How Dr. Michael Neal Helps Founders Buy Back Time by Hiring the Right People

Most founders don’t have a time problem.
They have a people problem.

This episode is for business owners who feel trapped inside their own company — doing work they hate, fixing mistakes that shouldn’t exist, and wondering why hiring never seems to solve anything. I sat down with Dr. Michael Neal, founder of Build My Team, to break down why most hiring systems are broken and how the right people can unlock growth almost immediately.

This wasn’t theory.
It was real-world execution from someone who runs companies, builds teams, and lives the results.

WHEN SUCCESS STARTS TO FEEL LIKE A TRAP

Dr. Michael Neal is a full-time doctor, a founder, an endurance athlete, and a business builder. On paper, it looks impressive.

Behind the scenes, he faced the same problem almost every founder hits:

Hiring was exhausting.
Resumes were useless.
Turnover was constant.
And the wrong people drained time instead of creating leverage.

He wasn’t trying to build a software company.
He was trying to escape hiring chaos inside his own practice.

That pain became the catalyst.

WHY RESUMES FAIL (AND ALWAYS HAVE)

Michael learned quickly that resumes don’t predict performance — especially for entry-level and administrative roles.

People were being hired based on:
• Past job titles
• Interview charisma
• Paper credentials

None of that answered the only question that mattered:

Can this person naturally thrive in this role?

Most couldn’t.

The result was predictable — no-shows, underperformance, burnout, and constant rehiring.

So he flipped the system.

THE BREAKTHROUGH: HIRING FOR FIT, NOT HISTORY

Instead of asking where someone had been, Michael built a system that identifies natural strengths and role fit first.

His company, Build My Team, uses an automated, done-for-you process to:
• Identify A players for specific roles
• Match people to work they actually enjoy
• Eliminate resume bias entirely
• Place in-office team members who show up ready to perform

The result is simple but powerful.

One A player replaces:
• Two B players
• Or three C players

And costs less in the long run.

WHAT A REAL A PLAYER LOOKS LIKE

An A player isn’t just talented.
They’re energized by the work.

Dr. Neal described it perfectly:

They come in excited.
They go home energized.
They don’t need babysitting.
They don’t need constant motivation.

They’re operating in their natural strengths — and it shows.

The mistake most founders make is assuming people are either “good” or “bad.”

In reality, performance is about fit to role.

An A player in the wrong seat becomes an F player overnight.

WHY IN-PERSON TEAMS STILL WIN

While virtual assistants and overseas hiring can work, Michael was clear about the tradeoff.

In-person teams create:
• Trust faster
• Stronger culture
• Real accountability
• Better collaboration

You can’t build camaraderie through task lists alone.

When people show up together, something shifts.
Momentum compounds.

For many founders, that shift is the difference between scaling and stalling.

THE REAL LEADERSHIP MISTAKE FOUNDERS MAKE

Most founders think leadership starts after hiring.

It doesn’t.

Leadership starts with:
• Clear job definitions
• The right people on the bus
• The right people in the right seats

Only then does leadership matter.

Dr. Neal emphasized that once A players are in place, the founder’s job changes.

You stop managing people.
You start defining direction.

Your role becomes:
• Setting the map
• Installing guardrails
• Getting out of the way

That’s when teams outperform expectations.

WHY SYSTEMS CREATE FREEDOM

Michael summed it up simply:

If you’re doing the work, you don’t own a business — you own a job.

Real freedom comes when:
• Ops are handled by professionals
• Profit is clearly understood
• Roles are designed intentionally

When the train runs on time, profit shows up automatically.

And founders finally get their time back.

THE FOUNDER TAKEAWAY

Hiring doesn’t have to be painful.
Leadership doesn’t have to feel heavy.
Growth doesn’t require more hours.

It requires better systems — and better people.

When you stop hiring for resumes and start hiring for strengths, everything changes.

FREE TRAINING FOR FOUNDERS WHO WANT TIME BACK

If this episode hit home, your next step isn’t more hustle.

It’s clarity.

I put together a free training that walks you through how to:
• Buy back your time
• Build the right team
• Leverage AI, media, and sales systems
• Scale without burning out

Watch it here:
👉 https://www.nathannewberry.com/watch-hp-accelerator 

And if you want to learn more about hiring in-person A players without resumes, connect with Dr. Michael Neal at:
https://buildmyteam.com 

Share this with a founder who’s doing too much and wondering why growth feels harder than it should.

It doesn’t have to be this way.