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昨天以前StarterStory

I told Kanye "I quit"

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年3月16日 00:53
Read Time: 2 min, 14 sec
Hey there,
 
Today, I've got a fun story for you.

Something that I've never shared online...
 
But I'm in the airport lounge right now waiting for a flight - and I've got a few minutes.
 
It all starts about 4 years ago, when I get a call from my friend Jon.
 
Jon: "Hey man - you want to come out and help out at the ranch?"
 
Me: "What ranch?"
 
Jon: "I'm out here with Kanye and his team and we need some extra hands while he's recording his album."
 
I nearly dropped the phone in disbelief.
 
Kanye is my favorite artist person of all time.
 
Of course I said yes - how could I turn down this opportunity?
 
I get in my car and start the 5 hour drive to the secret location Jon sends me.
 
I have no idea what's about to happen.
 
But I'm so f*ing excited.

"I'm going to meet Kanye West."
 
"I'm going to meet his team of A-players."
 
"This is going to change my life."
 
I get to the location, walk inside, and sit down at one of the desks.
 
His whole team is in there working.
 
Then, Kanye walks in and starts walking towards me.
 
He shakes my hand, and introduces himself. He is cordial.
 
Then, he immediately turns to my friend Jon (who hired me) and says:

"I don't want anyone new joining my team without my DIRECT approval."
 
😳
 
I put my head down and pretend I don't hear him.
 
Yep. That was my first interaction with Kanye West.
 
--
 
For the next couple days, his team starts giving me orders.
 
Here's what I learn they need my "help" with:
 
- Chauffeuring the artists around
- Picking up pizza for the team
- Driving people to Dairy Queen
- Making sure Kanye always has enough snacks
 
Yep, I'm running errands all day.
 
I'm the bottom of the totem pole.
 
It's not a big deal though... I've worked minimum wage service jobs before.
 
But... here's the problem:
 
At this point, I've already quit my full time job and started my own business.
 
And this business is making money.
 
Yet I'm out here on Kanye's ranch... picking up Dairy Queen orders?
 
Then it gets worse...
 
I start to meet his team.
 
These so-called A-players...
 
And guess what? They all clearly hate working there.
 
They're all complaining about their bosses, gossiping about coworkers, and not really doing anything productive.
 
It's like every other company I've worked at...
 
This place reminds me why I quit my job in the first place.
 
It reminds me why I'll NEVER be happy working for someone else.
 
(even if that person happens to be the greatest artist of our generation)
 
Here's what I realize:
 
I don't want to work for Kanye.
 
I want to work with Kanye.
 
And Kanye did not become Kanye by working for someone else.
 
He became Kanye by creating his own sh*t!
 
After 4 days of working for Kanye, I tell my friend:

"Hey man - I'm gonna head home and get back to working on my business."
 
--
 
I quit working for Kanye.
 
And on that drive home from the ranch, I've never felt more conviction that I was on the right path.
 
Since then I built Starter Story into a business that's generated millions of dollars.
 
I'm grateful I got to meet Kanye because it reminded me why I never want to have a boss for the rest of my life :)

If you also feel this way, then you should check out the workshop I'm running on Monday.

It's how I built a $1M business on 2 hours a day (without quitting my job).
 
 
(^^ we are running out of spots just FYI)
 
I hope this story inspired you :)
 
Don't meet your heroes!

- Pat

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113% vs. 13,000%

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年3月15日 00:23
2 min & 33 sec read
Hey it’s Pat,
 
I want to get your opinion on something.
 
Let's say I gave you these two options:
  • Option 1: Increase your salary 113% in 5 years
  • Option 2: Increase your salary 13,000% in 7 years
Which one would you take? 
 
I'm willing to bet you chose Option 2 (why wouldn't you).
 
But... 99% of people actually choose Option 1.
 
Let me explain.
 
––
 
So, my very first salary out of college was $54K.
 
And each year after, it slowly increased as I got promotions or switched jobs:
  • Year 2: $60K
  • Year 3: $80K
  • Year 4: $105K
  • Year 5: $115K
From year 1 to 5, it had grown 113%.
 
Not bad, right?
 
But here’s the truth: I was miserable.
 
I didn’t have any control over my life.
 
I sat on Slack from 9am to 6pm. I didn't give a sh*t about my projects. 
 
I was building someone else’s company.
 
From the outside it looked like I had a dream job life.
 
But on the inside, I was slowly dying.
 
I prayed for Fridays so I could start my “real” life.
 
This is how 99% of people live.
 
They spend 40 years working at companies that don’t give a sh*t about them.
 
Companies that would lay them off in an instant if it improved their bottom line.
 
And all the while living for the weekend.
 
I knew it didn’t have to be like this.
 
––
 
I started building Starter Story in 2017.
 
• I built it in the mornings before work.
• Late into the night after work.
• And on every weekend I possibly could.
 
It wasn’t long before I was making a little bit of extra money every month.
 
But many of my friends laughed at me:
  • WTF are you doing?
  • You have a stable job… focus on that!
  • That’s a cute idea… I hope it works…
In my first full year I made just… $12,000.
 
I came home for Christmas and my family shook their heads at me.
 
What they saw as a silly side quest... I saw as my ticket out!
 
––
 
So I kept building.
 
I had a feeling I was onto something.
 
I wasn't even making six figures, but I was building MY DREAM.
 
Then I started cranking:
  • Year 2: $67K
  • Year 3: $186K
  • Year 4: $497K
  • Year 5: $752K
  • Year 6: $1.8M
This year… we’re on track to do even more.
 
The result: I’ve grown 13,000% since I launched Starter Story. 
 
Now all those friends say:
  • "You are a genius"
  • "I knew it all along"
  • "Can I pitch you my idea?"
Funny how that works...
 
––
 
Here’s the thing only founders understand:
 
Salaries grow 5-10% every year.
 
But businesses have no ceiling for growth.
 
Most people are happy with a 5-10% bump in salary every few years.
 
That becomes the normal, the standard.
 
Meanwhile, a business can grow 2x or 3x or 10x (especially in the early years)
 
And if you keep testing and iterating, there’s very little in the way of growing 100x over several years.
 
––
 
I’m going to give you those two options again:
  • Option 1: Choose the 113% salary mindset.
  • Option 2: Choose 13,000% founder mindset - and join Starter Story to surround yourself with thousands of others doing the same thing.

Most people say they want option 2.

But 99% of people choose option 1.

I'm running a workshop on Monday where I'll walk through Option 2 a bit more.

And how I built a $1M on two hours a day - while I had a full time job:

Click HERE to save your seat.

 
– Pat

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Don't be like Ethan

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年3月14日 00:22
2 min & 20 sec read
Hey it’s Pat,
 
I need to tell you about my friend Ethan.
 
(I love the guy - we've been friends since college)
 
But I'm frustrated with him...
 
A couple weeks ago Ethan texted me:
 
“hey man… Did you see what's happening with Google's AI?”
 
Of course I didn’t 🙄
 
(I don't really follow the news, I focus on building a business)
 
I responded, “No… what’s going on?”
 
He then proceeded to text me a novel about Google and their latest AI controversy…
 
I kid you not – it looked something like this ↓
 
 
After he sent it, I didn’t know how to respond.
 
“Wow. Sounds crazy” is all I could muster up.
 
––
 
See, my friend Ethan has a six-figure remote tech job.
 
He spends 8 hours every day:
 
- sending emails.
- muted on Zoom meetings.
- scrolling Twitter.

He's bored out of his skull, so he texts me novels about something completely out of his control.
 
But... you know what's even worse?

He hates his job.
 
And he tells me every day he wants to eventually have a business like mine.
 
But... he just "needs a little more time", "needs the right idea", etc etc.
 
Unfortunately, my friend Ethan is what we call a serial wantrepreneur.
 
You know this type, right? The guy who:
  • listens to 10 business podcasts every week
  • gets a hare-brained business idea every week from some online guru
  • always on top of every trend (no code, web3, crypto, etc etc etc)
They talk a lot about business, but when you ask them about their business, they always say:
 
“...I’m working on it.”
 
A serial wantrepreneur is someone who loves the idea of business more than actually doing business.
 
They want to be a founder, but they don't want to do the work.
 
––
 
Ok back to our conversation about Google.
 
Let's see if we can change the subject.
 
I ask Ethan about that business idea he's been telling me about.
 
And I decide to send him a few Starter Story case studies.
 
"Ethan, I think you should read these 3 case studies".

"These are stories of exactly how people just like you (working in tech) found an idea, got started on the site (without quitting their job) and then built a $1M business that changed their life."
 
I'm waiting for his response.
 
Crickets...
 
I don't hear from Ethan for a few days.
 
Expected.
 
A week later I text him again: 
 
“Hey Ethan! Did you read that case study I sent you? The one about the guy who built that $1M AI app before quitting his job?”
 
Crickets...
 
Finally – 2 WEEKS LATER – later he responds:
 
“Nah, haven’t read it yet. I’m working on it.” 
 
Classic Ethan response...
 
Ethan is so close to success…yet so far away.
 
––
 
I think this is the problem.
 
People like Ethan want to quit their jobs and find a business idea that can replace their full-time income.

Yet they spend all their time on Twitter consuming irrelevant information.
 
And even worse, they follow business stories about Google, OpenAI, etc - and get advice and information from billionaire founders like Elon Musk and Sam Altman.
 
Instead, what if you studied founders who were just a few steps ahead of where you want to be.
 
Imagine you could see exactly how they built their business (without even quitting your jobs).
 
And that’s exactly why I built Starter Story.
 
I was sick of billion dollar stories.
I was bored of Jobs, Musk, and Bezos breakdowns.
I was done with business books.
 
I became obsessed with small startups and solo businesses making $10-50K per month.
 
Businesses that could actually change the lives of regular folks likeyou and me. 
 
I don’t think you’ll learn anything useful from reading another business book or listening to another business podcast.
 
But you will learn practical and tactical information on Starter Story. Stuff that you can’t find anywhere else on the internet.
 
You’ll learn something that can help you today. Not in 10 years.
 
Don’t be a wantrepreneur who talks a lot about business. Don't be Ethan.
 
Be an entrepreneur who actually builds a business.
 
I dare you to join us at Starter Story.
 
Search for ANY business idea.
 
And I guarantee you will find something you can use right now.
 
There are no more excuses. It’s all right at your fingertips.
 
Don’t be like Ethan.
 
Click HERE to join Starter Story today.
 
– Pat

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You can make $1M from this one word

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年3月12日 17:34
2 min read
Ok... this is crazy.
 
So I’m working from a coffee shop right now.
 
I’ve been here for 2 hours.
 
There’s a girl who’s been here as long as me.
 
She’s sitting in front of me and, from my view, I can see her screen.
 
Every 15 minutes or so, I’ll look up and get a glimpse of what she's working on.
 
Every single time I look up, it’s the same thing: Gmail.
 
She's not really doing anything either, she's just got Gmail open and is sitting there on her phone - where she's been having long conversations with someone over text and scrolling TikTok.
 
No offense to this girl (I don't know her), but... why is she here? 
 
It's during work hours, but is she actually working? Is she getting anything done?
 
If I were her, I’d do all my emails in 15 minutes, log off, go outside and enjoy my day.
 
Because when I’m at the coffee shop, I am GETTING SHIT DONE.
 
I’m doing deep work. I’m writing, coding, and planning how my business can make more money.
 
(btw - I have no problem with how this girl spends her time - it’s just really not my style)
 
But anyways… this got me thinking…
 
"What else are people working on at this coffee shop?"
 
I NEED to know!
 
So I get up out of my seat and start walking around, peaking at everyone’s screen to see what they’re working on.
 
I’m collecting data :)
 
Here are the results:

1. 8 people: email, slack, iMessage, etc
2. 5 people: social media, twitter, tiktok etc
3. 0 people: Deep work: writing, coding, spreadsheets
 
This ain't a scientific study, but it confirmed what I feared.
 
Distraction runs the world.
 
Thousands of apps, notifications, etc are vying for our attention every second of our day.
 
Stealing us away from the businesses we could be building and the lives we could actually be living.
 
What's even worse are the distractions that feel like work, but are still distractions...

Like email, or Slack.
 
Where you feel "productive", but did you actually get something done? Did you actually create or improve something? Did you actually make a difference?
 
Ok... this is depressing.
 
Nobody is actually getting work done.
 
So what's the fix for this?
 
One word: Focus.
 
I believe focus is the secret superpower that runs the world.
 
Only 5% of people really learn it, but these are the people that create the products, content, and companies that change the world.
 
And the people who make a lot of money in the process.
 
Just even having a little bit of focus gives you a competitive advantage ahead of nearly everyone else.
 
I’ve talked to and studied thousands of successful founders.
 
And this is the most common trait: focus!
 
Don’t believe me? Just google “Bill gates focus” and see what comes up.
 
Want to understand more about what I mean by focus?
 
And how founders use focus to find $1M ideas that change their lives?
 
Then you should check out the workshop I’m doing this evening.
 
It’s how I built a $1M business, thanks to this one thing - focus :)
 
Click HERE to reserve your seat.
 
See you there?
- Pat

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You can make $1M from this one word

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年3月12日 15:34
2 min read
Ok... this is crazy.
 
So I’m working from a coffee shop right now.
 
I’ve been here for 2 hours.
 
There’s a girl who’s been here as long as me.
 
She’s sitting in front of me and, from my view, I can see her screen.
 
Every 15 minutes or so, I’ll look up and get a glimpse of what she's working on.
 
Every single time I look up, it’s the same thing: Gmail.
 
She's not really doing anything either, she's just got Gmail open and is sitting there on her phone - where she's been having long conversations with someone over text and scrolling TikTok.
 
No offense to this girl (I don't know her), but... why is she here? 
 
It's during work hours, but is she actually working? Is she getting anything done?
 
If I were her, I’d do all my emails in 15 minutes, log off, go outside and enjoy my day.
 
Because when I’m at the coffee shop, I am GETTING SHIT DONE.
 
I’m doing deep work. I’m writing, coding, and planning how my business can make more money.
 
(btw - I have no problem with how this girl spends her time - it’s just really not my style)
 
But anyways… this got me thinking…
 
"What else are people working on at this coffee shop?"
 
I NEED to know!
 
So I get up out of my seat and start walking around, peaking at everyone’s screen to see what they’re working on.
 
I’m collecting data :)
 
Here are the results:

1. 8 people: email, slack, iMessage, etc
2. 5 people: social media, twitter, tiktok etc
3. 0 people: Deep work: writing, coding, spreadsheets
 
This ain't a scientific study, but it confirmed what I feared.
 
Distraction runs the world.
 
Thousands of apps, notifications, etc are vying for our attention every second of our day.
 
Stealing us away from the businesses we could be building and the lives we could actually be living.
 
What's even worse are the distractions that feel like work, but are still distractions...

Like email, or Slack.
 
Where you feel "productive", but did you actually get something done? Did you actually create or improve something? Did you actually make a difference?
 
Ok... this is depressing.
 
Nobody is actually getting work done.
 
So what's the fix for this?
 
One word: Focus.
 
I believe focus is the secret superpower that runs the world.
 
Only 5% of people really learn it, but these are the people that create the products, content, and companies that change the world.
 
And the people who make a lot of money in the process.
 
Just even having a little bit of focus gives you a competitive advantage ahead of nearly everyone else.
 
I’ve talked to and studied thousands of successful founders.
 
And this is the most common trait: focus!
 
Don’t believe me? Just google “Bill gates focus” and see what comes up.
 
Want to understand more about what I mean by focus?
 
And how founders use focus to find $1M ideas that change their lives?
 
Then you should check out the workshop I’m doing this evening.
 
It’s how I built a $1M business, thanks to this one thing - focus :)
 
Click HERE to reserve your seat.
 
See you there?
- Pat

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I’m having a crappy day

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年3月9日 09:21
2 min read
I woke up this morning feeling like crap.
 
Building a business is hard. There are some days where it just doesn’t feel worth it.
 
I’ve been building for over 5 years now, so I have coping mechanisms for this.
 
One of them is to switch up my environment.
 
So... I got in my car and headed to a new coffee shop downtown to get some work done.
 
I get there, find a table, pull out my laptop, and start working.
 
Then, something crazy happens…
 
Two guys walk in the door, order their drinks, and sit at the same table as me.
 
They’re both wearing collared shirts and beige khakis that only belong in buildings taller than 20 stories.
 
And they both have those lanyard ID badge things hanging off their pants.
 
These guys work in the corporate office next door... and they came in here for a break.
 
This immediately triggers me.
 
Why? Because I used to be these guys.
 
These guys are ME… (5 years ago)
 
I start eavesdropping on their conversation.
 
They proceed to spend the next hour talking about… nothing.
 
Small talk, the meeting they were just in, corporate gossip, politics, blah blah blah.
 
It's obvious they don’t give a sh*t their work. They’re just passing the time until 5PM.
 
This is when I have a flashback to my corpo days…
 
When I had to be somewhere, every weekday, from 9 to 5.
 
When I had to drop everything because my boss pinged me on Slack.
 
When I had to spend 8 hours every single day doing something I didn't even like.
 
Today, I woke up and things felt hard.
 
But now, I'm grateful.
 
Because I'm reminded why I made the sacrifice to build my own business.
 
Because even though it’s hard, it means I’ll never have to do THAT again.
 
A few years ago, I started on a side project that would change my life.
 
Just 12 months later I quit my full time job forever.
 
I share that entire playbook here - you should check it out.
 
Pat

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The 5-step recipe to $1M

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作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年3月8日 10:28
3 min read

Hey guys - happy Thursday.

Yesterday, someone emailed me this:

“How to become millionaire?”

That’s it. That was the whole email.

I HATE these emails with a fiery passion.

Emails like these imply that success is about money (it's not) and that there's some "checklist" to a $1M business.

To take out my rage, I’m going to actually answer this question.

Once and for all. And then we’re never going to speak on it again.

The answer? One word: focus.

If you don’t believe me, then go to google and type in “Bill gates focus”

Focus doesn’t just create millionaires, it creates billionaires :)

So... in 3 minutes, I’m going to share with you my 5-step recipe for focus:

(aka "deep work")
Step 1. Switch your environment
Nobody is born with focus.
 
In fact, when I was younger, I was diagnosed with ADD.
 
I believe focus is something I have to "turn on".
 
The best way to turn it on?
 
Shock your system by switching your environment.
 
For me, it’s the coffee shop one block from my house. This is the ONLY place I get deep work done.
 
My workday consists of:
• 2-5 hours of focused, deep work from a new environment
• 19-22 hours of distraction, multi-tasking, sleep, etc (aka "life")
 
To focus, FIND your focus environment:
 
Do it from the library, gym, coworking space, basement, from your car! - it doesn't matter...
Step 2. Eliminate ALL distractions
Seems obvious, right?
 
But... have you really done ALL of these:
 
1. Turn off your phone (actually OFF)
2. Turn ON your siteblocker
3. Block Twitter, YouTube, etc etc
4. Whenever you find yourself checking some other website BLOCK IT!!!
5. Quit all the chat apps (iMessage, Telegram, Discord, Slack, etc)
6. Turn on DO NOT DISTURB (dont allow a SINGLE notification)
7. Close out all your extra tabs
8. Unplug your external monitor (no multitasking)
9. Block physical visual distractions (at the coffee shop, position yourself staring at the wall rather than the door)

If you do all of these before your next deep work session, you'll be a machine.
Step 3. Prioritize
Sure, you could spend 4 hours/day focused on getting faster at Wordle, but that will earn you a whopping $0.
 
You must prioritize the biggest needle-moving tasks - and get them done with your most precious hours of focused energy.
 
But... how to prioritize?
 
For me, this is simple.
 
Answer these two questions:
 
1. What is my MIT? (the "most important thing", this often feels big and scary)
2. What is something I need to do right now that will take 5 minutes?
 
Then put together your todo list as follows:
 
#1 - the 5-minute thing
#2 - the MIT
 
Why?
 
Get the easy quick thing done. It’ll give you some momentum and make the big scary thing a little easier to get started on.
 
If you don't get the "scary" things done, then you should stop reading this.
Step 4. Block out 2 hours
I don’t think you can get in the zone with anything less than a 30 minute session.
 
Flow state really starts at minute 30.
 
Here’s what my two hours looks like for me:
 
• 0 to 30 min: “This is hard, I want to check Twitter”
• 30 min to 1hr: “This is getting easier”
• 1 to 2hr: “I am a machine!! A productivity GOD”
• 2hr+: “This is hard, I want to check Twitter”
 
If you can do 3 hours of deep work, you are a BEAST.
Step 5. Every day
If you think you'll be a millionaire overnight, then please unsubscribe from my newsletter.
 
A successful business is built slowly, brick-by-brick, over time.
 
I’ve never met a successful founder who didn’t work on their startup every day.
 
(even if it’s just for 15 minutes)
 
Two hours of deep work, every day, will change your life.
 
Do this for at least 30 days, and I promise you’ll make more progress than you would typically in a year!
 
If you’re serious about focus, then you should consider joining Deep30 - our deep work challenge and private accountability service at Starter Story.
 
How it works: You do 2 hours of deep work, every day alongside hundreds of other people cheering you on and giving you feedback.
 
We track your progress and hold you accountable along the way.

And you'll change your life in the process.
 
Click HERE to learn more about that.
 
(for serious builders only)
 
Keep shipping!
Pat from Starter Story

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He flushed $1M down the toilet

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年3月6日 02:23
2 min read

Hey guys - happy Tuesday.

I have something I need to get off my chest.

It's been really bothering me!

It has to do with someone who keeps emailing me.

His name is Nick.

Nick is a few years into his journey and has built up a business to ~$3,000/month.

Not bad! I think what he built is pretty cool and has a lot of potential.

He emails me from time to time about his progress. I like to follow along :)

But a couple weeks ago… Nick did something really dumb.

He made a very impulsive change to his business model.

It caused his business to go from $3,000/month to $500/month!

He emailed in a state of panic.

"Ahhhhhh I f*cked up! What do I do? How do I fix this?”

First, I calmed him down. This isn't life or death here.

Then, I told him exactly what he did wrong.

Here's the tl;dr:

Mistake #1: He made this change because of a few negative comments he got on social media (always a terrible idea)

Mistake #2 He didn’t AB test the change... (ummmm!!)

Mistake #3: He announced the change to his entire audience BEFORE testing (never, ever do that)

But it's OK, mistakes happen!

(I’ve f*cked up more times than I can remember)

But… what happened next... is what's really been bothering me:

I told him how to fix the problem to get back to $3,000/month.

And then... I sent him 5 Starter Story case studies on $1M/year businesses that were very similar to his.

I told him specifically about 2-3 concepts from these case studies that would 10x his business (pretty much overnight).

And guess what… HE DIDN’T READ THE CASE STUDIES!

😳

Imagine you had $1M in front of you, and you just walked away?

But... obviously he had good intentions, right? So why did he ignore my advice?

My theory: he was more worried about getting BACK to his normal: $3k/month.

He was more worried about what he might lose, than what he might gain.

And that is a recipe for failure.

Now… I’m not claiming to be some business genius.

I just felt very confident that he could turn his business into a $1M business in a few months.

Why? Because I’ve read 10+ case studies on businesses exactly like his that make over a $1M/year.

I know exactly how they did it!

And... I’ve studied 100 more businesses just like his that failed!

Question: So what separates $1M business from a failed one?

Answer: A founder with a growth mindset. A founder who studies what works. And implements it.

This mentality is how I grew Starter Story from $0 to $3M/year.

Smart founders study businesses. Smart founders obsess over finding what works. And get better every day.

So yeah, that is the story of how Nick flushed $1M down the toilet.

Don’t be like Nick.

If you're serious about studying other businesses, finding what works, and building a business alongside thousands of others, then you should problably check out this link:

Click here if you're not Nick.

(if you're not serious about building your growth mindset, then probably don't bother clicking that link)

Have a great rest of your week,

Pat Walls

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Your next side project?

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年3月4日 21:23

Hey there,

Pat from Starter Story here.

Did you know that 99 out of 100 side projects fail?

Yep. It sucks. The main reasons why they fail?

• You set the wrong goals
• You try way too hard to be original
• You pick a thing that never even has a chance of making money...
 
The cool news is I have something that shows you exactly how to solve all those problems - fast and easy!

Think of it as the blueprint to the perfect side project...

Click here right now to see it.

I’ll see you over there.

Thanks,

Pat



You received this email from Starter Story. If you would like to unsubscribe, click here.

I just found the perfect business idea

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年2月22日 02:51
You’ve been lied to… ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­

The perfect business idea
2 min read
Here’s the typical founder success story:
 
“I was just doing my thing... Then one day, the perfect idea fell into my lap. The rest was history.”
 
This is… always bullsh*t. 100% lies.
 
Today, we’re going to talk about that.
Spend 2 mins reading this email if you want to learn:
  1. Why Starter Story was a crappy idea
  2. Why successful founders lie to you
  3. How to find the perfect idea
Starter Story was a crappy idea
“Starter Story is a great business idea. I wish I had thought of it!”
 
I get messages like this every day.
 
And every time I respond back:
 
“You weren’t there 5 years ago!!
You weren’t there when my friends and family thought I was NUTS!
You didn't see the 24 other things that FAILED!”
 
(just kidding... I usually just say thank you)
 
But it's true. In 2017, Starter Story was a crappy idea (on paper).
 
It was just a blog with a few articles.
 
I had very low expectations for it.
 
I didn’t think it was going to make me a millionaire.
 
So… why did I start it?
 
Because:
 
1. It was something I was passionate about
2. It was something I could hack on nights and weekends (by myself)
3. I thought it would be a cool way to learn about startups
 
I also thought that maybe (just maybe) it could someday make $10K/month and replace my full time job income.
 
And after that…. I’d finally find that (ever-elusive) perfect business idea: the idea that could actually change my life.
 
I turned out to be very, very wrong.
 
But more on that later.
Why successful founders lie to you
Now you know a little bit more on the truth about Starter Story: it was just one of 24+ other projects that failed.
 
And it’s time to let you in on a little secret.
 
This is the same story (more or less) for nearly every other successful founder.
 
(I would know because I’ve studied and talked to 1000s of them)
 
The truth: Behind every $1M business is AT LEAST 5 years of failed projects and crippling self-doubt.
 
BUT… founders rarely share this stuff.
 
Why? Because it doesn’t fit into their narrative. It doesn't help sell their product, or get customers. And it doesn't help them raise funding, get press, or hire great people.
 
Once you start digging deeper, you can't unsee this.
24 failures. One success.
Turns out, Starter Story was actually the perfect business idea.

It just took me 5 years and two dozen failed projects to realize it.
 
I listed all of those failed projects here:
Yes, Starter Story started as a crappy idea...
 
But I kept working on it. I kept making it better. I learned so much.
 
I launched other things, before and after. I went in a ton of directions.
 
I spent years figuring it out and showing up every day.
 
And I think that's what made the difference.
 
I believe that's what turned a crappy idea into $1M business.
Q: So… how can YOU find YOUR perfect idea?
A: Start putting crappy ideas into the world.
 
There are two types of founders:
 
Founder A: Waits 5 years for the perfect idea to fall into their lap.

Founder B: Launches a crappy idea this week. Learns, iterates, and launches more crappy ideas. Improves every day. Repeats this process for 5 years.
 
There's no guarantee that either will be successful.
 
But if I had to put my money on one of them? I’m going with Founder B. 
 
Every. Single. Time.
Ready to put your crappy idea into the world?
On Monday, I'm running a free workshop on how I built a $1M business on two hours a day.

(basically, it's everything about how to pick the BEST crappy idea, and get to work)

Click here to sign up (limited spots).
 
See you there?

Thanks for reading!

Pat Walls
Founder, StarterStory.com
Starter Story - 4920 W Cypress St Ste 104 - #5143 - Tampa, FL 33607

Click here if you want to stop receiving emails from us.

The right time to quit your job?

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年2月15日 01:53
I felt alive for the first time... ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­

The right time to quit your job?
4 min read
Hey there,
 
Pat here. Happy Hump day.
 
“When is the right time to quit your job?”
 
If I had a nickel for every time someone asked me this question, I’d have enough money to buy a sense of humor and come up with a better joke about nickels.
 
But instead, I'll dedicate this email to answering that question.
Spend 4 mins reading this email if you want to learn:
  1. Why quitting your job before you have traction is really, really dumb
  2. Why having your back against the wall is a feature, not a bug
  3. The optimal time to quit your job
My insane story
About 5 years ago, I quit my software engineer job.
 
I had less than $10,000 in savings.
 
I canceled the lease on my $2,200/month NYC apartment.
 
And I moved into this $150/month apartment in Thailand:
I decided to sacrifice everything and finally do the one thing I’d been dreaming of for years: build my own business.
 
I sold 99% of my sh*t and stuffed the rest into one backpack.
 
And purchased a one way flight to Chiang Mai, Thailand.
 
When I got there, I walked around the streets looking for “For Rent” signs.
 
I found that studio for $150/month.
 
The bed was as hard as a rock. The bathroom was… interesting.
 
I went to bed and woke up the next morning and just started executing.
 
I worked my ass off every single day including weekends.
 
At the time, Starter Story was making about $3,000 per month.
 
I didn’t have some grand plan on how I was going to make it, or how I was going to match my old salary.
 
I just knew that I had a few months to figure it out.
 
And that feeling was incredible… but more on that later.
So… when should YOU quit your job?
That's my "quit my job" story, but... how does this help you?
 
Well, there's actually something deeper here that I'd like to explain.
 
To illustrate this, I drew this career “ladder”:
 
(don’t mind my horrible drawing skills, I’m in Buenos Aires this week and it’s all I got)
The following are the 5 "steps" of most professional career ladders:
 
🪜 Ladder Step 1: Skills
 
When I first got started with my side project, I started peeling back the onion on everything I didn’t know.
 
I didn’t know anything about marketing. I didn’t know about sales. I didn’t know how to launch something. I didn’t know jack sh*t!
 
But… I got to practice and sharpen these skills for free!
 
I was able to fail with minimal consequences.
 
(and my failures were essentially bankrolled by my full time job salary)
 
Verdict: If you’re here, don’t quit your job yet.
 
🪜 Ladder Step 2: Execution ability
 
At this point, I’ve acquired some skills. But… these skills could only get me so far.
 
The next thing I needed to learn was how to execute… how to get sh*t done!
 
I only had 2 hours a day to work on my side project.
 
And thanks to this insane time constraint, I mastered the most underrated skill: time management.
 
I learned: How to motivate myself. How to get into deep work. How to "hack" productivity. How to work on the right things.
 
(btw if you’re curious about learning more about this, join our workshop on Monday)
 
Verdict: If you’re here, don’t quit your job yet.
 
🪜 Ladder Step 3: Savings
 
Ok, so at this point, I’m getting more serious about my side project.
 
It's now got some traction and it’s making some money.
 
And I’m using this money to pay off my student loans and build up a small amount of savings/runway.
 
I’ve got some skills. I know how to manage my time. And I’ve got a (small) cash flowing online business.
 
Now, I'm ready to finally buy back my 8 hours/day spent at the 9 to 5 full time job.

I'm ready to go all in.
 
Verdict: This is the sweet spot.
 
🪜 Ladder Step 4: High lifestyle costs
 
This is where things can go downhill.
 
Life happens: You spend $50K on a wedding. The kid has a $1,000/month daycare. You get the $500/month car, or the $5,000/month mortgage.
 
You’ve got some money. You’ve got a good salary. But you’ve also got a high burn rate.
 
Now, starting a business feel less realistic because, all of a sudden, a business making $5,000/month is not enough.
 
(and let's be honest, a $5,000/month business is life changing)
 
Verdict: If you’re here, you need to go down in lifestyle and lower your burn rate. It’s not too late!
 
🪜 Ladder Step 5: Ego
 
This is the danger zone.
 
For example, you’re a VP, lawyer, banker, etc.
 
You’ve spent so many years to get to that point in your career, and quitting/starting your own business feels like career suicide.
 
You’re comfortable, have a high status job, but working like a dog and unhappy.
 
And even worse, you’re more worried about the optics of what quitting your job would look like (to others). 
 
You’re worried about what people will say about you.
 
Verdict: This is a scary place to be. If you’re here, reply to this email. Let’s talk. It’s not too late.
Final verdict
There is no right or wrong answer about when to quit your job
 
(every situation is different).
 
BUT: Quitting your job too early could kill you.
 
AND: There’s a point in your life where it will be too late (and you’ll never do it, out of fear).
 
Look at the career ladder above and get a sense of where you are.
So… I moved to Thailand, what happened next?
Well, I had <$10,000 in savings, and only a few months to figure it out.
 
My back was against the wall.
 
But… that made me feel alive.
 
Because I was finally following my dream, finally doing the thing I'd put off for years!
 
I realize that not everyone can make this kind of sacrifice. I was 28 years old. I didn’t have a family.
 
But I do believe that if you want to build a business, you must sacrifice something.
 
I’m not sure you can be successful if you don’t.
Ready to build that side project?
Serious about building something?
 
Next Monday, I'm running a free workshop on how I built a $1M business on two hours a day.

(basically, it's everything from Step 1 - Step 3 on the ladder)

Click here to sign up (limited spots).

Thanks for reading!

Pat Walls
Founder, StarterStory.com
Starter Story - 4920 W Cypress St Ste 104 - #5143 - Tampa, FL 33607

Click here if you want to stop receiving emails from us.

Subreddit millionaires

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年2月8日 01:37
$1M+ businesses are hiding in every subreddit ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­

How to build a million dollar business off of one subreddit
5 min read

Hey there,

Pat here. Happy Wednesday.

I have a confession.

Starter Story would have failed miserably without the help of one place: the r/entrepreneur subreddit.

I was able to “hack” that subreddit and get millions of free users.

For $0.

Even crazier... I did this when I was a nobody.

With this simple tactic, I quit my full time job and turned my “silly little website” into a million dollar business.

... all thanks to one subreddit!

Today, I’m going to share with you that story:
Spend 5 mins reading this email if you want to learn:
  1. How to "hack" any subreddit & get thousands of free users
  2. How to identify (and double down) on your home run marketing channel
  3. How Reddit is creating million dollar businesses every day
How I turned one subreddit into $1M
It all starts in 2017.
 
It's launch day for my new website Starter Story - a database of case studies on how regular people turned side projects into million dollar businesses.
 
I share it with a few friends.
 
I’m ready for it to go viral.
 
I'm ready for the success to start happening.
 
Crickets.
 
A whopping 300 people visit my website in the first month:
I learn startup lesson #428:
 
"If you build it, they WON'T come."
 
Ok... time to figure out this thing called "marketing".
 
Let's try the shotgun approach?
 
I share my website EVERYWHERE:
 
Twitter, Instagram, FB, Pinterest, Quora, Imgur, Hacker News, etc.
 
Again, I'm just waiting for the SUCCESS to start rolling in...
 
MORE CRICKETS.
 
🦗🦗🦗
 
So… I start searching Google for more ideas.
 
I come across a discussion on Reddit.
 
And then it hits me.
 
“Could I get Starter Story on the front page of Reddit?”
 
I check to see if there is a subreddit for entrepreneurship.
 
There is.
 
r/entrepreneur: A subreddit with 2.3M users.
 
What if I posted the link to my website on there?
 
Let's give it a shot.
 
NOPE.
 
The mods: "Your post has been removed. Goes against our spam rules"
 
Ugh.
 
Let's check out these so-called "rules":
 
"#1: No link posts. Only self-posts (text posts) allowed."
 
I have an idea. Well, it’s more of a workaround...
 
What if I copy & paste my case studies into a “self post”?
 
Let's try it.
I wake up the next morning:
 
Holy sh*t. I'm on the front page of Reddit:
 
- 400+ upvotes.
- Over 50K views.
- Hundreds of people on my website.
 
Here is the actual post:
I’m jumping for joy.
 
Mama I made it!!
 
Then I realize… this might be way bigger than one post.
 
I think I've just found my home run marketing channel.
 
It's repeatable and it's scalable.
 
Time to double down.
 
I rinse and repeat this hundreds of times:
After 2 years & 100s of posts later, I've got:
 
- Tens of millions of impressions on my content
- Over 1M visitors to my website
- Starter Story hits $10k/month
And thanks to Reddit, I've quit my job and gone all in on Starter Story.
 
After failing 100 times, I found one thing that worked.
 
Then doubled down on it over and over.
 
And that's my advice to you.
 
Try lots of things. Throw shit at the wall. And when something sticks, go all in.
 
It might change your life forever.
A warning
I know what you’re thinking…
 
"Maybe I'll try this?"
 
But... copying this method will not work.
 
Eventually, a Reddit mob formed and turned against me.
 
Instead of copying this, study the fundamentals of Reddit virality:
Thousands of people are going viral on Reddit every day
There are people "hacking" Reddit every day.

Going viral and converting that attention into million dollar businesses.
 
You can replicate it yourself by studying founders who already did it.
 
Here’s a few:
 
1. Study it: David turned one Reddit post into a $1M SaaS. In his case study he shares the exact post that went viral and why. 

2. Study it: George validated his business idea on Reddit and now makes $180k/year. In this case study he shares the exact post that went viral.

3. Study it: Lukas got his first customers from Reddit. His strategy? Asking for advice. See the exact Reddit posts that did it. Now he makes $100k/year with 0 employees.
 
4. Study it: I break down everything on my Reddit strategy here.
 
We have hundreds more case studies like this on Starter Story.
 
Study them and you will be unstoppable.
How you can "hack" Reddit in 2024?
Serious about building something?
 
Serious about finding that "home run" distribution channel that could turn your thing into a million dollar business?
 
(like I did)

Then there's something I want to show you.
 
Click here to see what I'm talking about.

Thanks for reading!

Pat Walls
Founder, StarterStory.com
Starter Story - 4920 W Cypress St Ste 104 - #5143 - Tampa, FL 33607

Click here if you want to stop receiving emails from us.

Subreddit millionaires

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年2月8日 01:35
$1M+ businesses are hiding in every subreddit ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­

How to build a million dollar business off of one subreddit
5 min read

Hey there,

Pat here. Happy Wednesday.

I have a confession.

Starter Story would have failed miserably without the help of one place: the r/entrepreneur subreddit.

I was able to “hack” that subreddit and get millions of free users.

For $0.

Even crazier... I did this when I was a nobody.

With this simple tactic, I quit my full time job and turned my “silly little website” into a million dollar business.

... all thanks to one subreddit!

Today, I’m going to share with you that story:
Spend 5 mins reading this email if you want to learn:
  1. How to "hack" any subreddit & get thousands of free users
  2. How to identify (and double down) on your home run marketing channel
  3. How Reddit is creating million dollar businesses every day
How I turned one subreddit into $1M
It all starts in 2017.
 
It's launch day for my new website Starter Story - a database of case studies on how regular people turned side projects into million dollar businesses.
 
I share it with a few friends.
 
I’m ready for it to go viral.
 
I'm ready for the success to start happening.
 
Crickets.
 
A whopping 300 people visit my website in the first month:
I learn startup lesson #428:
 
"If you build it, they WON'T come."
 
Ok... time to figure out this thing called "marketing".
 
Let's try the shotgun approach?
 
I share my website EVERYWHERE:
 
Twitter, Instagram, FB, Pinterest, Quora, Imgur, Hacker News, etc.
 
Again, I'm just waiting for the SUCCESS to start rolling in...
 
MORE CRICKETS.
 
🦗🦗🦗
 
So… I start searching Google for more ideas.
 
I come across a discussion on Reddit.
 
And then it hits me.
 
“Could I get Starter Story on the front page of Reddit?”
 
I check to see if there is a subreddit for entrepreneurship.
 
There is.
 
r/entrepreneur: A subreddit with 2.3M users.
 
What if I posted the link to my website on there?
 
Let's give it a shot.
 
NOPE.
 
The mods: "Your post has been removed. Goes against our spam rules"
 
Ugh.
 
Let's check out these so-called "rules":
 
"#1: No link posts. Only self-posts (text posts) allowed."
 
I have an idea. Well, it’s more of a workaround...
 
What if I copy & paste my case studies into a “self post”?
 
Let's try it.
I wake up the next morning:
 
Holy sh*t. I'm on the front page of Reddit:
 
- 400+ upvotes.
- Over 50K views.
- Hundreds of people on my website.
 
Here is the actual post:
I’m jumping for joy.
 
Mama I made it!!
 
Then I realize… this might be way bigger than one post.
 
I think I've just found my home run marketing channel.
 
It's repeatable and it's scalable.
 
Time to double down.
 
I rinse and repeat this hundreds of times:
After 2 years & 100s of posts later, I've got:
 
- Tens of millions of impressions on my content
- Over 1M visitors to my website
- Starter Story hits $10k/month
And thanks to Reddit, I've quit my job and gone all in on Starter Story.
 
After failing 100 times, I found one thing that worked.
 
Then doubled down on it over and over.
 
And that's my advice to you.
 
Try lots of things. Throw shit at the wall. And when something sticks, go all in.
 
It might change your life forever.
A warning
I know what you’re thinking…
 
"Maybe I'll try this?"
 
But... copying this method will not work.
 
Eventually, a Reddit mob formed and turned against me.
 
Instead of copying this, study the fundamentals of Reddit virality:
Thousands of people are going viral on Reddit every day
There are people "hacking" Reddit every day.

Going viral and converting that attention into million dollar businesses.
 
You can replicate it yourself by studying founders who already did it.
 
Here’s a few:
 
1. Study it: David turned one Reddit post into a $1M SaaS. In his case study he shares the exact post that went viral and why. 

2. Study it: George validated his business idea on Reddit and now makes $180k/year. In this case study he shares the exact post that went viral.

3. Study it: Lukas got his first customers from Reddit. His strategy? Asking for advice. See the exact Reddit posts that did it. Now he makes $100k/year with 0 employees.
 
4. Study it: I break down everything on my Reddit strategy here.
 
We have hundreds more case studies like this on Starter Story.
 
Study them and you will be unstoppable.
How you can "hack" Reddit in 2024?
Serious about building something?
 
Serious about finding that "home run" distribution channel that could turn your thing into a million dollar business?
 
(like I did)

Then there's something I want to show you.
 
Click here to see what I'm talking about.

Thanks for reading!

Pat Walls
Founder, StarterStory.com
Starter Story - 4920 W Cypress St Ste 104 - #5143 - Tampa, FL 33607

Click here if you want to stop receiving emails from us.

$1M side projects

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年2月1日 10:33
I studied 4,418 of them. ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­

I studied 4,418 $1M+ side projects

This is everything I learned. It might change your life (9 min read)
 
 

When I first created Starter Story in 2017, all I wanted to know was this: 

Can a side project become a million dollar business? 

Without raising VC. Without a hefty trust fund. And... without quitting your day job.

I started going down the rabbit hole - and boy did I find some crazy sh*t!

Since then I've found, studied, and published case studies on 4,418 side projects and online businesses.

Many that turned ordinary people into millionaires.

I really want you to read all 4,000+ of them.

But... I realize ain't nobody got time for that.

So here it is... Everything I know in a 9 minute email:

Read this if you want to learn:

  1. 10 things all founders must have
  2. How to uncover $1M+ side project ideas
  3. Why the majority of side projects fail
  4. And... why the very few succeed

Today I bring you:

44 lessons from 4,418 side projects.

Read these carefully. They might change your life.

The most successful founders:

1. Have a BFA (Big Fat A$$)

That's a joke... it actually stands for: Bias For Action.

Successful founders don’t sit around, waiting for the perfect idea to fall into their lap. They don’t wait for the perfect time to get started. They start right now.

2. Build things that solve problems

Products looking for a problem are dead on arrival.

In Noah Kagan’s new book Million Dollar Weekend, he says, “it is deadly to build a business without first verifying that there are paying customers.”

3. Run head-first into the scary abyss

Revenue goes down. Websites get hacked. A once-in-a-century pandemic hits. Sh*t happens.

The best founders don’t run away from these challenges. They pivot and adapt. 

4. Test and iterate (and test again)

It’s rare that V1 of a business is what you see today. V1 will probably suck. And that’s OK.

Content Creator started with 1 course filmed with a crappy camera. Now they do $6M/year.

5. Own their audience

If Instagram shut down tomorrow, lots of creators would be screwed. 

Great founders are directly in their customers’ inbox (usually through an email list or course).

6. Embrace imperfection

“If You're Not Embarrassed When You Ship Your First Version, You Waited Too Long.” 

Founders ship–even if it’s incomplete.

Feedback out in the wild is better than tweaking the code 100 more times in your bedroom. 

7. Don’t chase shiny objects

“What tool is best for X?” or “Should I switch to Y tool? I heard it has good reviews.” These are terrible questions.

There are a million tools for nearly every aspect of a business. Pick one and just get started. 

8. Work ON the business, not IN the business

Once a business starts to accelerate, great founders hire and delegate. Don’t respond to every customer complaint. Don’t fix every single bug.

Hire A-players to work in the business. So you can focus on what will take you to the next level.

9. Don’t go at it alone

6 of our top 10 highest revenue case studies have 2+ founders. And nearly all of them have 50+ employees. 

Some of the best founders are actually co-founders.

It doesn’t mean you can’t be successful alone, but don’t be afraid to ask for help.

10. Talk to their customers

Great founders focus on the customer. They listen to their feedback. Stay close to their experience.

It’s the only way to change what sucks or double-down on what’s working.

Tired of hearing about $1M side projects? Ready to build one?

It might be time to check out Starter Story:

We'll help you build the side project that changes your life. Without quitting your day job.

Click HERE to see what I'm talking about
Ok... let's talk about ideas.

How to find $1M ideas:

11. Look in unexpected places

Obscure subreddits. Niche gaming communities. Weird hobbies. These are all unexpected places to find great business ideas. 


This founder started a not-so-orthodox service to help models monetize on the requests they received for money.
 
12. Solve Your Own Problem
 
The average person experiences a problem four times a day.
 
Great founders see these problems as opportunities.
 
We pulled together a report of 99 unique problems and founders solving them.
 
13. Find A Niche Audience
 
Riches are in the niches.
 
Find the sub-niche to your sub-niche. For example:
 
– Niche: Creative moms
– Sub-niche: Creative moms who work from home

– Sub-sub-niche: Creative moms who work from home and have 2+ kids

There’s a successful business there. Don't believe me? This brand proves it.

14. Piggyback off a large market

Other times, you need to find an extremely large market. A product or service everybody, everywhere needs. 

This company made $600K in 8 months with something everybody needs.

15. 10x A Current Business Model

You’ve probably experienced really bad service in your lifetime. It left you thinking, “Well damn, even I could do that way better!”
 
Sometimes great businesses just take an existing model, make it 10% better, and win.

This company made a million bucks doing something that exists in every city.
 
16. Build on top of your lifelong passion

I don’t necessarily believe “doing what you love” is the best advice, but hell, I’ve been proven wrong.
 
If you’re interested in what you’re building, you’ll stay interested long enough to see it succeed, esp when you have to eat dirt for months.
 
This guy loved one thing so much he built a $6M business around it.
 
17. Sometimes… it's just random
 
There are rare occasions where an idea falls into your lap. During a walk or shower or dream. Execution and action still matter, but the business idea is seemingly random.
 
This business idea was thought up on New Year’s Eve. A year later, he made $300K.
 
18. Look For A Gap In The Market
 
Find problems with no solutions (takes a ton of research). In almost every market exists a niche that is not being served.
 
Growth Mentor found a gap in the Marketing Mentorship industry and makes $10K/month.
 
19. Do It For Fun
 
Man sometimes a business just has to be FUN.

Wrumer Sound makes a car sounds app ($35K/month). Swoveralls makes sweatpant overalls ($1.2M/Year).
 
There’s a reason you’re sick of your 9-5. If it ain’t a little fun, what’s it worth?

20. Tackle A Taboo Topic
 
Politics. Money. Religion. These are all topics that are hard to talk about. But they are topics with major upsides if done right.

Betty’s Toy Box makes $1.5M/year selling... I can't say it on here - you'll have to click.

Looking for your idea?

It might be time to check out Starter Story:

Discover $10B+ worth of strategies and knowledge behind $1M side projects.

Click HERE to see what I'm talking about
Ok... let's talk about failure.

Why most businesses fail:

21. They Go Out With A Whimper, Not A Bang

I see people build amazing stuff, and then in the final hour, give up.

– "My landing page got only 100 visitors"

– "I didn't go viral on PH"

Those are not signs of failure. Those are signs to keep going.

But instead… they go out quietly. Poof.

22. Lack of Distribution

A great product with zero distribution will fail.

I’ve changed Starter Story’s distribution 3 different times: 

– Went viral on Reddit

– Pivoted to SEO

– Now we’re focused on growing through YouTube

Learn more about How I Built Starter Story

23. If You Build It, They Won’t Come

Before you build that SaaS or make that product, be very clear how you are going to market it.

Grow a following on Instagram/Facebook/Twitter before launching a relevant product. 

Don’t just build it. They won’t come.

24. Lack of Market Need

The internet is littered with solutions that don’t have a problem. Don’t build something people don’t need. 

25. Carbon Copying

Copying exactly what another business does never works. I’ve seen a thousand versions of Starter Story, but none had the vision or the longevity.

Instead: Find a problem you’re obsessed with. Put your own unique twist on it (serve a different audience, solve it in a better way).

26. Build In A Dying Industry

Imagine creating a local newspaper, or starting a retail store. Yes, of course, you could still be successful, but it will be a lot harder.

“A rising tide lifts all boats” - the fastest growing companies build in places that are growing.

27. Founders Who Focus On Tools

Too many founders start an LLC, create a company email, or raise money BEFORE EVEN TALKING TO CUSTOMERS.

I’ll die on this hill: you don’t need an LLC to validate your business.

Bounce Luggage Storage validated their idea with $5 bucks before even starting!

28. Selling A Cheap Product To A Cheap Customer

It’s just as hard to sell a $25 product as it is to sell a $2500 product. 

I built Pigeon CRM and worked my ass off for… $1,000 MRR. Today I work my ass off for… a lot more than that. 

Cheap products are a race to the bottom. 

29. Failure To Pivot

Great businesses evolve over time. If you don’t pivot, you die. 

Tweet Hunter started from the founder’s failed tweet experiment. 

30. Lack Of Time Management

You don’t have to work 24/7, but you will have to grind it out at first. If you’re serious about building a great business, you have to put in the work. Intensity is the strategy.

This founder built SEOTesting amidst tragic family news. Don’t tell me you don’t have time. 

31. Building on Someone Else’s Platform

Building your business on the algorithm (FB, Insta, Twitter) is a dangerous game. Zuck can tweak the algo and kill your reach. 

Country Outfitter went from 5 million fans to 50,000, effectively killing the business in less than 18 months.

Avoid wasting years working on the wrong things...

What if you could feel confident that you knew exactly what you needed to do?

Get access to the most intimate details behind 4,418+ successful side projects.

Click HERE to see what I'm talking about
Ok... let's talk about success!

Why businesses succeed:

31. It's a Marathon, Not A Sprint

We underestimate what can be built by dedicating yourself to something year after year. It’s unsexy, but the truth is that great businesses are built over 5, 10, 15+ years.

This founder built a $30M/year business…over 30 years. 

32. 10x Everything

Do something 10x better than anyone else. Do more research. Spend 1 more hour. Get up earlier.

Example: some of the best newsletters 10x’d their content to muscle their way to 1,000 subscribers. 

33. Dominate Your Niche 

Find a niche, research the hell out of it, and own it. 

That’s how 80+ Niche Sites make 6-figures per year.

34. Stay Lean

The real reason businesses die is because they run out of money. By keeping costs low, you extend your runway. Allowing you to keep the business alive just a little longer.

Some solopreneurs make millions per year – by themselves! 

35. Double Down On What’s Working

Most businesses start as something completely different than where they land. They find the 20% of things that bring in 80% of success.

Queue started building a video tool for e-sports. Now they run an agency for SaaS productized services. Apples and oranges.

36. Be Known For One Thing: 

Become associated with one word:

– ​​Nick Huber: Sweaty startups

– Codie Sanchez: Boring businesses

– Ryan Holiday: Stoicism

– Matt McGarry: The Newsletter Guy

This guy built a multi-million dollar business off one word: Notion

37. Build Once, Sell Forever

There’s nothing better than making money in your sleep. Templates. Courses. Videos. 

All examples of Digital Products created once and sold forever.

38. Ride A Trend

With new trends come new opportunities. The App Store brought an onslaught of apps. Google Chrome created thousands of chrome extensions.

AI is the current wave and Repurpose Pie is riding it.

39. Keep It Simple

There’s nothing more beautiful than a dead-simple idea. Don’t overcomplicate business. 

If you think you need a fancy SaaS to crush it, MySignature proves otherwise

40. 1% Better Every Day

A great business is built slowly: brick-by-brick, one day at a time. 

The unsexy truth is that success is made up of a million boring, little tasks.

If you made it all the way here... thank you.

(they are the most important):

41. Product-Market Fit

PMF is when you get traction. It's a sweet spot between easy growth, high retention, and reaching critical mass. 

Solve a genuinely unsolved problem, and you have a chance at Product Market Fit.

42. Founder-Market Fit

Figure out what makes you uniquely suited to build your business. 

What topics can you not stop thinking about? What unique problems have you experienced?

And most importantly: why are YOU the person to build this? 

43. Take A Risk

Starting a business is inherently risky. You don’t know if it’s going to work or if anyone is going to care. 

But it’s better than waiting, wondering, and wasting your professional life building someone else’s dream. 

44. No Overnight Success

Here’s the truth: I’ve shipped more things that have failed. Only 8% of my projects have succeeded.

Behind every success story are years and years of building, pivoting, failing, worrying, and long, sleepless nights. 

There is no such thing as an overnight success. Anyone who says otherwise is lying.

Hope you enjoyed these.

Now let's get to work :)

Pat Walls
Founder, StarterStory.com

P.S.

Ready to take action?

Ready to build the side project that might change your life?

Click here if you're ready.
Starter Story - 4920 W Cypress St Ste 104 - #5143 - Tampa, FL 33607

Click here if you want to stop receiving emails from us.

$1M side projects

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年2月1日 04:27
I studied 4,418 of them. ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­

I studied 4,418 $1M+ side projects

This is everything I learned. It might change your life (9 min read)
 
 

When I first created Starter Story in 2017, all I wanted to know was this: 

Can a side project become a million dollar business? 

Without raising VC. Without a hefty trust fund. And... without quitting your day job.

I started going down the rabbit hole - and boy did I find some crazy sh*t!

Since then I've found, studied, and published case studies on 4,418 side projects and online businesses.

Many that turned ordinary people into millionaires.

I really want you to read all 4,000+ of them.

But... I realize ain't nobody got time for that.

So here it is... Everything I know in a 9 minute email:

Read this if you want to learn:

  1. 10 things all founders must have
  2. How to uncover $1M+ side project ideas
  3. Why the majority of side projects fail
  4. And... why the very few succeed

Today I bring you:

44 lessons from 4,418 side projects.

Read these carefully. They might change your life.

The most successful founders:

1. Have a BFA (Big Fat A$$)

That's a joke... it actually stands for: Bias For Action.

Successful founders don’t sit around, waiting for the perfect idea to fall into their lap. They don’t wait for the perfect time to get started. They start right now.

2. Build things that solve problems

Products looking for a problem are dead on arrival.

In Noah Kagan’s new book Million Dollar Weekend, he says, “it is deadly to build a business without first verifying that there are paying customers.”

3. Run head-first into the scary abyss

Revenue goes down. Websites get hacked. A once-in-a-century pandemic hits. Sh*t happens.

The best founders don’t run away from these challenges. They pivot and adapt. 

4. Test and iterate (and test again)

It’s rare that V1 of a business is what you see today. V1 will probably suck. And that’s OK.

Content Creator started with 1 course filmed with a crappy camera. Now they do $6M/year.

5. Own their audience

If Instagram shut down tomorrow, lots of creators would be screwed. 

Great founders are directly in their customers’ inbox (usually through an email list or course).

6. Embrace imperfection

“If You're Not Embarrassed When You Ship Your First Version, You Waited Too Long.” 

Founders ship–even if it’s incomplete.

Feedback out in the wild is better than tweaking the code 100 more times in your bedroom. 

7. Don’t chase shiny objects

“What tool is best for X?” or “Should I switch to Y tool? I heard it has good reviews.” These are terrible questions.

There are a million tools for nearly every aspect of a business. Pick one and just get started. 

8. Work ON the business, not IN the business

Once a business starts to accelerate, great founders hire and delegate. Don’t respond to every customer complaint. Don’t fix every single bug.

Hire A-players to work in the business. So you can focus on what will take you to the next level.

9. Don’t go at it alone

6 of our top 10 highest revenue case studies have 2+ founders. And nearly all of them have 50+ employees. 

Some of the best founders are actually co-founders.

It doesn’t mean you can’t be successful alone, but don’t be afraid to ask for help.

10. Talk to their customers

Great founders focus on the customer. They listen to their feedback. Stay close to their experience.

It’s the only way to change what sucks or double-down on what’s working.

Tired of hearing about $1M side projects? Ready to build one?

It might be time to check out Starter Story:

We'll help you build the side project that changes your life. Without quitting your day job.

Click HERE to see what I'm talking about
Ok... let's talk about ideas.

How to find $1M ideas:

11. Look in unexpected places

Obscure subreddits. Niche gaming communities. Weird hobbies. These are all unexpected places to find great business ideas. 


This founder started a not-so-orthodox service to help models monetize on the requests they received for money.
 
12. Solve Your Own Problem
 
The average person experiences a problem four times a day.
 
Great founders see these problems as opportunities.
 
We pulled together a report of 99 unique problems and founders solving them.
 
13. Find A Niche Audience
 
Riches are in the niches.
 
Find the sub-niche to your sub-niche. For example:
 
– Niche: Creative moms
– Sub-niche: Creative moms who work from home

– Sub-sub-niche: Creative moms who work from home and have 2+ kids

There’s a successful business there. Don't believe me? This brand proves it.

14. Piggyback off a large market

Other times, you need to find an extremely large market. A product or service everybody, everywhere needs. 

This company made $600K in 8 months with something everybody needs.

15. 10x A Current Business Model

You’ve probably experienced really bad service in your lifetime. It left you thinking, “Well damn, even I could do that way better!”
 
Sometimes great businesses just take an existing model, make it 10% better, and win.

This company made a million bucks doing something that exists in every city.
 
16. Build on top of your lifelong passion

I don’t necessarily believe “doing what you love” is the best advice, but hell, I’ve been proven wrong.
 
If you’re interested in what you’re building, you’ll stay interested long enough to see it succeed, esp when you have to eat dirt for months.
 
This guy loved one thing so much he built a $6M business around it.
 
17. Sometimes… it's just random
 
There are rare occasions where an idea falls into your lap. During a walk or shower or dream. Execution and action still matter, but the business idea is seemingly random.
 
This business idea was thought up on New Year’s Eve. A year later, he made $300K.
 
18. Look For A Gap In The Market
 
Find problems with no solutions (takes a ton of research). In almost every market exists a niche that is not being served.
 
Growth Mentor found a gap in the Marketing Mentorship industry and makes $10K/month.
 
19. Do It For Fun
 
Man sometimes a business just has to be FUN.

Wrumer Sound makes a car sounds app ($35K/month). Swoveralls makes sweatpant overalls ($1.2M/Year).
 
There’s a reason you’re sick of your 9-5. If it ain’t a little fun, what’s it worth?

20. Tackle A Taboo Topic
 
Politics. Money. Religion. These are all topics that are hard to talk about. But they are topics with major upsides if done right.

Betty’s Toy Box makes $1.5M/year selling... I can't say it on here - you'll have to click.

Looking for your idea?

It might be time to check out Starter Story:

Discover $10B+ worth of strategies and knowledge behind $1M side projects.

Click HERE to see what I'm talking about
Ok... let's talk about failure.

Why most businesses fail:

21. They Go Out With A Whimper, Not A Bang

I see people build amazing stuff, and then in the final hour, give up.

– "My landing page got only 100 visitors"

– "I didn't go viral on PH"

Those are not signs of failure. Those are signs to keep going.

But instead… they go out quietly. Poof.

22. Lack of Distribution

A great product with zero distribution will fail.

I’ve changed Starter Story’s distribution 3 different times: 

– Went viral on Reddit

– Pivoted to SEO

– Now we’re focused on growing through YouTube

Learn more about How I Built Starter Story

23. If You Build It, They Won’t Come

Before you build that SaaS or make that product, be very clear how you are going to market it.

Grow a following on Instagram/Facebook/Twitter before launching a relevant product. 

Don’t just build it. They won’t come.

24. Lack of Market Need

The internet is littered with solutions that don’t have a problem. Don’t build something people don’t need. 

25. Carbon Copying

Copying exactly what another business does never works. I’ve seen a thousand versions of Starter Story, but none had the vision or the longevity.

Instead: Find a problem you’re obsessed with. Put your own unique twist on it (serve a different audience, solve it in a better way).

26. Build In A Dying Industry

Imagine creating a local newspaper, or starting a retail store. Yes, of course, you could still be successful, but it will be a lot harder.

“A rising tide lifts all boats” - the fastest growing companies build in places that are growing.

27. Founders Who Focus On Tools

Too many founders start an LLC, create a company email, or raise money BEFORE EVEN TALKING TO CUSTOMERS.

I’ll die on this hill: you don’t need an LLC to validate your business.

Bounce Luggage Storage validated their idea with $5 bucks before even starting!

28. Selling A Cheap Product To A Cheap Customer

It’s just as hard to sell a $25 product as it is to sell a $2500 product. 

I built Pigeon CRM and worked my ass off for… $1,000 MRR. Today I work my ass off for… a lot more than that. 

Cheap products are a race to the bottom. 

29. Failure To Pivot

Great businesses evolve over time. If you don’t pivot, you die. 

Tweet Hunter started from the founder’s failed tweet experiment. 

30. Lack Of Time Management

You don’t have to work 24/7, but you will have to grind it out at first. If you’re serious about building a great business, you have to put in the work. Intensity is the strategy.

This founder built SEOTesting amidst tragic family news. Don’t tell me you don’t have time. 

31. Building on Someone Else’s Platform

Building your business on the algorithm (FB, Insta, Twitter) is a dangerous game. Zuck can tweak the algo and kill your reach. 

Country Outfitter went from 5 million fans to 50,000, effectively killing the business in less than 18 months.

Avoid wasting years working on the wrong things...

What if you could feel confident that you knew exactly what you needed to do?

Get access to the most intimate details behind 4,418+ successful side projects.

Click HERE to see what I'm talking about
Ok... let's talk about success!

Why businesses succeed:

31. It's a Marathon, Not A Sprint

We underestimate what can be built by dedicating yourself to something year after year. It’s unsexy, but the truth is that great businesses are built over 5, 10, 15+ years.

This founder built a $30M/year business…over 30 years. 

32. 10x Everything

Do something 10x better than anyone else. Do more research. Spend 1 more hour. Get up earlier.

Example: some of the best newsletters 10x’d their content to muscle their way to 1,000 subscribers. 

33. Dominate Your Niche 

Find a niche, research the hell out of it, and own it. 

That’s how 80+ Niche Sites make 6-figures per year.

34. Stay Lean

The real reason businesses die is because they run out of money. By keeping costs low, you extend your runway. Allowing you to keep the business alive just a little longer.

Some solopreneurs make millions per year – by themselves! 

35. Double Down On What’s Working

Most businesses start as something completely different than where they land. They find the 20% of things that bring in 80% of success.

Queue started building a video tool for e-sports. Now they run an agency for SaaS productized services. Apples and oranges.

36. Be Known For One Thing: 

Become associated with one word:

– ​​Nick Huber: Sweaty startups

– Codie Sanchez: Boring businesses

– Ryan Holiday: Stoicism

– Matt McGarry: The Newsletter Guy

This guy built a multi-million dollar business off one word: Notion

37. Build Once, Sell Forever

There’s nothing better than making money in your sleep. Templates. Courses. Videos. 

All examples of Digital Products created once and sold forever.

38. Ride A Trend

With new trends come new opportunities. The App Store brought an onslaught of apps. Google Chrome created thousands of chrome extensions.

AI is the current wave and Repurpose Pie is riding it.

39. Keep It Simple

There’s nothing more beautiful than a dead-simple idea. Don’t overcomplicate business. 

If you think you need a fancy SaaS to crush it, MySignature proves otherwise

40. 1% Better Every Day

A great business is built slowly: brick-by-brick, one day at a time. 

The unsexy truth is that success is made up of a million boring, little tasks.

If you made it all the way here... thank you.

(they are the most important):

41. Product-Market Fit

PMF is when you get traction. It's a sweet spot between easy growth, high retention, and reaching critical mass. 

Solve a genuinely unsolved problem, and you have a chance at Product Market Fit.

42. Founder-Market Fit

Figure out what makes you uniquely suited to build your business. 

What topics can you not stop thinking about? What unique problems have you experienced?

And most importantly: why are YOU the person to build this? 

43. Take A Risk

Starting a business is inherently risky. You don’t know if it’s going to work or if anyone is going to care. 

But it’s better than waiting, wondering, and wasting your professional life building someone else’s dream. 

44. No Overnight Success

Here’s the truth: I’ve shipped more things that have failed. Only 8% of my projects have succeeded.

Behind every success story are years and years of building, pivoting, failing, worrying, and long, sleepless nights. 

There is no such thing as an overnight success. Anyone who says otherwise is lying.

Hope you enjoyed these.

Now let's get to work :)

Pat Walls
Founder, StarterStory.com

P.S.

Ready to take action?

Ready to build the side project that might change your life?

Click here if you're ready.
Starter Story - 4920 W Cypress St Ste 104 - #5143 - Tampa, FL 33607

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The $2M Solopreneur Playbook

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年1月11日 02:00
Has no employees and only works 6h/day ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­

The $2M Solopreneur Playbook

Hey there,

Pat here. Happy Wednesday.

I have a confession.

I've spent 50+ hours studying a middle-aged man from Phoenix, Arizona.

His name is Brett, and he went from a normal job to making $2M/year with a side project.

The guy is the highest-paid solopreneur on the internet.

He has zero employees, zero contractors, and only works 6 hours/day.

When I first came across his story, I thought he must be lying.

But then I did some more digging, studied his business, and even flew out to Arizona to meet him in person.

What I learned… blew my mind.

Brett’s nearly $2M business is no accident.

It has nothing to do with luck but rather some very smart decisions he made while building this business.

And today, I’m going to give you this playbook.

In about 6 minutes, I’m going to break down the 5 key steps that took Brett from an average business idea to a $2M/year solopreneur.

Read this email and actually understand these principles.

You might save yourself years focused on the wrong thing.

Welcome to… The Playbook.

Keep reading to learn how to

  1. 10x your prices and actually work less.
  2. Create a system to stop being flooded by clients' requests.
  3. Find clients who'll happily pay you $5,000/month.
  4. Design a crazy profitable business.
  5. Unlock additional revenue streams effortlessly. 

How it all started

Brett starts out like any normal guy, working an average 9 to 5 for years.

He’s a graphic designer working on landing pages, logos, brand designs, etc. Simple work that pays the bills.

But like any aspiring entrepreneur, deep down, he’s thirsty for something more. 

Something he could truly own.

Then, one day, everything changes when he comes across a peculiar website.

It’s a subscription service offering “unlimited graphic design” for businesses.

Instead of charging by the project or by the hour, this agency charges a monthly recurring subscription fee for unlimited graphic designs.

And by the looks of it, they’re doing really well.

They even have a brick-and-mortar location with a few employees.

And this is the moment that Brett gets his business idea.

He decides he’ll do the same thing.

He’ll start his own agency, but instead of charging clients by the hour, he’ll just charge them a subscription fee.

And instead of getting on sales calls with clients, they can instead purchase his services directly on his website.

But most importantly, instead of building a whole team, he’ll just do it himself as a side project to earn some extra income.

12 hours and $29 later, Brett puts up a simple landing page and calls it DesignJoy.

And within just 24 hours, he gets his first paying client.

That’s pretty fast, right? 

Well, that’s the first key step in Brett’s genius playbook.

 

Step #1: Demand Based Pricing

The hardest thing to do in business? Get your first paying customer.

For most people, it takes months to finally get one person to hand their money over to you.

And honestly, most people quit before they even get this first customer.

But Brett skips this whole problem by making one key decision. 

He GROSSLY undercharges for his service.

When he throws up that landing page, he sets his price at $449/month.

Yes, you heard that right. Unlimited design requests for 449 bucks.

The price is too good to be true, but guess what, it gets him his first customer in less than 24 hours.

And that’s the genius behind it.

Of course, this business is not scalable at that price point.

But Brett understands the power and speed and momentum.

And instead of waiting around for months for someone to pay him $5,000/month, he throws himself into the fire.

This is where Brett succeeds, whereas most others fail.

He’s willing to put his ego aside to put in thousands of reps - even though he’s basically working for free.

And these reps are the ones that eventually turn him into a world class designer.

His niche starts to notice, and then his services become more in demand.

And when demand increases, then he does the obvious.

He raises his prices!

He goes from $449 to $1,000 per month.

Then from $1,000 to $3,000 a month.

Then from $3,000 to $5,000 a month.

And now, he even charges $8,000 a month.

Today, he only needs 16 clients paying $5,000/month to make about $1M/year.

And this is all because he was willing to undercharge for his service and willing to do the work.

That brings us to step #2 of Brett’s solopreneur playbook.

 

Step #2: Boundaries

If I could sum up Brett’s success in one word, it would be this:

Boundaries.

Let me explain.

So at this point, Brett’s put in the reps, he’s raising his prices, and now he has customers coming out of his ears.

But this is actually a problem because Brett is a one-man band.

He finds himself working 16-hour days on the verge of burnout.

The solution? Hire more people, right?

But Brett doesn't want to hire people. He wants to be a solopreneur.

So… he comes up with a creative solution.

He decides to break the rules… by creating 2 rules.

1. Clients must submit design requests asynchronously via a Trello board, and

2. Clients can only have 1 design request at a time.

Everything must go through this Trello board (real example from one of his clients):

No calls. No meetings. All client requests must be defined in writing.

Once the client has submitted an active request, they’re not allowed to change it, or submit another one.

This gives Brett a few days to deliver the work; once completed, the client can submit another request.

Because of this, clients spend more time making sure their requests are fully fleshed out and complete.

Which actually leads to them sending fewer requests.

And it saves both of them countless hours of meetings.

This is what I call boundaries.

He doesn't do this because he's an asshole. He does it because he has to.

Brett creates these boundaries to protect his precious time - so he can spend it doing what he loves: creating designs.

Without these boundaries, he wouldn’t be able to make over $1M/year with zero employees.

And he’d probably would lose his sanity and burn out.

Many clients probably don’t like these boundaries, but that’s fine.

There are many that actually do, and those are the ones he works with.

And that brings us to the next key move from Brett’s playbook.

Wanna learn the secret strategies of 163 million-dollar solopreneurs?

Get our premium report and find out:

  • How they came up with their idea
  • What products they sell & how they price them
  • Where and how they acquire customers (for free)
  • What tools they use to run businesses

Click here to download the report now.

Step #3: The $500 Client

There are two types of clients:

$500 clients and $5,000 clients.

$500 clients are cheap. They’ll waste your time with nagging requests, ask for refunds, and they don’t make much money themselves.

$5,000 clients are rich. As long as you deliver, they won’t bother you much. You’ll always get paid, and they won’t churn after 1 month.

When Brett starts his business, yes, he attracts $500 clients.

But once he pays his dues, he quickly moves to $5,000 clients.

And you're probably wondering, who are these clients that are paying him $5,000/month?

The answer? Brett’s customers are businesses that wouldn’t blink twice if they saw a $5,000/month invoice.

The clients DesignJoy attracts see Brett’s service as a steal.

Here’s why:

When looking for graphic design talent, these clients have a few options:

1 - Hire a $200k/year graphic designer on payroll (it’ll take months to hire, and they might be lazy).

2 - Spend big money on a fancy agency that will charge a per-project fee that might be in the range of $30-40k (and they’ll take weeks to do it).

3 - Sort through hundreds of cheap web design freelancers on platforms like Upwork or Fiverr and find a needle in a haystack.

Or, they could hire Brett, a proven graphic designer, who will turn around work in 48 hours, all with the simple click of a button.

At $5,000, this is a no-brainer.

Plus, they can cancel the service whenever you want, just like a Netflix subscription.

Hiring a great designer is an annoying problem, and Brett provides a simple solution that companies are clearly willing to pay for.

But… it’s not just about the type of clients Brett attracts, and that brings us to our next step:

 

Step #4: High Demand / Low Touch

Productized services are amazing, right? You get paid for your output rather than your time.

Because of this, everyone and their grandma is starting one.

But the truth is that productized services will not work for every kind of service.

And this is the reason why Brett makes millions when most other people make nothing.

And it has to do with one word: profit.

As you know, the profit equation is: revenue minus expenses equals profit.

But let’s double-click on what these look like for DesignJoy:

On the revenue side, Brett’s doing well.

And that’s because Brett provides a service that is high impact.

A website is often the first impression that a customer will get of a startup.

And a really beautiful website might be the difference between success and failure - for example, getting funding or not.

Companies must make sure they get this right, and that’s why they’re willing to pay Brett a ton of money for his service.

On the expenses side, Brett is also doing well.

Brett has almost zero actual dollar expenses because he’s a solopreneur: his only real expense is his time.

But Brett only works 6 hours/day - which isn’t bad considering he has over 16 clients at any given time.

And that’s because website design and branding are relatively quick to fulfill.

Brett can turn around a world-class landing page in a couple hours.

That’s mostly thanks to his years of experience.

But website design is one of those things that you build once and do not really touch for a while.

And that is actually the secret.

That is the reason he is so profitable.

He picked a service that is both high demand but also low touch.

I don’t think this works as well for other services.

For example, a productized bookkeeping or video editing service would not be as profitable. 

Because these services are both less in demand and more costly and time-consuming to fulfill.

And that brings us to our final point:

 

Step #5: Build Once, Sell Forever

The only problem with a productized service…

No matter what, you’re still essentially trading your hours for dollars.

And if you want to truly get rich, you need to find a way to scale those dollars without scaling your time.

And this is the final key move of Brett’s playbook.

In 2019, he spent 6 hours putting together a product called Scribbbbles.

It’s a downloadable collection of templates that other designers can use to spice up their projects.

He prices it at $4.99, and it gets downloaded over 25,000 times.

But… why is this a genius move?

Brett’s been spending years building up his bank of knowledge and experience.

Both on how to design amazing websites and how to build a great business along the way.

And Brett finds a way to monetize this.

He turns his knowledge into a purchasable product that other designers can use to improve their own business.

Then a few years later, he takes it to the next level.

He creates a course called Productize Yourself that helps other designers start productized services.

(and he charges a lot more than 5 bucks for this one)

Today, these infoproducts make up 29% of his income.

But he doesn’t have to trade his hours for these dollars. He’s already put in the work.

This has diversified his income and allowed him to work less and probably sleep better at night. 

But what I love about Brett is that he didn’t just sell courses.

He continues to build his business, serve clients, and put in the reps on DesignJoy.

 

A Playbook You Can Replicate 

It's not luck or coincidence that Brett is one of the highest-paid solopreneurs in the world.

Whether he realizes it or not, he put together a genius playbook that I think everyone should study.

I spent hours researching his business, talking to Brett, and putting together this playbook.

I hope you learned something you can apply to your own business.

See exactly how online businesses go from zero to millions (like this one)

✔ Learn how founders came up with the idea that turned them into millionaires… and exactly what that felt like.

✔ Get the lowdown on what niches actually make money… and get the confidence that you're working on the right thing.

✔ See exactly how $1M businesses grew… never waste months on the wrong marketing channel.

✔ Surround yourself with success... soak up the knowledge and learnings of the most successful founders in the world.

Click HERE to redeem 25% off Starter Story right now.

^^ (ends this week)

Best,

Pat Walls
Founder, StarterStory.com

 
Starter Story - PO Box 3003 Jackson, WY 83001

Click here if you want to stop receiving emails from us.

Million Dollar Problems [Report]

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年1月5日 02:15
You have 87,600 opportunities to find one ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­

 

Hey there,

Pat here, founder of Starter Story.

How many problems do you experience in a day?

Think about it.

Cartons not opening correctly, receiving calls from unknown numbers, or… your precious plants dying.

Tiny, everyday annoyances that are actually a huge pain in the ass.

Did you know? The average person gets frustrated four times a day.

That's 1,460 times per year - or 87,600 in a lifetime!

But here’s the thing:

99% of people will see these frustrations as they are: problems - frustrating, annoying, and inconvenient.

1% will see these frustrations differently: they’ll see them as opportunities.

Now, let me ask you this:

When a problem comes up in your day -- what do you do?

Do you become curious and ask yourself more questions, like:

  • “Do others experience this, too?”

  • “Is anybody making money solving this problem?”

  • “And… could this problem be solved in a better way?”


If you find yourself asking these questions, congratulations, you might be looking directly in the eye of a $10M opportunity.

Let me share with you a story about a guy named Marc.

This guy’s problem? His kitchen knife was as dull as a doorknob.

He couldn’t slice a tomato without juice bursting out the sides.

But… instead of buying a new knife, he did something different.

He asked himself those 3 questions...

The result? He builds a mail-in knife sharpening service that now makes $2.4M/year.

And that’s just one example. 

Every single successful business starts with a problem! 

For example:

Problem: Blank parking lots are illegal 

Solution: A couple makes $739K/year painting stripes.

Problem: Setting up solar at home saves $1,000s, but it’s a super complicated process

Solution: A $24M/year business that gets it done in one day

Problem: It’s surprisingly difficult to find book series in chronological order.

Solution: A $600K/year blog for bookworms.

Over the last 5 years, I’ve spent thousands of hours researching problems.

And I’ve put 99 of some of the most painful, in-demand problems in a database for you to check out. Some cool nuggets you’ll learn from this:

  • How do people spot problems worth solving?

  • What does a “good problem” look like?

  • Can you solve a good problem in the wrong way?

  • How do they know what’s the right solution to build?

  • And more.


Once you start looking at problems this way, it might change everything about how you think about businesses.

And maybe, you’ll find some info in here that could be turned into millions.

Use this at your own peril :)

99 Million-Dollar Problems [Report]

Best,

Pat Walls
Founder, StarterStory.com

 
Starter Story - PO Box 3003 Jackson, WY 83001

Click here if you want to stop receiving emails from us.

re: your new years resolutions

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2024年1月2日 02:22
9 spots left... ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­
Hey,
 
Thanks for sending me your new year’s resolutions.
 
I hate to be a jerk, but I’d feel guilty if I didn’t say something...
 
I think you’re going too big in 2024.
 
I’m worried you might be spreading yourself too thin? 
 
And with so few hours in the day already, you could lose focus altogether.
 
I’m worried that by the time February rolls around, you’ll be back in 2023 mode…
 
Can I suggest a slight tweak to your goals?
 
My advice: Delete all of your goals except for ONE of them.
 
Sounds crazy, I know… but this is what I call a one-goal resolution.
 
Instead of going wide and shallow (20 modest goals), go narrow and deep (1 big, hairy, audacious, goal).
 
I’ve talked to thousands of successful founders and this is something I’ve noticed they all naturally do.
 
How to create a one-goal resolution in 2024 (3 step formula):
  1. Step 1: Take your list of 20+ goals and delete all but one.
  2. Step 2: Pick the one goal that, if accomplished, would change your life in the most meaningful way. Figure out what is your “most important thing”.
  3. Step 3: Then, multiply that goal by 10 and go all in on it.
The first time I tried a one-goal resolution? 2018.
 
These were my original goals:
 
2018 Goals (original):
  1. Get weight to 165 lbs (lose 20 lbs)
  2. Start dating more
  3. Build a habit of working out every day
  4. Start a successful side project
  5. Get out of credit card debt
  6. Get a promotion at work
  7. Eat out less / cook at home on weeknights
  8. Learn how to produce electronic music
  9. Only drink alcohol 1x/week
  10. Read at least 10 books
  11. Be less anxious
  12. Travel to 2 new countries
  13. Learn a new language
  14. Quit nicotine
And this is what the revised list looked like:
 
2018 Goals (REVISED one-goal resolution):
  1. I will have $10,000 in cash with no debt by the end of the year.
That’s it.
 
One goal. 
 
The. Most. Important. Thing.
 
All the other goals? F*k ‘em.
 
At the time, I was in $65,000 of debt.
 
Financial freedom was my “most important thing”.
 
I knew that If I could accomplish that, I’d be unstoppable.
 
And if I could achieve it through making money online, I could quit my job and buy back all of my time.
 
And eventually, I’d be able to achieve all of those 13 other goals on the list…
 
I wrote my one-goal resolution down on a piece of paper:
 
 
I decided I was going to manifest it into existence.
 
I hung this piece of paper up in my room.
 
And every single day, I read it aloud.
 
And… guess what… 
 
Everything changed that year:
  • That was the year I got out of debt.
  • That was the year I reached a positive net worth.
  • That was the year I started the foundations of my financial freedom.
  • That was the year I started a business that would change my life.
  • That was the year I walked into my full time job and QUIT!
All thanks to… deleting all of my goals, except just one!
 
So, that would be my advice for you in 2024:
  1. Delete. Delete. Delete. 
  2. Pick one thing.
  3. Multiply it by 10.
Then, just get to work (it’s already January 1st you know…)
 
If you’re serious about this one goal resolution thing, I’d like to invite you to Starter Story BHAG (our goal setting and accountability service).
 
How it works: You join, set a (big, hairy, audacious) goal, and then work towards it every day alongside hundreds of others.
 
Our community will hold you accountable and cheer you on along the way.
 
If you want to join, enrollment for BHAG ends today.
 
We have just 9 spots remaining from our New Year’s deal (40% off Starter Story All Access).
 
(You’ll also get access to all case studies, deep dives, community, BHAG, courses, deals - everything, for life)
 
 
Happy New Year,

Pat Walls

Founder, StarterStory.com
Starter Story - 662 S Millward St, Jackson, WY 83001

Click here if you want to stop receiving emails from us.

Thank you for 2023.

✇StarterStory
作者 Pat Walls ＜[email protected]＞
2023年12月30日 02:15
40% off Starter Story (limited spots) ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­
Limited spots: 40% off Starter Story Lifetime (all access)

Hey there,

2023 was something special - and I wanted to say thank you.

Thank you for reading our stories, watching our videos, and having breakfast with me every Sunday morning :)

In 2023, I witnessed thousands of people make a decision.

A decision to build something online that will change their lives forever.

And that gets me so pumped!

But… I know 2024 is going to be even bigger. I can already feel it.

Today, I’m opening up 72 spots to join Starter Story at 40% off (all access plan only).

Case studies, deep dives, community, BHAG, courses, deals - everything, for life.

Usually, these go really fast - once sold I will close it off (the community is for serious builders only).

Join Starter Story for 40% off.

Happy New Year.

Much love,

Pat Walls

Founder, StarterStory.com
Starter Story - 662 S Millward St, Jackson, WY 83001

Click here if you want to stop receiving emails from us.
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