Elon Musk credits one single mental framework as "the most effective strategy" that he's used to build a $228 billion net worth.
And, by applying it to my online business, I was able to scale to $50m+ in less than 2 years, in niches/markets that many would call "saturated" or simply too competitive to be profitable.
What is this mental framework?
It's called First Principles Thinking. And, if you use it correctly, you can blow past your competitors without working any harder than you already are.
First Principles Thinking involves breaking down something (a business model, a product, a process, etc.) to it's core, foundational building blocks.
Then, we can begin to question WHY these core building blocks are so important, and in doing so, find gaps in efficiency that are our competitors are overlooking.
Essentially, it's thinking like a scientist. And scientists NEVER assume anything.
They start with questions like, What are we absolutely sure is true? What has been proven?
In doing so, we can find "profit gaps" that our competitors are overlooking, because they are assuming things that are not actually true.
For example, when starting SpaceX, Elon was shocked by the massive investment it costs to buy rockets (~$65 million), causing him to question whether it would be cheaper to build re-usable rockets from scratch himself.
Turns out, it was. SpaceX now produces re-usable rockets at 10% of the price that used to be considered normal.
And now, SpaceX has overtaken NASA as America's primary contractor for space exploration, thanks to their more profitable business model.
Now, how does this apply to YOUR business, and making more while working less?
Well, the most common problem I see with most online business owners these days is that everyone has a "me too" offer.
Instead of competing on unique selling factors, they compete by adding random nonsense to their offer that they think makes it sound better.
"Get 100 new customers or your money back!"
"Sign up today and get my never-before-seen masterclass!!"
"Get xyz result in 30 days or I'll pay you $100!!!"
Most people ASSUME that these things make them sound better than their competitors. But the truth is, most people never even remember half the extra fluff that you include in your offer.
The way to differentiate is on your core, foundational building blocks of your offer. NOT on your guarantee, your bonuses, or how fast you promise results. All of that stuff is the cherry on top, but it's not going to yield a big pendulum swing in performance.
If you want to stand out in a noise-y market, you need to apply First Principles Thinking.
Ask yourself:
— WHY do my customers actually buy my offer? What problem are they truly solving?
— What is unique about my approach to solving xyz problem? What part of my offer actually makes people's ears perk up?
— What is wrong with the way that most other competitors try to solve xyz problem? What assumption are they making that is ultimately false?
—What do my customers actually WANT? What would make them satisfied with my offer even if they hated me as a person? (lol)
List out as many answers to these questions as possible and I guarantee you have something in there that you are assuming that is not actually true.
From there, you can actually begin to reverse-engineer a better solution, just as Musk was able to do with rockets.
In typical marketer fashion, you can use ChatGPT to help you with this.
Use this prompt: "I want you to act as a business analyst applying First Principles Thinking. My business is about [solving xyz problem] and my primary customers are [customer avatar]. My main offer [your offer] helps people by [your unique approach], which is different than my competitors who mainly [competitor approach]. How would you apply First Principles Thinking to identify the strongest unique selling points of my offer, to stand out from competitors?"
I credit this framework to be the core foundation of how I was able to scale 3 different offers to over $50m+, in industries and niches that many would call "saturated" or simply too competitive to be profitable.
Give it a shot and let me know how it goes.
-Lucas |