From Lost and Founder to Chill Work
Why Rand Fishkin dislikes the term lifestyle business, how he views some of his biggest business regrets, and his definition of chill work
Hi Friends,
“When you’re in debt to the truth, the interest rate sucks.” That’s just one of many so-true-it-hurts gems in Rand Fishkin’s 2018 book Lost and Founder, an accounting of his leadership journey through the often-Faustian bargain of building a company through venture funding, for all but a select few types of start-ups who do benefit from that route.
In the latest Free Time conversation, Rand shares why he dislikes the term lifestyle business, how he views some of his biggest business regrets in hindsight, his definition of chill work, and how he’s building his new business through open-sourced angel funding (and profit sharing) with a Delightfully Tiny Team of three.
Now onto this week's goodies . . .
💌 Time Well Spent Roundup
🎉 Featured
I was thrilled to be a guest on Khe Hy's new Rad Friends podcast exploring the status games we play (consciously and unconsciously). If you enjoy this conversation, check out our mini 5-convo Spotify playlist »
⚙️ Tips & Tools
You know I live my entire life in Notion, to the point where I get sad when I have to open external links! Tune into this recent Free Time conversation with Karen Allen on how we use it for Client-Facing Pages.
Be sure to also check out our earlier one on how she bounced back after tragically losing her husband, balancing free time while being a mom and business owner through systems thinking — yes, she is as brilliant and inspiring as she sounds!
+ Join us in BFF to get my recent bonus episode on Hard work vs. hard work.
📣 This edition of Time Well Spent is brought to you by Inbox Done
How many hours have you spent on email today?
How many hours have you spent on email this week?
What would happen if it was someone else's job to reply for you?Thankfully, Inbox Done is here to help! When you become a client, they assign two email assistants (not software or AI) who custom build a system to filter, reply to, and follow up on your messages to reach inbox zero every day (cue angels singing!). Your assistants can also manage your calendar, write social media replies, follow up with leads, create SOPs, help plan events, and more.
More good news! Inbox Done is offering Free Timers a complimentary strategy session to see if delegating email could work for you.
💬 Quote
"The uncanny truth is that those 'hardest parts' and 'easiest parts' [of running a business] say less about the challenges, and more about the strengths and weaknesses of the founders themselves. We all believe the problems and experiences we face are the most common ones, the ones every founder must struggle against. It’s inherent in the psychological principle known as availability heuristic bias.
. . . You might not even realize which knowledge you lack (unknown unknowns, amirite?). A founder’s weaknesses are often baked into the company’s DNA and create a figurative kind of debt (nonideal practices or systems) that must be addressed before progress can be made."
—Rand Fishkin, Lost and Founder
💭 Question
What personal weaknesses of yours might be baked into your business?
How can you identify just one to bolster in the next few months?
(Assuming you can spot it in the first place. Start by looking for friction areas, where things fall through the cracks, get bottlenecked, or cause problems for your team or customers)
📝 Permission
For an area of your business that feels increasingly difficult, hire help. If that's not an option right now, can you shift how you deliver those services, or even consider pausing (or dropping) this area altogether? You also have permission to take a break while you figure out what's best.
🎙 Podcasting — Recent Episodes
Free Time:
210: ⛵️Knot a Care—Sailing the Free Time Seas with Joy and Ease
207: Geeking Out on Client-Facing Pages + Favorite Notion Templates with Karen Allen
205: Why Paul Millerd Turned Down a $200K Two-Book Traditional Publishing Deal
204: 8 Benefits and Strategies for Managing a Shared Team Inbox (Through HelpScout)
203: Riding the Emotional Roller Coaster of Launching with Natalie Lue
200: 🎉 20+ Free Time Permission Slips for Small Business Owners (Part 1) and Part 2
Subscribe wherever you listen here »
Pivot:
331: The Microstress Effect and What to Do About It with Karen Dillon
330: What Reality TV Teaches Us About Ourselves with Danielle Lindemann
329: Five Types of People-Pleasers from The Joy of Saying No with Natalie Lue
328: Accessing Your True Self Through IFS with Adrian Klaphaak
Subscribe wherever you listen here »
Thank you all for being here reading and listening — it means the world to me!
❤️ With Gratitude,
💌
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