From Cleaning Toilets to Building Tech: How Libby DeLucien Bet on Herself and Built a Legacy
What do Asian elephants, a messy divorce, a housecleaning hustle, and a tech company have in common? Libby DeLucien. In this episode, Libby shares her unapologetically bold journey from growing up in a family of elephant handlers to becoming a serial entrepreneur and systems expert. She opens up about the real reason she started her first company in the middle of a custody battle, the mindset shift that helped her reclaim her time as a mother, and how she scaled her businesses using simple, powerful frameworks.
From launching WootRecruit and Sell Convert Clean to writing her new book 1 Layer Deep, Libby breaks down how she built operational freedom and a legacy by trusting herself more than the odds.
Building a Business While Starting Over
Libby didn’t start her business with a pitch deck or a strategic plan. She started it after the locks were changed on her house. Her ex took the car and tried to use her job against her in a custody battle. With three kids and no stable income, she chose the one thing she could control—her time.
That meant launching a cleaning and organizing business. It wasn’t glamorous. She had no formal training and no startup capital. What she did have was work ethic, lived experience, and a determination to create stability on her own terms.
Within a few years, the business was thriving. But scaling brought new challenges. Hiring was painful. Candidates flaked. Interviews went nowhere. And Libby found herself changing clothes in the car between cleaning jobs just to show up for interviews that didn’t happen. So she did what she always does—she built a better system.
Turning Process Into Product
The hiring problem turned into an opportunity. Libby developed an automated recruiting workflow that worked. Then she packaged it. Her peers started asking for help. One presentation turned into a client. That client turned into a partnership. The partnership became WootRecruit, a recruiting tech platform now used by over 700 businesses.
She followed that with Sell Convert Clean, an online quoting tool built for the cleaning industry. Both tools came from real pain points she faced while growing her own company.
She didn’t identify as a software founder at first. In fact, when she bought out her original business partner, the imposter syndrome hit hard. But she kept building anyway. And the result is a system that allows frontline businesses to hire better, faster, and with less friction than traditional ATS platforms.
Why “One Layer Deep” Matters
Scaling multiple businesses as a solo founder forced Libby to rethink how systems work. Traditional SOPs were too long. Digital tools became clutter. Her attention span—as she put it—had the same limits as everyone else’s. So she went in a new direction.
1 Layer Deep is her answer to operational overwhelm. The book lays out a practical method for simplifying your business and getting back to the core of what actually works. At the center of it is the micro-playbook: a quick, clear, actionable guide that anyone on the team can use. Think of it as the short-form version of a training manual. It’s not flashy, but it works.
She uses the same approach in every business she owns—and in her own home.
Running a Business Like a Matriarch
Libby’s story starts long before her first company. She was raised in a family of elephant handlers in rural Oklahoma, part of a four-generation matriarchal line. Her grandmother, mother, great-aunt, and great-grandmother were all in the business.
It shaped how she thinks about leadership. Her children's book, Leading Like an Elephant, is a nod to the wisdom, steadiness, and care modeled by elephant herds. She applies those same principles to her family and to the teams she mentors.
And yes, the sanctuary is still there. The elephants are still grazing. And Libby now owns property in that same small town where it all began.
Franchise Models That Don’t Suck
When Libby decided to franchise her cleaning business, she didn’t want to replicate the extractive models she saw in the industry. She knew that high franchise fees could destroy a founder’s profit margins. So she flipped the script.
She built a franchise model that focused on real coaching, affordable fees, and a fair path to growth. The systems were already dialed in. She made them shareable. Her franchisees get access to branding, training, and operational structure without being set up to fail financially.
Franchising wasn’t the goal. It was a way to expand impact—and create more opportunities for other women like her.
Rewriting the Role of Mother
One of the most honest parts of our conversation came when Libby talked about motherhood. For a long time, she felt like she had to do it all—pack the lunches, clean the house, answer every email, and still show up to grow the company. Until she stopped.
She hired help at home. She let her team clean her house. She set a goal for 2025: no cooking, no driving. Not because she wanted to be less involved, but because she knew her value wasn’t tied to her to-do list.
The shift wasn’t just tactical. It was personal. She had to let go of the guilt. The messages from family. The social pressure. She had to redefine what it means to be a good mom.
Her message to other women is clear: if you try to be everything to everyone, you end up with nothing left for yourself. That’s not leadership. That’s martyrdom.
Quarterly Meetings, at Work and at Home
Libby treats her family like a stakeholder group. Before she does her business quarterly planning, she hosts a family meeting. They talk about travel, schedules, needs, and support. She even hosts quarterly check-ins with her husband, where they discuss values, growth, and what might be getting in the way.
Her kids know the vision. Her husband knows the plan. Everyone understands the why behind the work.
Her 17-year-old runs social media. Her younger kids help on the back end. The business isn’t just “mom’s job”—it’s the family’s future.
Advice That Cuts Through the Noise
When we asked Libby to share her biggest lesson, she didn’t hesitate: invest in yourself. Mentorship, coaching, and learning are the fast track. You don’t need to struggle through everything on your own. You just need to be willing to learn, apply, and take action.
That clarity is what defines Libby’s story. She didn’t wait for perfect conditions. She moved forward with what she had, and built from there. She took the gamble on herself because she knew how hard she would work. And she’s still building.
Listen to the Full Conversation
If you’re in a season of rebuilding, stretching, or scaling—especially if you’re doing it while navigating family, pressure, or a messy past—this episode is for you. Libby DeLucien doesn’t preach from a pedestal. She works from the trenches. And she knows exactly what it takes to build a business that supports your life rather than consumes it.
Listen now:
From Elephant Handler to Software CEO with Libby DeLucien
Explore Libby’s work:
Libby’s Website
WootRecruit
Sell Convert Clean
Organize It SWFL
[1 Layer Deep – Coming September 2025]
