From Operator to Owner: The Shift That Breaks the Growth Ceiling

Most business owners don’t stall because they lack effort — they stall because they’re still operating the business instead of owning it.

In this episode, Chris sits down with Josh Dukes and Erin Jones, founders of One Residential, to unpack the lessons that helped them break through that ceiling and build a business that grows through people.

Serving the MD / VA / DC market, One Residential will finish 2025 with:

• 685 closings
• $308M in volume
• $7.1M in revenue

🔑 What You’ll Learn

• Why trying to be everything to everyone limits growth
• How to balance collaboration with decisive leadership
• When your “client” shifts from customers to your people
• How letting go multiplies leadership, impact, and culture

🧠 The Big Shift

Operators succeed through personal effort. Owners succeed through people, systems, and leadership.

Josh & Erin share how making that shift changed everything — and what they’re still learning as owners today.

🎯 Who This Episode Is For

• Small business owners
• Service-based operators (HVAC, plumbing, trades, etc.)
• Leaders who feel like they’re the bottleneck in their business

🎙️ Why This Conversation Matters

Josh & Erin have broken through a ceiling most operators never escape — and for the past year and a half, Chris has coached them through that transition.

If growth has started to feel heavier instead of freer, this episode is for you.

In this episode of The Leader Formula, Chris shares a deeply honest conversation about money, leadership, and the hidden financial trap many business owners fall into. Even when a business looks successful on the outside, the reality behind the scenes can be stress, scarcity, and financial confusion.

Chris walks through his own story of running a high-producing real estate business, the financial wake-up call that followed, and how discovering the Profit First system completely changed his relationship with money, leadership, and margin. Together, Chris and Steve unpack the psychology behind money decisions, why profit must be protected—not hoped for—and how simple systems can bring clarity, stability, and peace back into your business and life.

Key Topics Covered

• Why revenue growth doesn’t always equal financial health
• The “vanity metrics” leaders hide behind — and the cost of doing so
• How ego, identity, and money are often deeply intertwined
• What happens when a business grows faster than its financial systems
• The difference between hoping for profit vs. protecting profit
• How financial stress impacts leadership, relationships, and marriage
• Why systems—not willpower—create sustainable profit
• The psychology behind avoidance, anxiety, and money behavior

Chris’ Story Highlights

• Scaling a real estate business selling 160+ homes per year
• Stepping out of production and realizing the numbers didn’t support the shift
• Burning through an emergency fund and accumulating credit card debt
• The emotional toll financial stress placed on leadership and family
• Discovering Profit First and implementing it in real time
• Moving from financial anxiety to clarity, margin, and stability

Three Core Truths From the Episode

1. Revenue is vanity. Profit is sanity. Cash is reality.
2. If you don’t protect your profit, your business will consume it.
3. Your ego will always want to spend more than your business can handle.

Who This Episode Is For

• Business owners who look successful but feel financially stressed
• Leaders working long hours without the take-home pay to match
• Operators ready to think and act like owners
• Anyone who wants their business to support their life—not consume it

Action Step

If you’re overwhelmed by your finances:

• Start small — create a separate “profit” account and put 1% of revenue into it
• Get honest about your numbers
• Build systems that create clarity instead of stress

Resources Mentioned

• Profit First by Mike Michalowicz
• The Ultimate Blueprint for an Insanely Successful Business by Keith Cunningham
• Taming Your Money Monster (Enneagram + Money)

Connect With Chris

If this episode resonated and you want help applying these principles to your business, Chris offers coaching and conversations focused on clarity, leadership, and financial health.

🌐 Website: thechrisandco.com

What happens when you travel halfway across the world expecting to give… and instead you’re the one who gets transformed?

In this episode, Steve returns from Kathmandu, Nepal, where he spent time serving at a mountain orphanage — and the leadership lessons he brought home are raw, surprising, and deeply human. These children, living with almost nothing, modeled presence, generosity, connection, and joy in ways that challenge everything we think leadership is supposed to look like.

Chris and Steve unpack:

🔥 The moment in Nepal that broke Steve open emotionally

👁️ The “soul goggles” experience and what it taught him about presence

❤️ Why these children gave more than they received — and what that reveals about true generosity

🌱 How play, curiosity, and childlikeness shape effective leadership

🤝 Why giving attention is one of the most powerful gifts a leader can offer

🌏 The difference between leading from scarcity vs. leading from abundance

🧘 Practices you can adopt today to become more grounded, present, and connected

This is not a typical business episode. It’s an invitation — to slow down, to see people more deeply, and to reconnect with the heart of why leadership matters.

Whether you lead a team, a business, a family, or a community, these lessons from a small orphanage in the mountains of Kathmandu will stay with you.

📩 We’d love to hear from you.

What stood out to you? What practice of presence or generosity are you going to try this week? Email us or message us to continue the conversation.