Codie A. Sanchez

How to win in 2026:

1. Don’t be woke. 
2. Work. Hard.
3. No victim mentality allowed.
4. Have strong opinions, loosely held.
5. Take strategic bets with your $.
6. Protect your time.
7. Be curious and a good human.

Doesn't matter who you are. Who you share a bed with. Or the color of your skin.

Anybody can win. (Btw this was from 2023).

Underrated superpower:

Just dumb enough to believe in yourself, just smart enough to execute.

You don’t have anxiety because you think you CAN’T do it.

You have anxiety because deep down you know you CAN be doing bigger things.

People overestimate business plans and “genius.” They underestimate irrational inability to quit.

Dumber people than you have done it.

Let's get after it 💥

Follow for more & repost if you need this to be your new mantra.

I remind myself of this often...

↓↓↓

- I remember when I first got to hire a family member
- Then do deals with a second
- How I got to work with my dad at Contrarian Thinking
- How I took family on my first private plane
- How we gave my dad a truck

Not ever a brag such a blessing.

Builders, you building is the blessing. At least that’s what we believe at Contrarian Thinking… you!

(And if you're not a builder yet... come to MSM live and I'll teach you how to start: https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF)

You can flatter & pander.

Or you can become ACTUALLY likable:

• Do what you say you’re going to do
• Show your results, not your intentions
• Your job isn’t done until THE job is done
• Communicate - less words, more meaning
• Bring solutions, not complaints
• Do the dirty work
• Don’t be boring

The truth:

People like competence.

So does money.

(Feel free to share if this resonates♻️)

You don’t get lucky.

You make your luck.

There are 3 ways to increase your odds of luck:

1. Do, repeatedly. Try, then iterate.
2. Be consistent. Resist the urge to give up.
3. Gain knowledge. Invest in yourself.

Knowledge without action is worthless. So is acting without knowing what you’re doing.

Say you want to buy a business.

You could get the best advice in the world from the smartest people in acquisitions… But if you don’t act, you’ll never buy one.

OR

Your could have all the drive in the world, the right mindset… But ruin yourself financially because you didn’t learn the right tactics.

A hard truth I've learned in business.

It's always who not how.

1. There's only so much time in the day.
2. There's always going to be someone smarter and better than you.

These aren't problems. They're levers.

Every time you struggle with an issue, don't try to figure out how to solve it. Instead, ask yourself what type of person could solve it for you.

You don’t have a HOW problem, you have a WHO problem.

Solve that and you solve everything.

↓ ↓ ↓

This is a strategy I think of as “stealing someone’s 10,000 hours.”

And I’m letting you take my 10,000 hours for free at my Main Street Millionaire Live Event…

I’ve bought & sold 20+ small businesses. I’ve failed a couple, scaled several, and I’m sharing a condensed version of how to buy a biz over 3 days.

It’ll be beginner-friendly and perfect if you're still in your 9-5.

Save your spot here today → https://lnkd.in/g7mjjqYQ

The only statistic you should care about is time-to-action.

Improving your urgency redefines your ability to get sh*t done.

If:

- Next quarter becomes next month
- Next month becomes next week
- Next week becomes tomorrow...

You will make more money.

Follow today (not tomorrow 😉) if you need more of this energy in your life → Codie A. Sanchez

Best part of your business? The people.

Worst part? The people.

Business horror story time:

I hired an exec, paid her $200k a year + $200k in bonus.

She secretly launches 2 side businesses, tries to take our clients to one, and was secretly launching a competing product all within the first 6 months.

Yikes.

We found out, let her go (obviously), but I had to chuckle because she bankrupted her last company... and then changed her name since she now claims it was a success.

Moral of the story...

If you're in business, expect it.

Protect your house because your biggest costs will always be wrong people trusted.

Just me... or have you also had business horror stories?

Wall Street has one rule:

Never start what you can buy.

Here’s everything you need to know about buying a biz in 2025:

While 90% of startups fail, 80% of acquisitions survive the first year.

88% of people worth $30M+ have done at lease one acquisition.

That means the best way to get rich isn’t to start a business like they love to tell us.

The best way to wealth with the highest degree of certainty is through acquisitions.

Right now, the average small business owner in the US is 67 years old. When you’ve run a business for 10+ years, you're bound to be exhausted.

These owners are motivated to sell by what I call the 7 D's:

• Departure
• Divorce
• Disease
• Disagreement
• Distress
• Death
• Dullness

They’re desperate to exit the game but don't know how.

Most people think they need millions in capital to buy a businesses.

But they don't realize 60% of all business sales involve seller financing.

Instead of going to a bank for a loan, the seller becomes your bank.

You put some money down, and they get paid over time from the business profits.

There are 3 reasons why a seller would agree to this:

1. Cash

Let’s say the bank offered the seller $750,000 for their biz but you offered the seller $1.15 million paid over time.

They’ll make an extra $400,000 by being the bank.

2. Taxes

Lump sum payments hit the seller with massive tax bills.

Installment payments spread over 10 years means lower tax brackets and potentially hundreds of thousands saved.

3. Speed

Bank loans take 3-9 months to close. Seller financing can close in 2-3 weeks.

Now which businesses to target?

Ones under $10 million in revenue with at least 15% profit margins.

Blue-collar service businesses fit this bill - HVAC, landscaping, cleaning services.

They're cash-flowing, recession-resistant, and boring enough that private equity ignores them.

BUT, before searching anywhere, create what I call a deal box. Define exactly:

• How much cash flow you need annually
• Maximum purchase price
• Geographic preferences
• Industry focus
• Must-haves and can't-stands

If you don’t know what you’re looking for, you’ll never find it.

Next up, how to find businesses to buy?

1. Venmo Challenge

Pull your payment history and filter out friends and big companies. What's left are small businesses you already pay - cleaning services, handymen, landscapers.

2. Personal P&L Review.

Open your credit card statements and look at small businesses you spend with. These are owners you can reach out to.

3. The 9-5 Strategy:

One of our community members bought her coworker's $1.5M business with full seller financing after he decided to retire to go skiing with his wife.

↓ ↓ ↓

As a thank you for sticking around to the end, I want you give my "Deal Clarity Workbook."

It helps you figure out what business is right for you.

Grab it here: https://lnkd.in/enPdVi_D

3 tips for scaling a business from $1:


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But what if you're trying to scale past $1M?

A 2-minute social media post isn't going to give you the clarity and freedom you're craving with your business.

That's why I'm running a free workshop tomorrow. The topic? How to pull strategic levels in your biz to find hidden cash.

Not for everyone, but if it sounds interesting, grab your spot here: https://lnkd.in/gSfvX_AF

I wish this for you…

Oddly unpopular take:

Don't apologize for chasing money.

If you are out there hustling... don't apologize for it.

You don't have to be interested in brunch.

You don't have to slow down and chill.

You don't need to say yes to everyone.

It's okay if you're in your hustle season.

It's okay to be obsessed.

It is very hard to change the world when you are broke. It’s okay to ignore everything else until you fix that.

Work-life balance when you can afford life.

“Follow your passion” is great advice...

If you don’t care about being rich.

If you DO care about being rich, then the better advice is: Follow the money.

- 70% of millionaires are self made.
- 68% of millionaires own a business (or as high as 88% depending on what criteria you use).
- The 10 richest men in the world hold 89% of their net worth in companies.

If you want to be financially free, you need skin in the game.

Good news is you don't have to be Warren Buffett or Jeff Bezos to figure this out.

You likely just need someone to show you the steps to take.

So I gathered up some of the smartest business buyers I know, and we're putting on a virtual intensive:

- Set YOUR business-buying goals
- Learn all the secrets of the process
- Do laser coaching on real deals

Grab your ticket to join here: https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF

My advice to most:

Don't start, buy.

Entrepreneurship is incredibly hard.

- Failure rate: 90% failure rate
- Avg salary: $46k

Instead go buy a profitable business using SBA loans just like you would a mortgage.

Fastest way to own a $1M rev biz? Buy

↓↓↓

P.S. Want me to bully you into buying a biz?

Sign up here and I'll get it done in 72 hours: https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF

13 other unreasonably simple habits to change your life:

1. Waking up at 5:45am solves 99.9% of daily issues.

2. Grab your to-do list. Do the thing you want to do least, first.

3. Stop all 60 min meetings, make them 45 minutes. Tighter meetings, more time.

4. No social media, email, or text when you wake up. Write something, read something, or create something before you get sucked in.

5. Do the $1,000/hr Test. Group work in 3 buckets based on return: $10, $100, $1,000. Offload one low ROI task per day.

6. Change one meeting a week to a walking call. Watch how excited the other meeting member becomes.

7. Add a How vs Won't check-in. When you say, "that WON'T work." Instead ask, "How could that work?"

8. Be the dumbest one in your friend group, then move on when you’re not. As they say, if you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room.

9. Take a picture of your net worth. What gets measured gets managed. Check finances daily.

10. Always the stairs, never the elevator. Pick the hard option. See how much stronger you are than you think.

11. Never write to-dos in stone. You're 10x more productive if you reprioritize daily.

12. Meditate. 10 minutes a day. For a twofer - do it in the sauna. Sometimes hacking culture gets it right.

13. Get intimidated. Everything you want is on the other side of fear. Do something every day that scares you a little bit.

Life is the small things repeated daily.

Change one daily habit, and beautiful things start to happen...

So pick one.

↓↓↓

Also...build the habit of getting ownership, not income.

Come to MSM Live to learn how: https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF

What I wish I was told before I had success.

The “Hate Us ‘Cuz They Ain’t Us” Curve:

When you first start out, they tell you...

You’re lame.
You’re crazy.
That’ll never work.
Oh, she’s a one-hit wonder.
She probably has a rich dad.
Or slept her way there.

THEN, we hit the top of the curve. Your success is obvious. And things start to change... They say…

Oh yeah, I know her.
Hey, long time no talk!
Love to meet up and pick your brain.
How did you do that?

And the grand finale...
They ask you for a job.

If success is your goal, expect people to talk a lot of crap for a long time. Let them. Because one day, you’ll just get to point at the scoreboard.

↓↓↓

FYI

If you're ready to step out of your comfort zone this year and buy a business, come to my live event this week.

I'll teach you how (over 3 days): https://lnkd.in/eEye_qd6

Business scaling isn't rocket science.

But it is a science.

After working with 100s of companies, I can tell you the difference between the ones that plateau and the ones that explode comes down to these 3 levers:

Every scalable business needs:

- The right people (who)
- The right systems (how)
- The right focus (what)

Miss any one, and you'll hit a ceiling.Let's break down each piece (and I'll share what most get wrong):

1. Let's start with PEOPLE

Most owners hire too fast, fire too slow, and expect a miracle in between.

A bad executive hire will cost you $200-300K+ and waste 6-12mos of momentum.

But get it right? You start to own your business instead of being owned by it.

To make sure we only hire A-players, every hire goes through this matrix:

• Known Candidate: Team vouches for them
• Proven Experience: Done exact job before
• Proven Industry: Worked in your sector
• Proven Problem Set: Solved your problem
• Proven Scale: Built at your size

2. Next up: SYSTEMS

5 systems all successful companies have:

• Executive Vision (where you're going)
• KPIs/Goals (what success looks like)
• Performance Dashboards (tracking what matters)
• Communication (keeping us aligned)
• Strong Culture (making it all work together)

Most businesses build these 5 system chains separately.

But we noticed that connecting them through a framework makes scaling more predictable...

This reduces the inevitable bottlenecks that re-appear as you grow:

• Executive planning feeds into →
• Sales metrics which optimize →
• Operations processes which enable →
• Team communication which improves →
• Financial performance

This doesn’t eliminate all growing pains.. but it brings a method to the madness of building.

3. The final lever: FOCUS.

Most owners try to solve 27 problems at once.

The best solve ONE problem exceptionally well – and they pick the RIGHT problem.

Something I constantly hear is: "My prospects can't afford my product."But it's rarely a pricing problem. It's almost always a persona problem…

When prospects "can't afford" your product, run these 3 tests:

• Competitive analysis: How does your pricing compare?
• Marketing analysis: Is your value prop clear?
• Avatar analysis: Are you targeting the right people?

99% of the time, your problem is an avatar mismatch.

You're trying to sell snow to Eskimos, instead of hot chocolate to skiers.

The most valuable exercise for any owner is building a detailed customer avatar.

Define who NEEDS your solution, not who you wish would buy it.

I've just scratched the surface of these frameworks today...and implementing them properly is where most owners struggle.

↓↓↓

If you’d like to learn how to apply these frameworks in your business to find hidden cash...check out our workshop next week.

It's the only thing on the agenda: https://lnkd.in/gZaAQkpT

6 other traits of rich people no one tells you:

1. Rich people want you to sell them something.

2. Something 99% of rich people have in common: they own. Most often, they own businesses & real estate.

3. Most people complain about taxes, then pay them. Rich people study taxes then outsmart them.

4. In my experience, almost all successful people are competitive. More competitive you are, more likely you are to succeed.

5. Most rich people I know don't care about their title at all. Business owner > visionary, industry disrupter, startup CEO

6. You'll learn the most from asking rich people this question: "When did you almost lose it all? What did you learn?"

💥 For more like this, feel free to follow me → Codie A. Sanchez

The #1 killer of businesses is bad cashflow.

15 other harsh business truths for you:

1. The greatest muscle you can build is urgency. Bureaucracy is business poison.

2. Decrease the time between having an idea and getting it done. Everything changes.

3. Never sacrifice reputation in the name of business. You can always start another company. You can never create a new reputation.

4. Long-term games and long-term people compound. Resist shiny objects.

5. Hire smart people, pay them well, set them up for success... Then leave them the hell alone.

6. “There’s nothing worse than being sick, fat, tired and trying to run your business.” - Dana White

7. The highest ROI investment founders & owners can make is in themselves. Health shapes mindset. Mindset shapes action.

8. You're better off learning negotiation than financial modeling. Business is less spreadsheets than words.

9. The best business of all time has only you, a computer, and the send button.

10. Every additional employee increases complexity. Hiring is a last resort.

11. The best advice comes from those just a couple steps ahead of you. These people still vividly remember the problems you're facing today.

12. Sell painkillers, not vitamins. There's more money in needs than wants.

13. No discounts. Compete on value, not price. Any biz with $$$ can enter your market and bleed you out. Differentiate beyond commodity.

14. A happy customer is the most powerful marketing. Prioritize reviews. Humans are social animals.

15. If no one thinks you’re crazy, you’re too late. If everyone thinks your idea is good? Even worse. Outsized returns lie in non-conformism.

↓↓↓↓

P.S. I'm running a free masterclass for business owners (next week).

What we'll cover? 4 growth levers to increase cash flow in your biz.

Grab your spot here (for free): https://lnkd.in/gSfvX_AF

If you’re in your 20s, I’m gonna tell you the truth that nobody told me.

I’m in my 30s now, and I wish someone would’ve told me that your 20s actually suck.

Everybody TELLS you this is the best time in your life, but when you’re in it, it feels the opposite of that.

You are hotter than you’ll ever be, and you have more energy, BUT:

- You’re kind of broke.
- You can’t figure out what you want to “do” with your life
- You feel lost, you work nonstop, you have a miserable job
- You’re single, dating, with crazy emotions
- You go out drinking more than you should

But here’s the thing:

Everybody’s been there. It’s totally normal. And honestly, at the end of the day, your 30s are AWESOME.

Coming into your mid 30s is a blast:

- You have money finally
- You kinda have an idea of what you wanna do with your life
- You’re not so emotionally volatile
- People are slightly more mature, you don’t have to date idiot 20-year-olds

Just know, it gets better.

If it sucks right now, guess what? It’s supposed to.

Decrease the time between having an idea and getting it done.

Money loves speed. Poverty loves waiting.

3 harsh truths I've been thinking about a lot lately...

1. Most successful people I've met aren't that smart. They move fast, they take risk, they work a lot. That's it.

2. The world is run by C students & failed employees. You can't underestimate yourself.

3. Managing what you choose to sell, do and focus on is more important than how hard you work or how smart you are.

Example:

You can, for the next 40 years:

- Climb up the corporate ladder
- Grind for a mission you don't believe in
- Spend 50hrs/wk+ away from your family

All for a 401k and a white picket fence at the end to show for it.

OR

You can learn how to buy a business and:

- Own a cashflowing biz in your community
- Touch your work with your own two hands
- Disconnect your money from your time
- Spend more time on the things that matter
- Become one of the few... an Owner.

Ownership is not for everyone.

But it could be for you.

I don’t blame you if you're nervous to take the first step on your own.

If that’s you, I’m hosting an event that's just what you need to start acting on business-buying…

Get details & sign-up here → https://lnkd.in/gmD2RqG5

The best founders do one thing brilliantly...

Hire.

It sounds easy. It’s not.

Here are 7 hiring principles we go by:

↓↓↓↓

P.S.

Tomorrow I'm running a workshop for business owners (for free).

We will cover 4 distinct levers anyone can pull to unlock "hidden" cash in your business.

Hope to see you there!

Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/gZaAQkpT

You need ownership.

The best way to achieve it? Buying...

Building = years with no profit.
Buying = cashflow from day one.

When you buy a business, you're not gambling on potential. You're getting proven profits, existing customers, and someone else's 10,000 hours of work... Made yours overnight.

The wealth-building playbook has changed.

Old way: Build a startup, pray for funding, burn cash, hope to be the 1 in 100 that succeeds.

New way: Buy a business, use existing cashflow, own your time.

Less sexy? Maybe. But it works.

What type of business is smart to buy? You can use the SOWS shorthand:

S - Stale (little to no innovation)
O - Old (been around forever)
W - Weak (fragmented competition)
S - Simple (services people need daily)

These businesses are:
• Too small for PE firms..
• Not right for competitors..
• But the Goldilocks fit for someone like you.

And the timing is right on this opportunity:

→ Baby boomers are in the process of retiring en masse: 75M predicted by 2030
→ Millions of them are small business owners with no succession plan.
→ So what if you buying their business grants them retirement?

You can buy a business WITHOUT:
• Risking your savings
• Sacrificing your lifestyle
• Having previous ownership experience

Is it easy? No.
Is it worth it? I say yes.

If you want to learn the fundamentals (and find out if biz-buying is worth it for YOU)…come to my 3 day live event MSM LIVE.

I’ve helped 15,000 people become owners and would love you to join the list.

Just last year we helped 9 members of our Academy buy 7-figure businesses.

If you want more information, click here: https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF

The greatest muscle you can build is urgency.

Shrink your timelines...

When you say next quarter, push for next 60 days.

When you say next month, push for 2 weeks.

When you say next week, push for 24 hours.

Not everything will get done on the new timeline, but you'll build a habit that will make you more successful than other people.

Decrease the time between having an idea and getting it done. Everything changes.

↓ ↓ ↓

If you want to push forward serious financial goals in 2026, you should look into this…

It’s live event on what I think is the single greatest skill you could learn this year to change your financial future forever.

It’s called a 3 day live event called Main Street Millionaire where we’re going deep on exactly how to find, buy, run, and scale a profitable small business.

If this sounds remotely interesting, save your spot here → https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF

The average person thinks having a job is safer than starting a company.

They're wrong:

Let me be clear though, having a job isn’t bad.

In fact, a high-paying job is one of the only ways you can eventually get to a position where you can invest.

But you will never have true:

- Freedom
- Security
- Wealth

Without ownership.

↓↓↓

If this post made you change your perspective on your job...

I have something for you to start learning the possibilities of business buying:

A virtual 3-day event with me and the smartest business buyers I know.

The goal? Collapse a decade of solo business-buying learning into 72 hours.

Get details & your ticket here: https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF

There’s no such thing as the right or wrong business.

There’s only the business that’s right or wrong for you.

One of the most common DMs I get is:

"Should I buy a laundromat, car wash, or storage units?"

But that's totally the wrong question to begin with...because everyone has different goals.

That’s why I created the Contrarian Deal Clarity Framework to help first time owners buy a biz.

You need to define 5 components:

1. Your Ideal Owner Experience

Saying “I want to leave my 9-5” is too wishy-washy.

To trade in your W2 form, your vision board needs to be specific on three things:

- Personal goals (do you want more family time or grind for yourself)
- Income goals (replace your $75k salary or build an empire)
- Business goals (be a hands-on operator or absentee owner)

2. Your Zone of Genius

Think of this as the intersection between:

- Passion (what you love)
- Skills & Experience (what you’re good at)
- Network (who you know)

Most people ignore this and buy businesses they eventually hate running.

Don’t be most people.

3. Business Size

It’s easy to fantasize about buying a Fortune 500 company.

But we’re not playing the billionaire game here.

As a first-time time buyer, look for micro acquisitions:

- <$1M cost
- $50K-$200K profits
- 1-3X multiples

Less competition, more opportunity, fewer headaches.

4. Profit

Remember...you’re not just buying a business for the sake of it.

Your acquisition MUST be an income stream that can cover:

1. Debt service
2. Operator salary (if relevant)
3. Growth/working capital
4. Your earnings

Use these two tests to evaluate if a deal is worth looking at:

The SOWS Test

Before I buy anything, I ask if the business is:

- Stale - Does the owner still use fax machines
- Old - Is it 5+ years old with repeat customers
- Weak - Does competition suck at marketing
- Simple - Can an 8-year-old could understand it

The more boxes it checks, the better.

The BRIT Test

Then I check to see if it’s BRIT:

- Buy - Must be a cashflow, not cash-suck businesses
- Resist - Recession-proof
- Increase - Can I raise prices (most owners undercharge by 30%)
- Tech - Can I add simple technology to improve it?

5. Industry

There are certain industries you should avoid for your first biz.

Think restaurants or hotels...

On the flip side, these are my favorite businesses for first-time buyers:

- Digital Businesses (build once, sell forever)
- Home Services (roof repair / lawn care)
- Professional Services (e.g CPAs)
- Real Estate Enhanced (laundromats/car washes)

Once you get clear on your Deal Box, you stop wasting time on deals that don’t fit your criteria and get closer to buying the biz that FEELs right.

↓↓↓

Want to go even deeper than this post did?...

Next week, I'm running a Masterclass breaking down exactly how to buy the perfect business for YOU.

Check it out: https://lnkd.in/gmD2RqG5

If you have had:

• a terrible boss
• workplace ptsd
• a bankruptcy
• a huge failure

GOOD.

Chips on shoulders > easy roads.

The more you do hard things, the more you'll get what you want.

Because doing hard things, makes hard things easier.

If you're doing it right, the failure that leveled you last year, won't even register this year.

↓ ↓ ↓

If you're ready to seek out your next hard thing, let's buy a business this year ;)

Here's a list of 130 boring biz's I'd start with → https://lnkd.in/eGpHZtx3

Why you never get what you want...

- You don’t ask.
- You don’t make it a win-win.
- You don’t know when to walk away.

Here's how to avoid these negotiation mistakes (& get the deal you deserve):

If you want to fail in negotiating and alway overpay... don’t read this.

Buyers with experience only negotiate on three variables that determine the value of a business.

Most sellers don't even understand these concepts, which gives you a massive advantage if you can educate them on how deals really work:

1. EBITDA/SDE

Contrary to popular belief, this isn't about the number on their P&L.

It's about the cash flow you’ll actually get when you take over.

Here’s an example:

If a seller says "we made $500k last year" but half of that came from a one-time contract that won't renew…

You can't pay for income that won't exist for you.

That's like buying a house and paying for the furniture they're taking with them.

Most buyers get destroyed here because they don't adjust for:

- Salary to replace owner
- Revenue concentration risks
- One-time events that won't repeat
- Expenses that will increase under new ownership

2. Multiple

Think of this as a direct reflection of risk.

Everything that increases risk lowers the multiple. Everything that decreases risk raises it.

That’s why some businesses trade at 15x while others struggle to get 2x.

Lower multiples come from:

- Revenue trending downward
- Business depends entirely on the seller
- Messy financials
- High employee turnover

These are red flags screaming "this could fall apart tomorrow."

Conversely, higher multiples come from the opposite:

- Documented systems and processes
- Diversified revenue streams
- Strong management team
- Clean books
- Consistent YOY growth

You can’t negotiate the multiple arbitrarily. It’s calculated with hard numbers.

But you can influence it by identifying and addressing the risks contractually rather than just pushing for a lower price.

You're buying the future but paying for the past.

The multiple reflects how confident you are in that future.

3. Terms

Price is what you pay, terms are how you pay.

You can give a seller their price IF you get your terms. Or you can give them their terms if you get your price.

But you CAN’T give them both.

It’s the law of price and terms:

Terms are how you hedge against every risk you identified in the deal. For example:

- If there’s key employee risk → Add retention bonuses to the deal
- Seller wants higher valuation? → Use seller financing
- Documentation not in place? → Long transition and training period

The idea is to use the contract to protect against your biggest fears.

At the end of the day, negotiation isn’t about winning.

It’s about getting what you want while keeping the other side happy enough that they don’t sabotage the deal.

It’s an art and next week I’ll be teaching everything I’ve learned about deal making LIVE, more info in the comments...

21 tips to be the first gen wealth builder in your family:

1. The Law of Two Hours: 2 hours of dedicated work is worth more than most people’s 8 hours.

2. How to never fail with a business: Start as a side project. Keep your job. Use your salary to fund. Quit when you have enough cashflow.

3. It's not about time. It's about the F word. Focus. You don’t need 24 hours a day to build a business.

4. Think about your salary like a Silicon Valley investor. Treat every single dollar you give to your side business like an investor would.

5. Hope is not a strategy. “Pray like it’s up to God, but work like it’s up to me.”

6. You don't need more time, you need a deadline.

7. Decrease the time between having an idea and getting it done. Money loves speed. Poverty loves waiting.

8. Small & consistent beats big & sporadic. Long hours at a desk is counterproductive.

9. If you want to make more money, be more useful to people who have more money.

10. It is very hard to change the world when you are broke. So don't apologize for chasing money.

11. Nobody cares about your life...They think about you for one second and then think about themselves again. So you might as well do what you want.

12. You must be just dumb enough to believe in yourself, just smart enough to execute.

13. If you say you will do a thing, then actually do the thing. 90% do not do this.

14. No one is coming to save you. You want a better life, go build it.

15. You must learn to be disliked or you’ll find yourself stuck in a prison of other people's desires.

16. Tasting freedom can make you unemployable. Get that initial momentum, and watch your life start to change.

17. You are paid exactly as much as the problems you solve are worth. Bigger problems = bigger $$$

18. Parkinson’s Law: Work expands to fill the available time. Just because you quit your job doesn't mean you'll magically have all of these hours.

19. If you're not currently doing whatever that thing is inside of you, you're not going to do it after you quit your job.

20. Startups are for masochists. If you want that life, I commend you. If you want a slightly less rocky path to ownership, buy a business instead of starting one.

And lastly, there are 2 types of people:

Those who build wealth through ownership. and those who work to make others wealthy.

The dividing line isn’t talent or luck. It’s action.

↓↓↓↓

P.S. If you have yet to take action in 2026 but are interested in becoming an owner...

Come to my business buying masterclass tomorrow.

It's free. 90 minutes long. And walks you through how to find the right business for you.

Find all the details here: https://lnkd.in/g3V6NrTZ

You guys keep asking when the next Main Street Millionaire Live is happening… and after seeing all the people who bought businesses, are making moves, and joining Owner Nation, I knew I had to bring it back ASAP.

But this time? We’re going even bigger. Bigger speakers. Tools and frameworks you can use immediately. Real players. Everything you need to get a part of Owner Nation ASAP.

If you’re ready to stop dreaming and start owning, head over to this link to grab your ticket: https://lnkd.in/g7mjjqYQ

You aren’t here to be liked.

You’re here to be respected.

Don’t be easy. Be hard.

Be righteous in what you do and believe.

Don’t be less for other people.
Don’t let them bend you or break you.
Don’t be a doormat walked upon.

Be a f*cking pointed nail… they’ll remember you.

If you’re bringing this energy into 2026, feel free to repost this.

And if the way you want to do it is by trading in your 9-5 for financial freedom without starting from scratch? Come to my Main Street Millionaire Live next month.

All you need is determination & desire…. and 72 hours of your time.

You’re invited, just reserve your spot here → https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF

There are 2 ways to buy a business.

But 1 makes you more money…

First way: Spray & Pray

• I’m open to anything
• I don’t really have a strategy
• Maybe I’ll invest a small amount into a lot of things and hope one hits…

Second way: Jet Stream

• I want to buy the ONE business that’s RIGHT for me
• I know how much money I need the business to make me
• I have an idea of how to finance it
• I know how much time I want to spend in the business every week

↓↓↓

This “Jet Stream method” is also called a Deal Box.

If you want to get serious about buying a business, then…

1. Your Deal Box is your new best friend.

2. You can learn more about how to build a deal box (and the rest of the business-buying process) at our Main Street Millionaire Live event next month. It’ll be online, 3 days total, and I will teach you everything I know about business buying.

You can grab your spot right here: https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF

At 30, I thought I’d peaked.
At 39, I know I’m just getting started.

The biggest lessons this past year taught me (that you might need to hear too):

1. Marrying well is the biggest life hack of all. Period.

2. You must learn to be disliked or you will find yourself stuck in a prison of other people's beliefs.

3. Nobody ultimately cares about your life...They think about you for one second and then think about themselves again. So you might as well do what you want.

4. Most successful people I've met aren't that smart. They move fast, they take risk, they work a lot. That's it.

5. You don't need more time, you need a deadline.

6. The sweet spot for success: Just dumb enough to believe in yourself, just smart enough to execute.

7. When you hang out in rooms with people who have way more zeros than you, your problems are so small to them they can see into your future.

8. Waking up early, being married, going to church, reading books, going to bed at 10pm, drinking less, and staying home more is actually amazing. Sorry, old people. I was wrong.

9. The world is run by people who are probably less smart than you. Stop underestimating yourself.

10. When you can’t be controlled, you’ll be hated.

11. You are exactly as successful as you programmed yourself to be.

12. Your anxiety is lying to you. You will be fine. You've survived this far, the odds actually are in your favor.

13. Struggle is a gift. I've never met someone massively successful who hasn't gone through something that nearly destroyed them.

14. Success demands solitude.

15. Being fit is hard. Being fat is hard. Entrepreneurship is hard. Working a 9-5 is hard. Being miserable is hard. Doing the right thing is hard. Choose your hard.

↓↓↓

And one of the best decisions I've ever made was becoming an owner.

It's not easy...but nothing worth doing ever is.

If your goal for 2026 is to become an owner, you should come to my Main Street Millionaire Live event next week.

It's 3 days
Fully remote.
Designed to teach you everything you need to know about buying a business.

More info here: https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF

My husband said five words to me that made my worldview flip on never missing a chance to see a loved one: “Measure in times, not years.”

We were debating whether to go home and see our family for Thanksgiving and my husband said...

If your parents are 65, it’s not 20 or 30 years you might have with them, it’s maybe 20 or 30 visits you get with them.

One in four Americans don’t live in the same hometown as their family. How would you change your decisions if you’d only get to see your loved ones for 20 or 30 more days?

You’d change everything to be with them, wouldn’t you? Same if it was six months. And yet when those days are separated by years we let them slide through our fingers.

Next time don’t count the years, remember the days… and treasure them.

How many candidates do you need to see to find A-Players?

We hired 10 high-level people in 90 days:

50,000+ people viewed our jobs.
3,178 applied.
10 got hired.

That’s a 0.31% acceptance rate fyi.

For every 1 hire, we reviewed 323 applications.

Finding top talent is not glamorous. It’s mostly about saying no. Over and over.

What I have learned to find A Players:

1. Take it seriously. Everything is a who problem past your first $1million, and the average CEO has no idea how much time the best CEO's spend on hiring. 10x more time.

2. Hire for attitude first, not skills. Easier to teach skills than change attitude.

3. Play the long game. The best people are usually already employed by someone else so reach out and form relationships before you’re even looking.

4. For senior hires: it’s either a f*ck yes or a f*ck no - there’s no middle ground.

5. And a bonus one that Dave Ramsey taught me (also about senior hires): Always take them and their spouse out to dinner with yours. You’ll learn all you need to know.

Hiring is brutal. But when you get it right, it compounds faster than almost anything else you do.

Super pumped about the people we just brought on. They’re killers.

The best superpower you can unlock:

Making money doing something you love.

This is my "Zone of Genius" framework for finding what business you should buy or start...

Biggest lie they told you:

“Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.”

Money doesn’t flow from passion. No kid is out there saying, “When I grow up, I want to work in self-storage.”

But what do you dream of as an adult? Stability. Money. Profitable biz's, like...

• Self-storage
• Home services
• Professional services
• Laundromats
• Real estate
• Trades

You’ll spend at least 1/3 of your life working. And passion DOES play an important role in you not wanting to slam your head against your desk every Monday.

So this begs the question...

What business SHOULD you go after?

I use this framework:

The Zone of Genius.

Here’s how it works:

Step 1: Get out a pen & paper. Write down the following:

- Experience & Skills. How. What are you so good at, people will pay you?
• Network. Who. Think LinkedIn contacts, family connections, etc.
• Passion. Why. What lights you up?

Step 2 is where the magic happens:

You find the overlap between all three.

Here are 3 quick examples:

1. Howard Schultz

Experience: sales at Xerox; ops at a Swedish housewares company

- Network: Italian coffee bar owners, original Starbucks owner
- Passion: coffee, conversation, "third places"

= Starbucks (acquired after starting another coffee shop)

2. Alex

Experience: managing an entertainment business

- Network: vendors from that business
- Passion: magic, entertaining

= Innovative Imprints (acquired screen printing & merch company)

3. Codie (humor me)

Experience: managing funds, buying small businesses

- Network: business brokers, investors
- Passion: writing, helping other people find freedom through money

= Contrarian Thinking (investment, education & media startup)

And once you do all this… you now have your foundation.

But, you can’t tell the universe you found your Zone of Genius and then expect the right business to suddenly fall into your lap.

So luckily there’s a framework for hunting down your ideal business too…
It’s called a “deal box.”

Ready to build your deal box & get closer to meeting your goals?

I’m hosting a 3-day intensive to give you:

- The playbook
- The experts
- The hands-on practice you need to ACTUALLY become an owner

Get your ticket here → https://lnkd.in/gf6hPHdF

The richest people in the world don't just build companies...they buy them.

Here’s how you can too (without their millions):

Three reasons why buying beats building a business from scratch:

- 45% of new businesses fail within 5 years
- Most entrepreneurs make only $67k/year
- First 3-4 years are unprofitable

Compare that to when you buy...

You inherit customers, systems, and profits from day one.

"But Codie, I genuinely can’t afford one."

That’s what I thought too when I started.

There are 3 ways to buy any business (without needing millions):

1. Experience
2. Sweat equity
3. Money

You only need ONE of these three to pull off a deal.

1. Experience

This is perfect for people who know the industry inside and out.

Maybe you've been a plumber for 20 years and want to buy a plumbing company.

Sellers value genuine knowledge over $$ because they know you won't destroy what they built.

2. Sweat Equity

If you’re thinking about working in the business and growing it, this is for you.

Many retiring owners care more about their legacy than maximizing the sale price.

They want someone who'll take care of their employees and customers, not just squeeze the biz for cash.

3. Money

This doesn't have to mean YOUR money.

I've bought plenty of businesses with 0-15% down using other people's money. You can:

- Use SBA loans (government-backed with low rates)
- Get investors to fund the deal
- Or structure seller financing

Seller financing often works as a win-win too.

Banks tend to lowball business valuations and charge high interest rates.

But when sellers finance you directly, they get a premium price AND earn interest on the loan.

They make MORE money by cutting out the bank.

Just make sure you show what’s in it for them:

- Higher purchase price (ex. 15%+ premium)
- Tax advantages (spread over time vs lump sum)
- Faster close (30 days vs 120 days)

A win-win.

So what businesses should you target?

A few strategies I use:

1. SOWS method:

- Stale: Revenue hasn't grown in 3+ years
- Old: Been around 5+ years
- Weak: Competitors are terrible
- Simple: You can explain it to an 8-year-old

2. The Venmo Method

Look at your personal P&L:

- Who do you pay every month?
- Who are your competitors?
- What vendors do you use?

These are the businesses you should buy.

Instead of paying to get your problem solved, why don’t you get paid to solve it for other people?

Right now, boomers own $5-10 trillion worth of businesses.

And when these owners retire…

It’s either we buy these businesses, or BlackRock does.

I’d rather see more of us own our local than have PE swallow everything up.

If you want to learn how to buy a biz, you should come to my masterclass today.

It's completely free & solely focused on teaching you how to buy a biz for a little as $0.

Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/e86jsivr

Rich people want you to sell them something.

And there are only 5 reasons rich people buy:

Every single reason falls into this hierarchy we call the The Rich Desire Pyramid.

The 5 Levels of Rich Desire:

1. Status – “Make me look important.”

How to sell it: Position your business as the best, not the cheapest. Showcase expertise, exclusivity, and premium service.

Think Hermes: Limited-run purses that are mostly handmade by one person each, from start to finish.

2. Convenience – “Make my life easier.”

How to sell it: Eliminate friction. Offer white-glove service, subscriptions, and concierge treatment. Private jets. Fast. Expensive.

3. Exclusivity – “Let me in, keep others out.”

How to sell it: Restrict access. Membership models, invite-only services, and VIP tiers create demand. Tiger 21 — $20M and they validate your income.

4. Privacy – “Give me space.”

How to sell it: Offer high-trust, high-security services. NDA policies, direct access to owners, and absolute discretion build loyalty. Scrub my name off the internet services.

5. Scarcity – “Make it hard to get.”

How to sell it: Limit availability. Waiting lists, premium tiers, and applications drive demand. Think waiting for the brand new shoe drops. Or Birkin bags.

They're buying into a feeling, a position, a lifestyle. They aren’t price-sensitive, they’re value-sensitive.

I hope something here spoke to you.

↓↓↓

P.S. Business owners, I have something for you.

On February 10th, I'm running a free masterclass breaking down four simple levers every biz can pull to unlock more profit in their business.

Curious to learn what they are?

Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/dvq3vjJ9

I’m 39.

27 lessons I wish I learned in my 20s:

1. As soon as you hit your 30s, you’ll understand... Your 20s actually suck. If you feel like it sucks right now, guess what? It’s supposed to. It gets better.

2. Your first job is like the DMV. Awful. Everyone’s mad. Nothing works. But the key is.. You are not supposed to stay there.

3. It is very hard to change the world when you are broke. So don't apologize for chasing money.

4. Meet everyone. Say yes to everything. You narrow the field later.

5. Do it all. Because you’ll die eventually and life will make you slow down. But up until then, eat the world.

6. You are not everyone’s cup of tea, that’s a good thing.

7. The most lucrative things you can do in your 20s: 1) learn how to invest, 2) apprentice in PE, real estate, or venture.

8. If they’re not interesting when you’re sober, don’t drink until they become it.

9. Never buy to impress. Being wealthy > looking wealthy… even when that first big-kid check hits your bank account.

10. The most important question you can ask yourself often: Does this bring joy?

11. Do favors, don’t take them. There’s often a hidden price.

12. If I was in my 20s, I’d try to work for one type of company… One where they reward outcomes not hours. Winning > running really hard for a really long time.

13. Seed is only as good as its soil. Where you live during your 20s matters. Take some time away from your hometown.

14. If you feel cynical about the world… I don’t blame you. But always remember the number one superpower for your generation is HOPE.

15. If you’re prone to loneliness and isolation.. do NOT work a remote job. A small team with sleepless nights and shared goals is a powerful thing.

16. Touch grass. A walk outside will be better for your brain than anything you find on your phone.

17. Burnout doesn’t come from working too hard. Burnout comes from working too hard, on things that don’t light you up.

18. Learn how to save now, but understand that saving isn’t what makes you rich.

19. If you want to make more money, be more useful to people who have more money.

20. You must learn to be disliked or you will find yourself stuck in a prison of other people's beliefs.

21. Most successful people I've met aren't that smart. They move fast, they take risk, they work a lot. That's it.

22. If old you doesn’t make you cringe, you haven’t grown enough.

23. Do something hard every day. Then watch that “something” evolve as you become stronger and stronger.

24. If you haven’t done it, you just have an opinion.

25. Marrying well is the biggest life hack of all. Marrying poorly is a costly path to misery. Choose wisely.

26. Working smarter not harder is a beautiful lie. You will not know how to work smart until you've worked very hard for an irrationally long time.

27. Take notes from old people… Waking up early, being married, reading books, going to bed at 10pm, and drinking less is actually amazing.

Ignore marriage advice from miserable people. It is worth it.

From senior prom to 20+ years later.