Podcast Summary: The First 90 Days – What To Do After You Take Over A Small Business

Action Academy | Millionaire Mentorship For Your Life & Business
Host: Brian Luebben
Guest: Cody Barton
Date: January 22, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into a largely unaddressed but crucial topic: what to actually do in the first 90 days after acquiring a small business. Brian Luebben and seasoned entrepreneur Cody Barton (owner/operator of multiple businesses approaching $60 million in revenue) break down the playbook for successfully transitioning into business ownership after purchase. They discuss month-by-month strategies, how to approach team members, avoid rookie mistakes, and build systems that set the foundation for sustainable, profitable growth.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Myth of "Passive Ownership" (00:52–01:55)

• Brian: Calls out the fantasy of hands-off small business ownership ("sit on the beach, hire an operator").

  "I'm just going to have an operator do all the work... That's not true." (00:52)

• Cody: Echoes this, emphasizing the messiness and hands-on requirement in the early phase, even with perfect acquisition diligence.

  "Week one is chaos week. It's where the bodies are buried that you had no idea existed." (02:53)

2. The First Week: Focus on Functional, Not Transformational (02:29–07:03)

• Critical Administrative Tasks:

  • Transfer legal paperwork, employment contracts, set up new bank accounts, ensure payroll is ready.
  • Avoid making sweeping changes immediately.

• Build Trust Fast:

  • Offer good news like rolling out employee benefits (optional but effective for buy-in).
  • Main goal: "Daily operations aren't going to be affected. We're able to collect money. We're able to pay money." (05:25)

• Start the Audit Phase:

  • "We come in and act like we're like an 11-year-old and just seek to understand, not seek to change." (06:12)

3. The First 30–45 Days: Deep Dive, Not Disruption (07:03–14:47)

• Audit All Departments:
  Marketing, Sales, Operations, Finance — walk through the entire customer journey and employee workflows in minute detail.

• Seek to Understand, Not Judge:

  • Use gentle curiosity, not judgment, even when inheriting chaotic or outdated systems.
  • "I'm not saying, 'This is weird, this is insane.' I'm seeking to understand." (08:56)

• Get in the Trenches:

  • Work side-by-side with employees. Deliver coffee, help with daily tasks, build rapport.

  "Do the small, unscalable things to really show that you're in the trenches with them..." (09:39)

• Memorable Quotes:

  • "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care." (11:37)

4. One-on-Ones: Superstar vs. Detractor (15:54–22:52)

• How to Have Effective One-on-Ones:

  • Approach every conversation with curiosity, positivity, and genuine interest.
  • Give everyone the benefit of the doubt—avoid snap judgments.

• How to Identify a "Superstar":

  • Solution-oriented, excited about opportunities, engaged in finding and implementing improvements.

• How to Identify a "Detractor":

  • Only focused on problems with no willingness or ideas for solutions; consistently negative attitude.

• Delivery Over Content:

  • "It's the energy and the essence of what they're saying... Are they solution-oriented or problem-oriented?" (19:44)

5. Implementation Phase – After the Audit (23:06–33:14)

• Prioritize with Impact/Effort Matrix:

  • List all potential areas for improvement (post-audit), and score by impact (on revenue, expenses, morale) and effort required.
  • Execute only 3–5 high-impact initiatives for the next 90 days; everything else waits.

• John's Lesson:

  "If you're trying to fix everything, you'll fix nothing." (26:26)

• Solve Constraints Sequentially:

  • One main problem/constraint at a time: avoid launching ten solutions at once to avoid chaos and confusion about what is actually moving the needle.
  • "Having the least amount of variables possible when we're trying to implement new solutions." (28:29)

6. The First 90 Days: What Success Looks Like (33:48–35:32)

• Benchmarks for a Successful Transition:
  • Team is bought in and aligned with new direction.
  • Leadership cadence is established (operational scorecards, regular meetings, one-on-ones).
  • Key initiatives from the implementation list are in motion (not everything at once).
  • Finances and customer retention are stable or improving.
  • Cody: "We're not trying to solve world hunger in the first 90 days... We're trying to build trust with the team." (34:06)

7. Cautionary Tales – “Trust But Verify” (37:21–40:25)

• Even with all this, expect surprises:

  • Cody shares a story where an office manager sabotaged recruiting by simply ignoring applicants yet fabricated activity reports.
  • Lesson: Implement checks to verify what employees claim is happening (e.g., "physically sit with them," check systems, double-check communications).

• Quote (on verification):

  "Trust but verify... I was looking at top-line metrics, but not actually seeing if the work was being done." (40:00)

8. Cody’s Closing Advice & Motivation (41:57–47:22)

• Change Takes Time:

  • Beware the temptation to overhaul everything—be patient and selective.

• Build Bridges:

  • Focus on relationships, respect established processes, move slowly with major personnel changes.

• Permanent Flexibility:

  "You can only fight so many battles at once... some other areas you're not necessarily happy with are just going to [have to] burn over there for a minute." (43:15)

• Why It’s Worth It:

  • Cody shares a before-and-after of his cleaning business acquisition: within one year, revenue and profit more than doubled, and the team culture was transformed.
  • “We get to have the opportunity to serve 50, 55 people...and actually pour into them and care about them, and like they are all, all on fire to help this company be successful because of the way that we treat them and because of the care that's actually there." (46:15)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:52 – The myth of hands-off small business ownership
• 02:29 – The must-do administrative tasks in week one
• 06:12 – Start of the “audit phase” and why you must seek to understand
• 09:39 – The value of getting “in the trenches” with your team
• 11:37 – “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care”
• 15:54–22:52 – How to approach staff one-on-ones; identifying future top talent or problem employees
• 23:06–26:32 – Impact/Effort Matrix—how to triage improvements after your audit
• 28:29 – Why you should solve one problem at a time
• 34:06 – Success benchmarks at 90 days
• 37:21 – “Trust but verify” as a business owner
• 41:57–44:00 – Final advice for first-time business acquirers
• 46:15 – Why the work pays off: Cody’s business transformation

Notable Quotes

On Approach & Mindset:

• “Week one is chaos week. It's where the bodies are buried that you had no idea existed.” — Brian (02:53)
• "We come in and act like we're like an 11-year-old and just seek to understand, not seek to change." — Cody (06:12)
• "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care." — Cody (11:37)
• “It's the energy and the essence of what they're saying... Are they solution-oriented or problem-oriented?” — Cody (19:44)
• “If you're trying to fix everything, you'll fix nothing.” — Cody (26:26)

On Leadership & Culture:

• “Go be with your people, ride a route, go be with them. Bring them coffee at 5 o'clock in the morning... Frickin' fill the coffee pot. Do the small, unscalable things...” — Brian (09:39)
• "The fastest way a business will go south, even the best business you buy, is if your team mutinies on you." — Brian (10:15)
• “We're not trying to solve world hunger in the first 90 days... We're trying to build trust with the team.” — Cody (34:06)

On Business Reality:

• “The only guarantee is that there’s going to be unknowns that you just don’t know that you don’t know.” — Cody (35:32)
• “Trust but verify.” — Cody (40:00)
• “You can only fight so many battles at once. Some of the other areas you're not necessarily happy with are just going to sit and burn over there for a minute and that's okay.” — Cody (43:15)

Final Takeaways

• The first 90 days post-acquisition are about stability, observation, and rapport—not immediate transformation.
• Approach your new team with humility and curiosity; prioritize understanding existing workflows before making changes.
• Use structured tools (like an Impact/Effort Matrix) to prioritize changes, and solve one problem at a time.
• Constantly “trust but verify”—systems and people should not escape objective scrutiny.
• Above all, treat people well: culture is built early, and “people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”
• The real upside is both financial and personal: transforming team culture and business performance can multiply enterprise value and job satisfaction for everyone involved.

For more from Cody Barton:
Instagram: @codybartonofficial
Consulting: skillwithpros.com