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Oliver Buchannon
Nitchev Casseus

Counterintuitive Business

Feb 24, 2026

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10 min read

Counterintuitive Business

This segment explores the concept of "Psycho-Logic" from advertising legend Rory Sutherland’s book, Alchemy. You’ll learn why obsessing over making your product faster, cheaper, or objectively "better" can sometimes destroy its perceived value, and how introducing irrational friction is sometimes the ultimate growth lever.

The Herbie Problem

Feb 17, 2026

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10 min read

The Herbie Problem

This segment explores the "Theory of Constraints" from Eliyahu Goldratt’s legendary business novel, The Goal. You’ll learn why trying to improve every department in your company simultaneously is a rookie mistake, and why optimizing your strongest team members might actually be destroying your business.

Process vs. Result

Feb 10, 2026

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13 min read

Process vs. Result

This segment explores the "Value Equation" from Alex Hormozi’s pricing playbook, $100M Offers. You’ll learn exactly which variables to prioritize to turn a commodity into a Grand Slam Offer, and how crushing the "bottom of the equation"—Time Delay and Effort—can allow you to charge a premium for the exact same deliverable.

Fire then Aim

Feb 3, 2026

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13 min read

Fire then Aim

This segment explores the "Break-Even Mandate" from Michael Masterson’s scaling guide, Ready, Fire, Aim. You’ll learn why trying to make a profit on your first transaction is often a rookie mistake that caps your growth, and how the "Columbia House" strategy of losing money upfront is actually the secret to acquiring customers at scale. It’s a lesson in shifting your focus from making a quick buck to acquiring a long-term asset.

The Narrow Bridge

Jan 27, 2026

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14 min read

The Narrow Bridge

This segment explores the "Law of Sacrifice" from Al Ries and Jack Trout’s marketing classic, The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing. You’ll learn why the pride of being a "multipotentialite" can actually be a financial anchor, and how narrowing your focus—though it feels like losing money—is the only way to build the momentum and efficiency required to actually scale.

Don't Bill by the Hour

Jan 20, 2026

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12 min read

Don't Bill by the Hour

This segment breaks down Alan Weiss’s value-based pricing philosophy from Million Dollar Consulting. You’ll see why charging by the hour is an act of self-sabotage that penalizes your expertise, and how to decouple your income from your effort to stop grinding and start scaling.

The Ownership Shift

Jan 13, 2026

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11 min read

The Ownership Shift

This segment breaks down L. David Marquet’s radical leadership framework from Turn the Ship Around!: The Leader-Leader Model. You’ll learn why your "helpful" instructions are actually creating a team of passive followers, and how to use a simple linguistic switch to instantly create ownership.

The Infinite Game

Jan 6, 2026

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11 min read

The Infinite Game

This segment breaks down James Clear’s definitive philosophy on progress from Atomic Habits: The Systems-First Framework. You’ll learn why your goals are actually hindering your progress and how to re-engineer your daily operations for inevitable success.

The Franchise Prototype

Dec 31, 2025

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13 min read

The Franchise Prototype

This segment dives into the statistical reality of small business failure and the specific structural pivot that allowed companies like McDonald's and 1-800-GOT-JUNK? to scale. You will learn why "knowing your trade" is statistically the biggest risk to your solvency, and how to replicate the "Franchise Prototype" model even if you have no intention of ever selling a franchise.

The Gardener at War

Dec 16, 2025

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12 min read

The Gardener at War

This segment dives into Ben Horowitz’s brutal distinction between Peacetime and Wartime management. You'll learn why the democratic, culture-focused habits that help a company expand are often the exact same habits that will kill it during a crisis.

The Trap of the "Good" Opportunity

Dec 9, 2025

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11 min read

The Trap of the "Good" Opportunity

If It’s Not a "Hell Yes," It’s a No This segment explores the ruthless discipline required to reclaim your time, based on Greg McKeown's Essentialism. You’ll learn why the word "priority" was never meant to be plural, and how to apply the "90% Rule" to stop drowning in opportunities that are actually distractions.

Being Nice Is Ruining Your Team

Dec 2, 2025

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13 min read

Being Nice Is Ruining Your Team

This segment exposes why polite feedback often fails. You’ll learn why the "compliment sandwich" is a tool for the well-intentioned but avoidant, and why directness—adapted to your team's specific needs—is the ultimate act of kindness.

Tactical Empathy

Nov 25, 2025

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10 min read

Tactical Empathy

This segment explores the counterintuitive negotiation framework from former FBI hostage negotiator Chris Voss's Never Split the Difference. You'll learn why "meeting in the middle" is often the worst possible outcome, and how to use "Tactical Empathy" to get what you want without burning bridges.

The Power of "Because"

Nov 18, 2025

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12 min read

The Power of "Because"

This segment explores a foundational principle from Robert Cialdini's Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. You'll learn the single most important word in persuasion and why providing a reason—even an obvious one—is one of the most powerful and overlooked levers for getting to "yes."

The Clarity of the Hedgehog

Nov 11, 2025

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12 min read

The Clarity of the Hedgehog

This segment explores the defining strategic model from Jim Collins's Good to Great: the Hedgehog Concept. You'll learn the three crucial questions every founder must answer honestly

How to fail properly

Nov 4, 2025

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12 min read

How to fail properly

This segment dives into the powerful, counterintuitive lesson from Eric Ries's The Lean Startup. You'll learn why the number one killer of startups isn't a lack of funding, but the fatal trap of building a perfect product that nobody wants, and how to use the 'Minimum Viable Product' to test your ideas before you waste a single dollar.

The Founder in the Furnace

Oct 28, 2025

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13 min read

The Founder in the Furnace

This segment dives into a surprising pattern discovered across multiple founder interviews. You'll learn why the most resilient entrepreneurs redefine success not by revenue or exits, but by the personal freedom, wisdom, and internal strength they gain on the journey—and why separating your identity from your business is the most critical move you'll ever make.

The Work You Love Is 1% of the Job

Oct 21, 2025

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14 min read

The Work You Love Is 1% of the Job

This segment dives into the dangerous trap many founders fall into: building a company around a skill they love, only to find themselves spending 99% of their time on tasks they hate.

The Underdog Playbook

Oct 14, 2025

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12 min read

The Underdog Playbook

Discover how Mat bypassed entrenched, billion-dollar competitors not by fighting them head-on, but by creating a new market they had completely ignored

The 22-Year-Old Secret That Almost Cost a Founder Everything

Oct 7, 2025

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12 min read

The 22-Year-Old Secret That Almost Cost a Founder Everything

Gary Parsons built a multimillion-pound company, but for over two decades, he was running from the unresolved trauma of his youth. His journey is a powerful warning for every founder about the hidden cost of the "hustle" and why your personal history is a business liability you can't afford to ignore.

It's gonna kill your business, but you're mistaking it for ambition

Sep 30, 2025

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11 min read

It's gonna kill your business, but you're mistaking it for ambition

Dr. Nekeshia Hammond reveals that true, sustainable success is built by detaching your identity from your career and cultivating a holistic view of your life and self-worth. That, plus this week's essential AI tools and the intel you need for your SMB is inside.

Your business is stalling because you are

Sep 23, 2025

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13 min read

Your business is stalling because you are

Sometimes the reason your business fails to launch/grow has more to do with what's going on inside your mind than external factors. Internal work is the most crucial step toward unlocking real growth. That, plus this week's essential AI tools and the intel you need for your SMB is inside.

How do you comeback?

Sep 16, 2025

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13 min read

How do you comeback?

Rock-bottom is a place where the only direction left to go is up, your options made unequivocally clear: You are forced to become your better self or die. That, plus this week's essential AI tools and the intel you need for your SMB is inside.

From Odd Jobs to VR: Finding Wisdom in Failure

Sep 9, 2025

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13 min read

From Odd Jobs to VR: Finding Wisdom in Failure

Through a series of hilarious and costly failures in everything from clothing manufacturing to a high-tech VR startup, Paul demonstrates that the most valuable entrepreneurial education comes from the courage to simply try, fail, and learn. That, plus this week's essential AI tools and the intel you need for your SMB is inside.

Your Next Customer is the One Nobody Else Wants

Sep 2, 2025

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13 min read

Your Next Customer is the One Nobody Else Wants

It was a side project, born from a deep passion for aviation, that ultimately revealed his true mission and the power of building your own way forward. That, plus this week's essential AI tools and the intel you need for your SMB is inside.

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