22 July 2019
This week's additions focus on leadership, mindset, and strategy, with new digests from StoryBrand With Donald Miller, Y Combinator, and Ahrefs. Highlights include If no one can say what you'd lose, you're first to go Passive avoidance builds into anger — not the same as assertiveness
Showing 12 digests for 22 July 2019.
How repeatable tasks tied to revenue create job security
StoryBrand With Donald Miller
July 26, 2019
Management
9
Processes & SOPs
5
If no one can say what you'd lose, you're first to go
Repeatable revenue-linked tasks are the only real job security
Define your own task list — don't wait for your boss
Assertiveness vs aggression: how to state what you want without anger
StoryBrand With Donald Miller
July 25, 2019
Passive avoidance builds into anger — not the same as assertiveness
Assertive means stating facts without emotion, judgment, or pressure
Repeat what you want calmly; stop talking if emotion takes over
Two-idea marketing message that works every time
StoryBrand With Donald Miller
July 25, 2019
The human brain processes only 5–9 ideas at once.
Every message needs exactly two ideas: problem, then solution.
Repeat the problem to agitate it, then repeat your product as the fix.
How to evaluate a startup idea: problem, solution, and unfair advantage
Y Combinator
July 25, 2019
Business models
9
Product-market fit
7
Fundraising & VC
5
A startup idea is a hypothesis about why you'll grow quickly.
Without one clear unfair advantage, investors have no reason to pick you.
Starting with technology instead of a problem makes growth far harder.
Customer discovery
YouTube
How to talk to users: a practical framework for founder interviews
Y Combinator
July 25, 2019
Customer discovery
10
Product-market fit
8
Prospecting & outreach
5
Ask about past specifics, never hypothetical future features
Three numbers reveal your best first customer before you build
40% 'very disappointed' is the quantitative product-market fit signal
SEO checklist: how to grow organic traffic step by step
Ahrefs
July 24, 2019
Search intent matching matters more than keyword density in your content.
Top-ranking pages rank for ~1,000 keywords — cover their subtopics too.
Prospect for backlinks before publishing, not after.
Identity & self-belief
YouTube
Bill Gallagher on coaching founders to lead from purpose
Bill Gallagher
July 24, 2019
Identity & self-belief
8
Management
5
Flat growth usually points to the founder, not the strategy
Scaling requires changing who you are, not just the team
Your personal 'why' is as important as your business 'why'
Identity & self-belief
YouTube
How shifting your inner story unlocks business and personal growth
Bill Gallagher
July 24, 2019
Identity & self-belief
10
Delegation
6
Deep work & focus
5
80–90% of what blocks founders is mindset, not real obstacles
Start with who you need to be — results follow identity, not effort
Noticing your story is the first step to moving beyond it
Hiring & recruitment
YouTube
The first four hires to scale a small business
StoryBrand With Donald Miller
July 23, 2019
Hiring & recruitment
9
Outsourcing & delegation
6
A personal assistant is always the right first hire
The chief of staff duplicates you — until it stops working around $7M
A COO thinks in processes, not vision, and unlocks real scale
How Huawei became the world's largest telecom equipment manufacturer
Acquired
July 22, 2019
Origin stories
9
Business models
7
Long-term planning
5
From $5,000 import business to $108 billion revenue in 30 years
99% owned by a trade union that rolls up to the Chinese Communist Party
US Entity List ban risks splitting the global tech stack permanently in two
Closing techniques
YouTube
How to frame a raise request to get a yes
StoryBrand With Donald Miller
July 22, 2019
Closing techniques
8
Pricing strategy
5
Asking right after a win triggers defensiveness — timing is everything
Frame the raise as a cut of future earnings, not past ones
Even non-revenue roles can tie a raise to a productivity dollar estimate
Resilience & grit, Identity & self-belief
Podcast
Henry Royce: obsessive quality and the founding of Rolls-Royce
Founders
July 22, 2019
Resilience & grit, Identity & self-belief
9
Origin stories
8
Business models, Competitive analysis
6
How childhood poverty forged the most obsessive engineer in British history
Taking an existing market and winning purely through quality — no invention required
Why nearly dying made Royce more productive, not less