastery. Share this episode with an entrepreneur who's ready to stop chasing shiny objects and start building their empire the right way.

Episode Summary: Ryan Lang and Brook Bishop dive deep into a record-breaking $81 million book launch, breaking down the strategic elements that made it successful and why most coaches are approaching their business growth completely out of sequence. They reveal how three years of patient trust-building led to one explosive day and what coaches can learn about building systems, relationships, and offers that actually work.

Key Takeaways:

• (02:47) The donation-based offer strategy: How selling 200 books for $5,998 creates multiple revenue streams while building massive databases through lead capture

• (08:32) Why execution isn't the hard part: The real heavy lifting happens 90 days to 6 months before launch through relationship building and affiliate partnerships

• (10:44) The $4 million ad spend revelation: How investing over $4 million in ads for a 20X return proves the importance of knowing your numbers and having systems that can handle scale

• (18:51) Creating what people actually want: The difference between thinking inwardly ("this would be cool") versus understanding true market demand and building offers people will actually buy

• (26:25) Trust as the ultimate currency: How three years of adding value without selling built the foundation for massive revenue generation

• (32:33) The sequence problem: Why copying tactics without proper foundation is like switching flour and frosting in a cake recipe - you'll get a very different outcome

Notable Quotes:

• "He plays chess while most people are playing checkers. This was 100% orchestrated - he didn't just orchestrate this like a couple months ago." - Ryan Lang (22:31)

• "The most important currency these days is trust. And Alex has done an incredible job of just adding value, adding value, adding value." - Brook Bishop (26:25)

• "This is not an $81 million day. This is three years of building to this moment." - Brook Bishop (28:02)

• "When you create strong systems and structures out of simple pieces, you become nimble, you become scalable, and you become practically bulletproof." - Ryan Lang (31:38)

• "You might have all the right ingredients, but if you change up the sequence of when you use those ingredients... you're gonna get a very, very different outcome." - Brook Bishop (32:33)

Resources Mentioned:

• "$100 Million Offers" book and strategic framework
• "$100 Million Leads" book and methodology
• “$100 Million Money Models” YouTube Launch
• Dan Kennedy's "MIFGE" marketing concept

Are you building your business in the right sequence, or are you trying to leapfrog to expert-level tactics before mastering the fundamentals? Take an honest look at where you are in your business journey - startup, stability, success, or mastery - and make sure your strategies match your stage. The strongest businesses aren't built overnight; they're built through patient, systematic execution over time.

Connect with Empire Partners: Ready to build a coaching business that scales systematically? Subscribe to The Coaching Equation Podcast for weekly insights on building profitable, mission-driven coaching businesses. Leave us a review and share this episode with a coach who needs to hear about proper business sequencing.