EPISODE 39: Growth Spurts
…Aren’t Just for Kids
Let’s be honest: growth sounds glamorous until you’re in it. Up to your ears in Slack messages, onboarding checklists, new hires, shifting roles, and more late-night franchise calls than you can count.
But here’s what I’ve learned over the past few weeks: the middle matters.
We’re not at the top of the mountain (…yet), but we’ve climbed far enough to finally pause, catch our breath, and say, “Wow, we’re not where we started.”
This episode of the Mr. & Mrs. CEO podcast is part reflection, part confession, and 100% real talk about what it takes to build something meaningful from scratch, without losing your mind, your marriage, or your mission.
When Forward Motion Isn’t the Answer
Like a lot of entrepreneurs, Darren and I have a habit of pushing forward. New vision? Let’s go. New strategy? Let’s implement. New opportunity? Let’s say yes.
But somewhere between July and March, the weight of momentum set in. And instead of piling on more, we finally did something wildly uncomfortable:
We looked back.
And what we saw was staggering.
We’ve onboarded key hires in operations and marketing.
We’ve signed our second Door Gurus franchise partner.
We’ve grown from a team of two to a fully functioning brand machine.
And we’ve built systems; not just hopes and dreams.
Looking back helped us realize we were no longer in the “startup fog.” We were in a growth spurt. And just like a toddler with leg cramps at night… it was painful, messy, and necessary.
Growth Hurts If You’re Not Ready
One of the biggest lessons from this season? Success can crush you if you’re not prepared for it.
We spent the better part of a year learning how to find, vet, and onboard franchise partners. But we realized, almost too late, that if we actually got what we were asking for (i.e., 5 to 10 partners at once), we would’ve collapsed under the pressure.
That forced us to ask some tough questions:
Do we have the infrastructure to support growth?
Is our team resourced or just surviving?
Are we building something sustainable… or just sprinting toward burnout?
Darren said it best: “If we’re not ready, this could go down.”
And he knows. He’s run businesses that grew too fast before. That served every customer need with no boundaries. That bent until they broke.
This time? We’re doing it differently. We’re building before we need it.
The Cost of “More” Isn’t Always Revenue
One of the biggest wake-up calls was realizing that more isn’t always better.
More partners. More visibility. More demand.
That sounds great… until your team is exhausted, your leadership feels reactive, and your culture starts to crack under pressure.
This time around, we’re learning to:
Honour the pace of real people doing the work
Protect the integrity of what we’re building
Say “not yet” when our systems aren’t ready
Because here’s the truth: your business can’t grow if your people are burning out. And your vision won’t land if your team can’t carry it.
Three Years In: What We’d Tell Our Past Selves
It’s wild to say, but we’re closing in on three years since this whole crazy idea became real. And if we could go back and talk to those wide-eyed, idealistic versions of ourselves, here’s what we’d say:
Start before you feel ready, but build what’s next before you need it.
It will take longer than you think, and that’s OK.
Take time to look back; it’s where the clarity lives.
You don’t need to have all the answers. You just need the right questions.
Every bumpy decision, delayed hire, or seemingly slow stretch has taught us something critical. And honestly? We’re better for not having scaled faster.
Now, as we approach partner #3, #4, and beyond, we can feel the ground beneath us shifting again, and we’re getting ahead of it, not just chasing it.
Final Thoughts: Pause. Reflect. Realign.
If you’re building something right now, here’s your permission slip:
Pause. Reflect. Realign.
You don’t need to scale at someone else’s speed. You don’t need to match anyone’s numbers. What you need is alignment between your vision, your values, and your infrastructure.
Take a breath. Look back six months. You’ll probably find gold you forgot to celebrate… and gaps you’re now ready to fill.
And if things feel heavy right now, just remember Darren’s favourite line from this episode:
“Take an inventory of your past because there’s more for you in the future.”
It doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to be yours.
Keep climbing. The view is worth it.
Stay Connected with Mr. & Mrs. CEO
We’d love to continue this conversation! Connect with us on social media:
Darren’s Instagram: @darren.hiebert
Kim’s Instagram: @kimberley.hiebert
Darren’s LinkedIn: Darren Hiebert
Kim’s LinkedIn: Kimberley Hiebert
Website: Mr. & Mrs. CEO