Your business is stuck under a million.Do you know why?
It isn’t effort. Something in the business runs through you and only you. Until that changes, it grows exactly as fast as you can personally push it — and not a dollar faster.
25 statements, about 5 minutes. Results on screen and by email.
Your crew, your customers and your family see someone who built something real.
Underneath, you’re still the first and only number anyone calls.
Your last vacation was a remote work session with a better view.
And December’s number looks a lot like last December’s.
It was never about effort. It’s about knowing which part of the business is holding the rest down.
Three ways in
Find it. Fix it. Then move.
Start with the free Scorecard. It tells you which part of your business is capping the rest — and which tool to reach for next.
The Scorecard
Twenty-five statements across five areas. Names the one section holding the rest back.
Start free →Most popularThe Playbooks
Six AI-assisted systems that turn your constraint into something you can hand to a person on Monday.
See the Playbooks →The Deep Diagnostic
84 questions, one written report. Where you stand, what’s holding you back, and what to do in what order.
See the Diagnostic →From Jim
You built something real. And then it stopped.
It pays the bills, it employs good people, and it grew every year you poured yourself into it.
Not dramatically. There was no crisis. The business just settled into a number — six hundred thousand, eight hundred thousand, somewhere short of the seven figures you assumed would come with enough effort — and no matter how many hours you put in, it stays there.
Here is the part nobody tells you: the ceiling isn’t effort. It’s structure. Something in the business runs through you and only you, and until that changes, the business grows exactly as fast as you can personally push it.
This book finds that thing. Then it tells you what to do about it, in what order, starting Monday.
Everyone says you need to
- Just get more leads
- Hire someone to take it off your plate
- Work on the business, not in it
- Put more into marketing
- Get systems in place
All true. All useless until you know which one is yours.
Every one of those is the right answer for somebody. Only one is the right answer for you — and picking wrong is how the last three years went. Your business has one weakest link. Find the one. Fix the one. Then move.
Find yours — freeInside the book
Not complicated. Specific.
- The Million-Dollar Scorecard — names your weakest section, so you know which chapters were written for you.
- The One Simple Rule — do not work on scale while instability exists. Growth doesn’t fix broken businesses; it exposes them.
- The speed-to-lead number that quietly decides who wins the deal — and almost nobody is measuring it.
- Why “think like a plumber” is the most profitable sentence in the book.
- How to hire people who stay — average tenure at Taradel was eight years.
- Four training phases that set the reading order, so the foundation gets fixed before the marketing.
What readers are saying
Practical tough love
Our firm has worked with over a hundred entrepreneurs, and I think of Jim as one of the most impressive I’ve had the chance to work with. What he built at Taradel was no fluke.
Like any good intervention, The Million Dollar Hurdle is delivered to underachieving business owners with practical tough love — one part supportive encouragement, one part prescriptive, plain-talking advice.
He learned his lessons the hard way, and shares them in this book. A compelling read that gives actionable advice for anyone seeking to grow a business.
Who it’s for
The owner who signs the front of the checks.
Contractors and trades. Agencies, firms, and consultancies. Dental and medical practices. Restaurants and shops. Online stores. Manufacturers and distributors. Different industries, same hurdle: a business that outgrew the way it was built, and an owner who is still the reason it works.
Get the book
Get your copy direct
Book, ebook, and audiobook. Every paperback order includes the audiobook free, and every copy comes with a 100-day guarantee.
About the author
Jim Fitzgerald
Jim has founded four companies across a thirty-five-year career. One of them, Taradel, cleared the million-dollar hurdle on its way to 25,000 customers and $30 million in annual revenue, making the Inc. 5000 twelve straight years — a run only thirty-five other companies had matched at the time.
He grew up in a Boston housing project. He wrote The Million Dollar Hurdle because he was that owner first — the best technician, the closer, the collections department, and the guy answering the phone at nine at night. Today he is co-founder of Paycile and founder of Fitzgerald Growth Partners.
Questions
FAQ
Is the Scorecard really free?
Yes. Twenty-five statements, about five minutes, no payment. Your results show on screen and arrive by email.
Do I need the book first?
No. The Scorecard from Chapter 2 is free online. Take it first and you’ll know which chapters to read first when the book arrives.
What’s the difference between the Playbooks and the Deep Diagnostic?
The Playbooks ($47) are six AI-assisted systems that turn your constraint into work you can hand to someone. The Deep Diagnostic ($97) is 84 questions and one written report on where you stand and what to do, in what order.
My business is different. Will this work for me?
Landscapers, dentists, painters, agency owners, contractors: the problems don’t change. What changes is which one is yours — and that’s exactly what the Scorecard finds.