Hey Reader, Imagine you live a relaxed life in South France, you only have to work 2 hours per week, and half a million dollars is automatically deposited into your bank account every year. Sounds like a dream, right? Well for Lars, it’s not a dream. It’s his life! And it didn’t happen because of random chance. He intentionally engineered it. Lars Tiger is a classically trained jazz pianist who lost his passion after a long music career making hit pop songs when it became increasingly difficult to generate a stable income. But then, he figured out the secret to getting unstuck as an artist and solving perfectionism once and for all. This one mindset shift led him to producing an astonishing 25,000 tracks. Tracks that produce a significant amount of money for him on autopilot. The whole story is fascinating, and I’m excited to share it with you, because Lars actually flew all the way out to Boise to join me on my podcast to tell it. He hasn’t ever done a podcast like this before, so it’s a really inspiring story if you’re a creator who struggles with perfectionism. Whether you’re an artist, musician, or any type of creator, you’ll be inspired with some great ideas for generating passive income. Here it is: I’m a firm believer that quantity leads to quality, and Lars is the perfect, living example of this. In our episode, he shares how a lot of creators see quantity and quality as being at odds. If your taste is high, it’s easy to believe that quality is what matters and quantity is something you only focus on if you don’t have taste. But Lars flips this idea on its head. He points out a few things about the idea of 100% perfect:
A lot of people know me as the CEO of Kit—a software company making $45M+/yr. But I launched my career and became known as a creator by writing 1,000 words a day, every single day. I did this for 600 days in a row. Not all of those words were perfect, but when you write 600,000 words, those imperfect words will have an impact, and people are going to notice. But they’re only going to notice if you share what you make as you go—if you publish the imperfect and perfect words alike. Ask yourself: What’s keeping me from creating more? From sharing more? From doing imperfect work? Is it perfectionism? Is it fear of judgement? What are some ways you can remove those barriers? For example, if fear of judgement is holding you back, what if you made an anonymous account and shared your work as a faceless creator for a while? You could always merge that work back into your actual name later on. If you want to If you want to do quality work, you need quantity, You need to put in the reps. Publish your work, get feedback, and iterate as you go. Quantity leads to quality. Watch or listen to the episode with Lars here » PODCASTHow Your Business Can Make $1,000,000 From Partnerships (in 60 Days)Have you noticed how creators like Alex Hormozi and Amy Porterfield seem to always make millions with every launch? Today, I’m joined by Laura Sprinkle, the founder & CEO of Rootabl—an effortless affiliate tracking platform that helps you grow revenue, automate payouts, and reward your biggest fans. Having been responsible for $44M in partner-generated revenue, she’s an expert in affiliate marketing and knows exactly what goes into these big launches. We discuss:
Watch or listen to episode » VIDEOFix Your Bottlenecks: The Secret to ProductivityIn this quick, 5-minute video, Tiago Forte shares a powerful framework that will transform your personal workflows and skyrocket your productivity. It’s all based on a revolutionary philosophy originally shared by Israeli physicist, Dr. Eliyahu Goldratt, in the 1980s: Every system has one bottleneck or constraint that limits its performance. Tiago shares 5 simple steps that will radically improve any outcome. TV SHOWBlack Doves (Netflix)I’m really enjoying this British spy thriller series which stars the always-fantastic Kiera Knightley. Helen Webb is a politician's wife who leads a double life as a spy for a clandestine organization known as the Black Doves. I like that the show has fun with itself while still embracing its serious side. It’s an interesting look at what happens when work, loyalty, and family collide. Have a great week! —Nathan |
I'm a designer who turned into a writer who turned into a startup CEO. My mission is to help creators earn a living. Subscribe for essays on building an audience and earning a living as a creator.
Hey Reader, How quickly can you explain your business model? When a creator I was talking to recently spent several minutes trying to explain what their business does, I knew they were in trouble. They were trying to carve out an entirely new market category while simultaneously creating a completely custom delivery method. Two innovations at once. Not surprisingly, they were struggling to scale. They couldn't explain their offer clearly, potential customers were confused, and they felt...
Hey Reader, Imagine someone bought your business tomorrow. What's the first thing they would change? Maybe they'd raise prices. Or fire that team member who's been dragging things down. Would they automate the task you've been doing manually for years? Hire for the role you keep saying you'll fill eventually? When I ask creators this question, they usually know the answer immediately. They don't even need to think about it. The answer is already sitting there, waiting. You probably know what...
Hey Reader, "I will write 1,000 words every day." That's the commitment I made in 2012 that changed my life. I ended up writing 100,000 words in 100 days and went on to write 266,000 words in a year. I wrote every day for nearly two years before finally breaking the chain. Writing consistently continues to be one of the most important habits of my career. So when my coach asked me what I'd regret not doing the most if I imagined my life 5 to 10 years from now, my answer surprised me: writing...