Episode 70 | Elisha Herrmann of What’s in the Portfolio
Joe Mallo • June 11, 2025
On this episode of Mastering the Numbers, Joe Mallo interviews Elisha Herrmann, an inspiring entrepreneur and founder of What’s in the Portfolio. Elisha dives into challenges of building multiple businesses, shares invaluable lessons learned along the way, and emphasizes the importance of mentorship and collaboration in entrepreneurship.
If you’re ready to learn about responsible AI, navigating regulations, and creating opportunities for wealth building, this episode is for you. Tune in to discover how Elisha approaches business, leadership, and finding balance across multiple ventures.
Key topics discussed
- Welcome and introduction with Elisha Herrmann
- Insights into What’s in the Portfolio
- Tackling business challenges
- Top advice for aspiring entrepreneurs
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An owner planning to step away within five years had built a $14 million company. Before he could do that, he needed to know whether he had created a valuable business or one that still depended on him to keep it running. Earning $14 million a year might seem like success, but it didn’t feel that way. The company had been stuck at that number for a long time, no matter what they tried. Profit margins had dropped to negative two percent, so for every dollar earned, the business was actually losing money. The owner felt overwhelmed. He wanted to step away from the business within five years, but at that point, it appeared more like a wish than a real plan. There was a lot to do, but no clear order for getting it done. The business lacked structure, and accountability was even weaker. He realized he needed help, so he hired a coach; someone who could guide him through the process instead of just giving him a binder and wishing for the best. The Real Number The first step wasn’t a strategy session. Instead, they did a formal valuation to answer a question he had likely been avoiding: what is this business really worth? For a company making $14 million a year, the answer was humbling. It turned out that the formal valuation was $7 million. They also created a one-page strategic plan. After months of feeling anxious and hesitant about where to start, he finally had a simple, clear guide; a single page showing exactly how the business could grow from $14 million to $30 million. A Business Someone Else Could Run A plan can improve the numbers, but lasting value requires a business that can operate without the owner at the center every day. As long as key decisions and knowledge remain tied to one person, the company’s future performance remains tied to that person too. If a business only works because the owner is there every day, it’s not really an asset; it’s just a demanding job. They moved procedures out of the owner’s head and into the company. Leaders were trusted to make real decisions, and accountability no longer depended on the owner. That shift gave the business value beyond the current owner and made a future transition possible. A Bigger North Star After twelve months, the plan had already shown results. Sales rose from $14 million to $19 million. The company, which had been losing money before, was now keeping six cents of every dollar it earned. Most significantly, the official valuation had risen from $7 million to $20 million. Results like that can change your goals. The three-year target, which was $30 million, became $50 million; not just due to ambition, but because the plan had already proven what was possible. What at one time seemed like a distant dream now looked like the next step. The owner began looking into an Employee Stock Ownership Plan, which would let him eventually pass the company to the people who helped build it, instead of just selling to the highest bidder. This was only possible because the business was valuable and could run without him. For years, revenue made the business bigger. But it took a real plan to finally make it valuable too. by The Point Success Guide
The owner had dedicated years pursuing $1 million in annual revenue while revenue held around $675,000. Breaking the goal into monthly targets revealed the real gap: approximately one additional landscaping project a month. Some goals feel overwhelming because of how they are measured. A million dollars in annual revenue can seem impossible and make it hard to see what to do next. An owner might chase that number for years without knowing what a typical month should look like. For years, the owner aimed for that number but never got closer. Revenue stayed near $675,000, and each year ended much like the last. The goal was clear, but the path to it was not. The company also didn’t have a clear idea of its ideal customer, so it was hard to know which jobs would help the business grow. The Size of the Gap The shift started by breaking the annual goal into monthly and weekly requirements, the kind of structure that turns “someday” into a schedule. The gap between current revenue and the goal was about $325,000 a year, or approximately $27,000 each month. That made the challenge much clearer than just aiming to “reach $1 million.” For this landscaping company, that monthly gap meant about one extra project each month. The owner didn’t need to start a new division or change the business model. Just adding one more job most months could close the gap. Choosing the Right Job That reframe changed the shape of the goal. A million dollars had looked distant. One more project a month felt concrete enough to plan a Tuesday around. Another important step was deciding which projects to go after. The company worked on understanding its ideal customer instead of treating every job as equally valuable. Not every project helps the business reach its goal, and the wrong one can take up a month without making much progress. Beyond $1 Million By focusing on the right projects, the company moved beyond its original goal and is now on track to reach about $1.5 million in annual revenue. The goal itself never became smaller. It stopped being one impossible figure and became a string of ordinary weeks, each one asking for something specific and doable. by The Point Success Guide