In this episode of Chess Not Checkers, Keith Riddle and Jordan Tampien sit down with Ted Schmidt, a Spokane native who turned a local tool and equipment rental company into a regional powerhouse before finding his second act as a business coach.

Ted shares the story of AA Rentals, how he worked his way up from a college job to partner and helped grow the company to 22 locations and roughly 400 employees across the I-5 corridor, right up until a major international buyer made an offer they could not refuse. After the sale, he and his wife left the rat race and came home to Spokane.

These days Ted coaches business owners through ActionCOACH Northwest, and the conversation digs into the hard-won lessons behind that work: why you should build an asset, not a job, and start with the end in mind; why knowing your numbers still matters in the age of AI, since a tool can build the spreadsheet but not tell you which questions to ask; how leaders and employees alike hit a ceiling when they stop growing; and why so many owners wait until they are burned out to make their first hire.

Whether you are a solopreneur eyeing your first hire, an owner trying to scale, or someone dreaming about an eventual exit, this episode is full of practical wisdom on building a business that can run, and grow, without you.

Learn more about Ted's coaching at ActionCOACH Northwest: actioncoachnw.com

Show Flow

00:00  Meet Ted Schmitt, Spokane Native

02:30  Building AA Rentals to 22 Locations

05:00  Industry Consolidation and Selling the Company

07:30  What College Missed About Real Business

12:30  Learning to Live by Your Numbers

17:38  The Second Act: Coaching Business Owners

22:44  Build an Asset, Not a Job

27:50  Systems, Conversion, and Knowing the Right Questions

33:00  It All Comes Down to Your Team

40:39  Knowing Your Numbers and Breaking Even on a Hire

45:42  Letting Go: Why Control Is a Weak Leader's Move

55:58  Creating Space and the First Hire