I Wasted Hiring 7 Salespeople Before I Got It Right – Gregg Mazza

In this episode of Home Care Hindsight, host David Knack welcomes Gregg Mazza, former home care agency owner and current coach to home care entrepreneurs.

Gregg shares his journey from building a successful agency from scratch to selling it and now helping other owners avoid the pitfalls he experienced. He opens up about his biggest mistake: hiring seven salespeople who failed before he finally cracked the code on building a sales team that drives growth.

Gregg emphasizes the importance of hiring for traits over industry experience, implementing clear systems, and holding teams accountable. He also discusses the dangers of "no-one-can-do-it-better-than-me-itis" and how empowering your team can free you to focus on strategic growth.

Lesson Takeaways:

1. Hire for Traits, Not Just Experience: Look for drive, resilience, and heart—these are often more important than industry background.

2. Build Systems, Not Dependencies: Document your sales and operational processes so anyone can step in and succeed.

3. Delegate to Scale: You can't grow if you're the bottleneck. Trust your team, empower them, and hold them accountable.

4. Let Go of Perfection: Good enough often is. Focus on progress, not perfection, and build feedback loops to maintain quality.

5. Trust Your Gut: If a hire isn't working, don't wait. Cut ties early to save time, money, and stress.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Introduction to Gregg Mazza

02:00 - Gregg's journey from home care owner to coach

07:20 - The burnout trap: Why owners get stuck in the weeds

11:30 - The sales hiring nightmare: 7 fails before success

18:40 - The 3 keys to sales hiring: Right person, system, accountability

22:15 - Why "good customer service" isn't a differentiator

27:50 - The disease of "I can do it better myself"

32:10 - How to break the open-door policy habit

36:45 - Gregg's win: Trusting his gut to fire fast

40:00 - Plug: Gregg's mastermind group for growth-minded owners

Quotes:

Gregg Mazza: "I hired 7 salespeople who failed before I got it right. I wasted over $200,000—but I didn't give up."

David Knack: "If you're the bottleneck, you can't scale. It's that simple."

Gregg Mazza: "Hire the hunter with a heart. Drive and compassion aren't mutually exclusive."

Gregg Mazza: "No-one-can-do-it-better-than-me-itis is a rampant disease in small business. It will keep you stuck."

Resources:

1. Gregg Mazza's Mastermind Group: https://homecarebreakthrough.com/

2. Connect with Gregg Mazza on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregg-mazza

3. Connect with David Knack on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-knack

4. Powered by Zingage: https://zingage.com

5. Watch Episode on Zingage's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Zingage