DiscoverTropical MBA: Entrepreneurship & Founder Lifestyle#828 Numbers Gone Wild: The Hidden Cost of Being Data-Driven
#828 Numbers Gone Wild: The Hidden Cost of Being Data-Driven

#828 Numbers Gone Wild: The Hidden Cost of Being Data-Driven

Update: 2025-10-09
Share

Description

Chasing numbers can actually destroy what made your business great. In this episode, Dan and Ian unpack Goodhart’s Law — the idea that once a measure becomes a target, it stops being useful — and how founders accidentally turn smart goals into bad incentives. Plus, you’ll hear six ways to build healthier systems, lead better, and stop metrics from running your company off the rails.



LINKS

Share your thoughts about the podcast (takes 2 mins)

This week’s sponsor: SPP.co “Your billing, onboarding & projects in one client portal”

This week’s sponsor: Smash Digital “Scale your organic traffic with future-proof strategies”

Connect with 6-, 7- & 8-figure founders in person and online

Hang out exclusively with 7+ figure founders and join us in NYC this December

22 FREE business resources for location-independent entrepreneurs



CHAPTERS



(00:01:16 ) The Hair-Dye Economy & Durable Businesses

(00:03:38 ) The Problem with Metrics

(00:07:44 ) Fix #1: Revisit Your Brand Promise

(00:09:12 ) Fix #2: Determine a Countervailing Metric

(00:12:17 ) Fix #3: Combine Input and Output Metrics

(00:13:12 ) Fix #4: Refresh Metrics Every 90 Days

(00:14:39 ) Fix #5: Pulse Discipline

(00:16:05 ) Fix #6: The Leadership Lens

(00:20:00 ) The Alt Business School

(00:25:42 ) When a Job Post Becomes a Marketing Hack



CONNECT:



Dan@tropicalmba.com

Ian@tropicalmba.com



Past guests on TMBA include Cal Newport, David Heinemeier Hannson, Seth Godin, Ricardo Semler, Noah Kagan, Rob Walling, Jay Clouse, Einar Vollset, Sam Dogan, Gino Wickam, James Clear, Jodie Cook, Mark Webster, Steph Smith, Taylor Pearson, Justin Tan, Matt Gartland, Ayman Al-Abdullah, Lucy Bella.



PLAYLIST:



Wealth Without a 7-Figure Exit: 5 Steps

How to Instantly Improve Your Lead Pipeline by 20-50%

Growth vs. Optimization — 90% of Growth Comes from 10% of Activities?

Comments 
In Channel
loading
00:00
00:00
x

0.5x

0.8x

1.0x

1.25x

1.5x

2.0x

3.0x

Sleep Timer

Off

End of Episode

5 Minutes

10 Minutes

15 Minutes

30 Minutes

45 Minutes

60 Minutes

120 Minutes

#828 Numbers Gone Wild: The Hidden Cost of Being Data-Driven

#828 Numbers Gone Wild: The Hidden Cost of Being Data-Driven

Dan Andrews; Ian Schoen