BCS 215 – Changing Routines to Change Results: Insights from Atomic Habits for Coaches

In this episode of Business Coaching Secrets, Karl Bryan and Rode Dog dive deep into the mindsets, habits, and strategies necessary to build a resilient, scalable coaching business. Karl shares hard-won lessons on defining your goals, leveraging the right opportunities, the real meaning of leverage, and why focusing on the right clients (and repelling the wrong ones) is essential as you grow. Expect real talk on routines, business trends, acquisitions, hiring, and how to think—and act—like a true professional business coach.

Key Topics Covered

The Power of Clear Goals and Reverse Engineering

• Karl reveals the importance of knowing exactly what you want, and how working from your goal (instead of just toward it) reframes decisions, priorities, and daily actions.

• Exercises around future-pacing your identity and decisions—for yourself and your clients—lead to significantly better outcomes.

Leverage: What It Actually Means in Business

• Detailed examples across software, real estate, knowledge, hiring, and marketing explain how to create scale: growth without matched cost increases.

• Why recurring revenue (selling “dog food”, not just “dogs”) is the foundation of business value and a powerful sale or eventual exit.

Filtering for Ideal Clients & Repelling the Wrong Ones

• As you achieve traction and move away from scarcity, increasing your client filters becomes essential for sanity, profit, and long-term satisfaction.

• The value of knowing your “who,” specifically attracting B2B clients who open new networks and scaling exponentially through referrals and “sell-through” rather than only “sell-to” structures.

Routine, Habits & Patterns

• Why fundamental change requires altering routines—not just surface habits—and how recognizing patterns in yourself and others unlocks true breakthroughs.

Evaluating New Business Opportunities

• Channeling Warren Buffett: get in the biggest, most scalable “boat” (industry) possible to maximize your return.

• How to think about opportunities (cannabis, anti-aging, software vs. service, real estate, cleaning) and the trap of non-recurring sales.

Hiring, Partnerships & the 3-Hire Mindset

• The right hires change your future faster than anything else. You’re always just “three hires away” from the business you dream about—if you define those hires properly and relentlessly.

• Partner for strengths you lack; don’t get left behind by your own stories (“I’m not a software/AI person”).

Lessons from the Front Lines

• The biggest error is waiting for perfection instead of iterating (“it’s not 10,000 hours, it’s 10,000 iterations”).

• Recurring theme: stop and think strategically, use mental models, but keep moving forward.

Notable Quotes

“Average people have dreams, successful people have plans.”

“Don’t hire Karl and myself to be a handyman—that’s just not happening.”

“If you want to create something, you best get to work and just get it damn well done.”

“You want to work from your goal, not towards your goal.”

“You should be repelling clients, not attracting clients.”

“Scale is when your company grows and your expenses stay the same.”

“A luxury business owner’s favorite thing about selling high-end goods: ‘Luxury margins.’”

“You’re always three hires away from the business you’ve been dreaming of. The challenge is knowing exactly who those hires are.”

Actionable Takeaways

1. Define What You Really Want

• Regularly ask (and help your clients ask): “What do you actually want?” Not just what you don’t want.

• Paint a vivid future state and reverse-engineer actions from there.

2. Repel as Much as You Attract

• Constantly improve your client filters as your business grows. The wrong clients will cost you more than you think.

3. Leverage is Everything

• Look for recurring sales and business models where incremental growth doesn’t require equal cost increases.

• Learn to leverage people, software, knowledge, and marketing—not just your own time.

• Don’t fall into emotional or habit traps; change the routine for long-term transformation.

4. Prioritize the Right Hires & Partnerships

• List three game-changing roles or partners you need, not just for today but for the business you want to build.

5. Embrace Iteration, Not Perfection

• Launch, learn, and adapt. Success favors speed and flexibility, not long, drawn-out “perfect” launches.

6. Stay in Big Opportunities

• Don’t waste energy patching up a sinking, outdated “boat.” Move industries, models, or markets if your current one is dying.

Resources Mentioned

– Profit Acceleration Software™
Developed by Karl Bryan. Shown as the “business coach’s superpower” for finding $100k+ for business owners in 45 minutes.

– Books & Key Concepts

• Atomic Habits (James Clear): Changing routines, not just habits.

• “Who Not How” (Dan Sullivan): Identifying the right hires/partners.

• Warren Buffett’s “boat” analogy for opportunity size.

– Mental Models for Business:

• Think “input/output”—keep asking, “Am I building recurring revenue or only selling one-offs?”

• Overcome emotional traps by recognizing when you’re simply chasing what’s immediately available.

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