Get Off The Treadmill- Audio Podcast

Episode #25: Pick a Business Maturity Date (Part 2)

What if you could truly lead your business instead of just managing it? In this episode, Chuck Blakeman continues the discussion on business maturity dates (BMD) and how to take intentional steps toward achieving a business that serves your ideal lifestyle. If you’re stuck on the stability treadmill, it’s time to break free and build a business that works for you—not the other way around.

 

💡 Here’s what you’ll learn:

✅ The 50% Rule: Why business leaders must spend at least half their time leading, not managing

✅ How to create unscheduled and unavailable time to focus on growth instead of daily fires

✅ The five essential steps to designing a business that fuels your ideal lifestyle

✅ Why setting a Business Maturity Date (BMD) is one of the most important decisions you’ll ever make

 

🎧 About Our Guest:

Chuck Blakeman is a serial entrepreneur, best-selling author, and business transformation expert. His insights have helped thousands of business owners escape the grind and achieve freedom.

 

🚀 Why This Episode Matters:

Too many business owners let their companies dictate their lives. This episode gives you a roadmap to shift from managing to leading, helping you reclaim time, money, and control over your future.

 

💡 Host’s Takeaway:

Setting a Business Maturity Date (BMD) isn’t just about making a plan—it’s about making a commitment. Chuck’s approach is both practical and inspiring, and his own journey proves that failing to set a date is the real failure.

 

👉 Don’t just listen—take action. Set your BMD, go public, and start working toward real freedom. Click play now!

 

🔗 Links & Resources Mentioned:

 

📘 Rehumanizing the Workplace by Chuck Blakeman

🌍 Join a 3to5 Club to connect with like-minded business owners (www.3to5club.com)

✍️ Map out your ideal lifestyle goals with Chuck’s online resources

 

In future episodes, we’ll dive into freedom mapping, strategic planning, and the mindset shifts that will transform how you run your business. Stay tuned!

Episode #26: Serve, Don’t Sell: The Path to Sustainable Success with Jennifer Stapleton

In this episode, we dive into a game-changing business philosophy: Serve, Don’t Sell. Chuck sits down with Jennifer Stapleton, founding partner of Fire & Bliss, to explore why leading with service—not sales—creates better outcomes for businesses and clients alike.

 

💡 Here’s what you’ll learn:

 

✅ Why serving clients’ true needs leads to long-term success

✅ How to align your business with your values and ideal clients

✅ The power of referrals and trust in building a sustainable brand

✅ How fear-based decision-making can hold you back—and what to do instead

 

🎧 About Our Guest:

Jennifer Stapleton is a communications strategist, business owner, and artist who brings a unique blend of creativity and strategy to the world of marketing. Through Fire & Bliss, she has helped advocacy organizations achieve major policy wins, supported nonprofits in fulfilling their missions, and landed hundreds of stories in major U.S. publications.

 

🚀 Why This Episode Matters:

Too many entrepreneurs focus on closing the next sale instead of building lasting relationships. This episode challenges that mindset, showing you how generosity and service can actually drive more business success.

 

💡 Host’s Takeaway:

The best businesses aren’t built on pressure tactics—they’re built on trust. When you prioritize the long-term success of your clients (even if that means referring them elsewhere), your own business will thrive in return.

 

👉 Don’t just listen—take action. Click play now and find the path to sustainable success!

 

Links & Resources Mentioned:

 

Website: www.fireandbliss.com 

Jennifer Stapleton's LinkedIn: @jenniferbcstapleton

Chuck Blakeman's new book: Sell Less, Earn More: PREORDER HERE

 

 

What happens when you stop trying to “sell” and start genuinely serving? Jennifer shares a powerful real-world example of how putting others first can lead to unexpected business growth.

Episode #27: Stop Networking—And Build a Network Instead

Most business owners have been told that networking is the key to growth. But what if that’s a myth? What if traditional networking is actually keeping you trapped in an endless cycle of chasing customers—rather than building a thriving business?

 

In this episode, Chuck Blakeman challenges the conventional wisdom around networking and reveals three powerful reasons why successful business owners don’t waste time at networking events. Instead, they focus on building strong, strategic relationships that drive long-term success.

 

💡 Here’s what you’ll learn:

✅ Why traditional networking keeps small businesses small

✅ How to replace transactional sales with a relational business model

✅ The secret to finding “lumberjacks” who bring you the right clients—without endless networking

✅ How to shift from hunting one customer at a time to leveraging powerful connections

✅ Why building a network (instead of just networking) leads to more freedom and profitability

 

🎧 About Our Host:

Chuck Blakeman is a serial entrepreneur, best-selling author, and business transformation expert. With 13 businesses under his belt, Chuck has helped thousands of business owners break free from outdated strategies and build companies that run beyond them. His latest book, Sell Less, Earn More, dives deep into the mindset shift that turns struggling entrepreneurs into thriving business leaders.

 

🚀 Why This Episode Matters:

If you’re tired of handing out business cards, chasing leads, and feeling stuck in a never-ending sales cycle, this episode will help you shift your approach. By focusing on a few key relationships rather than countless surface-level connections, you’ll gain more time, more revenue, and more freedom.

 

💡 Host’s Takeaway:

Networking might be a great starting point, but it shouldn’t be your long-term strategy. The most successful business owners don’t rely on endless networking—they build real, high-value relationships with just a few key partners. When you make this shift, your business will grow exponentially while requiring less effort.

 

🎯 Don’t just listen—take action.

Start building your network today and move from being an income producer to a true business owner.

 

🔗 Links & Resources Mentioned:

📖 Sell Less, Earn More by Chuck Blakeman – Available on Amazon HERE

🌐 Connect with Chuck at www.3to5club.com

📩 Get Chuck’s business growth guide at for a limited price of $2.99 HERE

 

 

"Successful business owners don’t go to networking events. And if you’re spending too much time networking, you might actually be holding your business back. In this episode, I’ll show you why—and what you should be doing instead." —Chuck Blakeman

Episode #28: The Power of Moving From Rugged Individualism to Living in Business Community with Carey Lindeman

What if the best businesses weren’t planned, but discovered? In this episode, Chuck Blakeman sits down with Carey Lindeman, founder of Promise Care, to discuss how an unexpected volunteer experience led her to create a thriving home care business—and why she’s now transitioning into a new role as a business community leader.

 

💡 Here’s what you’ll learn:

✅ How Carey stumbled into entrepreneurship by filling a need in the senior care industry

✅ The importance of business communities and why every entrepreneur needs one

✅ The four building blocks of a successful business and how they create sustainable growth

✅ Why simplicity in strategic planning is key to long-term success

 

🎧 About Our Guest:

 

With nearly two decades of entrepreneurial experience, Carey Lindeman built Promise Care, a boutique senior care company focused on dignity and relationships. Now, she’s stepping into a new role as a co-facilitator of business communities, helping entrepreneurs build businesses that serve their lives—not the other way around.

 

Why This Episode Matters:

 

Many entrepreneurs struggle with isolation and uncertainty. Carey’s story highlights how being in a structured business community provides clarity, support, and fresh perspectives. Whether you're starting out or scaling up, having outside eyes on your business is a game-changer.

 

Host’s Takeaway:

 

"Entrepreneurs don’t need more complexity—they need clarity and community. Carey’s journey proves that success comes from movement, not over-planning. If you’ve ever felt stuck in your business, this episode is for you."

 

👉 Don’t just listen—take action. Find a community, simplify your strategy, and start building a business that gives you freedom!

 

👉 Links & Resources Mentioned:

 

Learn more about Promise Care: https://promisecareinc.com/

Discover 3to5 Club and how it helps business owners thrive: www.3to5club.com

Book recommendation: The Wisdom of Crowds by James Surowiecki

 

🎙 Stay tuned for more episodes on building businesses that give you freedom, not just money!

Episode #29: How to Never Have Commission Breath Again: The Four Walking-In Commitments

Most business owners hate selling—but what if you never had to sell again? In this episode, we’re tackling commission breath—that desperate energy potential clients can sense a mile away. We'll share how Chuck unknowingly fell into this trap and the four simple commitments that completely transformed his buying conversations.

 

Key Takeaways:

 

✅ How commission breath silently kills your sales.

✅ The three foundational principles that shift you from selling to serving.

✅ The Four Walking-In Commitments that ensure clients seek you out.

✅ Why NOT talking about your business can actually increase sales.

 

🚀 Why This Episode Matters:

 

If you’re tired of chasing clients and feeling like sales is a necessary evil, this episode is for you. These commitments will change the way you approach business development—helping you build relationships instead of forcing transactions.

 

💡 Host’s Takeaway:

 

Once I stopped focusing on closing deals and started focusing on serving, my business flourished. The Four Walking-In Commitments allowed me to attract more clients naturally, without feeling pushy or desperate.

 

🎯 Don’t just listen—take action.

"You get what you intend, not what you hope for."

 

🔗 Links & Resources Mentioned:

 

📖 Sell Less, Earn More by Chuck Blakeman – Available on Amazon HERE

🌐 Connect with Chuck at www.3to5club.com

📩 Get Chuck’s business growth guide at for a limited price of $2.99 here

 

Try these four commitments in your next client meeting and see the difference for yourself. Have you ever experienced commission breath? Drop a comment or send me a message—I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Episode #30: The Power of Intentions, Part 2 with Ben Kimball

In this episode of the Get Off the Treadmill Podcast, host Chuck Blakeman welcomes back Ben Kimball, co-owner of Kimball Productions and COO, Senior Editor, Producer, and Screenwriter. Ben shares insights from his journey in shifting his business mindset, inspired by Chuck’s book, Making Money is Killing Your Business.

Key Points Discussed:

• Starting with the End in Mind: Defining your desired outcome to guide decisions.
• From Survival to Intention: Shifting from just “paying the mortgage” to building a self-sustaining business.
• Leadership vs. Management: The importance of effective delegation and avoiding abdication.
• Parallel Lessons in Fatherhood: Investing time upfront for long-term efficiency.
• Five-Question Process: Clarifying goals, timelines, roadmaps, obstacles, and actionable steps.

Check our special offer for the Making Money is Killing Your Business: https://bit.ly/m/3to5Club

Take the next step and grab a copy of Chuck’s new book, Sell Less Earn More: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1642011819

Episode #31: Four Buying Questions

In this episode, Chuck Blakeman reveals how to shift from traditional selling to serving with his Four Buying Questions approach. Discover how to build deeper client relationships, earn trust, and guide them to make informed decisions — all without pushing a sale.

Key Insights:

🔑 Principles Behind the Four Buying Questions

• Serve, Don’t Sell: Focus on your client’s needs, not your product.
• Meet Them Where They Are: Understand their present situation, not where you want them to be.
• Seek to Understand: Listen to your client’s challenges before offering solutions.

🔑 The Four Buying Questions Framework

1. Past Question: “How did you get started in your business?”
2. Future Question: “What’s your vision for the next 3, 5, or 10 years?”
3. Present Question: “What’s the one thing you can do today to move forward?”
4. Customer Profile Question: “Who is your ideal customer?”

🔑 The Four Walking In Commitments

• Prioritize their long-term best interest.
• Only discuss your business when invited.
• Focus on cultivating relationships, not immediate sales.
• Always make an offer, even if it’s unrelated to your service.

Stop selling and start serving. By asking thoughtful questions instead of delivering pitches, you build trust, clarify your client’s needs, and create lasting success.

Episode #32: Stakeholder Mindset with Jeff Krommendyk

In this episode of Get Off the Treadmill, Chuck Blakeman welcomes back Jeff Krommendyk, former owner of Security First Insurance Agency, to dive deep into how small business owners can build intentional company cultures—no matter their size. Jeff shares his inspiring journey from the grind of startup life to creating a freedom-based business model, and eventually selling his successful agency.

Together, Chuck and Jeff explore the concept of a stakeholder mindset—how rethinking roles, language, and responsibility can transform a traditional "employee culture" into one rooted in ownership, dignity, and trust. Jeff shares practical strategies like rewriting the employee handbook, reshaping job postings, and redefining decision-making through the powerful “above and below the waterline” framework.

This episode is packed with wisdom for any business owner looking to empower their team, elevate their culture, and get off the treadmill of working in the business instead of on it.

Take the next step and grab a copy of Chuck’s new book, Sell Less Earn More: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1642011819