エピソード

  • The Central Spoke: Josh Freeman’s Playbook for an Exit-Optimized Business

    The Central Spoke: Josh Freeman’s Playbook for an Exit-Optimized Business
    2026/09/04
    Josh Freeman—first lawyer in the family, former wood-chip slinger, and the guy Spencer still keeps on estate docs—walks through the hero’s journey from a post-crash family-law grind to founding the remote-first Freeman Level firm and assembling Exit Engine. He breaks down why “sellable” is not the same as “exit-optimized,” how selling tired hands buyers the playbook, and why stacking M&A-savvy legal, tax, and ops talent turns a one-way liquidity event into a planned harvest instead of a fire sale. Get informed, get ready, get optimized—and start with a valuation snapshot at Exit-Engine.com before the next unsolicited offer lands.

    Thank you for listening to The SMB Playbook. We hope you picked up a few sharper plays as you start prepping for your exit—because selling a business is not a pickup game, and the scoreboard is unforgiving if you wing it. This is a serious decision, and our job is to give you the information to run the right plays and execute on your goals. When you are ready to get your business valued and start drawing up the right plays for your exit, reach out at Exit-Engine.com
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    50 分
  • Truth, Justice and America’s Part with Jake Rust

    Truth, Justice and America’s Part with Jake Rust
    2026/08/29
    When Jake Rust left a larger firm to strike out on his own and build Hudson Oaks, he finally had the room to put clients first—an ethic he learned watching family members conduct business the right way and the wrong way. The Provo-born CFP carries that upbringing from a clean, contracted buyout of his father’s coin shop into exit planning that treats a sale as psychology, not a one-day fire sale. With one tidy Captain America part and a planner’s restraint, he makes the case that independence, documentation, and getting it right for the client are how the best outcomes get drawn up.

    Thank you for listening to The SMB Playbook. We hope you picked up a few sharper plays as you start prepping for your exit—because selling a business is not a pickup game, and the scoreboard is unforgiving if you wing it. This is a serious decision, and our job is to give you the information to run the right plays and execute on your goals. When you are ready to get your business valued and start drawing up the right plays for your exit, reach out at Exit-Engine.com
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    51 分
  • Quietly Undeterred with Ryan Freeman

    Quietly Undeterred with Ryan Freeman
    2026/08/25
    In this episode of the SMB Playbook, Spencer sits down with Ryan Freeman—one of the quiet architects behind Exit Engine—to unpack how a former BYU offensive lineman with a knack for turning propane tanks into gym equipment became a steady hand in the high-stakes world of business exits. From surviving two Achilles tears, a shredded shoulder, and a hundred-mile slog across the Salt Flats (complete with hailstorms and post-race body purges), Ryan reveals why preparing a company for sale feels a lot like training for an ultra: the real work happens long before the starting gun. Listeners walk away with practical wisdom on cleaning up data rooms, dodging the “skeletons” that kill deals, and why the smartest sellers treat their exit like a guided rim-to-rim-to-rim rather than a hopeful solo scramble.

    Thank you for listening to The SMB Playbook. We hope you picked up a few sharper plays as you start prepping for your exit—because selling a business is not a pickup game, and the scoreboard is unforgiving if you wing it. This is a serious decision, and our job is to give you the information to run the right plays and execute on your goals. When you are ready to get your business valued and start drawing up the right plays for your exit, reach out at Exit-Engine.com
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    51 分
  • An Accountant's Accountant with Ryan Rees

    An Accountant's Accountant with Ryan Rees
    2026/08/12
    In this episode of the SMB Playbook, Ryan Reese, managing partner of Milestone Advisors, shares how a modest tax practice grew into a 40-plus-person firm delivering full-spectrum accounting, controllership, and fractional CFO services. He discusses the partnership with BJ Thompson that followed an unsustainable workload, the firm’s flexible culture that lets team members shape their own schedules and compensation, and the competitive edge of near-instant client responsiveness. The conversation turns to Exit Engine, his collaboration with Josh Freeman that equips business owners to prepare for a premium sale—or simply build a stronger company—without waiting for a crisis to force the decision.

    Thank you for listening to The SMB Playbook. We hope you picked up a few sharper plays as you start prepping for your exit—because selling a business is not a pickup game, and the scoreboard is unforgiving if you wing it. This is a serious decision, and our job is to give you the information to run the right plays and execute on your goals. When you are ready to get your business valued and start drawing up the right plays for your exit, reach out at Exit-Engine.com
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    48 分
  • Back In the Saddle with Dave Hinckley

    Back In the Saddle with Dave Hinckley
    2026/08/12
    We are dusting off the playbook for a new team. SMB Playbook is partnering with Exit Engine in order to provide the most comprehensive broker experience a business owner, buyer or seller could ask for. Right out of the gate, our first interview is with Dave Hinckley. Dave is a seasoned entrepreneur who comes from a family of business owners. He's seen things done the right way and now helps others follow the path. Get to know Dave as the first member of the team in this new series of episodes.

    Thank you for listening to The SMB Playbook. We hope you picked up a few sharper plays as you start prepping for your exit—because selling a business is not a pickup game, and the scoreboard is unforgiving if you wing it. This is a serious decision, and our job is to give you the information to run the right plays and execute on your goals. When you are ready to get your business valued and start drawing up the right plays for your exit, reach out at Exit-Engine.com
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    55 分