Laura Humphreys shares the unfiltered journey of building—and selling—a $15 million agency, only after nearly burning out in the process. Now a mentor to agencies worldwide, Laura unpacks the seven strategies she teaches to help owner-operators escape the hamster wheel, reclaim their time, and create scalable, high-performance businesses. From using AI to future-proof service delivery to building deep sea sales pipelines, this episode is packed with both war stories and winning tactics for founders who are ready to lead like CEOs.

Chapters:

00:00:00 – Meet Laura Humphreys: The Mentor Who Turned Agency Burnout into a $15M Exit
00:00:26 – From Copywriter to CEO: Laura’s Unfiltered Path to Building and Selling Her Agency
00:02:15 – Stuck on the Hamster Wheel: Why Owner-Operators Struggle to Scale (and How to Get Off)
00:04:35 – How to Build a Team That Actually Delivers (Without You Micromanaging Everything)
00:06:39 – CEO Mode Activated: The Power Shift from Managing to Leading
00:09:45 – If You Don’t Know Where You’re Going, How Will Your Team? Creating a Vision That Works
00:19:49 – AI, Market Shifts, and What Agencies Need to Do Now to Stay Ahead
00:21:42 – Final Word from Laura: Let Go, Trust More, and Build Something That Lasts

Links And Resources:

Laura Humphreys on LinkedIn
Join SMASH
Amplafy Media
Hector Santiesteban on LinkedIn
Hector Santiesteban on Twitter

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