When I Realized I Was the Bottleneck in My Own Business

There was a point in my business where everything felt slow.

Delays everywhere.
Pending approvals.
Unsent campaigns.
Missed deadlines.
Order backlogs.
And a bunch of “I’ll do it later” sticky notes that became permanent fixtures on my wall.

At first, I thought I just needed better staff.
Then I blamed the tools I was using.
Then I blamed “bad timing” or the algorithm.

But after sitting down, reviewing everything with ChatGPT (my daily COO), and zooming out...

I realized something brutal.

I was the problem.

I was the bottleneck.

What That Looked Like:

Every task waited for my approval.
I kept redoing things because I didn’t trust anyone else to do them.
I overthought small decisions that didn’t need that much energy.
I held off launching campaigns because I felt like something was “not perfect yet.”
I thought I was being “hands-on” but I was actually holding everything hostage.

I was addicted to being needed.
And I was using “busyness” as a mask for poor delegation and lack of systems.

The Wake-Up Call

I missed a campaign deadline.
Lost momentum on a hot product.
Had layout approvals stuck in my inbox for 3 days.
And my team couldn’t move because I wasn’t moving.

That was it.
That was the moment I looked myself in the mirror and said:

“You're not scaling because you’re still acting like an employee inside your own business.”

What I Did to Step Out of My Own Way:

✅ I Systemized Every Repeating Task

If it happened more than once a week, it got turned into a template, a checklist, or an AI automation.

✅ I Used AI to “Clone My Brain”

From customer replies to content creation to layout approvals, I trained AI to think like me, write like me, and even decide like me (within limits, of course).

✅ I Set Deadlines I Didn’t Have to Touch

I built a workflow where things could move without waiting for my "yes" every time.
I empowered automation and, where possible, delegated decisions with structure.

✅ I Let Go of Perfection

If it was 85% good and wouldn’t hurt the brand I let it go.
Speed is a strategy. Delay is expensive.

Final Thoughts

If things in your business always stop at you: your inbox, your brain, your energy...
you’re not running a business. You’re running a bottleneck.

You don’t need to work harder. You need to get out of the way.

And it starts by building systems that don’t rely on your willpower, memory, or mood to keep the business alive.

This is Exactly Why I Built the AI CEO Blueprint

I created it after realizing I couldn’t scale while micromanaging everything.
It includes all the tools I use to stop being the bottleneck and start being the actual CEO.

If you’re tired of things always depending on you, this is your way out.

Get My Free AI CEO Launchpad

Hi, I’m Shane 👋 a former overwhelmed, DIY-everything entrepreneur who used to burn out every few months trying to keep my business alive. For years, I ran my business like a one-person army, constantly juggling everything and believing I had to do it all to succeed.

Everything changed when I discovered how to use AI to build real systems... from marketing to accounting to mindset. It helped me 10X my sales, reclaim my time, and finally feel in control of my business (without the chaos).

Now I teach silently struggling business owners how to do the same through The AI CEO Blueprint™, so you can stop surviving and start building a business that actually feels like freedom.

Let’s make calm, scalable success your new normal. → Explore The AI CEO Blueprint™