You skipped three steps…

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately.

When someone wants to achieve something big, the default advice is always the same: “Just jump in and start grinding.”

Work harder. Move faster. Hustle longer.

And to be fair, effort does matter, grinding has its place.

But in my experience, that’s rarely the thing that actually moves the needle. 

Most people don’t fail because they aren’t willing to work.

They fail because they start working before they know what they’re actually building.

There are a few steps that come before the grind. Most people skip them.

Today in 3 minutes or less:

✔️ "Growth" isn't a goal

✔️ The uncomfortable 10 minutes

✔️ Buy it, borrow it, or build around it

✔️ THIS is when it gets fun

✔️ The real secret sauce

 🙅 "Growth" isn't a goal

This part sounds obvious, but it’s shocking how many people never actually do it.

They want “growth.”
They want “more freedom.”
They want “success.”

Cool. What does that mean?

Before you do anything else, decide where you're going. Not vaguely. Not someday. A real target. Something you can actually aim at.

“I want to hit $50K/month by September."

"I want to take Fridays off by Q3."

"I want to stop doing XYZ myself within 60 days.

A real goal. A clear target. Something you can aim at.

You can’t hit what you don’t define.

😬 The uncomfortable 10 minutes

This is the uncomfortable one. And it’s the one most people avoid.

You have to slow down long enough to ask: 

You have to slow down long enough to ask: What am I actually good at? And where am I… not?

Not in a self-critical way. In a self-aware way.

Because pretending you’re great at everything doesn’t make you strong. It just makes you fragile.

Real confidence comes from knowing where you're solid and where you're shaky.

Most people skip this because it's uncomfortable. And then they wonder why they keep hitting the same walls.

🧱 Buy it, borrow it, or build around it

Once you know where you’re weak, the goal isn’t to magically fix everything yourself.

The goal is to cover those gaps.

That might mean:

• Buy the expertise
  

• Borrow it
  

• Build a team that fills in what you're missing

You don’t need to be great at everything. You need a system that’s great in spite of you.

That’s when things start to scale.

👯 THIS is when it gets fun

Now comes the grind. But it’s different.

You’re not pushing uphill alone anymore. You’re moving with people who know what they’re doing.

People who care. People who are chasing excellence alongside you.

The work is still hard. But it doesn't feel like dragging a boulder up a mountain solo.

That's the difference between burning out in 18 months and building something that actually lasts.

Doing everything yourself isn't discipline. It's a bottleneck you're calling a badge of honor.

 🫙 The Real Secret Sauce

Honestly, I wouldn’t be anywhere without my team.

And I don't mean that in a "teamwork makes the dream work" poster kind of way. I mean it literally.

They’re the ones who turn ideas into reality. 

They’re the ones who catch things I miss. 

They’re the ones who make the vision bigger than what I could pull off on my own.

When you build around your weaknesses, momentum stops being dependent on your energy level.

Progress continues even when you step away.

The business becomes something that works with you instead of because of you.

If you're trying to do it all yourself, it's usually not because you're driven. It's because you skipped the honest audit.

And if you fix that? Everything downstream gets easier.

Your Move Today

If this all feels a little big, don’t overthink it. You don’t need a master plan, you need your next right step.

• Write down exactly what you’re aiming for right now.
  

• Make an honest list of what you’re great at and what you’re not.
  

• Identify one role, process, or tool that could cover a weak spot.
  

• Start doing the hard work with other people, not in isolation. (PSST… Scroll down to the Golden Nugget for how to do that 👀 )

That’s how big goals stop feeling heavy and start feeling possible.

Because big goals aren’t achieved by lone wolves. 

They’re built by teams that know where they’re going and why they need each other.

To profiting more and working less. 💸 

-Matt

👑 GOLDEN NUGGET OF THE WEEK

I just spent this whole newsletter talking about not grinding alone. Here's your chance to actually do something about it.

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Spots are limited and filling up.

See what it's about.

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