Charles E. Gaudet II

Most 6-, 7- and 8-figure founders share the same frustration:
"I built something successful… but I can't step away. I'm trapped inside my own company."

That's the Founder's Trap™ - and I've spent 16+ years helping entrepreneurs escape it.

The International Business Times named me "The Go-To Business Coach for 7 and 8-Figure Entrepreneurs" and MSN calls me "the leading coach to 8 and 9 figure CEOs." 

But what matters most isn't what the press says - it's what I've helped my clients achieve.  A few client highlights:

→ $250k a year to $250k every 3 weeks
→ $1M to $24.1M in 3 years
→ $1.4M in revenue to a $45M valuation (and an exit)

And countless others who escaped the grind and created more predictability in their revenue (https://predictableprofits.com/testimonials/ ) 

Recognition:

✅ #1 Marketing & Sales Thought Leader 2025 – DMNews
✅ "The CEO Whisperer" – Yahoo Finance
✅ "The leading coach to 8 and 9 figure CEOs" – MSN
✅ Certificate of Leadership Development – U.S. Army War College (nominated and selected)
✅ "10 Innovative CEOs to Follow" – CEO Weekly
✅ "Top 20 Business Experts to Follow" – Grit Daily
✅ "Top 50 Industry Influencers" – American Geniuses
✅ "Top 15 Business Coaches" – Disrupt Magazine
✅ SUCCESS Magazine Emerging Entrepreneur Finalist
✅ Ernst & Young: "One of the Best Seed Stage Companies" (and selected as such by VentureOne)

Featured in Forbes, Inc., Entrepreneur Magazine, Fox Business, The Globe and Mail, Yahoo Finance, Thrive Global, and 100+ other publications worldwide.

My story: Entrepreneur since age 4. First multi-million dollar company at 24. Today I lead Predictable Profits - the premier coaching company for 7-, 8-, and 9-figure CEOs who are ready to scale without sacrificing their health, family, or sanity.

➡️ Author: "The Predictable Profits Playbook"
➡️ Podcast: Beyond 7-Figures (named a Top CEO Podcast by Inc. Magazine)
➡️ 3x State Wrestling Champion | 2x Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Gold Medalist

The discipline that builds champions on the mat is the same discipline required to scale a company.

Ready to escape the Founder's Trap?

✉️ DM me "SCALE" or visit PredictableProfits.com
🔈 For keynote and other speaking opportunities, visit CharlesGaudet.com

CEO & Founder | Business Coach for 7 & 8 Figure Companies

Predictable Profits is an international network of premium business coaches and strategists for 7- & 8- figure entrepreneurs who seek better sales and revenue systems for more predictability, profitability, and scalability in any economy.  

The company follows The Predictable Profits Methodology created in 2010, which has helped thousands of businesses in over 55 industries scale faster.

Advice from our team is featured on Fox Business, Forbes, Inc., Success, Entrepreneur, and countless other media channels around the world.

See what countless others have said about their experience with us here: https://predictableprofits.com/testimonials/

Charles II

97% of founder-led businesses never break $3M.

I've worked with 1,000+ founder-led businesses.

The pattern is clear: Those who depend on referrals hit a ceiling and stall out.

Here's the brutal math:

When your pipeline depends on someone else's conversation, you can't scale.

You can't hire confidently. You can't forecast accurately. You can't plan growth.

Because you have no control over when the next referral walks through the door.

**The excuse I hear most?**

"We're really good at what we do. Our clients love us. We don't need to market."

Let me translate that: "Hope is our lead generation strategy."

**Here's what nobody wants to admit:**

Being excellent at delivery doesn't build a pipeline. It creates satisfied clients.

Those are two completely different things.

You can be the best in your industry and still be trapped at $2.8M because you're waiting for referrals instead of creating systematic demand.

**The companies that break through?**

They don't abandon referrals. They just stop depending on them.

They build systems to:
1.  create demand, 
2. capture demand, and 
3. nurture demand 

...whether or not anyone's talking about them at a cocktail party.

They understand this formula:

**Predictable input = Predictable output**

Random referrals = Random revenue  
Systematic demand = Systematic growth

**So here's my question:**

What percentage of your revenue comes from referrals right now?

And if referrals stopped tomorrow, how long would your business survive?

Be honest... because the answer tells you everything about whether you have a business or just really good luck.

“The Go-To Business Coach for 7 & 8 Figure Entrepreneurs” (IBT) | “The CEO Whisperer” (Yahoo Finance) | Author, Podcast Host & Speaker

Most business owners think AI disruption is coming.

It’s not.

It already happened.

The problem is it didn’t arrive like a freight train.

It arrived like fog.

Quiet. Gradual. Easy to ignore.

Your leads didn’t “dry up.”

AI overviews started showing answers (instead of your website) and buyers just started asking different questions… to something that isn’t you.

AI is already shaping:
• who gets discovered
• who gets shortlisted
• who gets trusted
• who never even gets considered

Most founders still think disruption looks like a new competitor.

Nope.

It looks like invisibility.

This year and the years ahead, AI won’t just automate tasks.

It will mediate demand.

Meaning:
If AI doesn’t understand your business, your offer, your proof, your outcomes, your differentiation… you don’t exist in the buyer’s decision process.

And no amount of hustle fixes that.

Here’s the fork in the road.

For founders who understand what’s happening:
- This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity.
- AI becomes leverage.
- Distribution.
- Authority at scale.
- Predictable demand without chasing it.

For founders who ignore it:
- It becomes death by confusion.
- Lower conversion.
- Longer sales cycles.
- More “ghosting.”
- More price pressure.
- More effort for worse results.

Same market.
Same economy.

Wildly different outcomes.

AI won’t replace great businesses.

But it will replace businesses that fail to adapt how they’re found, framed, and trusted.

This isn’t about tools.

It’s about strategy.

And it’s why my work as a business coach is increasingly about helping founders see what they can’t yet see.

(The link to the article can be found in the comments below.)

Over the last few weeks, I've been featured in the media and on podcasts for a bold prediction about the future of sales.

At first glance, I was told that I was "crazy."

Then again, I've been called crazy for most of my career (that's when I really know that I'm onto something.)

But I would ask you to suspect judgment and pay attention because most companies are completely unprepared for what's already happening to the buyer's journey.

Here's what I mean:
Between January and November of last year, we saw an estimated 60% drop in organic traffic for many businesses. 

Why? Because AI-generated search overviews prioritize answers over taking you to a website. 

And this AI-forward buyer's journey is growing FAST!

Giving your buyers curated answers, frameworks, pricing context, and even vendor red flags.

This is making a MAJOR impact on how your buyers make decisions.

And the data shows that by the time a buyer reaches out to talk to a human, they've already narrowed it down to 2-3 options. The decision is 80-100% made before you ever get a chance to have a conversation.

(I have the data to prove it!)

This isn't coming. It's here. Right now!

And this year? It's only going to accelerate.

This was the main topic of our conversation with our coaching clients during yesterday's Board of Directors meeting.

I cannot stress this enough.

The companies that understand this shift - that AI is becoming the front door to decision-making - will have an outsized advantage. 

Those who keep relying on the old playbook of expecting the sales rep to "sell" and "pitch" will severely struggle.

I'm not saying this to be dramatic. I'm saying it because I'm watching it happen in real time.

The window to adapt is short - maybe 18-24 months before the gap becomes impossible to close.

So my question for you: are you set up for the AI-forward buyers' journey? 

If you're not sure, send me a message or drop me a comment. It's time to find out.

I stopped trying to close deals in DMs.

Started helping instead.

Results quadrupled.

Here's what I learned: 
Nobody wakes up thinking "I hope someone pitches me today."

But they do wake up with problems. Questions. Challenges they can't solve alone.

So I changed the game.

**Before:**
- Lead with credentials
- Push for the close
- Track conversion rates
- Wonder why people ghost

**After:**
- Lead with insight
- Ask better questions
- Solve one problem for free
- Let them ask about working together

The shift isn't about being "nice." 
It's about being smart.

When you help first, three things happen:

1. **You disarm their skepticism** - They expected a pitch. You gave them value instead.

2. **You demonstrate competence** - Talk is cheap. Solving their actual problem proves you know your shit.

3. **You create reciprocity** - Humans are wired to return favors. Help them, and they'll want to help you.

Last month, I spent 20 minutes on a DM conversation helping a founder fix their sales qualification process.

Didn't pitch. Didn't ask for a call. Just solved the problem.

Two weeks later, he joined our Board of Directors program.

$30K deal. Zero sales pressure.

Because sales became a side effect of being genuinely useful.

**Here's the truth most coaches won't tell you:**

If your offer is strong and your help is real, you don't need to pitch.

You just need to show up, add value, and let them connect the dots.

The people who need what you offer will ask.

The ones who don't? You saved yourself a shitty sales call.

---

**What's your take?**

Are you still leading with pitches, or have you shifted to leading with help?

And if you've made the shift, what changed in your results?

---

**P.S.** This isn't about giving away everything for free. It's about strategically demonstrating value to the right people. There's a massive difference.  

I'm holding a workshop giving away the exact framework and process we use every day... (plus a few secrets I don't talk about here).  

Comment "LEADS" and I'll send you the details.

You have to earn your right to scale...

...and most companies aren't ready.

If you're stuck at $1-3M, scaling is the LAST thing you should do.

Here's why: You don't have a growth problem. You have a founder dependency problem.

80% of your leads = referrals (no systematic marketing)
70% of your deals = you close them personally  
100% of important decisions = require your approval

Scaling this? You're just digging yourself deeper into the trap.

I've watched 1,000+ founders try to "push through" this stage. Know what happens?

→ They hire more people (who can't make decisions without them)
→ They work MORE hours (65+ per week becomes 75+)
→ They burn out and sell for pennies (or worse, shut down)

The ones who break through? They stop scaling and start SYSTEMATIZING.

They build:
→ Lead generation that works without networking
→ Sales processes teams can execute  
→ Operations that run when they're on vacation

Then (and only then) they scale.

Result? Predictable month-after-month growth without working longer hours.

That's why the International Business Times said I am: "...the expert that many seven and eight-figure CEOs turn to when they need to bring predictability (hence their name) to their sales organization."

If you're grinding at $1-3M, you don't need motivation. You need the Founder's Trap escape plan.

Been helping founders do this for 16 years. Happy to show you how.

Drop "TRAP" in comments if you want a lead strategy to get you started.

I asked a $4M founder last week: "What's actually breaking in your business right now?"

He listed 12 things.

Then I asked: "Which ONE is costing you the most revenue?"

Long pause.

"I don't know. They all seem urgent."

Here's what I've learned after working with 1,000+ CEOs:

Your business isn't breaking in 12 places. It's breaking in one of three.

The Three Breaking Points:

1. Lead Gen - You can't predict when the next qualified lead shows up. You're stuck in "hope marketing" mode, praying referrals keep coming.

2. Conversion - Deals only close when YOU show up. Your team can't seal it without you in the room. That's not a sales process. That's founder dependency.

3. Scaling - Quality falls apart the second you step away. You're approving everything because "no one does it like I do." Which means you can't scale.

Most founders try to fix all three at once.

That's the fastest way to burn out and change nothing.

The breakthrough happens when you pick ONE, fix it completely, then move to the next.

Here's my question for you:
If you're brutally honest with yourself, which of these three is actually costing you the most right now?

And what's the ONE thing keeping you from fixing it?

Drop it in the comments.

RevGenius

Member

Impact Energy Advisors

We serve as trusted advisors helping our customers overcome complexity and confusion of Energy Efficiency projects by working to leverage incentives and financing that generate cash flow benefits immediately. We are product agnostic, and source technology and services that generate the most impact for our clients.

Skills: Utility Incentive Management · HVAC Controls · HVAC · Refrigeration · Project Management

Principal Consultant

Enersponse

Enersponse provides a simple and convenient approach to energy conservation programs that effortlessly deliver ongoing savings for our clients in both the commercial and industrial sectors. We manage our customer's controllable load so that it can be interactively connected to the grid. It's dynamic, easy and automated. Saving cost encouraging grid resiliency and ultimately avoiding usage of the dirtiest energy sources. 

Every megawatt enrolled into a program through Enersponse generates 100,000 gallons of clean drinking water to people in need. Through a network of like-minded volunteers and KleanWater wanting to make a difference in the world, we donate and deliver filtration equipment to families, communities, villages and schools around the world.

Strategic Sales Manager

Taper 

Sales Manager

Ecology Action

Ecology Action delivers high-volume commercial programs for Sacramento Municipal Utility District, Pacific Gas & Electric, City of Palo Alto Utilities, and Alameda Municipal Power. The company also delivers such programs directly to national brands and large portfolios in Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, and California. Our ongoing relationships with portfolio owners include national retail and hospitality chains; a multibillion-dollar equity firm; and one of the largest international property management companies in the world.

Our achievements in the commercial energy space have been recognized nationally through awards from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the State of California, and some of the largest investor-owned utilities (IOUs). Ecology Action has received this recognition because we are one of the few nonprofits in this space and are driven by our nonprofit mission to serve the community and the environment. This is no small distinction. We do not measure success as the highest profit accumulated at the lowest cost. We measure success by our clients’ satisfaction and the benefits that our work provides to businesses, local communities, and the environment. Success means delivering programs that empower energy consumers and transform the market.

Energy Efficiency Consultant

Five Star Entertainment

Owner and Operator of event entertainment company serving Northern California. Performing as lead DJ and Emcee for corporate events, private parties and weddings. Consult with clients to provide DJ services, audio visual, lighting design, photo booths and dance floor rentals. Create successful marketing campaigns and promotional mix. Manage all financial expenses to maximize net profit.

Independent Business Owner

ABM Industries

Responsible for exceeding assigned sales goals, maximizing profit, and building long-term relationships with new and existing customers. Providing a consultative approach to help building owners and managers assess the financial health of their properties mechanical systems, evaluating risk, and redirecting areas of ineffective spending back into their bottom line. Helping businesses benchmark energy performance while working with local utilities to reduce energy costs, enroll in utility rebates and energy programs, and achieve sustainability goals. Support ABM’s Bundled Energy Solutions Division to work with municipalities and private entities to provide turnkey energy solutions through HVAC, Lighting, Solar, and water conservation.

Senior Account Executive

Burkett's Office Products

Responsible for new client acquisition and account management as a B2B sales hunter. Rebranded company image/logo and created marketing materials. Cultivated new relationships and expanding customer base to increase revenue growth in private and public sectors. Presented to small, medium and large businesses to demonstrate various products and enroll customers in manufacturer programs. Performed financial analysis to help businesses reduce expenses. Simplified the procurement process and presented annual business reviews.

Account Executive

I am a self-motivated and highly goal-oriented individual that demonstrates the ability to build strong professional relationships. I am organized, focused and always keep a student of life mindset. 

In my spare time, you can find me playing sports and enjoying the outdoors. I also love music and going to local concerts.  



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