Ep 40. From Chaos to Calm: The Battle Plan for Entrepreneurs with Kevin McGrew
Chaos is every entrepreneur’s shadow… but it doesn’t have to run your life.
Kevin McGrew breaks down how to master strategic entrepreneurship while balancing ownership, delegation, and trusting your team, even when it’s messy, imperfect, and uncomfortable.
In this episode, you’ll get the SMACK Framework [Shoot. Move. Adapt. Communicate.] Kevin’s battle-tested system for:
Acting with intention, not just activity
Moving faster than your competitors
Adapting before yesterday’s “best practice” becomes obsolete
Communicating clearly so your team and customers rally behind you
Here’s what you’ll walk away with:
Design your own exit: Build your business on your terms and leave when you’re ready.
From player to coach: Empower your team, trust them, and let go without losing control.
Focus on outcomes, not perfection: Consistency beats imitation every time.
Move fast, adapt faster: Action creates clarity, waiting creates doubt.
Outsmart the giants: Use your unique edge, hit the weak spots, and stop playing by their rules.
Stop being a “player” in your own business. Step into the role of the wise leader calling the shots, and building a legacy that actually lasts.
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Kevin McGrew is a battle-tested Navy veteran turned serial entrepreneur, known for transforming military discipline into marketing strategy. Over his career, he’s built six companies, from a lost-and-found tech startup to a national franchise network, and successfully exited three on his own terms.
He’s the author of The New Rules of Marketing Warfare and the creator of the SMAC Framework (Shoot, Move, Adapt, Communicate), a system designed to help underdog businesses outmaneuver industry giants through speed, focus, and adaptability.
When he’s not rewriting the rules of digital strategy, Kevin can be found sharing stories over coffee, bourbon, or a fine cigar, reminding every entrepreneur that business is a battlefield, but mindset wins the war.
Connect with Kevin:
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00:00 — Kevin’s story: from Navy veteran to serial entrepreneur and author.
03:00 —The first missed opportunity, what “selling on your own terms” really means.
06:00 — Why founders treat businesses like their babies (and the cost of holding on too tightly).
10:00 — Learning to let go: from player to coach, and what leadership really looks like.
14:00 — The emotional shift from warrior to wise man, finding purpose beyond profit.
18:00 — Exiting to something, not from something: redefining “retirement” for entrepreneurs.
23:00 — Introducing the SMACK framework: Shoot. Move. Adapt. Communicate.
28:00 — Marketing as warfare: staying agile as the David among Goliaths.
36:00 — Building a personal brand, finding your voice, and showing your scars, not wounds.
42:00 — What legacy really means — and why it’s never just about you.