My First Million
The best business ideas come from noticing what's working and doing it better, faster, or for a different audience.
Plant Your Flag Strategy
Committing deeply to one core thesis or vision rather than constantly iterating and pivoting based on market feedback
How It Works
Works by allowing you to push through the inevitable resistance and lukewarm initial results that most successful ideas face, while building deep expertise and conviction
Components
Identify your core thesis/vision that you're willing to bet years on
Commit publicly to this direction to create accountability
Try 50+ different executions within the same thesis rather than changing thesis
Ignore adjacent opportunities and shiny objects that could distract
Measure progress on leading indicators, not just revenue
When to Use
When you have strong conviction about a problem/solution fit, even if market validation is unclear initially. Best for markets that don't exist yet or need education.
When Not to Use
When you have no users after 18+ months of real effort, when core assumptions are proven fundamentally wrong, or when you're just guessing without conviction
Anti-Patterns to Avoid
Example
“Calm spent years trying different approaches to meditation (Do Nothing for 2 Minutes app, Checky phone addiction tracker, sleep stories) but never pivoted away from their core thesis that meditation could be mainstream. Even when it seemed uncool and lacked investor interest, they kept iterating within meditation rather than pivoting to messaging or delivery apps.”