Meta vs. Margin: Why Reasonable Goals Win Long-Term
The Andrew Faris Podcast
Intro
Andrew introduces the episode's central question: how should you define success for your business and why that definition matters.
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What if the biggest risk to your brand isn’t competition or CPMs - it's how you define success?
In this episode, Andrew walks through a practical framework for setting reasonable, operator-grade goals using EOS (10-year → 3-year → 1-year → quarterly), then pressure-testing those goals against your real constraints: product pipeline, supply chain, hiring, onboarding, and P&L design. We dig into why “rocket ship” thinking so often creates chaos: over-hiring, over-buying inventory, and chasing vanity targets - and how durable brands actually grow: methodically, with clear success criteria and a bias toward profitability.
You’ll learn how to translate vision into numbers; why returning-customer mix lowers CAC% over time; how to engineer margin through supplier work (terms, lead times, BOM interrogation); and when to seize moments without over-leveraging. Real operator cases—Born Primitive, Simple Modern, Natural Dog Company, CTC—illustrate why steady compounding beats aggressive targets that break systems. If you want a calmer calendar and a fatter P&L, this is the playbook.
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CHAPTER TITLES:
00:01:06 - Using EOS As a Framework
00:04:10 - What Is Motivating You & Your Goals (For Your Business)
00:07:42 - How Can Your Vision Be A Constraint?
00:09:01 - Examples of Great Brands
00:16:16 - Andrew defines a Rocketship Business
00:19:10 - Good Businesses Build Steady Overtime
00:25:31 - The Secret Sauce Brands Are Using To Grow
00:28:33 - Maximizing Key Moments
00:30:34 - P&L Design
00:32:53 - Don’t Let The Promise of A.I. Fool You
00:34:49 - Goals for AJF Growth
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ADMISSION
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FOLLOW UP WITH ANDREW
X: https://x.com/andrewjfaris
Email: podcast@ajfgrowth.com
Work with Andrew: https://ajfgrowth.com
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