
TMBA Podcast Episodes
With the TMBA in your ear, you’ll no longer have to grow your business alone. Subscribe to follow along to hear about the ways we help entrepreneurs scale successful businesses.
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Growth vs. Optimization — 90% of Growth Comes from 10% of Activities?
What happens when you’ve optimized everything… and growth still stalls? In this episode, Dan and Ian break down a powerful distinction most founders miss: the difference between optimization (making your business run smoother) and growth (finding and testing new paths to scale). They unpack insights from Growth Levers by Matt Lerner, a framework that helped PayPal and other startups unlock massive growth and why it still applies to bootstrappers today.

7-Figure Marketing with Zero Ad Spend ft. Karla Singson
What marketing strategies are actually working in 2025? Karla Singson shares standout tactics from a DC Mexico meetup she hosted, where 6- and 7-figure founders revealed how they’re landing clients organically through Facebook groups, trade show podcast hacks, and thoughtful LinkedIn comments (no ad spend required).

From Struggling Plumber to $57K MRR w/ Tom Richards
From hating life on a Sydney construction site to building a $57K/month agency from Bali, Tom Richards—founder of PlumbElec Marketing—has lived the remote founder arc. In this episode, he shares how niching into plumbing and electrical businesses helped him scale fast, why Google Maps still dominates local SEO, and how he balances agency life with lifestyle design.

The Brutal Truth About Business Exits with Rob Walling
Thinking of selling your business one day? Or never planning to? Either way, this conversation could change how you build.
Rob Walling has seen it all. He’s exited his own SaaS company and helped thousands of founders grow and sell through TinySeed, MicroConf, and his podcast “Startups for the Rest of Us.”

The Lifestyle Business Playbook (2025 Edition)
Is the “lifestyle business” still alive in 2025?
Dan chats with longtime friend Jeff Pecaro about the evolution of internet business, what today’s solopreneurs get right (and wrong), and how constraints can lead to clarity.

Financial Traps, Profit Truths, and What’s Next at TMBA
Many founders hit $3M in revenue and stall out. In this episode, Dan and Greg Crabtree break down why—and how to fix it. They discuss “profit truth”, how to spot financial red flags, and what metrics to track to scale beyond the messy middle.

Going Deep With Your Customers
What 160 founders taught us at DC Mexico—why deep customer engagement beats ads, how group workshops are replacing sales calls, what lifestyle entrepreneurs can learn from the FIRE movement, and how financial clarity and community still drive the biggest results.

Location is Leverage
Dan shares how advanced digital nomads use geography as a lever for business growth—and why most people get it wrong. If you’re going to travel, do it with intention. This episode breaks down how.