Smith's 20-year milestone...

[Smith]

I just passed a personal milestone. I’ve officially been building online for 20 years.

That might seem like a long time to the younger crowd… but it’s not. I’m fortunate enough to know guys that have been at it a lot longer.

But even though 20 years doesn’t make me an elder, it has still taken a toll.

So it’s no surprise that six months ago, I was tired… really fucking tired.

I had spent the previous 12 months building out a project that demanded insane days and nights, no time off, and no immediate results.

It was the second hardest period of work in my life.

After 20 years of doing this shit for myself, I was ready to shrivel up and accept a fucking salary like an entitled corporate moron…

… working for an even bigger corporate moron that has never built anything of value… spending my lunch breaks being lectured by HR about how proper pronouns increase profitability… idiots.

Thankfully, I came to my senses.

Actually, the truth is, I’ve tapped a new level of energy. I feel like I’m in my 20s again…

You know the energy…

It’s that “fuck the world, I’m going to win at all costs” kind of energy… the “you’d be an idiot to compete with me” kind of energy.

And yes, it feels fucking great.

Unfortunately, I don't exactly know how I unlocked these power reserves. I think it was a combination of pushing through the low period, doing the fucking work, and deciding that I was going to commit myself 100% to the project, no matter what.

Today, I’m seeing clearly again… the world looks green… dripping with money-making opportunities that are just waiting for me to walk over and pick them up.

Luckily, 20 years in the game has taught me not to get distracted and it’s taught me that consistency is the key to success.

So, all of those other opportunities that are calling to me in the distance will have to wait.

Instead, I’m pointing this renewed energy in a single direction… right at the heart of the biggest move I’ve ever made.

Now, I’d like to say I’ve built a massive business (or a portfolio of massive businesses) already but I’ve recently realized that most of the “businesses” I’ve built were just projects.

They were a kind of entrepreneurial masturbation… short sweaty bursts of dirty energy that didn’t benefit me long-term.

These projects lacked strategy, direction, and commitment. They lacked focus.

Yea, they helped me hone my skills and become a better builder… but they didn’t put gas in the tank or bread on the table.

Instead, a lot of the reason for continuing these projects was to keep “learning”... which was a bullshit excuse to not face quitting when I should have.

Fortunately, I’ve also had some moderate success… I’ve built a few six-figure businesses and two seven-figure businesses. Actual businesses, not projects. Annual revenue, not valuation.

I’ve also been on the selling and buying side of a number of transactions that worked out well for me. And I’ve taken time away from my projects to help scale two eight-figure revenue businesses.

In other words, over the last 20 years, I’ve learned a lot, made some money, and did everything on my own terms.

But now what?

Now it’s time to triple down…

The window for personal wealth creation is closing. And I’m going to get mine before the greedy politicians take away the final opportunities to cash out.

So, I’m taking this fresh outlook, my 20-year-old “fuck the world” energy, and my 20 years of experience to execute on a plan of attack that I can only describe as “win at all costs”...

That means doing shit that doesn’t scale, building external and internal teams to help grow, pounding money back into the business, staying 100% focused and committed to the path. No distractions.

The outcome I’m after is simple: absolute financial freedom… fuck you money. And I’m giving myself five years to get there.

I’ll be leaning on BuSo to check my thinking, call me on my bullshit, learn from the guys that have already done what I’m doing, and share what I can from my own experience.

I’m also going to be referring back to this post to hold myself accountable and to remind myself that there are zero fucking excuses for not crossing the finish line. Zero.

 

[Politico]

Haven't been in it for quite 20 years, but damn this post was very inspiring. Do you mind sharing what kind of project you're going all in on? Be as vague as you'd like or don't answer if you're not comfortable doing so.

 

[Steve Brownlie]

I can relate to this a lot - I've been around way too fkn long to have as little as I have. A couple of ok businesses that support my lifestyle and not much else to show from it. I used to always just use the excuse 'I don't have to work for someone and I haven't starved to death yet' to avoid pushing myself to the next level.

But like you said it's clear the 'window' is closing. It's time for us all to recapture our 20s and just burn the candle at both ends now and make something of ourselves while we still can. It's definitely lit a fire under my arse anyway.

 

[Smith]

Do you mind sharing what kind of project you're going all in on?

It’s in the finance niche. I won’t go into too much detail now (maybe never). But I may break down specific areas of the build in a Laboratory case study in the coming weeks/months.

can relate to this a lot - I've been around way too fkn long to have as little as I have.

I hear you… and I think what we’ve experienced is a common outcome for guys with 10-20 years of experience building who never focused all their attention on a single project for a long enough period of time… allowing themselves ourselves to be too distracted and pulled in too many directions.

It's time for us all to recapture our 20s and just burn the candle at both ends now and make something of ourselves while we still can

In the past, I’ve obsessed over systems, outsourcing, and trying to pull the strings that keep things moving across various projects simultaneously.

I was focused on too many projects at the same time and never gave any of them the obsessive attention they required to reach escape velocity. It was fucking weak.

From what I can tell, the mental shift that has taken place over the last six months is simply this:

Go all in on THIS. You have no other options outside of THIS. Do whatever the fuck it takes to make THIS work. And do THIS for as long as it takes, even if it’s 10 years.

("THIS" being the one and only project I’m focusing on)

This mental shift has eliminated all barriers that previously held me back. We have officially entered 'fuck it' territory and there's no turning back.

…I no longer have any hesitation, any shame/judgment, any concern over the short-term, any question about whether I’m doing the right thing or not, and any concern about what other people might think.

It’s crazy…

I actually feel like I just started my first business again. It’s like my 20-year-old self just jumped into my body and said “lets fucking go!”

But there is a huge difference between…

1. Starting a business with all that 20-year-old energy in your 20s

-and-

2. Starting a business with all that 20-year-old energy AND 20 years of experience…

The main difference is the fact that I know some shit… actually, I know all the shit I wish I knew when I was 20.

I know I can sit down for 12 months straight and grind if that’s what it takes.

I know I don’t give a fuck about playing video games, going out for drinks, lurking on social, or any of the other consumerist bullshit that keeps people poor.

I know what it takes to scale, implement systems, and how to assess talent to help me grow faster.

I know where to allocate resources, and I know how to prioritize short-term projects to cross the finish line faster.

I ALSO know that I'm going to have plenty of doubt, worry, and moments where I ask myself is THIS the right thing... but I know that I can resolve all of that negative shit by just working through it.

Most important of all, I know my niche (through a combination of my own skills/experience and those of the team I’ve built) better than ANYONE else that I’ve come across on or off the internet. No bullshit. This is an objective fact.

So while there are plenty of 20-year-olds with energy out here wanting to compete with me… none of them have what it takes to actually go the distance (because they haven’t done it before and don’t have the systems) and none of them have the chops to lead the niche (because they don’t have the actual knowledge).

AGAIN, my situation is not unique...

I know a lot of builders in their 30s and 40s right now in the EXACT same situation as me who have spent the last 10 to 20 years building but never really went all in on one BIG project…

DO NOT bet against guys who are...

+ Jaded by the system and feel like they can only rely on themselves
+ Have tried one too many ideas in the past and feel like this is their last go
+ Have the resources and skills required to build out a project
+ Are willing to sit down and work for as many YEARS as it takes
+ And have unique knowledge and experience in a given niche

That's a fucking recipe for success that most people can never compete with...

The way I see it is...

It's no longer a question of "IF I'm going to reach my goal?" BUT instead, it's a question of "How soon will I get there!?"

Sure, this approach might not be for everyone… I’ve seen the ‘multiple-hat’ indie hacker approach also work for people. But for me, this is the warpath I’m on and I’m not stopping until I’ve reached the end.

P.S. This post and my responses are also here for me. When I have those moments of doubt, concern, and question the process, I automatically come back here and get a mental slap in the face from myself and a reminder to sit down, shut the fuck up, and get back to work.

 

[Ryuzaki]

This mental shift has eliminated all barriers that previously held me back. We have officially entered 'fuck it' territory and there's no turning back.

…I no longer have any hesitation, any shame/judgment, any concern over the short-term, any question about whether I’m doing the right thing or not, and any concern about what other people might think.

It’s crazy…

It IS crazy. This shift happened to me this year and it was pretty fast and sudden. Realizing where my responsibilities begin and end, realizing not a single person gives a shit how it’s going for you. Not positively or negatively. It’s all just neutral. It’s freeing.

What sucks is I did figure out the “go all in” vs. diversifying thing a decade ago and did it twice. The first one never took off as far as I’d have like but it was a good run and liquidation. The 2nd one got rug-pulled out from under me in the September 2023 HCU as it did for nearly everyone. About $450k valuation turned into about $50k on that project and I was hanging in there and moving towards 7 figures quickly. So now I’m swinging between not putting my eggs in one basket again. I don’t think that pendulum ever stops swinging. The market and power players in each industry (SEO & Google for an example) dictate what the right path is UNLESS you really and truly master multi-channel marketing. That raises the barrier and makes us old timers more uniquely suited for it due to experience and access to a war chest.

So yeah… one project with diversified traffic sources and revenue streams until escape velocity is reached. What’s clear is that’s no longer possible with SEO only. Even though it was possible, and restricting your activity to dominating one traffic source was smart for a long stretch, that simply isn’t the case now. Which is good. Like @bernard said, it became a publishing game instead of a creativity game. With more channels and offerings under the same project, we can do as much damage and more with a 25 page site as we could with a 2500 page site. The “volume game” not only became a race to the bottom (with Rolling Stone posting about dog clippers as mentioned elsewhere). Imagine the soul rot in those companies. I know it was killing me in hindsight. I’m happy for this shift in our reality. Change is usually for the better if we don’t give up.

I’ve enjoyed reading your thoughts. Thank you for sharing.

 

[bernard]

Great thread, I am very much in your situation.

I've had a few good cashouts and if I had just put it in some kind of crypto or even tech stocks, I'd be significantly better off, but I have some old debt and I always wanted to get one big hit and pay it all off - which didn't happen.

For me, I'll be hustling with building AI-based affiliate sites and micropayment service sites. I'll also keep publishing on my lab thread site and the other sites I have.

 

[Smith]

dominating one traffic source was smart for a long stretch, that simply isn’t the case now.

I completely agree.

“Dominating one traffic source” has been my go-to approach for too long.

I held out and kept trying to adapt to Google… I don’t have a good excuse for this. It’s just a failure as a business owner.

The reason for my failure probably comes down to a combination of me thinking SEO was “easier” and not wanting to push myself or my business into new channels.

But THAT line of thinking is behind me. As I’ve shared above, my mindset has completely changed.

That’s why this…

one project with diversified traffic sources and revenue streams until escape velocity is reached.

… is the only way I’m thinking about my business now.

And this new multi-channel approach has completely changed how I think about and create content. I’m also confident it has dramatically changed the trajectory of my business for the better... though it might take years to get there.

And I do think that this kind of approach is available to a lot of people who have been building for a while but never went “all in”...

makes us old timers more uniquely suited for it due to experience and access to a war chest.

It’s the guys with actual experience who actually have something of value to share… not a bunch of 20-somethings with zero real-world experience who are just regurgitating the same shit over and over again.

About $450k valuation turned into about $50k on that project and I was hanging in there and moving towards 7 figures quickly

This is similar to the discussion around agencies and the loss of equity that can take place when an agency gets wiped by Google.

My take is this… it's hard to justify the value of equity in a business if your ability to generate revenue (e.g. fees from SEO consulting) is heavily dependent on an independent third party (Google).

The problem is that the third party (Google) can make a “small” change (core update) that totally upends your offering, advantage, and revenue.

Sure, value still exists in a business even after a major change. But, if revenue isn’t stable or predictable, it’s hard to justify a substantial valuation.

And at the very least it results in lower multiples when it comes time to exit, if that’s the goal.

This reinforces the need to diversify traffic sources, ideally from uncorrelated sources… e.g. Google + Facebook + TikTok.

I've had a few good cashouts and if I had just put it in some kind of crypto or even tech stocks, I'd be significantly better off

I've had a similar approach... waiting for the one big cash out.

But, at least in my situation, I've realized that the compounding effects of small actions layering on top of each other inside my business are what have ultimately brought me closer to my end goal.

As for the investing side of things, I have a very "set-it-and-forget-it" mentality. I take long positions in select investments (ETFs, securities, BTC) and then forget about them. I don't want to spend time thinking about investments when I should be thinking about building my business.

 

[bernard]

Well, isn't there some stats that say most successful entrepreneurs are actually in their 40s and 50s?

I also feel as if I have learned most of the lessons I needed to learn. Affiliate and SEO were not a waste at all. Both have shown me just how much potential both have for a vendor or service provider, who can leverage both. I always enjoyed working SEO with clients who had good personal branded businesses, just so easy to get results.

 

[Darth]

Unfortunately, I don't exactly know how I unlocked these power reserves. I think it was a combination of pushing through the low period, doing the fucking work, and deciding that I was going to commit myself 100% to the project, no matter what.

Probably being at zero (or I may have your situation wrong). Sometimes, when I am feeling tired, directionless, unmotivated, I imagine if all my sources of income disappeared and I was earning $0. I imagine what I would do to feed my family and maintain our lifestyle.

consistency is the key to success.

Yes

 

[Smith]

Probably being at zero

I'm way past zero... I better be after 20 years in the game.

But I'm not at the point where I can quit, never work again, and still give my family the lifestyle I want for them. That requires more.

I imagine if all my sources of income disappeared and I was earning $0. I imagine what I would do to feed my family and maintain our lifestyle.

I play this game too. I find it's helpful (at times) to ensure I'm making good money decisions. But I also find it makes me worried about spending. And you know what they say about scared money... So, I try not to dive too far down this rabbit hole.