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Welcome to the Do More by Doing Less podcast with Charles Alexander, the show for Small Business Owners, Start Ups, and Busy Folks! This is not another productivity, hustle, and...
show more
Welcome to the Do More by Doing Less podcast with Charles Alexander, the show for Small Business Owners, Start Ups, and Busy Folks!
This is not another productivity, hustle, and grind podcast.
I literally want you to do less.
Many of us are overwhelmed, frustrated, and need a break.
The good news is that we can accomplish much more than now.
Once we focus on the vital few, and prioritize things that make our lives and the lives of people around us better, we can “do more by doing less”.
This podcast is funny, simple, and has real-world stories.
That’s it.
Subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode and have fun listening while you drive, do the dishes, or mow the lawn!
show less
This is not another productivity, hustle, and grind podcast.
I literally want you to do less.
Many of us are overwhelmed, frustrated, and need a break.
The good news is that we can accomplish much more than now.
Once we focus on the vital few, and prioritize things that make our lives and the lives of people around us better, we can “do more by doing less”.
This podcast is funny, simple, and has real-world stories.
That’s it.
Subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode and have fun listening while you drive, do the dishes, or mow the lawn!
Do More By Doing Less - Simplicity for Entrepreneurs, Small Business Owners, and Solopreneurs
Do More By Doing Less - Simplicity for Entrepreneurs, Small Business Owners, and Solopreneurs
Charles AlexanderEpisodes & Posts
Episodes
Posts
20 OCT 2026 · Show Summary:
In this episode, I share what can happen when one spouse starts a business without a clear plan for money, time, or responsibilities at home. Starting a business affects more than the entrepreneur. It affects the entire household. A few honest conversations before making the leap can prevent financial stress, resentment, and a whole lot of unnecessary arguments.
Takeaways:
• Your business goals need to include realistic revenue and timelines.
• Starting a business changes responsibilities at home, not just at work.
• Decide how much money you're willing to invest before you start spending it.
• Your spouse may support your dream without understanding what building a business requires.
• Starting while you still have another source of income can reduce financial pressure.
Action For You To Take:
Sit down with your spouse or anyone else affected by your business and discuss three things: your financial goals, how much time the business will require, and how household responsibilities will be divided.You don't need perfect answers. You need everyone working from the same plan.
What To Do Next:
If you want help building time freedom while still growing your business, schedule a quick, non-sales, chat with me at yourcharlesalexander.com.
6 OCT 2026 · Show Summary:
In this episode, I explain why trying to be everything to everyone makes it harder for your business to stand out. From Publix and Aldi to McDonald’s and Little Caesars, successful businesses give customers a clear reason to choose them. Your niche doesn’t have to be groundbreaking. It can simply be a specific customer, service, or unique twist that separates you from everyone else.
Takeaways:
• Being more specific makes it easier for customers to understand why they should choose you.
• A niche can come from a neglected market, unmet demand, or a unique twist.
• You don't have to reinvent an industry to stand out.
• Your strengths, customers, and competition can help reveal your best niche.
• Trying to combine every possible advantage isn't a niche.
Action For You To Take:
Answer three questions:
- What are you really good at?
- What is your competition not offering?
- What do your customers actually want?
Look for the overlap. Then choose one thing you want your business to become known for and start making it obvious in your marketing.
What To Do Next:
If you want help building time freedom while still growing your business, schedule a quick, non-sales, chat with me at yourcharlesalexander.com.
15 SEP 2026 · Show Summary:
In this episode, I share the story of my four-year-old son getting an Operation game piece stuck up his nose and the lesson that came from it: sometimes you need a specialist. The same is true in business. Trying to handle everything yourself can cost you time, money, and a lot of unnecessary frustration.
Takeaways:
• Successful business owners don't try to become experts at everything.
• A CPA, attorney, insurance broker, and business coach can provide a strong foundation for your business.
• Bankers, SBDC counselors, SCORE counselors, and other advisors can also be valuable resources.
• Free advice can be helpful, but paying for expertise often creates more accountability.
• Knowing when to outsource is an important business skill.
Action For You To Take:
Identify one area of your business where you're trying to do something yourself that an expert should probably handle. Then find one qualified person who can either take it off your plate or help you make better decisions.
What To Do Next:
If you want help building time freedom while still growing your business, schedule a quick, non-sales, chat with me at yourcharlesalexander.com.
1 SEP 2026 · Show Summary:
In this episode, I explain why we may have taken the obsession with finding our “why” a little too far. Knowing why you want something matters, but most entrepreneurs already have a pretty good idea. Usually, it comes back to some form of freedom. The bigger challenge is figuring out how actually to get there.
Takeaways:
• Most entrepreneurs already know their “why,” even if they struggle to put it into words.
• Freedom can mean more control over your time, work, clients, money, or relationships.
• Constantly asking “why” can eventually become another form of overthinking.
• Once you understand what you want, shift your attention to “how.”
• Progress comes from turning your motivation into practical action.
Action For You To Take:
Write down your biggest goal and the reason you want it. Then stop digging deeper into the “why” and answer one question: How can I move closer to it this week? Keep the answer practical. Identify something you can actually do instead of another idea to think about.
What To Do Next:
If you want help building time freedom while still growing your business, schedule a quick, non-sales, chat with me at yourcharlesalexander.com.
30 JUN 2026 · Show Summary:
In this episode, I share the story of a liquor store owner who was convinced high-end wine accessories would transform his business. A simple one-day customer tracking experiment revealed something completely different. The lesson is one I see repeatedly with small business owners: when you try to market to everyone, you usually end up connecting with no one. The businesses that grow fastest understand exactly who their best customers are and focus their time, money, and energy there.
Takeaways:
• Your best customers are often easier to identify than you think.
• Assumptions are dangerous. Data beats opinions every time.
• Trying to serve everyone usually weakens your marketing.
• The customers who generate the most revenue are not always the customers you enjoy serving most.
• Narrowing your focus often increases sales instead of limiting them.
Action For You To Take:
Review your customer list and answer two questions:
- Which customers generate the most revenue?
- Which customers do you enjoy working with the most?
Then look for common characteristics such as age, industry, income level, company size, location, or buying behavior. Write them down instead of relying on memory.
What To Do Next:
If you want help building time freedom while still growing your business, schedule a quick, non-sales, chat with me at yourcharlesalexander.com.
16 JUN 2026 · Show Summary:
In this episode, I challenge one of the most common pieces of business advice out there: "Follow your passion."
Through stories of entrepreneurs who loved what they did but struggled to build sustainable businesses, I explain why passion alone is rarely enough. More often, successful business owners start with a skill they're good at, create value with it, and develop a deeper passion as they see the results.
Takeaways:
• Passion without the right skills can lead to frustration and failure.
• Running a business requires doing many things you may never love, including sales, bookkeeping, and managing people.
• Skills create value. Value creates customers. Customers create opportunities.
• Success often creates passion, not the other way around.
• Autonomy, flexibility, and control are passions many entrepreneurs share, regardless of their industry.
Action For You To Take:
Make a list of three things you're genuinely skilled at.
Then ask yourself which of those skills solves a problem people would pay to have solved.
Start there instead of chasing a passion that has no clear market demand.
What To Do Next:
If you want help building time freedom while still growing your business, schedule a quick, non-sales, chat with me at yourcharlesalexander.com.
26 MAY 2026 · Show Summary:
In this episode, I explain why offering too many products or services can actually hurt your sales. Using examples from Netflix, a famous Columbia University study, and my time working with SERVPRO, I break down why confused customers rarely buy. The businesses that grow the fastest are usually the ones known for one or two simple things instead of twenty complicated options.
Takeaways:
• Too many choices create overwhelm and reduce sales.
• Simplicity helps customers remember what you actually do.
• Businesses grow faster when they focus on one or two core offers.
• Packages and clear messaging outperform endless customization.
• Attention does not always equal conversions.
Action For You To Take:
Write down every product or service you currently offer.
Then circle the top one or two things you want to be known for or that generate the most revenue.
Simplify your messaging around those first and introduce the rest later.
What To Do Next:
If you want help building time freedom while still growing your business, schedule a quick, non-sales, chat with me at yourcharlesalexander.com.
12 MAY 2026 · Is owning a business actually riskier than having a job? By the way, I have both, so I'm not exactly a "burn the boats" kind of guy:)
Show Summary:
In this episode, I share the story of turning down a “safe” corporate job at John Deere during a recession and why that decision completely changed how I think about risk. Most people assume entrepreneurship is unstable, but after years of coaching and business ownership, I’ve realized depending on one paycheck can be just as risky.
Takeaways:
• A steady paycheck does not always equal security.
• Multiple income streams can reduce long-term risk.
• Friends and family often discourage entrepreneurship because it feels unfamiliar to them.
• Modern business owners have more tools, automation, and flexibility than ever before.
• Starting a business while working full-time can lower financial pressure and help you test ideas safely.
Action For You To Take:
Look at your current income situation honestly.
Ask yourself where all your financial security currently comes from.
Then identify one small way to create an additional stream of income, even if it starts as a side project.
What To Do Next:
If you want help building time freedom while still growing your business or even starting one, schedule a quick, non-sales, chat with me at yourcharlesalexander.com.
14 APR 2026 · What actually matters after 100 episodes of doing more by doing less?
Show Summary:
This 100th episode is a reflection on the biggest lessons I’ve learned from conversations with people like Bob Burg, Jason Elkins, Emily Heard, and others. The common thread is simple. Success does not come from doing more. It comes from focusing on what actually creates value, protecting your time, and being intentional with your effort.
Takeaways:
• Value drives results. Focus on helping people, not chasing money.
• Small wins and perspective shifts can reset a bad week fast.
• Most distractions come from dopamine chasing, not real progress.
• Simple, meaningful goals outperform complex long-term plans.
• Consistent relationships and serving others compound over time.
Action For You To Take:
Pick one area this week to simplify.
Cut one unnecessary task.
Double down on one activity that creates real value for someone else.
What To Do Next:
If you want help building time freedom while still growing your business, schedule a quick, non-sales, chat with me at yourcharlesalexander.com.
17 MAR 2026 · In 2023, I had knee replacement surgery and I went in for several follow-up appointments.
It seems like every time I go in for a follow-up appointment, they ask me these same 15 questions they asked me last time, because why would that automate and populate (something about HIPAA, blah, blah, blah 🤔.)
I usually get frustrated, but once in a while, I don't mind it so much because I like answering some of the questions.
Why?
Because I've developed some better healthy habits later in my life than I had earlier in my life.
- So, we'll, when the questionnaire says, "Hey, are you on any new prescription medications?", I get to check. Nope.
- And if it asks me, "Have you had any additional surgeries or hospitalizations?" Sure haven't.
- What about a smoker? Are you a smoker, Charles? Certainly not.
- Then it gets to the question, "Do you drink more than once or twice a week?" And you know, I lie.
There are bad habits that many of us have developed myself as well.
have a ton of bad habits that I must continually figure out how to break.
And a bad habit, once ingrained and once wired into us, kind of sticks around forever, until you remove certain cues or rewire it.F
or example, I've turned into my dad.At night, 8:30 or so I sit down on the couch or rather the chair with the ottoman and try to watch TV with the family. Something usually wonderful like the Voice, God help us 🤣 and I'll pass out pretty quickly cuz you know, dad stuff.I remember my dad would do that as we were kids and I would try to change the channel and. He instinctively knew and would wake up and say, "Oh, Tom Watson's on the 18th hole. Put it back." How he did that, I didn't know. Now I do, that's called being dad tired 😴. But either way, it sucks and it's not a family-friendly thing to do.Another bad habit I have is grabbing a snack from the pantry if I see something tempting, like Pringles, or Tabasco-flavored Cheez-its.In our personal lives and in our businesses, recognizing the cue that causes the bad habit is the first step to breaking it.
For instance:
- If you have a bad habit of checking your email constantly throughout the day, you might need to change your environment by closing your email client or turning off notifications during specific work hours.
- Another bad habit you might have in your business is if you've delegated a task to someone quite capable, but then you can't help but check in on them and then tell them how to do the task over and over. Instead, you need to give yourself a timeframe before checking in or have whomever you're checking in with sending you a mini-report.
- Or better yet, if you're one of these folks that can't keep a lot of savings in the account because it kind of burns a hole in your pocket and you suddenly think of 15 more things you need to buy with that money. You may need to remove the app that allows you to check your account or keep a list handy of all of your upcoming expenses.
Changing your cue, changing your environment.
For me, I no longer sit on that same chair with an ottoman to watch these god-awful TV shows with my family. I'll sit on the ottoman most of the time and sit straight up.When I go to the pantry now, all of the snacks that I would normally get are now placed behind bins and I use MyFitness Pal.
Welcome to the Do More by Doing Less podcast with Charles Alexander, the show for Small Business Owners, Start Ups, and Busy Folks! This is not another productivity, hustle, and...
show more
Welcome to the Do More by Doing Less podcast with Charles Alexander, the show for Small Business Owners, Start Ups, and Busy Folks!
This is not another productivity, hustle, and grind podcast.
I literally want you to do less.
Many of us are overwhelmed, frustrated, and need a break.
The good news is that we can accomplish much more than now.
Once we focus on the vital few, and prioritize things that make our lives and the lives of people around us better, we can “do more by doing less”.
This podcast is funny, simple, and has real-world stories.
That’s it.
Subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode and have fun listening while you drive, do the dishes, or mow the lawn!
show less
This is not another productivity, hustle, and grind podcast.
I literally want you to do less.
Many of us are overwhelmed, frustrated, and need a break.
The good news is that we can accomplish much more than now.
Once we focus on the vital few, and prioritize things that make our lives and the lives of people around us better, we can “do more by doing less”.
This podcast is funny, simple, and has real-world stories.
That’s it.
Subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode and have fun listening while you drive, do the dishes, or mow the lawn!
Information
| Author | Charles Alexander |
| Organization | Charles Alexander |
| Categories | Entrepreneurship , Self-Improvement , Management |
| Website | - |
| buad0118@yahoo.com |
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