Independence by Design™ #475: Matt Paulson | $50M & 20 Employees; Designing a Business You Never Want to Sell
Matt is the founder of MarketBeat, a financial media company he’s built quietly over 19 years into a ~$50M/year business with around 20 employees — and what makes this episode special isn’t just the scale, it’s how he’s designed the business and his life around it. We talked about focus, attention, hiring, valuation discipline, resisting hype cycles, and why keeping the business can often be the most profitable move an owner can make.
We also unpacked the realities most people never see: what it actually takes to build leverage without blowing up the mothership, how to think clearly about valuation and selling, how AI really fits into the future of work, and what happens after you cross financial independence. This episode is about designing ownership — not chasing exits, headlines, or noise.
Matt Paulson is the founder of MarketBeat, a financial media company he’s grown over 19 years into a ~$50M annual business. He also runs Homegrown Capital, a Midwest-focused venture firm with ~$40M under management. Known for his disciplined approach to growth, valuation, and hiring, Matt focuses on building durable businesses, developing high-caliber teams, and designing work around a meaningful life beyond the balance sheet.
Top 10 Takeaways
- Focus works when the owner owns the few things they are uniquely great at and delegates everything else.
- Over-optimizing a healthy business often does more damage than thoughtful restraint.
- The best businesses allow safe experimentation without risking the core cash-flow engine.
- Most owners misunderstand valuation because they confuse effort, emotion, and market reality.
- Selling a business is often driven by burnout, not strategy — and that distinction matters.
- Financial freedom changes decision-making more than most people expect.
- AI will reward operators who understand fundamentals, not replace them.
- Strong teams are built by upgrading competence only when the business is ready for it.
- The most valuable skills in the future are the ones that can’t be automated.
- The “good old days” aren’t behind you — they’re happening right now if you’ve designed the margins to see them.
Chapters:
(00:00) Matt Paulson and his unexpected consulting success
(08:34) Managing attention, avoiding distractions, and setting boundaries with community involvement
(11:31) Overcoming FOMO and learning to say no to opportunities
(14:59) Delegating what you don't want to do and building systems
(19:58) Hiring great people and making MarketBeat a premier employer brand
(26:07) Homegrown Capital's venture investment thesis and evaluating startups
(37:41) Why Matt turned down acquisition offers and chose to keep MarketBeat
(40:24) Managing wealth, teaching kids about money, and charitable giving
(54:11) Being authentic versus content creation and avoiding labels in business
(59:10) Setting goals, living in the present, and thinking about succession planning
(1:08:14) Email marketing expertise and managing six million subscribers at scale
Resources:
https://www.marketbeat.com/
Matt Paulson LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewpaulson/
Ryan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/