The Minimalist Entrepreneur: How Great Founders Do More with Less

Hire software, not humans. People are expensive. Software is not, usually because a lot of it is VC-subsidized in the name of growth.

Start by educating, then inspiring, then entertaining. Each of these three levels of content is more far-reaching than the last.

Marketing is sales at scale. Remember that before we built a minimum viable product, we had a manual valuable process. And before you can have marketing, you need to sell to your first hundred customers; that’s because sales is the process upon which you build marketing. While sales is outbound and one-by-one, marketing is inbound and about attract... See more

“I’m creating longevity by building a foundation more slowly,” she says, “so I ask myself, ‘What is the next smallest step I can take?’ ” That has allowed Rainbow Road to grow in a way that feels sustainable for the company and for the world. “I can grow something really substantial with baby steps, so I’m not afraid of taking the longer path.”

When they do build, minimalist entrepreneurs build only what they need to, automating or outsourcing the rest.

If people are only sharing your product because they are being financially rewarded for it, it is unsustainable.

Nordstrom, for example, is famed for its customer service. In one iconic story, a customer brings a set of tires to the store to return even though Nordstrom sells clothes, not tires. The store accepts the tires anyway and fully refunds the customer. In another tale, a clerk who can’t find the right pair of shoes at any nearby Nordstrom store recom... See more

For example, I published my Work article (sahillavingia.com/work) after addressing 600 comments from 150 people. That is extreme, but it meant hundreds of thousands of people read something better.

You don’t have to blog four times a week if a monthly newsletter with meaningful content is what you can manage and is more suited to your business. As with social media, experiment with how best to use your email list. If you send something out and readers unsubscribe en masse, don’t do that again. But if you offer your knowledge, your insights, y... See more

If you’re lucky, you may be able to get away with building almost nothing. If you’ve solved a true pain point for real people, they won’t fault the simplicity of your offering but appreciate you for it. Some will even ask to pay. This is the exciting part: You made your first dollar on the internet. You crossed the great divide from zero to one. Yo... See more