Principle: Money will always find sellers, creators, designers, and hunters.
Consumers will never stop paying for four things: a brighter future, outstanding products, status and convenience.
Your job as an early ecom tycoon, therefore, is to flip these around, and master the skill that will produce at least one of those four things. Choose one below to hone:
Selling - marketing, sales, persuasion (Alex Hormozi)
Creating - making products that nail a need (Gymshark)
Designing - using taste to turn average into beautiful (Teenage Engineering)
Hunting - finding the deal nobody else did (Cody Sanchez)
Pick one, work your way into the top 20% of that skill, and money will flow.
Tactics: How to Begin
I couldn’t lift any substantial weight above my head to save a life. My shoulders BLOW.
But I do have a naturally strong back, so I love pullups.
You’re naturally and inherently weaker in 3 areas above, and you have a knack for, or at least interest in one of them.
Now it’s time to take that skill to the gym. Every day. If you want to be making videos, you need to be “in the gym,” making videos every day you work. Spend an hour working on hooks. Spend tomorrow’s hour studying narrative arcs.
Product creators: break down the different exercises you need to do this one thing better. Find time to interview 10 customers about why widget X on the app is under-used. Spend 5 hours sniffing out friction in your process and eliminate it. Product creation is your highest-leverage activity. So do it.
Designers, draw. Take ugly products/brands and make them better. Make a cool lamp shade for your girlfriend. If your world isn’t more beautiful a year from now, you’re not going to the gym.
Hunters, call, dm, email, connect 4 hours longer per day than you normally would. The admin part of the deal will take up a lot of your time, but make time to hunt. Every day.
Habit
In the next week, take one hour to make a list of your “gym exercises,” and start going. Block out time every day for it. Minimum 2 hours, hopefully 20.
Pro tip: a gym buddy always makes things easier, especially if they’ve been going for years.
Mike
Today’s inspiration: How to Get Rich (without luck, talent or a trust fund)