Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen: When Serial Help Becomes a Recipe for Disaster Artwork

Small Business Casual

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Welcome to Small Business Casual, where we focus on designing sustainable, cozy, and thriving businesses tailored to your LIFE. Not the other way around!

From general business and marketing to making sense of the behind-the-scenes chaos, I’m Emily Aborn, your host and Small Business Copywriter! I’m here to walk alongside you as we make running our businesses less of a roller coaster and more like a scenic train ride (don't forget the snacks!).

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Small Business Casual

Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen: When Serial Help Becomes a Recipe for Disaster

April 21, 2026 • Emily Aborn

0:00 | 25:47

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Have you ever seen a business owner pay for help and then get all a gazillion different opinions from Mary, Larry, Harry, Tom, Billy, and Sally? Maybe it's been YOU seeking helper after helper whose help isn't "working"?

It can be really frustrating and entirely unhelpful when we poll everyone and anyone for help on how to move forward and proceed.

Too many cooks in the kitchen can cause you to be forever catching up. It can create chaos, endless pivots and updates, and unwarranted or unnecessary strategy.

In today’s episode, we’re going to get into the issue of hiring serial help to fix problems that sometimes don’t even exist, and what happens when there are too many cooks in the kitchen.

In the Episode:

3 Ways I see "too many cooks in the kitchen" play out in businesses
What's at risk when we look to anyone and everyone to weigh in
4 Things that go wrong when seeking serial help
What to do before asking for help
And more!

Key Takeaways:

1. Get clear FIRST before asking for help

2. Look for help strategically, not reactively

3. Trust the process (and the person you hired)

4. Ask fewer people for advice

5. Don’t forget to listen to YOUR voice too!

6. AI is NOT your business strategist

Quotes:

“Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying basic fundamentals.” - Jim Rohn

About Me:

Emily Aborn | Small Business Copywriter & host of Small Business Casual. 12+ years of copywriting experience in 122+ industries. I help you step into becoming (and sharing) the real YOU. For fun/downtime, I love reading, writing, hiking with friends, and moments of uninterrupted silence.

Got a Question for the Show? Email Me! emily@emilyaborn.com

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