Mike Michalowicz clarifies what Profit First actually is: not greed, but a system to keep a business healthy enough to support its people. He pushes back on Dave Ramsey's "people first" framing and warns against extreme versions that cut everything but profit. Profit, wealth, and community care can work together.
So you can build a dedicated community, but I think we need to keep driving the values we're about. I'll give you a personal example. Profit First being the most popular thing I do, there are some people who have taken Profit First too far. So here's what Profit First is not. It's not about greed and getting rich. The outcome may be wealth. Mm-hmm. And I'm definitely an advocate for that. But people hear the words Profit First and they say, oh, all this guy cares about is profit first. That's not it. Dave Ramsey effed this up on his radio show. Someone calls in and said, do you know about Profit First? He's like, no, but I'll tell you this, is I'm people first. Bullshit, Dave Ramsey. Bullshit. You're not people first, you're profit first. Because if you have no profit, you can't care for your people. Right. So, but it also points to his and other people's ignorance of what profit first is about. Right. Profit first is about taking the financial welfare of an organization with such care and focus that we can provide great jobs and great opportunities for other people. It's the greatest way to be a provider. It's putting your oxygen mask on first. But there are people that have taken profit first and said, It's all about accumulation. It's all about maximizing. It's about cutting everything out except what makes me money. And therefore I am representative of what Profit First truly is about. It's like, no, no. I understand you're using some of the systems and processes, but you're taking it to an area that is not about, it's not what I'm about. It doesn't represent it. And so I am actively on stage talking about that. And it's kind of, it sounds to the outsider like this guy's bipolar. I'm like, you have to be profitable, but shame on you thinking profit is at the cost of everything. Like it's the yin and yang. There really can be a balance of, Wealth accumulation, profitability, and caring and community and supporting, and everyone can come out ahead. So you have fans, like a dedicated community, but some of them can take it too far. The question is, how do you navigate? And that, that's how I navigate. I'm vocal about it, right? And you need to be. But can you be? Because is Taylor Swift to the point where she can't be? Yeah, because it would cause a retaliation against her.
