Stick with me on this one, I get it, the subject seems completely bonkers.
It’s an idea from Dan Sullivan, one of the world’s best entrepreneurial coaches, and honestly? It’s one of the frameworks I come back to most with founders I work with.
Here it is:
When you aim to double your business, your brain quietly assumes you need to do double the work.
More calls. More clients. More hours. More you.
And that’s the trap.
Because 2X just means doing what you’re already doing at double the pace.
You’re not changing anything. You’re just turning up the dial on a system that already has you stretched.
10X is a different animal entirely.
You literally can’t get to 10X by doing more of the same. So, it forces you to stop and ask a question most founders never actually ask themselves:
What would have to fundamentally change for this business to be ten times bigger?
It doesn’t mean your business has to be 10X bigger, but it’s a great tool to get you thinking smarter.
It’s a question that cuts through everything.
Here’s what it actually looks like:
A 2X mindset. “I need more candidates so I’ll make more calls.”
A 10X mindset asks the question “How do I create a scalable, inbound system to attract top talent month in, month out?”
A 2X founder takes every role that comes in. Says yes to every client. Fills the diary and wonders why they’re exhausted.
A 10X founder looks at their client list and asks who the 20% are that bring 80% of the revenue. Then they focus on strategies to get more like that and let the rest go.
A 2X founder does all the admin themselves because it’s “quicker” than designing a better way. Which is kind of crazy when AI can handle so much of that now.
Everything from managing your email inbox to competitor market research to building you brilliant presentations in minutes.
A 10X founder understands this and is looking for ways to delegate to AI every day. They understand that AI is the biggest 10X lever they have.
The bigger point though…
Most recruitment founders aren’t stuck because of the market or the competition.
They’re stuck because they’ve got a leverage problem dressed up as a workload problem.
Adding more to a business that’s already creaking doesn’t fix it. It breaks it.
10X thinking asks you to build smarter, not just bigger.
Growth without chaos is possible. But it starts with thinking like a 10X founder, not a busier one.
This is the question I ask every founder:
If my business had to be ten times bigger in five years, what would I have to change?
Sit with that one.
The answer is usually pretty revealing.
Have a top week.
BK
