I’m not qualified for this, but let’s do it anyway!
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3.1min Read Hey — quick story. This week has been BUSY. All good, but nonetheless a lot. We’ve brought in multiple subcontractors, we’ve gotten 27 leads from our Facebook ads, I’m building an AI podcast generator and literally launching a full scale gutter stall still business… Oh, and I had dinner with my kids every night. That last part’s not always guaranteed so I don’t take it for granite. The older I get, the more I realize something no one really told me: This week’s Doughnut is all about blending those worlds — I’ll break down how I’m launching service businesses I don’t physically do… and apps I never learned to code. Let’s get after it. The Subcontractor “Flywheel” Model What this model looks like is a fairly low-operations model. The goal is to be a lead gen machine, get operations down to a T, and build an ecosystem that brings in leads, distributes them to subcontractors, and keeps the flywheel spinning. Here’s what that looks like in reality with the gutter installation business. Our Ecosystem:
We are not gutter installers. But we partner with a subcontractor who is. And he’s dang good at what he does. He’s not a business guy. He doesn’t want to deal with ads, calls, websites, or operations. He just wants to do great work and get paid
He gives us his price. Simple. Scalable. This model can be replicated across other services: painting, turf, fencing, even Christmas lights. But here’s the secret: You don’t need to be the expert at the trade. You need to be the expert at building trust, getting leads, and making the wheels turn. BITES BITE #1 People think building apps is some high-IQ endeavor. It’s not. Seriously. I’ve never taken a CS course. I don’t know Python. I’m learning this stuff literally in between diaper changes, lawn quotes, and police shifts. But here’s what I do know
That combo alone lets me build useful, working software. The secret isn’t being smart. It’s being curious enough to try and dumb enough not to quit. I’ve shipped more products in 6 months than I did in the previous 6 years. Not because I’m super smart (I’m not). But because I finally stopped waiting to “feel ready.” You don’t need a roadmap. You need momentum. It’s still in progress, but let me break this down for you and potentially get your feedback if you have any. I’m calling it Vibecaster— AI will curate a daily personalized podcast for you in the topics you choose and want to hear about. Delivered to you daily or weekly through email or text or whatever Basically— So you (the user) will select 3-5 interests and then the system will pull the top posts, stories, trends, etc from the trusted sources we provide. It summarizes and distills the info and then presents it in a daily brief. This could even be used to learn new information, study for an exam or even like a research assistant for specific research tasks. Example— “I want to understand the most up to date events happening in the world of AI right now” Boom! podcast generated. And all of this can be done in different languages. This is like Media as a Service (MaaS) This is pretty much built. It’s operable. It’s awesome… but THE QUESTION: But it’s amazing. It’s a huge help to learn, distill and curate knowledge… But if not for this specific use case, what use case could it be for? I don’t know… but that’s definitely what we need to figure out. Any input you have is always welcome! BITE #3 BITE #4
Wrapping It Up I’m not a general contractor. I’m not a coder.
That’s it. That’s the empire formula. Stay in the fight, P.S. If you’re building something right now — no matter how messy — hit reply. I’d love to hear about it. Maybe we jam on it together. My best tweet this week:
My favorite tweet this week:
Other places to find me:🐥 Twitter 🎙️ Podcast 🎥 YouTube ✍️ Personal Blog 🧑💻 Medium 📸 IG 🔗 LinkedIn 🙋🏻♂️ About Me📚 What I'm Reading✏️ What I'm Writing 🧱 What I'm Doing📌 Pinned Article |
Sunday Doughnuts By Kevin Bell
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