The Experienced Entrepreneur

If you've been feeling like you're treading water, maintaining the status quo, and wondering why growth still feels so hard, this episode is going to reframe everything. Marissa makes the case for why trend-chasing is the mistake that's actually keeping you from growing, and why the entrepreneurs who are growing right now aren't the ones chasing the next platform or strategy. They're the ones goin...

What if the work you're doing right now in growth stage is building the competencies you'll need for the next twenty years of business? In this episode, Marissa breaks down the hidden skills you're developing in growth stage that are quieter and harder to measure than the visible skills you built in the early years. She explains why build stage teaches you what to sell while growth stage teaches y...

Episode Summary What if the most powerful thing you could do to grow your business right now isn't chasing more, but settling into what you've already built? In this episode, Marissa makes the case for why settling in is not the same as settling, and why growth stage entrepreneurs who commit to refining what they've built become magnetic. She breaks down the difference between chasing (scattered,...

You know what you sell, who buys it, and how to deliver it. But there's a gap between where your business is and how you're showing up to lead it. In this episode, Marissa introduces the petri dish analogy that changes everything: in build stage, you're inside the petri dish as one of the variables in the experiment. In growth stage, you become the scientist running the experiment. She breaks down...

What if the success you've been calling luck is actually a system you built without realizing it? In this episode, Marissa tackles the "fluke mindset" that keeps experienced entrepreneurs stuck in build stage thinking even when they're years into business. She breaks down why dismissing your wins as accidents keeps you from investigating the patterns that actually drive your results, and why shift...

If you're making money online, you probably think the next step in your business is to scale. Well, this episode is going to shift your entire perspective. Marissa breaks down the three stages of business (build, grow, scale) and explains why most entrepreneurs skip the growth stage entirely, jumping straight from build to scale and breaking everything in the process. She introduces the industry l...

Cash reserves, gross profit, and knowing whether you're building an enterprise or an owner-driven business might sound like advanced financial concepts, but according to Kristen Hillman of Veticula Financial, they're the foundational metrics every growth-stage entrepreneur needs to understand. In this episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur, Marissa Lawton sits down with Kristen to unpack the "gol...

This week on The Experienced Entrepreneur, we're doing something a little different. The My Favorite Metric summit kicked off this week, and if you've been curious about what it's all about, this episode gives you a full look inside. Marissa walks you through the structure of the five-day event, who it's designed for (spoiler: growth-stage entrepreneurs, not newbies), and why she built it without...

If you've ever said "I'm just not a numbers person" — this episode is going to gently, but firmly, challenge that. For experienced entrepreneurs, the belief that metrics are complicated, cold, or designed for someone else is one of the most costly myths in business. Not because tracking is hard, but because the story we tell ourselves about it keeps us from accessing the clearest signal our busine...

In this episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur , Marissa Lawton sits down with Megan Smyth to unpack what's actually working in sales right now — and why many experienced business owners are quietly moving away from social media–dependent strategies. Megan shares the story of losing every copywriting client in a single week and how that moment forced her to confront a hard truth: relying on refer...

In this behind-the-scenes episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur , Marissa Lawton pulls back the curtain on the first few weeks of the Monday Meeting founding round. Instead of theory or hype, this episode shares what's actually happening inside the container: how the Decision Dashboard is being used in real businesses, what patterns are emerging through live dashboard reviews, and why Monday Mee...

Lifestyle and energy are often treated as personal concerns, separate from "real" business metrics. But for experienced entrepreneurs, they are some of the earliest and most honest indicators of how a business is actually functioning. In this episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur , Marissa Lawton explores why lifestyle and energy deserve a permanent place inside your business metrics system — an...

Sales numbers can look fine on the surface and still leave you feeling uneasy. For experienced entrepreneurs, sales and profit are not just outcomes. They are signals — indicators of alignment, capacity, sustainability, and decision quality over time. In this episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur , Marissa Lawton breaks down how to think about sales and profit metrics beyond "did it work or not....

Lead nurture is not about posting more, emailing more, or staying visible at all costs. For experienced entrepreneurs, lead nurture is about trust, continuity, and relationship — and when it's working, it should feel steady, not exhausting. In this episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur , Marissa Lawton explores what lead nurture really looks like once your business has matured past hustle-based...

Bonus Episode: The Market Shift, "Dead" Business Models, and What's Actually Changing In this spontaneous bonus episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur , Marissa Lawton shares an unscripted, candid reflection on the current market shift and the growing narrative that "courses are dead," "podcasts are dead," or that entire business models are suddenly no longer viable. Drawing on more than a decade...

Since you've been in business for a while, you already know that "getting more leads" isn't the be-all-end-all solution some coaches say it is. The real challenge is knowing what kind of leads you're attracting, where they're coming from, and whether your lead flow is actually supporting sustainable business growth — or quietly working against it. In this episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur ,...

Before you rush into goal-setting, optimization, or "what's next," there's something more important to do: integrate the year you just lived. In this reflective year-end episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur , Marissa Lawton guides seasoned business owners through 10 powerful questions designed to help you make sense of 2025 and move into 2026 with more clarity, steadiness, and intention. This i...

As an experienced entrepreneur, the most powerful decisions you make aren't about doing more — they're about choosing what actually deserves to come with you into the next chapter. In this reflective year-end episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur , Marissa Lawton invites seasoned business owners to pause, integrate what 2025 revealed, and practice CEO-level discernment as they step into 2026. Th...

As online business owners head into a new year, most look only at the traditional metrics — revenue, growth, conversions, launches. But seasoned entrepreneurs know those numbers don't tell the full story. The real signals that predict stability, sustainability, and success are often intangible: energy, capacity, creative bandwidth, emotional resilience, and decision fatigue. In this episode of The...

Should We Be Planning 2026? (How to Lead Your Business in an Unpredictable Market) If you've been wondering whether it even makes sense to plan for 2026 with the market shifting under our feet — this episode is going to feel like a deep exhale. In today's solo episode, we're talking about what mature entrepreneurs already know: Annual planning isn't about predicting the year. It's about directing...

Being in business long enough, you've faced this question: "Do I stay the course… or am I self-sabotaging?" In this week's solo episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur , we unravel one of the most complex challenges seasoned business owners face — knowing when something in your business still has staying power, and when your desire to quit is actually coming from fear, fatigue, or avoidance. This...

What if the real measure of a healthy business isn't how much you make —but how much you keep ? In this episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur, Marissa Lawton shares why she's shifting her focus to profit margin and what that means for seasoned business owners who are ready to step off the "scale at all costs" treadmill. After more than a decade in business, Marissa has seen every iteration of th...

There's a difference between running a business and playing at one. In this episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur, Marissa Lawton breaks down what it really means to work hard without burning out — and how to reclaim your energy through intentional effort. You'll learn how to spot the difference between hustle (reactive, fear-based, endless) and a sprint (focused, strategic, time-bound). Marissa...

The online business space has changed — and so has the way people buy. In this episode of The Experienced Entrepreneur , Marissa Lawton breaks down what's really happening behind today's slower sales cycles and why it's not a bad thing. You'll learn how buyer psychology has evolved, what the new customer journey looks like, and how to adapt your business strategy with more steadiness, connection,...

What if the next level of success isn't about scaling up — but settling in? In this solo episode, Marissa Lawton explores the idea of right-sizing your business — designing a company that supports your life instead of swallowing it whole. For years, online entrepreneurs have been told that growth is the only direction that matters. More offers, more revenue, more everything. But what happens when...