The Scary Decisions That Fuel Top Entrepreneurs, with Zack Oliva

Apr 29, 2026

Zack Oliva, co-owner of Oliva Gibbs who scaled an oil and gas law firm from startup to 100+ people. He describes bold career moves, building a focused niche, and casting for A-players. He talks about learning to trust intuition, stepping out of day-to-day control, and how coaching accelerated personal and company growth.

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ADVICE

Develop People Then Remove Yourself From Day‑to‑Day

Do develop people and then get out of the way so the business doesn't rely on you.
Zack focused on strategy and capital allocation while delegating operations, noting others often execute 100x better than he could have.

ADVICE

Hone Your Gut For Better Hiring Decisions

Trust and hone your intuition when making hires and strategic choices.
Zack works with a leadership coach and listens for inspiration, learning to act on gut feelings after past mistakes of second‑guessing.

ANECDOTE

COVID Crisis Pushed Them To Double Down On Coaching

During COVID oil prices plunged and clients paused drilling, which caused revenue to dry up quickly.
Zack and partner Brad hired a Scaling Up coach, doubled down on oil and gas, and that risky bet led to long‑term resilience.

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From the start of his career, Zack Oliva has deliberately moved toward where he sees the next wave of growth. Now co-owner of a national energy law firm, he shares how he makes major career and business decisions, builds a focused niche, and uses entrepreneurial thinking to stay in the right position for long-term expansion.

Here’s some of what you’ll learn in this episode:

Why Zack says he “wasn’t a real person” when he started his firm in 2013.
How focusing on the right people allowed Zack’s company to grow exponentially.
Zack’s attitude toward every person who comes through his organization.
How The Strategic Coach® Program has helped Zack and his business partner grow their company 3-4x.
Why Zack thinks joining Strategic Coach® is one of the best investments you can make in yourself.

Show Notes:

Becoming a professional takes years of study, but becoming an entrepreneur starts with choosing to keep growing beyond your credentials.

Most professionals follow best practices, while entrepreneurs create their own rules and go where the future growth will be.

Entrepreneurs are people who want to grow.

Your personal growth as an owner sets the ceiling for how big and how fast your company can grow.

Choosing a growing niche creates a powerful platform to multiply opportunity.

Casting for roles, not hiring for generic jobs, helps you find A‑players who fit your vision and teamwork standards.

Treating your team members as whole people, not just employees, creates loyalty, creativity, and staying power.

A business becomes more valuable when it runs increasingly well without the founder at the center of everything.

Trusting your intuition is a learnable skill that gets stronger when you pay attention to past decisions and meaningful coincidences.

Entrepreneurship is largely a game of confidence, and protecting that confidence is one of your key responsibilities.

Strategic Coach thinking tools and workshops give entrepreneurs and teams a shared language that accelerates connection and progress.

Investing in your team’s development produces more creative, capable people who free you up for higher-level work and a fuller life.

Resources:

Casting Not Hiring by Dan Sullivan and Jeffrey Madoff

Who Not How by Dan Sullivan with Dr. Benjamin Hardy

10x Is Easier Than 2x by Dan Sullivan with Dr. Benjamin Hardy

The Entrepreneur's Guide To Time Management