The EntreLeadership Podcast – Episode Summary

Episode Title: My Loyal Employee Can’t Do the Job (Should I Promote Him?)
Release Date: September 22, 2025
Host: Dave Ramsey (Ramsey Network)

Episode Overview

In this episode, Dave Ramsey takes live calls from business leaders and owners wrestling with real questions about succession planning, compensation, tax strategy, leadership loneliness, and profit sharing. With his classic blend of no-nonsense advice, straight talk, and decades of experience, Dave delivers clear frameworks for making tough leadership decisions that position both people and businesses for long-term growth. Whether you're considering how to evaluate a loyal but underqualified employee for a higher role, looking for creative yet sensible ways to improve profit sharing, or simply searching for encouragement as a leader, this episode is a masterclass in practical wisdom.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Promoting a Loyal, Underqualified Employee

• Caller: Thomas from Greenville, SC (01:00–07:57)

• Issue: Succession planning—Can (and should) a long-term, loyal employee be trained up to succeed in a management role, or is it time to look elsewhere?

• Dave’s Approach:

  • Detail the Role Requirements: Write out expectations in explicit detail—even if it’s 10 pages.
  • Clear, Measurable Coaching: Go through 30-day sprints focused on critical skill areas (customer-facing presence, technical skills, attention to detail).
  • Progress, Not Perfection: Within 30 days, assess if the employee is demonstrating enough progress to indicate trainability within a year—perfection isn’t required during this period.
  • Address Personality and Style: Style matters only if it serves or hinders the role. If style prevents success, it requires coaching; lack of adaptation = lack of trainability.

• Notable Quotes:

  • “We’re not moving anyone into any slot in this company that can’t do the job just because they’ve hung around here a long time.” – Dave Ramsey (02:19)
  • “If the style is causing him to not be able to do the job, then he’s going to have to have a softer touch. I’m a hard charger, but there are times I need to have a soft touch—everyone does.” – Dave Ramsey (05:46)
  • “You can have people smarts from any style … Sometimes a soft touch, sometimes a pushy touch. Both are appropriate at different times, and that puts you in the right place.” – Dave Ramsey (07:25)

• Memorable Moment: Dave humorously underlines that “just the way I am” is not an excuse for harming team dynamics: “That’s not the way you are. You don’t want to do that. Style is not an excuse to not be able to do something.” (06:22)

2. Small Business Tax Strategy & Cash Management

• Caller: Tyler from Jacksonville, FL (10:03–16:38)

• Issue: Profit spike led to tax exposure; should extra cash be used for business purchases (to lower taxes) or simply pay the bill?

• Dave’s Guidance:

  • Don’t Buy Stuff Just for the Write-Off: Only buy what the business truly needs, not just for tax avoidance.
  • Build Cash Reserves Over Unnecessarily Expanding: Focus on solid cash reserves—Tyler’s goal of three months’ expenses is sound.
  • Consider Personal Finances: If the owner is personally in debt, prioritize paying off debt (especially when the business is stable).
  • Reality Check on Tax: “Rich people pay a lot of taxes. The idea they don’t is a freaking joke.” (13:19)
  • Practical Advice: Use profits to pay off personal debt first; keep building reserves; and accept that paying taxes is part of business success.

• Notable Quotes:

  • “A tax write-off is a dollar trade for 30 cents. So you don’t buy stuff that you don’t need, okay, just to write it off.” – Dave Ramsey (10:45)
  • “I wouldn’t have retained earnings that large while I had 45k at home sitting there. I’d clear that.” – Dave Ramsey (14:06)
  • “That doesn’t help your taxes at all, but that’s a sidebar.” – Dave Ramsey (14:12)

• Memorable Moment: Dave’s encouragement about breaking the “seasonal dip” myth with pure hustle: “Momentum … and just cash flow can push you through those things.” (14:56)

3. Combating Leadership Loneliness & Building Support Circles

• Listener Question: Derek from Texas (17:57–24:04)
• Issue: Emotional burden and isolation of leadership, especially at higher levels.
• Dave’s Wisdom:
  • Acknowledge the Loneliness: “The reason you feel like you’re carrying it all alone is because you’re carrying it all alone.” (17:57)
  • Find Peer Groups: Advisory groups with leaders at a similar level provide camaraderie, support, and shared learning.
  • Historical Example – The Eagles Group: Dave formed a long-running peer Bible study, which became an invaluable emotional and business support network.
  • Deliberately Surround Yourself With People Ahead of You: “You become who you hang around with, right?”
• Notable Quotes:
  • “It is heavy and it is lonely. And it is one of the prices of choosing to serve by being a leader, by owning and running something.” – Dave Ramsey (17:57)
  • “I wanted to be around people because you become who you hang around with, right?” – Dave Ramsey (Eagles Group context, ~20:00)
• Memorable Moment: Dave’s personal story of forming a group of local leaders for 14 years to combat isolation, both in business and life.

4. Profit Sharing Structures for High-Performing Teams

• Caller: John from Sacramento, CA (24:04–35:40)
• Issue: Should consultants be paid with a profit-sharing scheme or stick to a salary? If so, how should it be structured?
• Dave’s Framework:
  • Incentives Matter: Profit-sharing reinforces both reward and recognition—it’s about incentive AND respect.
  • Keep the Formula Flexible: Don’t disclose the exact percentage or formula, as it will need tweaking for fairness and impact.
  • Add, Don’t Replace: Introduce profit sharing as a bonus, not as a replacement for salary.
  • Frequency & Communication: Share profits monthly (on the 15th each month for previous month’s results), with a public update so everyone understands the link between their actions and outcomes—but keep the actual numbers private.
  • Tenure as Factor: Primary factor in profit-sharing calculation is length of service but only because high performers stick around under his high-accountability culture.
• Notable Quotes:
  • “I would put the freaking receptionist on straight commission if I could figure out a way.” – Dave Ramsey (24:44)
  • “I’m not sharing it because someone is entitled to it. It’s my money. But I’m sharing it because … I believe in recognizing that the people that caused this place to run are as responsible for the profits as I am.” – Dave Ramsey (26:00)
  • “The beautiful thing about this whole conversation … is you can make it up and then you get to change it because nobody knows the formula.” – Dave Ramsey (27:49)
• Memorable Moment: The ritual: Each monthly staff meeting before payroll, the CFO announces profit direction (up or down), connecting actions to outcomes and rallying the team. (29:01–33:05)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• [01:00–07:57] – Coaching a Loyal Employee for Promotion
• [10:03–16:38] – Managing Profitable Growth and Taxes in Small Business
• [17:57–24:04] – Leadership Loneliness: Staying Grounded and Supported
• [24:04–35:40] – Structuring Profit Sharing and Building Ownership Mentality

Tone & Language

• Dave’s signature style is direct, practical, witty, and encouraging.
• He drops memorable one-liners, employs humor, and mixes tough love with genuine empathy.
• The advice is always actionable and rooted in his decades of hands-on leadership.

For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This episode offers a full tour through hard-but-necessary leadership territory: promoting the right people for the right reasons; aligning compensation with performance; handling the psychological load of leadership; and thoughtfully distributing the rewards of teamwork. Dave’s specific frameworks, stories, and tangible steps make the wisdom immediately applicable—regardless of your industry or business size.

“Better a wary warrior than a quivering critic. This world needs more high quality leaders, so take courage and lead.” – Dave Ramsey (35:40)

Listen to more at: EntréLeadership Podcast