Most business owners I know didn't set out just to make money. Some. But few.

Sure, the spreadsheet needs to work. Payroll doesn't get paid with good intentions. But somewhere in the grind, amid the growth charts and invoices and insurance headaches, we feel the tug toward something more.

We want to build a business that means something. To create a place where people feel proud to work. A company that makes a dent in the world, not just a deposit at the bank.

We get together annually in Whitefish, Montana, at our Retreat discussing this very thing.

That's the double bottom line.

Not just profit. But purpose. Not just metrics. But meaning. Not just revenue. But restoration of people, character, and lifelong meaning.

The First Bottom Line: Money

Let's not get this twisted...the first bottom line matters.

It is REQUIRED.

Profit allows us to hire, grow, reinvest, and solve real problems. It keeps the lights on and the future funded. Without margin, mission becomes martyrdom.

But when the only goal is profit? You build a hollow company. One that churns through people. One that burns out leaders. One that few people talk about and remember.

And that's where the second bottom line steps in.

The Second Bottom Line: Mission, Culture, and People

The second bottom line is harder to quantify, but far more powerful.

It shows up in:

• The technician who finally believes they're more than "just labor".
• The office that runs on respect instead of fear.
• The way your team rallies for a client in crisis. All of them.
• The customer who refers you not just for your work, but for your way.

This second line is written in culture about how people feel when they show up, what your company stands for when no one is watching.

It's what your name means. To your community, to your crew, and to you.

The Tension Between the Two

Reality: These two bottom lines are often in tension.

Sometimes, profit says cut corners. Culture says do it right.

Sometimes, money says scale fast. Mission says grow right.

I saw this play out with many contractors I know. When the 2008 recession hit, his cash flow tanked. The numbers screamed "lay off half the crew." But he'd built his reputation on being the guy who never abandoned his people. So he chose a third option: he cut his own salary to zero for eight months, kept everyone employed, and had them focus on training and process improvement. It nearly broke him financially.

But when construction picked back up, he had the only crew in town that was tighter, more skilled, and loyal. His competitors spent two years rebuilding what they'd torn apart. Or they left altogether.

He spent two years pulling ahead.

The companies that last, the ones people fight to work for and never want to leave, are the ones that figure out how to hold both bottom lines. They build with both hands.

One hand on the P&L. One hand on the legacy.

How to Know If You're Building Both

OK, let’s discuss: you can't manage what you don't measure. Even the "softer" second bottom line needs real metrics.

For Your Profit Bottom Line:

• Track your profit margins, not just revenue growth
  • Revenue is Vanity, Profit is Sanity
• Measure customer lifetime value versus what you spend to get them
• Monitor your cash runway. How long could you survive a downturn?

For Your Purpose Bottom Line:

• Ask your team: "Would you recommend this as a place to work?" Track that score over time
• Measure voluntary turnover versus your industry average
• Count referrals that mention your character, not just your competence
• Track how fast new hires become productive (good culture accelerates this)
• Document community impact…local hiring, supplier relationships, environmental footprint

The Integration Test: When you face your next big business decision, ask both questions:

"What will this do to our margins?" and "What would this decision say about who we are?"

If you can't answer both, you're not ready to decide.

Start Where You Are

You don't have to overhaul everything tomorrow.

Start by collecting stories. Ask your team and customers to tell you about moments when your company's character showed up. Listen for patterns. Those patterns reveal your real culture. Not what you hope it is, but what it is.

Then ask yourself: Does this culture serve both bottom lines? Does it make people want to stay, grow, and refer others? Does it create the kind of sustainability that keeps profit flowing long-term?

The Real Bottom Line?

If you win on the first bottom line but lose the second, you'll spend your life building something that doesn't feel worth it. It has a shelf life, and you seldom see it until it hits you.

But if you get both right?

You don't just build a business. You build a movement. You build people. A tribe.

You build something that gives you life now, while you are here. [See my short blog on Marker #2: https://world.hey.com/klark/marker-02-life-in-your-years-not-years-in-your-life-8669d8ed]

The question isn't whether you can afford to focus on both bottom lines.

The question is whether you can afford not to.

Authors Note

While we are not perfect and have a very long way to go, I think we are pretty good at living this ethos.

We have built a company that allows us to do what we love (help others we look up to), be better parents and spouses, and leave room to do more for something bigger than us.

For me personally, building a company that has allowed me to explore and do more things that fire me up has been 35 years in the making.

In the last few years, I have been able to travel to industry events more, participate in panels and discussions, write three published books, and even spend time volunteering in disaster zones with non-profits to give back. In July of 2025, I was very fortunate to spend 10 days in Kerrville, Texas (and surrounding areas) after a catastrophic flooding event that took 100’s of lives, many of whom were children.

Being able to tell my team that I was called to go, then to be met with “What are you waiting for?” is a feeling that does not show up on any financial metrics, but it certainly affected our future for years through service and inspiration. This event has called upon me to start a non-profit built on the knowledge of peers and fellow professionals who have a very specific and unique skillset to respond when things are at their worst and push through to help locals with critical actions to rebuild infrastructure and community.

That dream would not be possible if I did not watch both of our bottom lines.

Cheers -Klark