237. Running a $5M Business with a Lean Team with Denise Duffield-Thomas
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
Release Date: 06/04/2025
241. The Recruiting Challenge: How to Attract Top Talent with Danielle Cherewyk
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
In this coaching session, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle dive deep with Danielle Cherewyk, a former client and successful salon owner, to tackle a major challenge — recruiting high-quality students for her newly purchased hair school. If you’ve ever struggled to create a consistent talent pipeline, this one’s for you! Here’s what we cover: ✅ How purchasing a school created new opportunities (and new challenges) ✅ Strategies for recruiting top-tier students and building a long-term talent pipeline ✅ The power of partnerships with local businesses and high schools ✅ Creating...
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240. How to Deliver Value at Any Price Point
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
In this follow-up episode, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle reflect on their conversation with Ryan Koral, founder of Tell Studios, about the challenges of scaling creative businesses without losing quality. If you've ever felt torn between delivering high-end results and making your services more accessible, this one’s for you! → Missed Ryan Koral’s episode? Here’s what we cover: ✅ How to create tiered offers without lowering your brand standards ✅ Why your “6/10” might be your client’s “10/10” ✅ The importance of protecting your QBR (Queen Bee Role) at every price...
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239. Scaling with Simplicity with Ryan Koral
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
In this episode, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle sit down with Ryan Koral, founder of Tell Studios, to tackle a common challenge among creative entrepreneurs — scaling without losing quality. If you've ever felt like you need to burn it all down and start over, this one’s for you! Here’s what we cover: ✅ How to simplify your business offerings without sacrificing quality ✅ The difference between premium vs. ready-to-wear product models ✅ Overcoming the mindset blocks that stop you from scaling ✅ The power of meeting clients where they are — without compromising your...
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238. Stay Small to Make More Money in Your Business
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
In this episode, Adrienne and Emily unpack their biggest takeaways from the and discuss how to the Clockwork business and their own personal growth. Denise built a $5M business with a lean, part-time team by staying focused on one core offer and simplifying her operations — and Adrienne and Emily reflect on how that same principle applies to Clockwork and the challenges they’ve faced while scaling. Here’s what we cover: ✅ Why trying to launch too many offers creates chaos ✅ How staying focused on one offer creates consistent growth ✅ Why mindset shifts around success and...
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237. Running a $5M Business with a Lean Team with Denise Duffield-Thomas
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
In this episode, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle sit down with best-selling author Denise Duffield-Thomas to explore how she and her husband built a $5M business with a small, part-time team — and how they’ve structured their lives to work less without sacrificing income or success. Denise opened up about the strategies and mindset shifts that allowed her to create a thriving business while maintaining balance and freedom. If you’ve ever wondered how to grow your business without overloading your schedule, this one’s for you! Here’s what we cover: ✅ How Denise built a $5M...
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236. How to Stop Doing Everything in Your Business
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
In this episode, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle reflect on their r with Beth Carter, Beth shared how she struggles to step out of the doing in her business — even with a team of 10 and a seven-figure business. Adrienne and Emily dive deeper into the root of this challenge, unpacking the Four D’s (Doing, Deciding, Delegating, and Designing) and how understanding them can help business owners break free from the day-to-day grind. Here’s what we cover: ✅ The Four D’s – Why knowing the difference between Doing, Deciding, Delegating, and Designing is key to business growth ✅ Why...
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235. Breaking Free from Doing It All with Beth Carter
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
In this coaching episode, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle sit down with Beth Carter, the "Badass Bookkeeper" and owner of , to tackle a challenge many business owners face — getting stuck in the doing. Beth shares how, even with a team of 10 and a seven-figure business, she still finds herself pulled back into production work, limiting her ability to grow and scale. Here’s what we cover: ✅ Why business owners struggle to stop doing the work themselves ✅ How to identify inefficiencies in your team and processes ✅ When to hire versus when to improve internal capacity ✅ Balancing...
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234. More On How To Fix Business Bottlenecks
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
In this episode, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle reflect on a recent coaching session with Leslie Liondas, breaking down how to identify and fix the four core business bottlenecks — Attract, Convert, Delivery, and Cash Flow. If you’ve been struggling to figure out why your business isn’t growing the way you want, this episode will help you diagnose the problem and create a plan to solve it. Here’s what we cover: ✅ How to identify which bottleneck is holding your business back ✅ The four core business bottlenecks and how they work together ✅ Why cash flow issues can block other...
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233. Cracking the Attract Code with Leslie Liondas
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
In this coaching session, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle dive deep with Leslie Liondas to tackle a major challenge in her coaching business — the attract bottleneck. If you’ve ever struggled to bring in the right leads, this one’s for you! Here’s what we cover: ✅ How to generate consistent, high-quality leads ✅ Refining your messaging so it actually converts ✅ The power of effective opt-ins (and why your freebie might not be working) We also get into the nitty-gritty of webinars — how to make them engaging, convert more attendees, and even use AI to streamline your content...
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232. Welcome to the CEO Help Desk!
The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork
In the very first episode of CEO Help Desk, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle introduce the fresh new format designed to serve overwhelmed small business owners—just like you. Here’s the deal: Each week, you'll hear a real business owner walk through a specific operational or leadership challenge on air with Adrienne and Emily. Then in the following episode, your co-hosts debrief and go even deeper with ideas, context, and strategies to help you apply the same lessons to your own business. Whether you're looking to delegate more, streamline operations, or step out of the day-to-day, CEO...
info_outlineIn this episode, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle sit down with best-selling author Denise Duffield-Thomas to explore how she and her husband built a $5M business with a small, part-time team — and how they’ve structured their lives to work less without sacrificing income or success.
Denise opened up about the strategies and mindset shifts that allowed her to create a thriving business while maintaining balance and freedom. If you’ve ever wondered how to grow your business without overloading your schedule, this one’s for you!
Here’s what we cover:
✅ How Denise built a $5M business with a part-time team
✅ Why focusing on one core offer creates more growth (not less)
✅ The mindset shift around seasons of business and life
✅ Why building assets outside the business creates freedom
✅ How to avoid the trap of constantly launching new offers
Adrienne and Emily also dig into:
👉 The power of simplifying your business model
👉 How Denise maintained revenue while stepping back from the business
👉 Why saying "no" is crucial for sustainable success
👉 The importance of having personal goals and wins outside of work
👉 Why perfectionism and identity shifts are holding you back
If you’re ready to scale your business without working more, this episode will give you the inspiration and tactical advice you need. Hit play and get ready to simplify and grow! 🔥
🔑 Top 5 Takeaways:
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Lean Growth is Possible – Denise built a multimillion-dollar business with a small team by staying focused on her core offer.
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Focus on One Offer – Scaling happens more easily when you focus on improving and selling what’s already working.
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Seasons Matter – Your business (and life) will have different seasons — understanding and respecting them creates longevity.
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Build Outside the Business – Investing in assets and real estate created more financial freedom for Denise's family.
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Set Personal Goals – Achievements like winning a ballet trophy or succeeding at cross-stitch can give you fulfillment beyond business success.
📚 Check Out Denise’s Book:
Denise is the author of Get Rich, Lucky Bitch!, and Chillpreneur — must-reads for entrepreneurs and business owners looking to break through money blocks and grow their wealth.
👉 Grab your copy here: https://www.denisedt.com/books
⏰ Chapters:
01:24 – How Denise built a $5M business with a lean team
04:50 – The decision to keep the team small and efficient
06:46 – Why staying focused on one core offer creates more growth
10:42 – Understanding seasons of business and life
14:44 – Personal wins and why hobbies matter
18:31 – The freedom that comes from building assets outside the business
22:34 – Overcoming identity shifts and perfectionism
29:44 – How Denise simplified her business model
34:38 – Saying "no" to protect personal time and energy
39:30 – Lessons from taking a sabbatical
📲 Links & Resources:
👉 Connect with Denise: denisedt.com
👉 Follow Denise on Instagram: @denisedt