Welcome to a special-edition business breakdown.

Today, we’re celebrating a big milestone: the business crossed 7 figures!

I can’t believe how the past four years have gone. And I’m eternally grateful to be writing to you (beats drilling teeth for a living).

It’s been a while since I wrote a business report (more on why at the end of this email). Let’s take a look.

The Freedom Metre

As a dentist, my diary was rammed with patients. The second I stopped working, I stopped earning. I found this depressing (and oppressing), so my aim as a writer was to earn with my mind instead of my time.

In January 2023, I set a target to make 90% of my revenue ‘high leverage’.

At the time, it was 43%. At the end of November:

$920,000 dollars—mainly from High Impact Writing, the Magnetic Content Masterclass, and recently, Magnetic Emails.

This is an example of what you measure, you improve. But I’m glad I never made 7 figures the target. Freedom has always been the top priority.

But I’ll be honest.

High-leverage assets are great. But I enjoy contact with my customers. I have several small communities associated with my products, but I’m considering introducing something more official in 2025.

But for now, let’s talk moolah.

Business revenue (Dec 2024)

Gross Revenue

It’s been 45 months since I posted my first blog post and 31 months since I made my first dollar.

I’d love to pretend my results were down to my ability. But it’s more a combination of luck, timing, and brute force persistence. Compounding will do more for your success than talent will if you keep learning and working.

Did I expect 7 figures in this window?

Hell no.

It took me 18 bloody months to grow the balls to make an offer! I originally planned to make £2k a month to cover my costs. I just wanted to drink tea, read, and write all day. Turns out these habits are profitable (especially if the Tea is Yorkshire).

Let’s take a closer look at revenue sources.

As you can tell, most of the income is from products. I made a conscious decision to double down on these for three reasons.

1. High leverage
2. More time to write
3. I hate spreading too thin

In January 2023 I was trying to grow 6 revenue sources at once. I hit six figures but was exhausted from spinning too many plates.

I decided to strip away my revenue sources before my hairline made its final retreat.

My monthly income plummeted by 80%.

But 4 months later, my business doubled overnight. It was my first 6 figure launch (with High Impact Writing). Crazily, I’ve had five 6 figure months since.

Lesson:

Don’t spread too thin. And don’t be afraid to go all in.

In fact, the scarier a decision feels, the more you should lean into it. Fear is just your mind telling you where growth opportunities lie. Professionally and personally.

Most of my product revenue comes from High Impact Writing.

But the Magnetic Content Masterclass has been a great addition.

At first I was doubtful—recurring revenue brings recurring problems. But I systemised the delivery and automated the sales process. It now makes $4,000-6,000 per month with just 4-5 hours of work.

Recently, Magnetic Emails entered the fold.

I’m approaching a solid offer library. It’s been hard graft, but my aim is to have a series of products I’m proud of. Products that serve writers better than anyone else.

So far, so good.

Now, revenue doesn’t mean diddly squat unless we talk expenses (keep that in mind when you see 18-year-old kids flexing 7-figure incomes).

So let’s discuss how much I’ve spent.

Expenses

This means 80.3% margins.

A few notes:

Transaction fees

Not much we can do here, I pay the standard stripe/paypal fee. Thrivecart doesn’t take a cut.

Software

I pay $618.06 in monthly software costs. I used to scrimp on software, but if it can save even an hour of my time per month, I’m in (you can see my software stack here).

Wages

I haven’t included my own wage/dividends because I don’t want you to see how I’m blowing all my revenue on cocaine and ladyboys in Thailand (just kidding, I’ve kept my lifestyle costs low since University… money will only change your life if you reinvest it).

I have one full time VA who I pay $1,300/month. I hired her through Somewhere. She’s been amazing. Every ‘solopreneur’ should hire help as soon as they are profitable.

You can always make more money. You can't make more time.

Refunds

My products average a 5% refund rate. It’s an inevitable part of the course business—especially the launch model. But I’m striving to reduce it (so far, it’s dropped by 2%).

Education

I’ve spent a tonne on courses. Less so on cohorts and communities as I prefer self-paced learning. My biggest investment was hiring Olly Richards as a business mentor for $31,000. This paid for itself within the first few months, and I consider him a good friend and teacher.

A note on learning:

If you want to get ahead, embrace intensity.

I had no clue about online business four years ago. I thought copywriting was for lawyers, Twitter for sports commentary, and LinkedIn for squares.

…I was right about LinkedIn.

But the rest has been a rollercoaster of studying, applying, and failing.

You have a serious advantage if you’re willing to look stupid for several years.

Let’s move on to audience growth.

Audience Growth

Newsletter

Writing emails to you is the most enjoyable part of the business. It’s also the most profitable. 90% of my revenue has come from simple, story-based emails, despite my list being 1/10th the size of my social media audience.

Two reasons growth has stalled:

1. I’m selling more (which means more unsubscribes)
2. I’m slacking on social media (because there feels like more important things in life)

My plan in 2025 is to improve growth. I have a few strategies up my sleeve.

Audience Growth

I’m about to cross a quarter of a million followers (when it rains it pours eh).

This is bonkers.

I spent the first 13 months sending blog posts to my mum and closest friends. To have so much reach is insane. And I love every second of writing to you.

But as you can see, my growth has slowed.

Why?

Because your job as a writer is to create fans, not chase followers.

I’ve seen the swill you must post to keep up with algorithms. Hell, I’ve smoked my fair share of the digital dopamine crackpipe. It feels productive (and addictive). But you’re building on foundations of sand.

And the tsunami that is AI is imminent.

All generic writers will be washed away.

So please, heed my warning: resist Incentive Drag. Optimize for making an impression, not the number of impressions. As superficial content floods the Internet, people crave connection. That’s where the opportunity lies in 2025 and beyond.

Write accordingly.

What are my plans now?

This email is dragging so I’ll be brief.

My top priority is to continue improving as a writer. It’s the best way I can serve you. I also plan on tightening up my business. I’ve been building scrappy and it’s an absolute shitshow behind the scenes. I haven’t done an ounce of optimization. We’re working on a metric dashboard and I’ll be running monthly experiments in 2025.

Obviously, the aim is to improve business growth.

But I also want more interesting things to say to you. I got complacent with my building in public posts, so I’ll be restarting monthly business reports and sharing more experiment-based content.

If you enjoy this stuff, would be good to hear from you. Just a quick ‘Hell Yes’ will do.

I’m only human. Your approval is my validation.

Here’s to many more years together 🥂