✴️ How I'm Making... #17

Who would you rather have as a coach? Someone who was always great? Or someone who sucked and had to fight tooth and nail to become qualified?

I would always pick the person who sucked.

✏️ Summary

• Do things you’re bad at

• Bad to Good » Good to Good.

• Knowledge → Product

📈 The hidden trick to real success...

1. Do things you’re bad at

Back in my twenties, I spent a lot of time lifting weights. I wasn’t aiming to be a powerlifter or a bodybuilder, but I did dedicate 5-7 hours a week to the gym. Despite all that effort, I hardly ever focused on my chest. I just couldn’t get the same connection with those muscles as I did with the rest of my body.

Since I wasn’t great at it, I ended up neglecting it. This imbalance eventually caused me chronic headaches, and it took about six months of dedicated work to fix the issue. It’s definitely cheaper and easier to tackle the tough stuff right from the start. Now, two years into my entrepreneurial journey, I’m noticing a similar pattern. Facing difficult situations head-on is like a secret weapon.

While it might not be the sole reason for your success, it’s often the hurdle that can keep you from moving forward.

2. Bad to Good » Good to Good

"I used to think I was terrible with words. Back in school, English was my least favorite class, and I dreaded writing essays in any subject. But then, I had a revelation: words have incredible power. Think about it—ads, political campaigns, blockbuster movies—they all start with words. Nowadays, my life is all about words. Whether I'm messaging colleagues, writing emails, or working on this blog, words are at the center of it all.

I had to get better with words, and that meant figuring out where I was lacking and learning how to improve. Now, I understand words better than numbers, even though I'm more skilled at working with numbers. I've learned the power of storytelling and how to use it effectively. I can spot valuable words and weed out the wasteful ones. This understanding didn't come naturally to me; I had to work for it. And that's a unique advantage you can gain too. Tackle the things you're not good at. When you improve, you'll have an edge that's hard to beat.

Just to be clear, I still have a long way to go. I remember reading a lead magnet by my director/writer friend and feeling like Salieri looking at Mozart's masterpieces through the bars of mediocrity."

3. Knowledge → Product

There's been some drama on Twitter about YC not churning out as many blockbuster successes like Airbnb or Doordash. Even if its glory days seem to be in the past, you can't overlook the core principles that made YC what it is today.

One key principle is that founders should have experience in the field they're diving into. Your expertise gives you a leg up. Knowing how to navigate from point A to point B means you can guide others on the same journey. And if a lot of folks need that guidance, you can charge for it.

Turn your knowledge into a product to genuinely make things better. Remember, your edge comes from the hard work you put in to transform from not-so-great to awesome.

🔗 Link: GPT for Devs

If you’re non-technical (like me) you might struggle to build your ideas because of technical roadblocks.

This has been the single greatest time-saver for me. It works like chatgpt but answers better than GPT 4o, and can also generate versions of code + compile them so you can see how your code works.

What’s Next?

I’m building, delivering, and learning. I have a conversation today with someone who is interested in a product for his team, and will continue building my idea for bloggers in the background.

That’s all for now!

I hope you push your dreams a little bit further this coming week. See you next Sunday!

Ben

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