For those of you that are new here, every week I send what I call a 1x1x1.
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One thought from my week.
One interesting find/tool from my week.
One image from my life.

Let's dive in 👇

Thought from the week

One of my favorite business strategies is:

Don’t mess it up.

That’s it.

That’s the newsletter.

See you next week.

😂

Seriously though…

I spend a lot of time thinking about what else we should be doing.

• Should we launch a YouTube channel?
• Start a podcast?
• Create a partner program?
• Post more content?
• Run more ads?
• Build a community?
• Host webinars?
• Write a book?
• Buy a blimp?

The list never ends.

I think part of the challenge is that when you look at successful companies from the outside, it feels like they’re doing everything.

They’re on every social platform.

They’re advertising everywhere.

They have affiliates, influencers, newsletters, podcasts, events, partnerships, and a founder who’s somehow also posting inspirational videos from an airport lounge.

It creates this feeling that success comes from doing more.

But lately I’ve been reminded that sometimes success comes from doing less.

My business partner and I have been quietly working on a new venture for the last eight months.

We’re not quite ready to talk about it publicly yet, but the momentum has been incredibly encouraging.

And as usual, my brain immediately starts wandering.

“Should we launch a YouTube channel?”

“Should we create educational courses?”

“Should we start a podcast?”

“Should we…”

And every time, Andy gently reminds me:

“None of that is likely to move the needle right now.”

He’s usually right.

The things that are working today are actually pretty simple.

We know who our customers are.

We know what problem we’re solving.

We know how they’re finding us.

And we know what actions are creating growth.

So instead of adding ten new things…

The best move is often to keep doing the handful of things that are already working.

In-N-Out is one of my favorite examples.

They sell burgers.

People love the burgers.

Their growth strategy for decades has largely been:

Keep making great burgers and don’t do anything stupid.

It’s shockingly effective.

Now, if you’re still searching for product-market fit, this advice doesn’t apply.

When you’re trying to find something that works, experimentation is everything.

You should test channels.

Try ideas.

Run experiments.

Break stuff.

Learn quickly.

But once you’ve found something that’s working…

The game changes.

The risk often isn’t that you’re doing too little.

The risk is that you get bored and start “optimizing” yourself right out of success.

Entrepreneurs have a unique talent for finding things that work and then immediately trying to replace them with something more complicated.

Sometimes growth doesn’t require another strategy.

Sometimes it requires restraint.

So this is mostly a reminder to myself:

You don’t need to be everywhere.

You don’t need to do everything.

You don’t need a hundred priorities.

Focus on what’s working.

Double down on the fundamentals.

And if you’ve got a good thing going…

Try not to mess it up.

Find / tool

Like country music? Need to get fired up? Here you go.

Image from my life

We recently hired a landscaper to handle our yard work.

Pretty great deal considering she works for granola bites.

See you all next week!