The Buy Back Time Formula
From Founder Burnout to Time Freedom: How to Scale a Business Without Losing Your Life
Profits Unleashed Podcast with Karen Roberts & George Rivera
What if the real reason your business feels heavy isn’t the workload — but the way it’s designed?
For many founders, entrepreneurs, and coaches, success doesn’t feel the way it was promised. The revenue is there. The clients are there. The growth is happening. Yet somehow, freedom feels further away than ever.
That’s exactly what this episode of the Profits Unleashed Podcast explores.
In this powerful conversation, host Karen Roberts sits down with George Rivera, executive coach and creator of the Buyback Time Formula, to reveal why so many high-performing founders end up exhausted, overworked, and trapped — and how to escape without sacrificing growth.
When a Successful Business Becomes a Burden
George Rivera’s entrepreneurial journey spans more than 30 years across direct response marketing, e-commerce, and real estate coaching. He built companies most founders only dream about — including scaling one business beyond $20 million in revenue.
But behind the numbers was a different reality.
George was working 60–90 hours a week, carrying the mental load of every decision, and missing irreplaceable family moments. His health was declining. His energy was gone. And the business he built for freedom had quietly become a prison.
This isn’t an uncommon story — it’s a familiar one for founders who believe their presence is what holds everything together.
The Wake-Up Call That Changed Everything
The turning point came from an unexpected place.
As a child, George watched his father — a highly successful medical doctor — miss nearly every one of his basketball games. Years later, as his father lay dying, he offered a final piece of advice that would reshape George’s entire life:
“Don’t miss Leo’s games.”
Leo is George’s son.
In that moment, George realised he was repeating the same pattern — providing financially while being absent emotionally. And no amount of success could justify that cost.
Why Hustle Isn’t the Answer
One of the most important insights from this episode is that burnout isn’t caused by ambition — it’s caused by poor systems.
George didn’t need to work harder.
He didn’t need more discipline.
He didn’t need better time management hacks.
He needed:
Clear delegation frameworks
Strong leadership structure
Systems that removed him as the bottleneck
This shift became the foundation of what George now teaches as the Buyback Time Formula — a method for helping founders redesign their role so the business can grow without them being involved in everything.
The Founder Bottleneck Problem
A major theme in this episode is the mindset that keeps founders stuck.
Common beliefs include:
“No one can do this as well as I can”
“One mistake could cost me everything”
“It’s faster if I just do it myself”
But as George explains, this mindset doesn’t protect the business — it trains dependency.
When founders don’t transfer ownership properly, teams wait for approval, decisions slow down, and everything flows back to the top. Over time, the founder becomes exhausted, resentful, and indispensable — the most dangerous position of all.
The Simple Exercise That Reveals Where Freedom Is Hiding
One of the most practical tools shared in this episode is the time audit.
George walks founders through a process of:
Tracking every task for 1–2 weeks
Assigning a dollar value to their time
Identifying low-value tasks that can be delegated
When George did this, he discovered he was spending 40 hours per week on tasks worth $50/hour or less — despite his time being worth exponentially more.
Delegating those tasks allowed him to buy back half his workweek almost instantly — without hurting the business.
Scaling Faster by Doing Less
Here’s the counterintuitive truth revealed in this conversation:
The less George worked in the business, the faster it grew.
Once his time was freed up, he focused exclusively on:
Strategic partnerships
Revenue growth opportunities
Offer creation and optimisation
Vision and leadership
The result?
The business scaled to nearly $50 million, while George reduced his workload to 20–30 hours per week.
Why Family-First Leadership Creates Better Businesses
Buying back time didn’t just change George’s schedule — it changed his relationships.
Today, he:
Never misses his son’s games
Homeschools and travels with his family
Treats family commitments like non-negotiable business meetings
That shift created ripple effects throughout the company. Teams were empowered. Ownership increased. Creativity expanded. The business became healthier — not just more profitable.
Where to Go Next
George Rivera shares his full methodology inside his book and resources at:
👉 https://buybacktimeformula.com
You can also connect with George here:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/georgerivera77
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/georgerivera1977
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/george-rivera-53b3296/
Final Reflection
If you built your business for freedom but feel more trapped than ever, this episode is essential listening.
You don’t need more hustle.
You need better systems.
And you deserve a business that supports your life — not consumes it.
🎧 Listen to the full episode of the Profits Unleashed Podcast and learn how to buy back your time without sacrificing growth.
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