WORK LESS WEDNESDAY
WLW #154
👋 Hey Reader!
This is issue #154 of Work Less Wednesday, where I share with you 5 things you should know about, in 5 minutes or less. That leaves you with 10,075 other minutes this week.
🏦 1. New Video – How To Build Wealth As A Solopreneur (Don’t Make My Mistake)
I should be rich by now.
That’s a joke. But also kind of not.
When I shut down my agency in 2023, I did a final breakdown of the business’ finances:
$4m+ earned over a decade.
And nothing to show for it.
This week’s video breaks down my story, what I learned, what I’m doing to build wealth now, and the 6 steps you can follow to build real wealth as a solopreneur.
You can watch the full 41 minute video here, or catch the audio version on my podcast.
💰 2. Book I’m Reading – Positioning For Professionals by Tim Williams
“The goal of business strategy is not just to be better, but different.”
This book dropped 15 YEARS AGO.
In 2025, when everything is a copy of a copy of a copy of a copy, it feels more relevant than ever.
“When you really think about it, copying someone else’s business model demonstrates an incredible lack of creativity and imagination. Yet most business and brands are just copies of someone else’s.”
At 200 pages, it’s definitely worth a read.
🧠 3. Sam Altman On Productivity – Blog Post From 2018
Dug up this gem from Sam Altman in 2018 (pre-OpenAI CEO era).
Here are 3 quotes I liked:
1️⃣ Productivity Compounds Over Time
Compound growth gets discussed as a financial concept, but it works in careers as well, and it is magic. A small productivity gain, compounded over 50 years, is worth a lot. So it’s worth figuring out how to optimize productivity. If you get 10% more done and 1% better every day compared to someone else, the compounded difference is massive.
2️⃣ What You Work On Matters Most
It doesn’t matter how fast you move if it’s in a worthless direction. Picking the right thing to work on is the most important element of productivity and usually almost ignored. So think about it more! Independent thought is hard but it’s something you can get better at with practice.
3️⃣ Most People Don’t Value Their Time Enough
I don’t think most people value their time enough—I am surprised by the number of people I know who make $100 an hour and yet will spend a couple of hours doing something they don’t want to do to save $20.
🤖 4. New AI Tool I’m Exploring – Manus
Check out the demo, it’s pretty interesting.
🖐 5. More Things I’m Into This Week…
☕️ East Fork Drops Another Classic – The Matisse Collection
🎧 Deep Work Playlist I’m Ironically Loving (And Unironically Is Great For Working) – Succession Music to Work With Kendall Roy
💡 Lamp I’m Thinking About Buying – Lop Lamp by Bang
🧵 Great Twitter Thread With Interviews Of Jungian Psychoanalyst James Hollis ⬇️
💬 Quote I’m Pondering – Rick Rubin On Inspiration (From The Creative Act)
In terms of priority, inspiration comes first. You come next. The audience comes last. These are special moments and are to be treated with the utmost devotion. Our schedules are set aside when these fleeting moments of illumination come. Summon your strength and commit yourself on behalf of this offering, even when it arises at an inopportune time. This is the serious artist’s obligation.