Episode 137: Freedom business reality: from agency life to freedom freelancing with Jake Madoff

Meet freedom business owner Jake

Jake Madoff is a full stack growth marketer specializing in paid media, SEO, and funnel optimization. What began as self-teaching web design for his own e-commerce business in 2014 evolved through co-founding a trade and barter app startup, to spending five years scaling a company’s ad spend from $300K to $2 million monthly.

During COVID, Jake transitioned to full-time freelancing, where he now helps businesses across diverse industries—from e-commerce to legal to B2B SaaS—grow through strategic digital marketing.

Based in Manhattan, he represents a new generation of marketing professionals who’ve learned their craft not through traditional education but through hands-on experimentation, adaptation, and saying “yes” to new opportunities before they felt fully ready.

“Some people just aren’t really wired to be managed. I find myself so much more productive if I am telling myself what to do versus other people telling me what to do.”

Key takeaways from our freedom chat with Jake:

➡️ The psychological freedom effect: Even though entrepreneurs often work more hours than employees, having control over when and how you work creates a profound psychological freedom that transforms your relationship with work.

➡️ Say Yes, then learn to say No: Early in your entrepreneurial journey, saying yes to opportunities—even ones you’re not fully prepared for—forces rapid growth and skill development. As you mature, learning when to say no becomes equally critical.

➡️ The hidden economics of freelancing: Agency marketers managing six clients while making $60-80K could potentially earn $15K monthly by taking those same clients freelance—a dramatic shift in income potential that’s rarely discussed in traditional career paths.

➡️ Sustainable vs. unsustainable business models: Some business models (like dropshipping) have shorter shelf lives due to easy replication, while others (like growth marketing) offer medium-term sustainability before potential AI disruption—choose wisely based on your timeline.

➡️ The self-development accelerator: Entrepreneurship functions as “a self-fulfilling journey on steroids,” forcing rapid personal growth in areas like boundary-setting, communication, and self-discipline that transform far more than just your income.

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Connect with Jake

Visit on LinkedIn @Jake Madoff

Website: www.jakemadoff.io