Ben's 1x1x1 - Weird metrics I'm using to measure success - September 25, 2026 🚀
For those of you that are new here, every week I send what I call a 1x1x1.
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
A good friend recently asked me a question that caught me off guard:
“How are you measuring success for the businesses you’re building right now?”
It’s a great question.
I had to think about it for a moment because my answer today is very different than it would have been 10 years ago.
When I first started building businesses, my definition of success was pretty straightforward:
Are we growing revenue?
Are we profitable?
Are we landing bigger customers?
Are we getting logos that make me feel cool when I casually mention them to someone?
Can we build an awesome team?
And I still care about those things.
But I’m realizing that as I get older, my definition of “winning” has changed pretty meaningfully.
Today, I have a young family with 2 kids, a few different businesses and approximately 47 things I could be doing at any given moment.
My time is much more valuable to me than it used to be.
So I’ve started measuring my businesses against some…weirder metrics.
Metric #1: How few calls can I have?
Seriously.
This is one of my favorite metrics right now.
I used to have 25-30 calls a week.
Today, I’m around 4-5.
It’s not that I don’t like people.
I actually really like people.
I just don’t like being deep in a creative flow, finally having that “OH, I GOT IT” moment…
…and then:
Incoming Call
There goes the idea.
Now I’m talking about someone’s Q3 strategy for 48 minutes and wondering what happened to the brilliant thought I had before my phone rang.
I love creating. I love building. I love thinking.
And I don’t want my calendar dictating when I get to do those things.
So when an opportunity comes along that sounds great but requires a bunch more meetings, calls, management and coordination?
Sometimes the answer is simply:
No thanks.
Not because it’s a bad opportunity.
Because it’s a bad opportunity for the life I’m trying to build.
Metric #2: How much recurring revenue can we build?
I’ve also become much less interested in businesses where I have to wake up every Monday and figure out where next month’s revenue is coming from.
One-off projects can be great.
But there’s something incredibly attractive about building a business where the work you did yesterday makes tomorrow a little easier.
That’s why I’m increasingly drawn toward SaaS, subscriptions and recurring revenue.
You build something useful.
Someone pays you every month.
You make the product better.
More people join.
The base compounds.
And you don’t have to wake up every 30 days and start hunting for another whale to keep the lights on.
Metric #3: Does this business give me control over my time?
Right now, one of my goals is to be done working around 3 PM.
Not because I suddenly became incredibly efficient.
Mostly because I have kids who are much more interesting than my inbox.
I want my afternoons and evenings to be for my family.
I want to be able to go outside.
Hang out with my kids.
Eat dinner together.
Be present.
And generally not have my phone buzzing.
I realize this is a luxury.
And I don’t take it for granted.
I’ve worked really hard to create the financial and professional flexibility to have more control over my time.
And now that I have it, I don’t want to accidentally give it back.
And that’s something I’m increasingly optimizing for.
Which brings me back to my friend’s question.
How am I measuring success today?
It’s still revenue.
It’s still profit.
It’s still building great products.
It’s still helping customers.
But the scoreboard has expanded.
I’m also measuring:
How many hours am I spending doing work I actually enjoy?
How many calls are on my calendar?
How much recurring revenue are we building?
Can I shut my laptop at 3 PM?
Am I building something that actually helps people?
And, perhaps most importantly, am I enjoying the process?
Find from my week
Made a last minute trip to our local theater to watch the latest film from Teton Gravity Research.
Such a different experience watching ski film in a theater packed with people that love the sport as much as you do.
Actually, It Is Rocket Science (2026) Official Trailer
Image from my life
A quick glimpse into our wild life which currently includes potty training.