Have you ever read a book that genuinely changed the course of your life?
For me, that book was Buy Back Your Time.
Before I read it, my business technically worked, but it was completely dependent on me.
If I took time off, revenue stopped.
If I went on holiday, my laptop came with me.
If I wasn’t available, everything slowed down.
I was the bottleneck.
Everything flowed through me.
This was back in late 2022, and at the time I didn’t fully realise how unsustainable that way of working was. I just thought that was what running a business looked like.
What followed over the next few years completely changed how I operate, and dramatically improved my quality of life.
Turning your brain into a system (not a storage unit)
One of the biggest ideas that stuck with me was the idea that your brain shouldn’t be a storage unit.
As business owners, we carry everything:
- how things are done
- why decisions were made
- what “good” looks like
The problem is that as long as all of that lives in your head, you can’t replace yourself.
The shift for me was documenting how work gets done, building standard operating procedures and systems that other people could follow. Not perfect systems, just good enough ones.
That’s the foundation of making a business less dependent on you.
Buying back low-value time
The next big change was hiring an assistant.
At the time, it felt like a risk, spending money to offload things like email, scheduling, and day-to-day admin. But in practice, it freed up an enormous amount of mental space and time.
That role eventually evolved into something much bigger.
My assistant became our general manager, and now runs the day-to-day operations of the business.
That single change was one of the most transformative decisions I’ve made.
Removing myself from revenue generation
In the early days, every dollar the business made came directly from me.
If I wasn’t selling, nothing was being sold.
In 2024, I changed that by putting a commission structure in place for the consultants who were already delivering client work. They could now also bring in new business, and be rewarded for it.
Today, prospects can book directly with consultants on our site.
They run the calls.
They pitch the services.
I still do some sales, but I’m no longer the only path to income.
That’s when the system started doing the work, not me.
Building a leadership team that actually leads
The final major shift was establishing a leadership team and incentivising them properly.
We now have:
- a general manager overseeing daily operations
- a head of automation focused on retainer clients
- a head of sales supporting the wider team
Each of them is incentivised with bonuses tied to outcomes they directly control.
The difference this made was huge.
Instead of growth being driven by one person, it’s now driven by a team that’s genuinely invested in the long-term success of the business.
What changed for me personally
The result of all this wasn’t just a better business.
I’m not as busy day to day.
I can take time off without worrying.
The business continues to operate (and make money) without me.
I’ve gone from being a freelancer inside my own company to actually acting as a managing director.
And beyond work, I have more time for the things that matter:
- dropping my kids off at school
- ending the day earlier
- not constantly checking my inbox
That trade-off, higher costs in exchange for a better life. Which has been more than worth it.
Final thoughts
Buy Back Your Time didn’t just inspire me.
It fundamentally changed how I think about systems, delegation, and what a business is supposed to do for your life, not just your bank account.
If you’re running a service business and everything still runs through you, this might be the nudge you need.
And if you’ve read a book that’s had a similar impact on how you work or live, I’d love to hear about it.
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