What a Fever & Fish Sandwich Can Teach You About Your Business Model

Lemme tell you a funny, yet also pathetic, little story.

Last Friday, I was sick. Like, “tea-all-day, pajama-hibernation, binge-watching-old -episodes-of-‘House’ kind of sick. 

The fact that I chose tea over coffee tells you everything you need to know about how bad it was. 🤒

(yes, I imagine that’s House, himself, mocking me, as he does all his whiny patients)

BUT… despite being wrapped in a blanket burrito, I wasn’t panicking.

Why?

Because my business is finally structured in a way that works with my life, not against it.

No deadlines hanging over my head.
No last-minute revisions.

Just rescheduled some Zooms and the sweet, sweet relief of knowing nothing was on fire. 🙌

Then, somewhere between episodes of my other obsession, Food Network’s BBQ Brawl (blame that I live in Texas now), I was scrolling FB and found this gem of a meme from comedian Michael Jr. 

…and I had a moment. A realization. A cough-induced epiphany, if you will.

Sometimes, it is easier to just get the client a dang fish sandwich and keep them coming back for more. #jobsecurity

But sometimes? Teaching them to fish (yes, even if it means all the “extra” that goes with it) is exactly what creates long-term impact.

Both are effective business models, but which one is BEST?

Maybe you’ve felt this tug too, between giving your clients the fast fix they’re begging for… and building something that empowers them to not need you forever. 

You want to serve deeply, deliver results, and honestly? It’s just easier to do it yourself sometimes. 

But deep down, you know that model keeps you stuck. 

Stuck in constant delivery.
Stuck in feast-or-famine cycles.
Stuck as the bottleneck in your own business. 

What if there’s a way to give clients what they want and what they actually need without burning yourself out in the process?

First, let’s break down what’s happening inside each of these business models…the good, the bad, and the ugly.

DFY (Done-For-You) – The Fish Sandwich Special

✅ Pros:

• Premium Pricing – You’re doing the heavy lifting, so you can (and should) charge a lot more. Clients are paying for your expertise and your execution.
  
• Tighter Control of Results – You get to oversee (and tweak) every detail, which means you can maintain high standards and ensure the final outcome aligns with your vision.
  
• Clear Deliverables – There’s less ambiguity in scope. You either deliver the thing or you don’t. (No “where are we in the learning curve?” convos.)
  

🚫 Cons:

• Time-Bound by You – You are the deliverable. If you’re sick (hi, tea-and-pajamas Friday), the work stalls. That’s fine, IF you can handle the stress.
  
• Scalability Ceiling – You can only take on so many clients at a time. Scaling either means raising your prices or hiring a team, both of which come with added pressure and overhead.
  
• Burnout Central – There’s a reason most DFY folks eventually feel like glorified freelancers trapped in gold-plated cages. You’re constantly producing under deadlines.
  
• Scope Creep Risk – Clients often expect miracles (and four rounds of revisions) because they’re paying for a result, not a process. #exhausting
  

DWY (Done-With-You) – Bait, Tackle & Pole included

✅ Pros:

• 1:1 or 1-to-Many Flexibility – You can work deeply with one person or multiply your impact with group models (without cloning yourself like a sci-fi villain).
  
• Empowerment = Exponential Impact – The joy of seeing someone have that “OHHH I GET IT” moment? Pure gold. And when they go further than you taught? Pure joy.
  
• Less Deliverable, More Transformation – You’re not just giving people a fish…you’re giving them access to the fishing industry, the lake map, AND a Google Doc to track their catches.
  
• Healthier Boundaries – No more, “I need this by 5pm today!” Slack messages. You lead the container, they show up and do the work with you.
  

🚫 Cons:

• Patience Required – You’ll need to meet people where they are. And sometimes where they are is several tabs behind you (figuratively and literally).
  
• On-the-Fly Problem Solving – Especially with AI or tech-based services, you’ve got to think fast when someone’s tool breaks or they ask you “how do I” mid-Zoom.
  
  (You either know the answer or don’t. Be honest with them. There’s nothing wrong with “figuring it out together”)
  
• Training = Extra Energy – Teaching well takes more prep and emotional stamina than just doing the thing yourself. It’s more coach than contractor.
  
• Perceived Value Gap (at first) – Some clients struggle to understand why they’re paying you to teach them instead of just doing it. This model requires pre-framing the transformation.
  

Both models are valuable.

DFY is perfect when someone needs help now and has the budget for it. 

DWY is magical for clients who want to learn and grow, and for you when you want to scale without sacrificing your health or freedom.

But the model that saved my sanity (and let me take a sick day without spiraling)?

A magical mixture of both, with a little sprinkle of a third, DIY!

Here’s what I mean…

Inside the 7-Figure CEO System, I’ve bundled all three models into one magical experience:

• DFY: The AI Dream Team is over 20 carefully curated bots that I’ve created to make using ChatGPT as your strategic thought partner EASY.
  
• DWY: And then there’s the live implementation calls where we work side-by-side to customize, refine, and make it what they are building with the bots real.
  
• DIY: Finally, every client gets access to training they can watch and implement at their own pace. No waiting, no guessing, just progress on their schedule.
  

Now, you don’t have to copy my model to make magic. 

This isn’t about duplicating what I do, it’s about designing what works for you. 

Think about what lights you up: Is it deep-dive strategy? Hands-on support? Watching clients crush it on their own? 

You’re allowed to mix and match. Blend the structure of DFY, the connection of DWY, and the freedom of DIY in a way that fits your brain, your bandwidth, and your best energy.

The “right” model is the one that supports your life and helps your clients get results without sacrificing yours.

Weekly Challenge

If you’re currently doing DFY work:
Choose ONE service and reimagine how you could turn it into a DWY offer. What would it look like to walk your client through the process instead of just delivering the thing?

If you’re already doing DWY work:
What’s one micro-problem you can solve before your first call as a DFY or DIY? Create a quick win or bonus and offer it as a pre-call gift or even an upsell.

Fish sandwiches optional. 🐟🤢

Wanna learn how I actually teach this magic?

Be Your Own Boss Better: How to Leverage Expert Advice Using AI  – FREE Webinar | Nov 13

I’m walking you through how to take advice you’ve heard from a real human expert (podcast, course, webinar, YouTube spiral…you know the drill) and use AI to customize it for your business…

 So you can stop collecting ideas and actually implement them like a boss.

Because you don’t need more input.
You need output that works for you.

👉 Save your seat now and join me live on 11/13. It’s gonna be good.

Forward this to a friend stuck in DFY purgatory (or just send them a fish emoji and let them figure it out).

I’ll be over here, sipping coffee and NOT working from my sick bed, thank you very much.