We’ve all heard it.
“The market’s tough right now.”
“No one’s buying.”
“People just aren’t spending like they used to.”
And yet, somehow, someone else is growing.
Someone else is closing deals.
Someone else is doubling their business while you’re stood still.
Why?
Because the best business owners don’t waste time blaming the market.
They start by looking in the mirror.
I had a conversation recently with a business owner in the professional services sector. Revenue had flatlined. Leads were drying up.
She blamed the economy.
So we sat down.
We looked at her last 30 enquiries.
14 hadn’t even been followed up.
6 were waiting on proposals that hadn’t been sent.
2 had gone cold because of slow replies.
Turns out, it wasn’t the market. It was the mechanics.
Here’s the truth no one likes to hear:
The biggest bottleneck in most businesses is the business owner.
Not the customer.
Not the economy.
Not the team.
It’s you.
Your lack of focus.
Your failure to follow up.
Your outdated systems.
Your time spent tweaking the website instead of chasing the sale.
Now before you roll your eyes—this isn’t an attack.
It’s an invitation.
Because if you are the problem… then you can also be the solution.
You control your focus.
You control your processes.
You control the speed, energy, and urgency with which you move.
When you own that truth, something changes.
You stop waiting for the market to bounce back.
You stop looking for a saviour.
And you start fixing the things that were broken long before interest rates rose.
So let me ask you:
When you look in the mirror, what do you see?
Are you showing up as the CEO your business needs… or the technician your business has outgrown?
👉 If you’re ready to shift the lens, get honest, and fix the right things—hit reply.
I’ll share with you the same diagnostic tool I use with clients to spot where the real breakdowns are hiding.
No fluff. Just results.
To owning it,
James