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I watched a short video that hit me harder than I expected. It wasn’t some “get rich quick” clip. It was about something simple: a real problem, real consequences, and a real solution.
The video was on Colorado’s new Greenland Wildlife Overpass over I-25 (between the Denver and Colorado Springs area). It’s built so animals can cross safely—because that stretch used to average about one wildlife-vehicle crash a day during peak movement seasons.
That’s the part that made me pause.
Somebody looked at the situation—people getting hurt, wildlife getting hurt—and said: “There has to be a better way.” That’s the voice of someone who cares. That’s also the voice of a problem solver.
And whether we’re talking about highways… or online business… the money usually follows the same pattern:
The reward is on the other side of the problem.
The Wawa Conversation That Brought It Home
Tonight I talked to a friend at Wawa. We ended up sharing some real life stuff—what we’ve been through and what we’re doing to overcome it. And I told him something I’ve believed for a long time:
Life is about solving problems. And how well we solve them is a big part of whether life gets better.
Online business is the same way.
With over 12 years of experience in internet marketing, I can tell you this plainly:
Online business success is a series of problems—big and small—being solved.
Not one “magic breakthrough.” Not one lucky post. Not one viral video.
It’s problem… solution… progress… repeat.
A Small Problem That Made My Business Look Bigger
Earlier this year, I needed a logo for my website.
I’ve never been good at that kind of thing. Honestly, I was intimidated by the whole process. I’m not “artsy.” I’ve tried it before without success.
But I’ve also been actively looking for tools that help me solve problems faster—and one of those tools has been AI chatbots like ChatGPT.
So I used AI to help create my logo.
And when it came out? I loved it. My wife and son loved it too.
That problem got solved—and it instantly made my business look more professional.
That’s a money move… even if it doesn’t feel like one at first.
Because presentation builds trust, and trust helps conversions.
Why Problem-Solving = Money (From the Business Owner Side)
A customer pays you because you solve their problem. But as the business owner, here’s the deeper layer:
You make more money when you solve your business problems—the ones blocking your traffic, your conversions, your repeat customers, and your systems.
Think of it like this:
Your business journey has rewards… and obstacles to the rewards.
To get to the rewards, you have to solve the problem standing in between.
That’s why systems matter.
The wildlife overpass is a perfect example of a system. Colorado didn’t just say, “We’ll put up a sign and hope for the best.” They built a solution designed to reduce crashes—part of a bigger crossing system of fencing and underpasses—because the results mattered. CBS News+2Colorado Department of Transportation+2
Online business works the same way. You build systems to reduce negative outcomes and increase positive outcomes.
“Problems Go Away Because Someone Does Something About Them.”
Peter Drucker said it clean:
“Problems go away because someone does something about them.” Claremont Graduate University
That’s not just motivational. That’s operational.
If your blog isn’t growing, if your email list isn’t building, if your content looks weak, if your site feels unprofessional—those aren’t “bad luck” issues.
They’re solvable problems.
And every problem you solve removes friction between your business and the reward.
Common Online Business Problems (Pick Your Current “Overpass”)
So what problems do you have in your online business right now?
- Blogging frequency (you want to post, but life is busy)
- Image creation (you need banners, featured images, thumbnails)
- Video production (recording/editing feels like a mountain)
- Email capture setup (forms, lead magnets, automations)
- Website speed / SEO structure / internal links
- Low conversions (traffic is there, but people aren’t clicking/buying)
- Inconsistent income (random good days, no repeatable system)
Here’s the key:
Identify the problem… then corner it.
And like I wrote in my notes:
Cage the problem and get rid of it.
Quarantine that problem and keep it away from your chase for the rewards of business.
The “Day 1” Mindset: Stay Awake to Problems
Jeff Bezos has a concept at Amazon called “Day 1.” One of the big points is staying obsessed with improvement—and not drifting into slow decline.
He also says customers are “beautifully, wonderfully dissatisfied,” and that dissatisfaction pushes you to invent on their behalf. About Amazon
As a business owner, that mindset applies to your operation too:
- Where are you “dissatisfied” with your own business right now?
- What keeps breaking?
- What keeps getting delayed?
- What keeps draining your time?
That’s not failure.
That’s your to-do list for growth.
The Feedback Loop That Prints Money
Bill Gates wrote something I keep coming back to:
“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.” F5 Financial
Even if you’re not running a big company, the principle is gold:
- Complaints show you what to fix
- Questions show you what content to create
- Drop-off points show you what to simplify
- Low clicks show you what to rewrite
- Low sales show you what to improve (offer, copy, trust, positioning)
When you treat feedback like a gift, you stop guessing—and you start building.
Process Turns “Random Results” Into Repeatable Results
One reason so many online businesses feel stressful is because everything feels like a one-off.
Deming’s institute shares a line tied to his work that I love:
“If people do not see the process, they can not improve it.” The W. Edwards Deming Institute
That’s the breakthrough for a lot of entrepreneurs:
Money likes process.
Because process creates consistency.
And consistency creates momentum.
“There’s a Better Way to Do It — Find It.”
Thomas Edison put the problem-solver mentality into one sentence:
“There’s a better way to do it – Find it.” Thomas Edison
That’s the online business game.
Not “perfect it instantly.”
Just: find a better way—one problem at a time.
The 5-Step Problem-Solving Loop I Use
When I feel stuck, I try to run this loop:
- Name the reward (What do I actually want? Traffic? Leads? Sales? Trust?)
- Name the obstacle (What’s blocking it right now?)
- Shrink the problem (What’s the smallest fix that moves the needle?)
- Build the mini-system (Checklist, template, tool, automation, schedule)
- Measure + repeat (Did it work? Improve it again.)
That’s it.
And if you do that long enough, you wake up one day with something most people never build:
A business that doesn’t rely on motivation… because it runs on systems.
Closing: One Problem to Solve This Week
Colorado didn’t build that wildlife overpass because it sounded inspiring.
They built it because the results were unacceptable—and the solution was worth it. CBS News+1
So here’s my challenge (for me and you):
Pick ONE problem in your online business this week.
Corner it. Cage it. Quarantine it.
And build your “overpass.”
That’s how you get closer to the reward.
And that’s how you make more money online—without needing a miracle.
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