Young and Profiting with Hala Taha (Entrepreneurship, Sales, Marketing) Donald Miller: 6 Steps to Scale a Profitable Small Business | Entrepreneurship | YAPClassic
Jul 4, 2025
Donald Miller, a New York Times bestselling author and CEO of Business Made Simple, shares his journey from losing everything to scaling his company to $17 million in revenue. He unveils a compelling six-step framework for building a profitable business, emphasizing the importance of operational excellence and crafting effective mission statements. Donald dives into the 'Airplane Model' for business strategy and reveals how storytelling can enhance sales. His insights on different leadership styles and the significance of empathy in communication are both practical and inspiring.
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Donald Miller's Comeback Story
- Donald Miller lost his entire life savings in a failed investment early in his career.
- Taking full ownership of setbacks, he rebuilt his business to $17 million revenue with over 50% profits.
S-Curve Growth Trap
- Most small businesses fail because they succeed and hit an operational growth ceiling called the "S-curve".
- Without learning to run a business properly, they crash as the founder is pulled into unfamiliar management roles.
Professionalizing Business Like Airplane
- Donald was "diving for dollars," doing everything to get paid until a mentor told him to "professionalize operations."
- This sparked building systems akin to airplane parts to keep the business flying and scaling.
