Most days running a business, you plan five things and get one done.
Launchpad was that, except you had to get all five things done because you had TV cameras on you the entire time.
When we got here, Finn and I hadn’t made a penny. Heading hadn’t officially launched.
Two weeks later, we’re walking out with £7k a month in recurring revenue. That’s 80-odd thousand pounds a year.
And I’m proud of that. But as Stan Launchpad wraps up, the number isn’t what I keep thinking about. It’s the process that allowed it to happen.
Ever wondered how AI like ChatGPT decides which products and businesses to recommend in an answer?
Well it turns out it’s not random, far from it. There are very specific actions you can take to push your business to be recommended by AI.
Okay but how do I know if it’s working? And what searches is it recommending me for?
These are the kinds of questions that feel impossible to answer without endless testing.
On Tuesday at 1pm London (BST) / 8am New York (EDT) we’ll be showing you the inner workings of these models and exactly how to manipulate them directly with our product: Heading.
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If you don’t know the answers to these questions you’re leaving revenue on the table.
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For 14 days, my co-founder Finn and I did nothing but work on the business. Add the fact it’s all part of a televised competition, saying there’s no time to think or reflect on your decisions would be a colossal understatement.
The invaluable upside is that it let us move things further than we ever could have on a normal timescale. Every day was a new problem, a new solution, putting out fires left and right, and then immediately on to the next thing.
It’s funny, this contrast reminded me of something I do.
Once a year I take a week out to reflect. Actually it’s an idea I picked up from Bill Gates, who used to do one every quarter.
I go away on my own, have a bit of a digital detox. You’ll know what I’m talking about, take a notebook, some books, and force myself to switch off (as much as any of us can).
I had this thought because Launchpad could not be any more opposite to that idea. You’re with your team and you’re driving the business relentlessly with this high pressure artificial intensity added by the show.
And in a way, that’s my biggest takeaway. Last time I spoke about how important it is to get back in the weeds now and then, and I’m going to commit to that.
Every year now, for at least a couple of weeks, I want to lock in like this. Not with a competition and TV cameras (that would be mental). Just go away for two weeks and work on the business, with no distractions.
I think most of us founders as we progress, we forget to give the business that kind of attention. We just give it the time that’s left after everything else.
I know I just spoke about how much I loved that pressure cooker environment, but there’s always things that one thing you wish had gone better.
For me it was the pitch. That said, I think we did a pretty good job. But Finn and I both came out of it feeling we could have done better. Naturally, time wasn’t on our side, a few more days to prepare would have made a real difference.
And that’s the tough part of locking in so intensely. It’s brilliant for moving a business forward. But when everything’s moving that fast, you can’t always give everything the attention it deserves. The parts that need a bit more care don’t always get it.
The good news is it won’t be the last time we pitch Heading. We’re just starting our capital raising journey, so it was good practice.
Write down a single problem in your business that would get your full attention if you had two clear weeks. Then ask your team and see if your answers are the same.
If it’s the same, I think you have your answer as to what to prioritise.
Time to lock in,
- Luke
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