I’m The Real Jason Duncan, back with your Beyond the Grind blog—helping entrepreneurs like you build thriving businesses without sacrificing your freedom. 🚀

At one of our Exiter Club Spring Workshops in Nashville, I had the privilege of hosting some of the top entrepreneurs in the country.

It was our best one yet.

On Monday and Tuesday morning, our XOS™ certified coaches met in a closed-door session to sharpen each other and refine the tools we bring to the Club.

Then, Tuesday afternoon and all day Wednesday, we rolled up our sleeves with our full Exiter Club mastermind.

No fluff—just high-level strategy, deep conversations, and a room full of owners committed to building businesses that don’t depend on them.

Being in that room reminded me of something I’ve learned the hard way over the years: high revenue doesn’t equal wealth.

Let’s talk about that.

Why Revenue is a Vanity Metric

Back in 2018, one of my businesses hit the Inc. 5000 list for the first time. We were ranked:

• #1 in our industry nationwide

• #8 in Nashville

• #17 in Tennessee

• #1304 in the U.S. overall

We hit the list again in 2019.

Now don’t get me wrong—that kind of recognition felt amazing.

Our revenue was growing fast, and we were being celebrated for it.

But here’s the thing: nobody from Inc. ever asked how much money we actually got to keep.

We were making millions… but I wasn’t stacking cash the way you’d think.

I was still grinding.

Still reinvesting everything.

Still stressed about payroll and margins and taxes.

Truth is, there ought to be a new kind of list.

One that doesn’t just recognize the biggest earners, but the smartest ones—the entrepreneurs who actually keep more of what they make. That’s the real win.

Smart Strategies to Keep More of What You Earn

It’s not just how much you make—it’s how you structure it.

Most entrepreneurs don’t know what they don’t know. I didn’t.

One of the smartest structural moves you can make as an entrepreneur is electing S Corp status for your LLC, paying yourself a fair W-2 salary, and then taking additional profits as owner distributions.

Why does this matter?

Because only your salary is subject to self-employment taxes (Social Security and Medicare). Your distributions—assuming they’re reasonable and your salary meets IRS standards—aren’t subject to that 15.3% tax.

Without an S Corp election, you’d owe that tax on 100% of your earnings, even if you took it all as a “distribution.”

That’s how most entrepreneurs overpay—quietly and unnecessarily.

Let me show you what this looks like with real numbers:

Imagine you're making $200,000 in profit from your business.

WITHOUT an S Corp election (sole proprietor/single-member LLC):

All $200,000 is subject to self-employment tax (15.3%)

That’s $30,600 going straight to self-employment taxes

WITH an S Corp election:

You pay yourself a reasonable salary of $90,000

Only this $90,000 is subject to self-employment tax (15.3%) = $13,770

The remaining $110,000 comes to you as distributions (not subject to SE tax)

Total self-employment tax savings: $16,830 per year

That’s almost $17,000 staying in your pocket every single year—just from one smart structural change.

I wish someone had shown me this when I started.

No one did. I learned it late—but not too late to teach others.

Another smart tip? Track your ROI—but not the kind you’re used to.

I’m talking about Return on Involvement.

How much time are you investing in your business each week?

And what’s that time earning you?

If you’re working 60 hours a week to make $200K, but you could be working 10 hours a week and still make $175K, your ROI isn’t as good as you think.

We help Exiter Club members track this and restructure their businesses to make more while working less.

But the secret truth that most entrepreneurs don’t know is that you could work 20 hours or less and make double what you’re making now if you do it right.

This is what #exitwithoutexiting is all about!

The Profit First Shift That Changed Everything

I’m a huge believer in the Profit First methodology, created by Mike Michalowicz.

Here’s the core idea: Most entrepreneurs run their business like this—

❌ Revenue – Expenses = PROFIT ❌

But that’s backwards. In Profit First, we flip it:

✅ Revenue – PROFIT = Expenses ✅

This forces you to pay yourself first, set aside taxes, and allocate funds with discipline—so profit isn’t just what’s left over.

It’s what’s planned.

The system is simple, but incredibly effective.

And when paired with the right banking tools, it’s even more powerful.

That’s why I use Relay—a Profit First–friendly banking platform that makes allocating funds across multiple accounts effortless.

It’s helped me stack cash predictably and stay disciplined with how money moves through my business.

👉 Want to set up your own free Relay account? Click here

It’s the best banking move I’ve made in years.

True Wealth Isn’t Just About Income

Here’s what I’ve learned after building and scaling multiple companies:

Wealth is what you keep.

Revenue doesn’t matter if it burns out your energy, steals your time, or disappears into bloated overhead and tax bills.

True wealth is having control over:

• How much money you keep

• How much time you own

• How much stress you avoid

It’s not just about income—it’s about freedom.

That’s why inside The Exiter Club, we don’t just help entrepreneurs scale—we help them keep more of what they earn and build businesses that give them back their life.

Ready to Keep More of What You Make?

If you're tired of working harder than you need to while watching too much of your revenue disappear, let's talk.

The Exiter Club isn't just another mastermind—it's your roadmap to building a business that serves your life (not the other way around).

Book a Strategy Call with me personally to see if the Exiter Club is your next smart move.

We’ll review your current business structure, identify your biggest profit leaks, and show you exactly how our framework could work for your specific situation.

BOOK MY STRATEGY CALL

Spots are limited to 5 calls per week, and they fill up fast.

Until next time…

Go beyond the grind,
The Real Jason Duncan 🚀