From Busy to Blurry: How the Focus Fog Slowly Erodes Your Agency

By Hannah Roth, Director of Strategy and Mad Scientist, Predictive ROI

We didn’t realize we were breaking—until someone asked us a question we couldn’t answer.

Several years ago, our team was stuck in a cycle that felt like growth. We were experimenting, launching, trying new things every quarter. It was fun. It was exciting. We thought it meant we were evolving.

Our niche was narrow: agencies, coaches, and consultants.

Or so we thought.

Over time, that “niche” revealed itself for what it really was: a very broad category. One that let us keep saying yes to too many people and too many projects.

On the outside, things looked fine. Clients were happy. Work was getting done. But behind the scenes?

We were drowning.

One of our core services had over 184 processes. (Yes, we counted.)

Nothing felt repeatable.
Nothing felt scalable.
Everything felt hard.

And we were working too hard without seeing big returns.

Then came the moment that changed our trajectory.

We were in an EOS meeting with our facilitator—a long-time advisor who knows us better than most. Mid-conversation, he paused and said:

“Do you even know what you really do? Because I don’t. I couldn’t refer you to someone if I tried.”

Ouch. That one landed like a punch to the gut.

Because as much as we protested…we knew he was right.

We were operating in what we now call the Focus Fog—the illusion that more is better, that generalism is safe, and that flexibility is the path to profitability.

It’s not.

(To learn about what focus means, check out this podcast interview.)

The Four Excuses That Keep You Stuck

After making some bold (and sometimes uncomfortable) decisions to get focused, we wanted to unpack what keeps agencies (ourselves included) operating in the fog. We found that it usually comes down to four emotional drivers:

1. Inertia – “This is how we’ve always done it.”
   
2. Scarcity – “If we say no, we might lose the sale.”
   
3. Urgency – “We just need to land this client now.”
   
4. Curiosity – “If we focus, we’ll get bored.” This was the big one for us.
   

Each one feels reasonable. Probably even like the right thing to do. But over time, all are a recipe for confusion, misalignment, and stalled growth.

When you’re in the fog, sales and delivery are often at odds. Your processes never get streamlined. Your team’s energy is scattered. And worst of all? You lose opportunities because your value is unclear.

What Focus Means And What It Can Give You

Focus doesn’t mean doing less interesting work.
It means doing your best work—more often, for the right people, with the right systems in place.

When you get clear on who you serve, what you sell, and how you sell it, everything sharpens:

• Your sales process becomes repeatable
  
• Your team stops playing telephone between departments
  
• Your messaging starts sticking
  
• Your clients become your best referrals—because they finally get what you do
  

Focus creates traction.
Focus fuels scale.
Focus gives your agency a spine.

If you’re feeling stretched, misaligned, or like your business is more reactive than proactive, you’re not alone. But you can make the shift. Check out our free Who Framework and tutorial video here and clear the focus fog so you can future-proof your agency.