What does it actually take to build an Inc 5000 business without letting it eat you alive? That's exactly what we dig into with Brittany Fox. Brittany and her husband bootstrapped Focus Global Talent Solutions from their second bedroom in Miami — no outside funding, no playbook — and hit $2M in revenue their first year. Last year, they made the Inc 5000 list. But here's the thing: Brittany didn't just build a successful business. She built a sustainable one. And that distinction? It changes everything.

In this episode, we get into the real stuff. The psychology behind why high achievers burn out, what it actually took for Brittany to go from "grinding and hiding" to building a community of ambitious women who are done with surface-level conversations. We talk about morning routines that aren't just checklists, the power of doing hard things before they're trendy, and why showing up to one room can completely change the trajectory of your life.

This one's for the founders, the co-founders, the C-suite leaders who are crushing it professionally but quietly wondering: is this pace actually sustainable?

Key Takeaways:

• 80% of business is psychology. The other 20% is strategy. Brittany learned this early — and it became the foundation of how she runs everything.
• Brittany bootstrapped Focus Global from a condo in Miami with two dogs and hit $2M revenue in year one. No VC. No safety net. Just her, her husband Dave, and a whole lot of hustle — done intentionally.
• The Inc 5000 recognition in 2025 wasn't the goal. It was a byproduct of building something real, something sustainable, and something that actually worked.
• Brittany's 75 Hard story (before it was an Instagram trend) is one of the best "proof that you can do hard things" stories I've heard. She didn't think she could do it. She did it. And it rewired how she thinks about what's possible.
• Meditation isn't just a buzzword for Brittany — it's a practice she's had to actively protect. She actually stopped meditating for a while because it became a checklist item. That level of self-awareness is rare.
• She Created — her community for high-achieving women — was born from a very real frustration: the networking events that are all "tell me what you do" and zero depth. Brittany built the alternative.
• The advice that stuck with me: Don't make it so overwhelming. Start with one. One room. One book. One action. The compound effect does the rest.

About the Guest:

Brittany Fox is the CEO and Co-Founder of Focus Global Talent Solutions, an Inc 5000 AI and Martech staffing firm based in Miami. Before staffing, she was part of one of the top 10 real estate teams in Manhattan — her team closed $600M in sales, just the three of them. Brittany and her husband Dave bootstrapped Focus Global from scratch and built it into one of the fastest-growing private companies in the country.

In 2024, Brittany founded She Created — a community for high-achieving women who want to go deeper than business. Through curated dinners, intentional social events, and immersive retreats, She Created creates the space for women to have the real conversations that most networking events never get to.

Find Brittany:

• Website: shecreated.co
• Instagram: @BEFoxy

Resources & Links Mentioned:

Focus Global Talent Solutions

Tony Robbins Business Mastery

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Season Two opens with a necessary reset for growth leaders.

In this episode, Stacie sits down with Jennifer Yousem, Founder of iHeartEBITDA, to unpack the financial realities behind marketing and sales performance—and why CMOs are often asked to defend results without being given the right financial context.

They explore why top-line growth is a vanity metric, how margin degradation creeps into service businesses, and why honesty in forecasting matters more than aggressive targets. This conversation bridges the gap between marketing strategy and financial truth.

If you’re a CMO expected to drive growth, justify spend, and align with finance—this episode is required listening.

Key topics covered

• Why top-line growth is a vanity metric
• What CMOs need to understand about margins
• How margin degradation happens quietly over time
• Why “not all revenue is good revenue”
• Forecasting honesty vs. hockey-stick storytelling
• Cost control as the only true lever of certainty
• How marketing, sales, and finance should align around truth

Who this episode is for

• CMOs responsible for growth and budget accountability
• CROs managing optimistic pipelines
• Founders scaling through the messy middle
• CFOs pushing for financial rigor
• Operators tired of growth theater

About the guest

Jennifer Yousem is the Founder and CEO of iHeartEBITDA, a fractional CFO, controller, and bookkeeping firm serving mid-market companies. After years leading finance inside large media organizations, she now helps founders and leadership teams turn messy numbers into clear growth decisions—without the BS.

Links & resources

• iHeartEBITDA: https://iheartibda.com
• Learn more about Stacie Sussman & RevUp Advisory: https://www.linkedin.com/in/staciesussman/

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In this solo episode of C-Suite Strategies, Stacie Sussman breaks down the five biggest trends she’s seeing as we head into 2026—starting with a surprising pattern: CMOs at $30M companies quietly fearing their next board meeting.

Stacie shares why brilliant marketing leaders are losing confidence in the C-suite, what’s driving the rising demand for clean attribution, and why most companies are wildly overestimating their AI maturity. She also unpacks how leaner teams will depend on stronger processes, and how consulting roles will evolve as AI becomes a core operating system rather than a shiny add-on.

If you’re a CMO, CRO, founder, or executive trying to scale without chaos, this episode offers a sharp, unfiltered look at what’s coming—and what it will take to stay ahead.

You’ll learn:
• Why the CMO confidence gap is widening
• The revenue language every marketing leader must master
• Why attribution is no longer optional
• The coming AI reality check for mid-market companies
• How lean operations and process excellence will drive growth
• The new consulting model: human expertise powered by AI

If you’re ready to build real capabilities instead of patching cracks, this episode is your roadmap for 2026.

Connect with Stacie:
Book a free growth consult
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