Darwin Tanksley didn’t just build a business. He built a machine. Fifteen acquisitions in a year. A workforce that believes in his vision. A balance sheet that tells the truth about success.
On this week’s episode of Rock Solid, I dig into the mindset that took Tanksley from sales person to Entrepreneur of the Year. It’s not just about HVAC and plumbing. It’s about knowing numbers, understanding people, and turning setbacks into stepping stones.
Know your numbers. Revenue is just a number. EBITDA and cash flow are what matter when it’s time to sell or scale. Most small business owners don’t understand this. That’s why most of them struggle.
Culture wins. Perks don’t build loyalty. Leadership does. People stay when they trust the mission, feel heard, and know they matter. Get that right and growth follows.
Acquisition is war. Buying companies is easy. Integrating them is the hard part. Tanksley has done it fifteen times. He knows the pain of misaligned cultures, redundant processes, and teams that don’t trust each other. He also knows how to fix it.
Resilience is strategy. Tanksley wrote Unstoppable: Mastering Resilience and Growth because he’s lived it. Every entrepreneur gets knocked down. The difference is who gets back up.
Community is leverage. Chambers of commerce, business networks, mentors. They are shortcuts to wisdom and opportunity. Most entrepreneurs don’t use them. Tanksley did. That’s why he scaled faster.
Failure is tuition. Every mistake is a lesson paid in full. Bad hires. Missed deals. Wrong turns. Tanksley studies his failures and turns them into fuel.
Leadership is presence. His newest venture, Ascend Empowerment Group, helps business owners become more than just managers. Leaders build trust. Leaders get results.
Tanksley’s success is no accident. It’s math, mindset, and management. Know the numbers. Build the culture. Stay in the fight.
That’s the blueprint.
