What a Decade in Business Actually Looks Like — Lessons from a Film Director Who Started with Zero Skills
Most business owners wait until they feel ready. Cam didn’t. At 30, he sold his house, his car, and his boat and started a video production company without knowing how to turn on a camera.
Ten years later, he’s directed a feature film, built and rebuilt a team, and survived a health scare that put everything into perspective. His episode on The Growth Equation is one of the most honest conversations I’ve had about what building a business from scratch actually looks like.
Here’s what stood out.
Sales Is Unavoidable — Stop Fighting It
Cam got into film to escape sales. He’d spent years in automotive and property development closing deals, and wanted to do something creative.
It didn’t work out that way.
“All roads lead to sales,” he said. “If you don’t have a sales engine, you don’t have a business.”
Whatever industry you’re in, if you own the business, selling is your job. The sooner you accept that, the faster you grow.
You Can’t See What You Can’t See
Cam’s biggest growth leaps didn’t come from working harder. They came from getting outside perspective.
His fiancée Googled his business and couldn’t find it. “No wonder your customers can’t find you,” she told him. “I can’t even find you.”
A mentor he found during COVID helped him see the gaps in his business model he’d become blind to after years of being inside it.
If you’re stuck, the answer is rarely to push harder alone. Get someone who can see what you can’t.
How to Hire People Who Actually Show Up
At its peak, Cam’s business had eight full-time staff. His hiring strategy was deliberately uncomfortable.
Instead of selling candidates on the opportunity, he told them the job would be tough — long days, high expectations, no coasting. Then he asked confronting questions and watched how they responded under pressure.
“Until you actually put someone on and see their grit, you never really know,” he said.
If they got rattled in an interview, they’d get rattled on the job. That’s your data. Use it.
The Real Measure of a Working Business
Cam’s simple test: can you take two weeks off without the business collapsing?
If the answer is no, you don’t have a business yet. You have a job — and a demanding one.
Build systems. Build a team. Build toward the point where the thing runs without you.
What a Health Scare Teaches You About Business
Last year, Cam thought he was having a heart attack on a harbour pier. On the ride to hospital, he didn’t think about his biggest deal or his revenue targets.
He texted his family.
Money comes and money goes. Build a business worth building — but don’t lose sight of why you’re building it.
Website: Skievideo.com
LinkedIn: Cameron Watt
Email: cam@skievideo.com
Instagram: @camcamwatt
Instagram (Business): @skievideo
YouTube: @camcamwatt
