24 May 2021
This week's additions focus on strategy, founder stories, and mindset, with new digests from Bill Gallagher, Masters of Scale, and Silicon Valley Girl. Highlights include COVID stretched payment terms to 90+ days, breaking the agency model Shift from survival mindset to growth thinking before crisis fully ends.
Showing 13 digests for 24 May 2021.
Founder interviews
YouTube
How a brand consultancy pivoted to a subscription model for entrepreneurs
Bill Gallagher
May 30, 2021
Founder interviews
9
Pivoting
7
Cash flow management
6
COVID stretched payment terms to 90+ days, breaking the agency model
Repackaging existing IP as a monthly DIY platform unlocked a global SME market
Not hiring senior people when you can afford them is an expensive mistake
Five essential moves for post-pandemic success
Masters of Scale
May 29, 2021
Vision & mission
8
Management
7
Resilience & grit
6
Shift from survival mindset to growth thinking before crisis fully ends.
Tighten mission focus to rally teams and drive alignment decisions.
Double down on pre-crisis strengths, not temporary crisis-driven opportunities.
Identity & self-belief
YouTube
Stopping people-pleasing to stay true to yourself
Silicon Valley Girl
May 29, 2021
Identity & self-belief
9
Resilience & grit
7
Audacity matters more than talent if you ignore community doubt.
You cannot control others' emotions — trying to makes life impossible.
Bold self-honesty in communication filters for the right people fast.
Founder interviews
Podcast
Warren Buffett: inner scorecard, independent thought, and the making of a capitalist
Founders
May 29, 2021
Founder interviews
10
Identity & self-belief
7
Why thinking for yourself — not smarts — was Buffett's real edge
Buffett read thousands of financials yearly; knowing more was learnable
Inner scorecard vs outer scorecard: the habit that shaped every decision
Amazon Unbound: Brad Stone on how Amazon's interlocking businesses reshape commerce
Acquired
May 27, 2021
Case studies
9
Business models
7
Long-term planning
5
Prime Video, Alexa, and AWS are one interlocking system, not separate bets.
Western marketplace sellers structurally can't compete with Chinese manufacturers on Amazon.
Bezos's willingness to fail publicly — Fire Phone, then Alexa — is the innovation method.
Productivity & habits
Podcast
Scheduling Household Admin Into Your Productivity System
Deep Questions with Cal Newport
May 27, 2021
Time blocking frees hours through intensity—redirect that time toward household admin.
A morning 30-minute block for small tasks prevents drowning in daily admin.
Integrate errands into workday blocks; capture evening tasks at shutdown without scheduling.
How three solo founders built million-dollar businesses with no employees
Noah Kagan
May 26, 2021
Case studies
10
Bootstrapping
6
Niche selection
6
A one-person business still needs contractors — just not employees.
Validate on existing marketplaces before building anything.
Start in the smallest niche, then duplicate the formula.
Wix: How a website builder became the internet's plumbing for small businesses
Business Breakdowns
May 26, 2021
Business models
9
Paid ads
7
Case studies
6
A horizontal platform can outspend every vertical competitor on marketing.
Wix rebuilt from Flash to HTML5 in 2012 — betting the company on mobile.
Freemium plus sticky cohorts creates a compounding subscription flywheel.
Founder interviews
Podcast
How Alex Rodriguez built a lifelong system of mentors
Masters of Scale
May 25, 2021
Founder interviews
9
Management
6
Never ask someone to be your mentor — ask one specific question.
The mentor–mentee gap is false: the best mentors are still learning.
A year-long suspension turned a gladiator into a long-term relationship builder.
How whiteboards fixed declining production for a manufacturer
Bill Gallagher
May 25, 2021
Processes & SOPs
9
Business operating systems
5
Eight whiteboards reversed a manufacturer's production decline within a quarter
Teams perform what they can see — visibility drives results
Simple whiteboards complement automated dashboards; neither replaces the other
Hiring & recruitment
Podcast
Task-level, project-level, and owner-level thinkers
Startups For the Rest of Us
May 25, 2021
Hiring & recruitment
7
Long-term planning
6
Identity & self-belief
5
Scale by hiring owner-level thinkers who think long-term and drive entire efforts.
Autopilot businesses die after 12–18 months when algorithms, APIs, or competitors change.
Your unfair advantage is rarely your ability to code—it's the gift others envy.
Eight proven software business categories from $100M in AppSumo sales
Noah Kagan
May 24, 2021
Business models
9
MVP & prototyping
6
Niche selection
5
Eight software niches validated by $100M in real marketplace sales
Build in a proven category, then carve your own niche within it
Stock assets and templates generate serious revenue with little code
How to significantly reduce email and plan a career you'll actually enjoy
Deep Questions with Cal Newport
May 24, 2021
Time management
10
Productivity & habits
8
Work-life balance
6
Stop emails arriving, not just managing what's already in your inbox
Every stressful email is an implicit project needing a structured alternative
Plan careers by mapping lifestyle vision to location, money, and autonomy