don't build an MVP

When I started trying my hand at online businesses, I thought I needed to build a $100m business.

That’s because I had spent my university years reading TechCrunch. All I saw there were multi-million-dollar businesses that had gotten the attention of VCs and the mainstream media.

I didn’t read about people who made:

• $2k per month from a side business

• $10k per month from the comfort of their homes

• $500k from a single info product (i.e. a course) in a single year.

I had this fixed definition of entrepreneurial success in my head.

• Get VC-funded. How? 👇

• Get to $50k MRR. How? 👇

• Find product-market fit. How? 👇

• Find an idea that triggers word of mouth. How? 👇

• Validate an idea the Lean Startup way. How? 👇

• Write and test hypotheses. How? 👇

• Get people to try your product. How? 👇

• Build an MVP.

“Fine. I can build an MVP.”

So I began building MVPs but… Finding people to test and hopefully validate my hypotheses was HARD. Especially with no audience. And that’s where I got stuck. I couldn’t move any further. This happened way too many times. So many that I almost gave up on online entrepreneurship.

Until I realized an alternative way.

Switched one simple thing and it became my greatest unlock. 🔓 From that point on, I instantly started earning meaningful amounts of money on the Internet.

If you’re like me, here’s that alternative way. 👇

Do NOT start with the MVP, the hypotheses, the validation...

Instead, start from how you can make [x] amount of money TODAY.

Thinking in “ticket size” will help you find a starting point.

We’re not validating a potentially $50k MRR idea.

We’re NOT building a $100m business.

We’re trying to make $200.

That’s how you enter the game.

You don’t enter the game of muscle-building (💪) by lifting the heaviest weight. You start by lifting the weight YOU can lift today.

You don’t enter the game of business-building (🧑‍💻) by aiming for the highest MRR. You start by earning the revenue YOU can earn today.

How can you make $200 next week? You name the number. $100, $50, and even $10, $5, $1 are great numbers.

Make a list of 10 ways you can earn that amount online NEXT WEEK. The list is fully dependent on WHO you are and WHAT you can do:

1. __________

2. __________

3. __________

4. __________

5. __________

6. __________

7. __________

8. __________

9. __________

10. __________

How is this different from MVP-first approach:

• You prime your brain to think of YOUR money-making skills. These are relevant in the market, today.

• You switch from “throwing a solution at a large pool of people” to “going to specific people to solve their specific problems.”

• Most of the ideas you’ll come up with will be “service” business ideas. These are doable right away. No need to build anything. Great way to discover burning problems in the market FAST.

That’s it for today!

I’m still recovering from the ear infection but I’m feeling a lot better.

This week I also started having my teeth straightened using Invisalign. That means I’ve stopped enjoying my meals. :( But hopefully, my teeth will feel wonderful at the end of it. No major change. I’ve been curious about how my teeth could improve since I was a teenager and 35 years old was apparently the right time for it. :)

Stay building!

Love, B.