Hello, CubeBreakers!

Let’s get one thing out of the way first - I have no idea WTF I’m doing. This is my first newsletter. So be nice. Or not. Feedback is welcome.

Some of you gave me your email address years ago and never heard from me (sorry!). So please unsubscribe if you have no idea why you’re getting this. We’re looking at ~18 people or so. Pretty elite company. You should stick around.

To prove I have no idea what I’m doing, here I am Sunday morning re-writing this entire first edition…

Which has been done since Monday.

Why? Because I had an epiphany this week. One of those “ah-ha” moments of clarity that you remember forever.

So let’s get to it.

The Situation

Let’s start by looking at this sketch I shared on Twitter this week.

I know that I’m way left on this curve. I also know that every guru influencer loves to discuss the virtues of action.

“Just do it”

“Start today”

“Stop thinking and start doing”

The Realization

My “ah-ha” moment was something about you - the person reading this right now.

For the purpose of your solo business, you need to understand who your ideal client is.

For the purposes of this newsletter, I need to understand who my “ideal reader” is.

I’ve always known that my ideal reader is basically myself. Except back when I was still in the 9-5.

That means you (the reader) also live way to the left on that curve. You need me to help push you to action, but in a way that fits OUR ethos.

What is Our Ethos?

>We are the planners<

>We are the strategists<

>We are the thinkers<

We are prone to analysis-paralysis, but when we act, we do so with vision, purpose, and clarity.

We aren’t the type who dive in and hope for the best.

There’s no point in discussing what people on the right side of the curve should be doing.

But in my first draft, half of the newsletter was written to people on the right side. Why?

They aren’t going to be reading my newsletter. They don’t have time for that shit. Their entire ethos is different. Not wrong. Just different.

Many Paths Toward Success

If I ever act like my is the only way, smack me upside the head.

Success paths are personal. If you can’t do it on your terms, then what’s the point?

When I was getting started with Zalaco (my engineering services biz), my biggest fear wasn’t failure.

That meant going back to a 9-5 with a good salary and benefits. A first-world problem.

My nightmare scenario was being trapped in business worse than my job ever was. Working 70-hour weeks, for terrible clients, and netting out worse than my old job. 

Trapped in a prison I built for myself.

I’m not scared of taking risks, but they have to be calculated.

So my plan was simple.

>I would model the business I wanted.

>I would design a business that could achieve that model.

>I would develop a framework to implement the model and strategic plan.

I would succeed or fail on my own terms.

My deep suspicion is that 90% of folks who stick around on this newsletter live with me on the far left end of that curve.

So that’s who I’ll be writing to.

Our goal is to find balance by taking action.

But not the “just launch” kind of action.

Because guess what?

>Modeling your business IS taking action.

>Developing a strategic plan IS taking action.

>Implementing a launch framework before you launch IS taking action.

That’s how we’re going to do things here. That doesn’t mean the “throw shit at the wall and see what sticks” crowd is wrong.

They’ll find stuff that sticks.

But we won’t fail as often. We know how to mitigate risks. Learn from others.

So that’s the takeaway from this hastily rewritten first edition of the CubeBreakers newsletter.

It’s OK to be methodical. It’s OK to spend time planning. Strategizing. Thinking. 

I opened this newsletter with a quote from Dwight D. Eisenhower.

In preparing for battle, I have always found that plans are useless but planning is indispensable.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

I want to sear this quote into your brain.

Your plan is NOT going to work.

But it’s the process of planning that prepares your brain for the challenges ahead.

Ever hear football coaches talk?

“You don’t win the game on Sunday. You win the game Monday thru Saturday”

Nothing great is accomplished without putting in the work. Your plan won’t be perfect. But the process of planning prepares you for what’s ahead.

You don’t win a Super Bowl by winging it on Sundays.

You don’t make it to the moon by shooting rockets over and over again until you stumble on the right trajectory.

That’s what this newsletter is going to be about.

Doing the up-front work to maximize our chances for success when we do launch.

Until next time - LFG.

Zack