10 years in the Slowlane with a service business. Finally changing lanes.

[Alexpallex]

Hey everyone. Long-time reader of MJ's work, first-time poster. Figured it was time to stop lurking and start being accountable.

The short version: I've spent 10 years running a recruitment business in the UK. Profitable, but never scalable despite multiple attempts. I've finally accepted it's a Slowlane vehicle and I'm actively changing lanes. Currently in the middle of validating a new offer. Want to share the journey honestly and get some sharp feedback from people who think this way.

The longer version:

I'm a career recruiter started my own recruitment business when I was 30, before that I run a couple of other recruitment business and had built & sold an e-comm business which I ran for 4 years. My best year was around £600k but averaged around £200k per year, which sounds decent until you realise I was the business. Every sale, every delivery, every relationship went through me. I grew a team, then scaled it back, replacing team members with tech and systems.

Over the last couple of years I picked up some more experience working with other business types and trying other things with the intention of diversifying income and learning:

• Built a directory marketplace for training providers and referred £2M+ of B2B training value
• Built a job board that gets 30k clicks per month
• Installed systems, leadership, digital transformation and removed owner-operator reliance in a bricks and mortar bakery
• Various other projects using no-code, AI, and lean tooling
• Consultancy and advisory to other businesses - mainly recruitment and training businesses
• M&A - supporting buy-side and sell-side in a niche

I can build and I can operate. What I haven't done is build something that satisfies CENTS properly. The recruitment business fails on Entry (anyone can start one), Time (I am the business), and Scale (limited by my hours). The marketplace is closer but it's been a side project, not a focused vehicle. Consultancy is too lumpy in general, I want a recurring revenue business.

What changed:

Experience/confidence gained and AI. Not in the hype way, in the practical way. Over the last 2 years, like most people the pace of what you can create has accelerated.

If you can imagine it, you can build it.

Just lately I rebuilt my directory using Claude Code and have installed an Openclaw agent to run it day to day - it's working and growing. I think this is now a Fastlane asset.

I've started down the path of incubating agent created and led recruitment businesses - paused for now whilst I take this next step as it's a little too far from revenue.

So running multiple projects with no headcount, and I'm fascinated by others who are on this path.

I realised it's maybe the thing I'm actually best at, and the thing people keep asking me about. I don't want to be just AI-guy though, it'll become commoditised before we know it.

So interested in how to run a business lean. How to build systems that replace headcount. How to use AI practically. How to architect a business for leverage rather than grind.

Until now, I've lacked the conviction to make the leap and dedicate some focus time to the next step.

Where I am now:

I have one retained client (the bakery) which is great and I will still network in my recruitment niche and do occasional work.

I have a small window to take a shot at finding an offer that converts - that is the focus right now.

I'm 24 hours into a 48 hour validation sprint (shout out to Noah Kagan's Million Dollar Weekend framework). Testing two offers:

1. Lean Business Sprint: I go into a founder-led business for 2 days, map every workflow, and deliver a prioritised action plan. £1,500. (Struggling with this one, I have the skills but limited public proof beyond one very strong case study, plus everyone is pitching AI right now). Potential pathway to becoming retained as an operating partner.
2. A paid community for lean operators: solopreneurs and small business owners who want to build leveraged businesses using AI, systems, and solid business fundamentals. Monthly workshops, show-and-tells, office hours. £79/month founding rate. (This is getting the most traction. 2 verbal yeses, several strong maybes, great qualitative feedback)

Early signal is that the community is the offer that resonates. The ICP is sharpening: solopreneurs and lean operators who care more about building a leveraged machine than about any specific tool.

I've had a handful of companies ask me to do things like install Claude for their execs (recruitment), audit their business for futureproofing and AI use (education group), give a workshop to clients on AI in HR/recruiting (law firm). I think they're all signals of a sort for retained type work.

The CENTS check (my take so far, happy to hear contrarian views):

• C: I own everything. Community, content, IP, relationships. Pass.
• E: This is my weakest point. Anyone can start an "AI community." My moat is the combination: 10 years of actually running businesses + building products + translating between the business world and the tech world. Gets stronger over time as the audience and IP compound, but it's not bulletproof yet.
• N: Validating right now. Signal is positive on a limited ask so far. People are drowning in noise and want a room of people who are actually doing this stuff.
• T: Retainer work fails this. Community is better. The real play is owned products (book, templates, courses, products) that come out of the community and retained clients over time.
• S: Community scales. Products scale infinitely. Retainers don't. The model has a scaling path but I need to build toward it deliberately.

What I'd like from this forum:

Honest feedback. Is the community model a real Fastlane vehicle or am I dressing up a Slowlane play? What am I not seeing? How do I strengthen the Entry barrier?

Do my skills have value? Or am I just jumping on the AI trend?

This post is part of my validation!

What I can give back:

If anyone here is running a business and trying to go lean, cut headcount, automate operations, build systems, build products then I've done a lot of that. Happy to share what I've built and how. I've also got a decent amount of experience with no-code/vibe-code building, AI implementation in real businesses (not theory), and workflow design. And recruiting of course. Ask me anything on those topics and I'll give you a straight answer.

Looking forward to being part of this community properly.

Alex

 

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[superb]

Jo Emiy,

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[Alexpallex]

Vjeplt taqisc! Dupviyv ot liz, xomm jewi e vjopl up xjev vjev niept gus vji uggist