Forget Equity. Pay People Real Money.
It's the small things that count. And the only way to get good at anything is to do it.
Life is awesome, irrespective of the cards you’ve been dealt by circumstances. I build businesses with people I like to pursue a rich emotional and financial life. I share lessons I learn along the way.
Here are this weeks insights:
It’s The Small Things That Count
Forget Equity. Pay People Real Money.
The Only Way to Get Good at Anything Is to Do It
You can access previous editions of my weekly emails here. Let’s dive in!
(1) It’s The Small Things That Count
The doorbell rang after sunset.
A man struggled to pull a massive bouquet of flowers out of the car. I struggled to take it inside. It must have weighed 10 kilos.
Me: “Who sent these?”
Stranger: “There should be a card in there.”
I opened the card and realized my wife had sent me flowers for Valentine’s Day.
It’s easy to get caught up in the big goals, the big milestones, the big moments.
But in the end, what really sticks?
It’s the small things. A kind message. A moment of laughter. A handwritten note. A simple I appreciate you.
At work, in life, in relationships—the small things compound into the big things.
(2) Forget Equity. Pay People Real Money.
I am such a fan of Jason and David. I have read their books 📚 - ReWork and It Doesn't Have To Be Crazy At Work. And I use their product Basecamp to organize my life.
As an entrepreneur I look up to these guys as the gold standard. They make money and are more than fair to their employees and their community. Copy them as much as you can. Emulating the best is not cheating. It's beating the average.
Real profits, shared.
One of the most rewarding things about running a profitable business is rewarding others with a share of the profits.
For years we've had a profit share system in place where we take 10% of our annual profits and distribute them to our employees based on their tenure.
For years we've been knocked by the valley/VC crew for not offering equity. We think we offer something better: Real cash, every year, directly to our employees, when we show a profit. And given that we've been profitable for 25 years, it's not a maybe-one-day-dream, it's been an annual reality. Never a guarantee, but far more reliable than equity that runs at the whim of a public or illiquid private market, rounds of dilution, preferred vs. common, etc.
And for 2024, I'm especially proud to say that we've been able to distribute 6-figure profit shares to 20 employees. That's over a third of our company, including folks in customer service, design, programming, ops/SIP, HR.
The rest who were eligible received 5-digit shares, with a few employees new to the pool earning 4-digit shares.
Real cash people can spend today on real things today. Not fantasy maybe money later.
Last year was an especially great year for us. Both on the revenue side and cost side. We saw a double-digit boost on the top line, and cut our costs significantly at the same time. The result: more money to our profit-share eligible employees. And a lot of it.
Independent, self-funded, profitable, 25-years and running. We wouldn't have it any other way.If you want to read more about how we do profit sharing, it's in our handbook:
https://basecamp.com/handbook/benefits-and-perks#employee-profit-sharing
(3) The Only Way to Get Good at Anything Is to Do It
"I think you can become confident in any skill by just doing it so many times that you get bored of doing it.
As long as you don't let your first failure, become your last failure, it wasn't a failure.
You will get there, but for now you grind.
And it will pay off in either what you build or who you become along the way."
I love those words from Alex Hormozi because it instills a win-win, you have nothing to lose, attitude.
I win - because it pays off
I win - because of who I become in the process
I have nothing to lose - because either scenario provides positive outcomes
This reminds me to keep on going; to not fear the imaginative beast of failure.
Most people stop before they ever get good. I never want to stop.
Most people quit before the repetitions start to pay off. I have kept at it so that the repetitions eventually pay off.
✅ The Only Way to Get Good at Anything Is to Do It
The only way to get good at teaching is to teach.
The only way to get good at sales is to sell.
The only way to get good at writing is to write.
The only way to get good at podcasting is to record.
Reps are the only way forward.
Thank you for reading. If you’re curious about the businesses I build, here they are:
Ideals VDR - We help professionals to collaborate over sensitive data and run critical business transactions, such as M&A, smoothly.
Happy Ratio - Delicious, nutritious foods and drinks designed for busy lives. No fuss, just health made simple.
Marcellus Investment Managers - Where my personal investments grow. Their philosophy of investing in clean, honest, cash flow-positive businesses aligns with my approach. (Do your due diligence before investing!)
Harsh Batra (LinkedIn)