Too Many MSP Owners Are Making This Fatal Mistake—Are You One of Them?
Most MSPs hit a ceiling they can’t break through—80-hour work weeks, stagnant revenue, and watching competitors pull ahead.
But what if the biggest problem isn’t the tools, the clients, or the market?
What if it’s you?
Tim’s transformation from a struggling operator to running a $250M MSP wasn’t about luck—it was about implementing a framework that forces you to evolve.
And it starts by eliminating one thing: ego.
What’s Inside?
Why Radical Accountability Unlocks Real Growth
How to Discover Your Superpower & Delegate the Rest
Strategic Outsourcing: Stop Holding Yourself Back
The Secret to Growth Through Collaboration
Why Communication Excellence is the Glue Holding It All Together
This isn’t another list of MSP best practices. It’s a mindset shift—one that separates high-growth MSPs from the ones treading water. Let’s dive in.
The Ego-Free MSP Framework: 5 Components for Sustainable Growth
1. Radical Accountability: It’s On You
Most MSPs fail because they refuse to own their problems. They blame bad clients, unmotivated employees, or a tough market. But the top 5%? They start by holding up a mirror.
👉 If your business isn’t where you want it to be, and you’re making all the decisions, it’s your fault.
Action Steps:
Identify where you’re avoiding accountability (bad hires? low margins? pricing structure?)
Accept that inaction is a decision—and it’s costing you growth
Create a structured system for making better decisions today
2. The Magic Discovery: Double Down on Your Strengths
MSP owners waste 60% of their time on tasks they hate or aren’t good at. Instead of grinding through weaknesses, high-performers focus exclusively on their superpowers.
Tim asked himself: What am I world-class at? Then he hired the best to handle everything else.
Action Steps:
List 3 tasks that drain your energy—find a way to delegate them.
Identify what excites you—make it 80% of your work.
Eliminate “fake competence”—stop pretending you’re good at things you aren’t.
3. Strategic Outsourcing: Stop Doing Everything Yourself
Most MSP owners fear outsourcing because they think it means losing control. In reality, refusing to delegate is why they’re stuck.
👉 Every high-growth MSP outsources specialized work—it’s how they buy back time to focus on leadership and growth.
Action Steps:
Identify 3 functions to outsource immediately (Helpdesk? Bookkeeping? Documentation?)
Shift from DIY to DIFY (Done-For-You) in non-core areas
Reinvest saved time into higher-value work
4. Collaborative Growth: Your Network Is Your Cheat Code
Lone wolf MSPs stagnate. The ones who collaborate, join peer groups, and leverage vendor partnerships accelerate exponentially.
Tim didn’t just build a network—he leveraged it to create a $250M company.
Action Steps:
Join a peer group where members are ahead of you
Find strategic partnerships (vendors, complementary services, M&A opportunities)
Build relationships beyond your comfort zone
5. Communication Excellence: The Hidden Scaling Lever
MSPs lose millions to poor communication—tribal knowledge, misaligned teams, and siloed information. The best operators fix this.
👉 “If you don’t repeat your company’s priorities so often that you’re sick of it, your team doesn’t know them.”
Action Steps:
Create transparent performance metrics (stack ranking increases accountability)
Align incentives across sales, marketing, and operations
Reduce decision-making cycles—what takes a month should take a week
Real-World Wake-Up Call: The $150K Mistake
Most MSP owners lose $150,000 annually in profit—just by refusing to acknowledge their bottlenecks.
Tim’s first big breakthrough? Accepting that he was the bottleneck.
Once he removed ego from the equation and started following this framework, his growth exploded—he scaled a $250M company in under three years.
How to Apply This Framework Today
Step 1: Audit Your Current Position 🔍
Identify your biggest constraints (time, capacity, growth, profitability)
Step 2: Apply One Principle This Week 📆
Choose one framework component and implement it today.
Step 3: Start Small & Scale Up ⚡
Strategic outsourcing? Start with just one task.
Collaborative growth? Join a peer group today.
Dive Deeper with Video
• Whiteboard Breakdown: Walkthrough of this framework and actionable strategies to implement immediately. [Watch Here]
• Full Tim Conkle Interview: Listen to Tim’s real-world experiences and the tough lessons that led to this essential framework. [Watch Here]
Final Thought: The Biggest MSP Growth Killer? Ego.
Tim put it best: “Ego is the most expensive thing in a business.”
If you refuse to let go of control, refuse to own your mistakes, and refuse to adapt—your MSP is already on the decline.
But if you embrace accountability, strategic delegation, and systems-driven communication, you’re on the fast track to breaking through your revenue ceiling.
👉 So ask yourself: Where will your business be in three years if nothing changes? And what’s stopping you from making the shift right now?
Talk soon,
Jeffrey Newton
MSP INSIDER