As The Fastlane Forum approaches 1 million posts, I've heard from many people over the years.

One item worth mentioning: Many people unnecessarily complicate Fastlane entrepreneurship and business in general. Simplified, successful Fastlane entrepreneurship boils down to 3 things. Focus on these three things, and you will eventually succeed.

#1) Create relative value
Have you created a product/service that is marginally different from what is already offered in the marketplace? This is the product development stage.

#2) Convince people of that value.
Can you convince people of that value to a buying threshold? This is the marketing, positioning, and the branding stage.

#3) Repeat.
Not only repeat, but how many times can you repeat? This is the sales and growth stage. How many sales can you structurally make in a day? 10? or 10,000?

Fail at any of these steps, and you will stunt your progress and stunt your ability to create life-changing wealth. Sadly, many entrepreneurs have chosen to skip Step #1, product development and relative value, and think that they can succeed if they're slick enough of a marketer.

Don't be bro-marketer pushing commodity products and hoping to win the "best price of the day" competition.

Stop the shortcuts and instead create relative value, convince people of that value, and repeat. And nothing will stop you!

Important distinction here that I cover extensively in my second book, Unscripted.

As entrepreneurs, we hear a lot about “creating value" -- but nothing about the real impetus for sales and growth, and that is relative value.

Relative value means that your offer is unique, or different, or better than what is currently offered.

Making a blog post about 10 great "must read" books has value.

But it DOES NOT have relative value.

Lists like this are a dime of dozen.

In another example, I compiled a list of great, must read books that are underhyped and underexposed ... the reception on that document was quite shocking.

Why?

Because it had RELATIVE VALUE.

A document that listed the same old books that everyone on every corner of planet Earth recommends (Atomic Habits, Rich Dad, Think and Grow Rich) is NOT valuable.

It's more of the same.

Relative value is fire and transforms marketing into an accelerant.

“More of the same” value (I call it surplus value in Unscripted) is a frozen river and marketing acts like fire. Marketing is required to turn ice to water.

One makes business easier, the other makes it extremely frustrating.

Short thought for the day that I also tweeted...

"Hard work" has become a dirty phrase in culture & it is easy to understand why. Working hard under today's obsolete template is like pedaling harder on a tricycle.

Fastlane entrepreneurship gets you off the tricycle where your hard work is rewarded with wealth, not mediocrity.

Happy 2023 everybody!

I apologize for disappearing at the end of the year but I ended up getting Covid and had to spend some time in bed recovering and taking care of myself. I’m much better now and back in the swing of things.

With that said, let’s start 2023 with some wisdom!

Great “long form” story on the founding and evolution of CANVA.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/21-questions-from-aussie-startups-highs-lows-lessons-learned-perkins/

Firstly, CANVA is the best piece of cloud software that I use and pay for. If you’re not using it yet, you should. Many people on the forum also vouch for the awesomeness of the software, which was how I found it. CANVA is by far my favorite tool, and an incredible value for the price paid.

Second, the story behind how CANVA evolved, from identifying the need, to the pivot, to the growth— a lot of the lessons learned along the way is “must read” material, even if you have no desire to build a billion dollar company.

Take some time to read the story.

You won’t be disappointed.

You can't fit square pegs into round holes when it comes to business.

When there are systemic issues in your industry that prevent scale and growth, it is futile to fight the reality.

I mention this because over the weekend I met with a local entrepreneur who has a successful business that services my local community.

He wanted to scale.
He wanted to grow.

And as a customer of this entrepreneur’s service, I know he had the mental and physical fortitude to make big things happen.

The problem was, his successful business is seasonal and only operates 7 months out of the year.

This makes scale and “going Fastlane” a huge problem.

If you have a big company with 20 trucks and 40 employees, but have to lay off all your employees in the “off season,” your problem is systemic. Your great employees won’t likely come back as they need to work, and need a steady paycheck. For this entrepreneur, hiring and training 40 new employees every spring is not feasible, cost effective, nor reasonable.

It also isn’t reasonable to pay employees during the 5 months of “off season” as it prices you out of the market.

This poses a systemic problem if the goal is Fastlane growth and scale, and systemic problems are like asking pigs to fly.

The answer to systemic problems isn’t something that can be easily fixed, even using first-principle thinking.

The answer, unfortunately and yes, harsh -- is you’re likely in the wrong business if you’re working for a Fastlane outcome.

As a follow up to the post above, the solution this entrepreneur arrived at was NOT to abandon his business or industry.

While his business is seasonal, he was earning about $50K for 5-6 months of work, which gave him a ton of free time in the off season.

He’s been documenting his local success in various employee training manuals, and even developing his own management software for people within the industry.

His “Fastlane strategy” is to sell his successful B2B training guides, CRM management, and other industry tools that he can license via subscription. As for the software that he intends to sell, he is architecting it in a “no code” solution.

While his local business might not “go Fastlane,” his domain knowledge might translate to a Fastlane.

Remember, not everyone wants to make millions and for many folks, a business that earns $50K a year and is operational only half of the year would be a dream come true.

If this subscription aspect of the business doesn’t work, he still has a great business that makes $50K a year and gives him a boatload of time to experiment in other Fastlane opportunities.

This “experience” is not Slowlane, or a waste of time.

It is what creates multi-millionaires.

REMEMBER: Nothing is Slowlane if your intent is to go Fastlane.

Another follow up to the story above, which is ongoing.

The path the entrepreneur has chosen to explore is to go B2B and sell subscriptions, customer management solutions, and training options. This is in supplementation to his existing local business.

As I mentioned, this entrepreneur’s business is LOCAL and SEASONAL. Some good examples (while not his business as these are much simpler) are a holiday lights hanging business or a snow removal business.

With the new strategy going forward, he can position himself to serve a much larger market, and market that is likely to be hungrier.

When we’re strategizing our business, it is important to look at the markets you’re serving, and to make sure those markets can help us achieve our personal goals.

“I want to make $100K a month”

If that is your goal, look at your industry and the market you’re serving. Some questions to ask…

1) How large is the market that you can effectively serve? How many total customers are there that need your offer? 5,000 people? Or 50,000,000?

2) How easy is it to reach your market? Are there mediums to get in front of prospects? Or is it impossible to hit a target with your offer?

3) If all goes spectacularly well and you have a $10K day, what would that day look like? How many employees would you need? How about supply and manufacturing? Would you need a warehouse? Office?

4) If a $10K day is impossible, what would make it possible? Are there systemic problems? Or have you exposed your industry as deficient to meet your goals?

If you’re looking to have your business ideas graded, there is a CENTS based rating system I launched some years ago. In that rating system, “access to markets” is a huge weight.

https://grademybusinessidea.com

Bottomline: Make sure your excellent effort and execution is rewarded with outcomes that match your long-term goals.

Here’s a great example of problem-solving entrepreneurship with a distinct value skew and a simple, clearly defined value proposition, a value proposition to save someone's life, perhaps your own.

This company was brought to my attention by a reader and I immediately bought one.

https://lifevac.net/

Further, I had an issue with my order which was promptly resolved.

For me, I tend to not chew my food well and have had several scares. Buying this was a no-brainer.

On the CENTS scale, this type of business ranks highly, although it is not perfect.

Strengths: NEED, SCALE (every human on the planet) and TIME.

Weaknesses: ENTRY as this product is subject to knock-offs, although reproducing it likely isn’t super simple like downloading Wordpress and wham, you’re in business.

Review my CENTS rating here

https://www.grademybusinessidea.com/gradeResults.php?aXRlbT1zaGFyZSZiaW49TGlmZVZhYyZiaWQ9TGlmZS1TYXZpbmcgQ2hva2luZyBEZXZpY2UgJmVudD02JmN0cmw9OS41JnZhbD0xMCZhdXRvPTEwJnJlcD0xMCZtcz0xMCZtcj0xJnU9Mw%3D%3D

Posting this here for both education and perhaps for your personal use. (I have no relationship, affiliate or otherwise with respect to this product)

What can you learn from an enterprise like this?

How easy would it be for you to sell when your core value prop is saving lives?

Would you be passionate about this business, even if you had no medical background?

It's been a long, long time. But it seems like yesterday.

In 2007, I launched The Fastlane Forum. During this time, I've encountered 1000s of entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs. I soon discovered a complex reality that most people are liars—not to others, but to themselves. Here are the 9 common lies that want to convince you to sell your dreams for slaughter. And 9 easy paradigm shifts to insure your dreams stay alive and tracked for reality.

9 Dream-Killing Lies You Sell Yourself...

LIE #1: I'm not good at X.

Of course, you're not. No one is born an instant expert. We all crawled before we walked. Seinfeld's first words weren't a joke. Ronaldo didn't emerge from mom with a football. The question is, if you aren't good at X, what do you need to do to get good at X?

The fact is, "I'm not good at X" is not a fixed status but a variable one. You can suck at X today, but be better at it tomorrow. BETTER is the key; minor daily improvements create major results.

The sibling to this lie is, "Well, I just lack the education."

PARADIGM SHIFT: I'm not good at X today, but I can be better at X tomorrow.

LIE #2: I don't have time for business.

You don't have time because it isn't a priority. It isn't urgent. Other things come first. Game of Thrones. Call of Duty. Sleep and leisure. The 55th Yankees game you just watched. Would you "find time" if failure in the next three months meant the death of the loved one? You would. What's most important always finds time.

PARADIGM SHIFT: I don't have time with my current lifestyle patterns, but with the proper adjustments and reprioritizations, I can find time.

LIE #3: X just got lucky.

Yes, X did. Out of all the numbers in the alphabet, X was incredibly active, engaged, and committed to success. As such, X manipulated probability and gave themself a better chance of getting in luck's spotlight.

PARADIGM SHIFT: Luck is a function of probability, and my habitual actions can improve my chances for luck to appear.

LIE #4: Someday I'll start a business.

No, you won't. You're too comfortable, and comfort doesn't incite action. Most people allow their dreams to be bribed with a few hours of television, video games, or sleep. There will never be a perfect day, week, or month. Life is too aggressively chaotic with its own momentum. It is why Someday exists. Someday is a pacification to make yourself feel good for not quitting, but delaying. And we all know someday becomes never. Someday is a fat lie.

PARADIGM SHIFT: My best time to start a business is today. Someday is a pacifying excuse to disguise the truth of never.

LIE #5: There are no good ideas.

Never has there been one sentence that stinks of entrepreneurial ignorance. Most new businesses are built on margin improvement and better efficiencies, not about becoming the next Steve Jobs. If life had no problems, there would be no ideas and this lie would be true. Ideas are about solving problems, removing angsts, fixing inconveniences, delivering peace, sparking fun, and offering different ingredients.

PARADIGM SHIFT: If I see ideas as a function of life's imperfections, voids, and distress, I will have plenty of ideas.

To read the last 4 LIES that will thrwart your success, visit the forum (no login required.) Have a great tail end of your week! ~ MJ

Debt is not the devil and a threat to your freedom.
Debt is not something to avoid.

Listen to enough “mediocre millionaires” and they’ll convince you that all debt is bad.

As at Tweeted a few weeks ago…

If someone is selling you "financial freedom" or "millionaire secrets" and their pitch involves suffocating frugality, riding a bike, and living like a broke coed for the rest of your life, you're being sold a LIE, a lie that would make the World Economic Forum proud.

Part of this ideology is the position that you should avoid all debt.

Bottomline, this is false.

Debt is a tool. How you use the tool is up to you.

Sometimes the tool is very valuable. Sometimes it is dangerous. It all depends on how it used.

Think of debt like a hammer.

It can build you a cage.
Or it can build you an asset that moves you toward your goals.

My full stance on debt is covered in my third book, The Great Rat Race Escape. You can read it at the link below and learn how to leverage debt to YOUR ADVANTAGE, not to your DISADVANTAGE. Have a great week!

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/what-is-the-fastlane-stance-on-debt.107146/post-1046120

Here's a classic case of why marketing is so important as a skill, even if you create the best product ever.

You could formulate the cure to cancer, but if you can't sell it and get the sales cycle rolling, your great product won't be exposed to those who need it. In Unscripted, I call this fact the Cancer Corrollary.

With a great product but poor marketing, you succeed at NEED, but FAIL at execution.

In this case, the author created a great book that languished on the market for a decade with little sales. The book needed a little marketing (and yes, luck) to turn things around.

With respect to "luck" - notice how ACTION altered probability so "luck" had a chance to appear. Without the ACTION, there is no luck.

Action is fundamental to LUCK because it is fundamental to moving probability.

https://people.com/human-interest/vermont-man-book-becomes-bestseller-10-years-after-release-thanks-to-daughters-tiktok/

Have a great weekend! 😊
- MJ

I recently received a reader email where the sender proudly revealed that he sold his company for a whopping $85 million. The screenshot is posted on the forum.

He read Fastlane in 2017 and immediately put it to work. Failures followed, but so did valuable domain experience. And a commitment to the process.

Some might see this success story and scream, "survivor bias!" or "hey MJ, what about the other thousands of your readers who didn't succeed?"

The fact is, most people who read my work don't have what it takes to succeed. So indeed, there are a lot of failures.

However, that's great news.

Why?

The big secret to success isn't found in success but in studying failures. But more importantly, what common factors underscore all these defeats? What patterns foretell failure, or worse, someone who doesn't even try?

I'll tell you.

I've been doing this long enough to recognize the patterns from people who don't have a chance, people who will see an $85M exit and scream "survivor bias!"  

Some people read my book and yet, refuse to get a job. And in doing so, they deny themselves domain experience and specialized knowledge that ultimately would help them uncover ideas and increase execution effectiveness.

Some people read my book and yet, refuse to learn anything new, lamenting they don't have skills, and they don't have money. Just yesterday, someone whined like a baby on the forum because he wanted to start a YouTube channel but claimed he didn't know how to edit videos, as if, all successful YouTubers were born with instant editing skills.

Some people read my book and don't comprehend what Fastlane means, as if it means dropshipping, affiliate marketing, blogging, and trading stocks in a decade long bull market. Yes, these things can be learning experiences, but wasting seven years of your life learning how to dropship cheap commodities from China isn't smart; it's dumb.

Some people read my book and conclude entrepreneurship is like buying a lottery ticket, not every week, but once. They "try" at one thing, fail, and give up. This lottery mentality is as foolish as thinking you can be a good baseball player simply because you took three precious swings and struck out.
 
Some people read my book and can't divest themselves from their selfish inclinations and instead strike out as either money-chasers or passion-chasers. No one cares about your passion for milking pregnant rats or your drive to make money. What value are you to me? And how much will it cost?

Other patterns...

Readers who are consumed by fear to the point of inaction...
Fear of failure, fear of ridicule, fear of having to give up their television...

Readers who are paralyzed by the "whens" - "when I get promoted", when the debts are paid," "when the kids leave the house."  Sorry, "when" means never.

Readers who don't know how to market and sell. Worse, they consider this an unchangeable "fixed state," reflecting on their inability to learn new skills and talents. A great product without great marketing sits unsold.

I can go on with a dozen more patterns that failures exhibit.

Bottom line, rid yourself of these patterns, and you have better chances of surviving and getting into the spotlight. Remember: If a common road yields a common death, shouldn't you avoid the road?

The next time you make a decision, ask yourself: What kind of BRICK is this decision laying?

Our choices are like bricks, and those bricks can build walls trapping us, or they can build stairs, freeing us.

Some simple examples:
DECISION: Eating a poor diet daily.
WALL CREATED: Obesity, low energy, shortened lifespan
STAIRS NEEDED: Better diet, more frequence exercise.

DECISION: Playing video games daily, or daily, endless social media surfing
WALL CREATED: Distraction, laziness, other second-order consequences
STAIRS NEEDED: Abstinence and discipline.

Bricks are simple decisions and the element of construction into our life's outcomes. Habits turn our decisions into walls, or stairs.

One brick changes nothing, and it's why so few people can effectively change anything in their life. However, ONE BRICK is a big beautiful start to someting bigger.

The choice is yours.

Are you building insurmountable WALLS? Or elevating STAIRS?

Have a great week!

BREAKING NEWS: The Mexican Fisherman has filed for bankruptcy.

Beware of romanticized stories that convince you to adopt a dangerous financial strategy devoid of any reality in today's world.

One such story is the Mexican Fisherman parable I scrutinized in Unscripted over 5 years ago. Today, this parable is being enthusiastically circulated around the web as some modern "lifestyle doctrine" you should adopt without question or critique.

However, for most people, this parable has become a risky and convenient excuse for sloth and poor financial planning. 

If you haven't heard the Mexican Fisherman parable, it goes like this:
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A businessman stood at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish.

"How long did it take to catch them?" the American asked.
 
"Only a bit," the Mexican replied.
 
"Why don't you stay out longer and catch more fish?" the businessman then asked.
 
"I have enough to support my family's immediate needs," the Mexican said.
 
"But," the businessman asked, "what do you do with the rest of your time?"
 
The Mexican fisherman said, "I sleep late, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, take evening strolls to the village, where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life, señor."
 
The businessman scoffed, "I have a Harvard MBA, and I could help you. You should spend more time fishing, and with the proceeds, you buy a bigger boat, and with the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats. Eventually, you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman, you could sell directly to the consumers, eventually opening your own cannery. You would need to work a bit longer and harder in the big city, but you would control everything."
 
 The Mexican fisherman asked, "But señor, how long will this all take?"
 
 To which the businessman replied, "Five to ten years."
 
 "But what then, señor?"
 
The businessman laughed and said, "Well, that's the best part. When the time is right, you would sell your company and become very rich; you would make millions."
 
 "Millions, señor? Then what?"
 
The businessman said slowly, "Then you would retire, move to a small coastal fishing village, where you would sleep late, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, take evenings strolls to the village, where you could sip wine and play guitar with your amigos…" 
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Sounds pretty cool, eh? This story emphasizes noble things such as friends, family, and free time. It is no surprise why it is such a viral trope.

The problem is, this story lacks any connection to real life.

It is entirely idealistic to the point of being dangerous. Such idealism might work in when you're 23 years old, but as you get older, this type of strategy is the same as thinking your first winning hour at the casino will continue for the next 8 hours.

Here's the rest of the story you didn't hear:

Soon after the businessman left, things changed. The government, desperate for tax dollars, levied a series of boating, gaming, and license fees: To continue fishing, the Mexican must pay $400 for a fishing license, a $200 environmental fee, a $350 game endorsement, and $1,800 in mooring fees. If he doesn't pay ASAP, the Mexican will be barred from fishing.
 
Unfortunately, after paying all the fees, the Mexican has little money left to insure and license his boat. Unable to legally operate in his favorite coastal town, the Mexican fisherman drives three hours south to another town, where the quality of the fish is poor. The long drive takes its toll on the Mexican's car, where it ultimately breaks down. To fix his car, he needs $300 for a water pump and $600 for a radiator. This is after he pays $400 to get his car towed back to his village.
 
But this story is about to get worse. 
 
Instead of making the money to fix things that needed fixing, the fisherman's home is in a constant state of disrepair, from the eroding concrete pilings to the rotting roof, the Mexican is in town fiddling away at his guitar. A hurricane strikes his tiny village and demolishes his home, leaving him and his family homeless.

For the next month, his family is stuck living in squalid government tents, and as a result, the Mexican fails to pay the mooring fees for his boat. The Mexican fisherman who spent most of his days in unpreparedness and merriment—strumming around with his friends, sipping wine—now has no money or options to escape his plight. Tired of his sloth and inability to provide the basics to his family, his wife divorces him. 

The fisherman now sings a much different tune with his amigos, one of anger, bitterness, and regret.
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Which one of these stories sounds more realistic? In both stories, the fisherman has the same goal: freedom with his friends and family. That's honorable. 

Unfortunately, when money is removed from a real-world existence, idealism becomes a nightmare—a repeated reality in every civilized country worldwide: bills, fees, taxes, divorces, unexpected tragedy, life overhead, and money problems. 

The problem wasn't the fisherman's goal—freedom; the problem was he was lazy and disrespected money's role. He didn't save, prepare, or produce in excess of consumption. 

Don't let anyone convince you that money isn't important.

Money can buy security, options, and freedom—all of which will likely make you happy.

If you gave 10 people a roadmap to buried treasure, 9 of them would expect you to drive them to the location. And then after you nicely drove them, they then would ask you to grab a shovel and dig.

Entrepreneurship is about problem-solving. If your idea of "problem solving" is "help me" "show me" "mentor me" "is there list?" then you don't have a chance.

Every problem you solve in life, no matter how small or inconsequential, makes you a better entrepreneur.

Sadly, no one will guide you. No one will encourage you. Support you. Show you the exact steps. This is not a journey for the faint of heart. And those who can't solve problems don't have a chance.

Good news is, if you're the 1 person of 10 who isn't expecting someone else to do the heavy lifting of problem solving, you're ahead of 90% of the rest of the world.

IMO, one of the greatest influences on success is your environment.

Leaving Chicago for Arizona changed everything for me.

20 years later I moved to Utah. Both moves were great for my life.

Environment can also mean your workspace. Is it clean? Optimized? Can you do meaningful work in chaos?

Can you succeed living at home with overbearing, unsupportive family influences?

Can you expect to get sober working in bar?

Can you expect to lose weight working at Krispy Kreme doughnuts?

Can you expect to stop playing video games when 4 of your roommates insist on your participation?

Can you expect to hone a Fastlane mindset hanging out at Reddit all day where you’re told you’re a helpless victim who needs to be angry?

I created the Fastlane Forum over 10 years ago to help you in this process of having a supportive, or like-minded environment.

If you want to be SERIOUS about changing your life, change your environment first. And put accelerative winds at your back.

Win more battles in the war for your life and happiness.

THE SECRET TO YOUR BEST LIFE...
GEORGE COSTANZA?

The other night I watched a basketball game on a major network, and I couldn't help but notice something during the commercial breaks: One after another, every advertisement was for a product or service that I would never buy.

Each commercial targeted the cultural majority, a Scripted populous seeking an escape, an easy button, or a temporary pleasure push.

Here are the commercials I had to suffer through:

A Coors Light beer commercial.
Sorry, I don't drink alcohol or participate in the Scripted theater that romanticizes its consumption.

An Indeed (job marketplace) commercial.
Sorry, I haven't had a job in decades much less prepared a resume.

A Meta commercial (formerly Facebook)
Sorry, I haven't logged into Facebook in months and I can't tell you what the commercial was about: I immediately tuned it out.

An Arby's commercial, aka, "We have the meats!"
Sorry, I've been eating plant-based for 5+ years and I don't eat greasy factory-farmed meat or processed fast food.

A Coke commercial, a feel-good propaganda piece featuring the sugar-ladened soft drink enjoyed by an energetic lady on roller skates.
Sorry, I don't assault my pancreas on a daily basis.

And finally, in the ultimate irony...

A pharmaceutical commercial for diabetes medications.
Now we know the rollerskating Coke-drinking lady was gliding to the pharmacy to fix all the garbage she consumed that was just advertised.

Altogether, this series of commercials highlighted the power of The Costanza Principle, inspired initially by the memorable Seinfeld character, George Costanza. In that episode, George gets tired of complying with cultural expectations and does the opposite, with meaningful results.

Here are the 4 simple ideas which frame the Constanza Principle and how you can leverage it in your life:

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/the-costanza-principle-the-secret-to-your-best-life.107836/

The Parable of Value, Context, and Self-Worth

Storytelling is one of the best ways to change minds and force comprehension.

I’ve taken the liberty to rewrite a short parable that highlights the power of context, environment, and knowledge.

Hope you enjoy, lots of great takeaways in this one.
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A grandmother congratulated her granddaughter on graduating college. She told her, “I want to give you a graduation present. It is an old painting we’ve had in the family for years. It is yours, but before you decide what to do with it, I want you to understand what it is worth.”

The granddaughter examined the picture, which was slightly larger than a paper notepad and featured a portrait of a Victorian woman. Its frame was golden and gaudy, certainly not something she’d hang in her apartment.

Her grandmother continued, handing her daughter a list, “Here are four locations that will help you find its value. The first option is the estate sale I’m holding next week. You’ll be on your own for the last three places. Don’t make a decision on what to do with the picture until you’ve visited all four places.”

Continue reading at the forum...

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/the-parable-of-value-context-and-self-worth.108063/