Hello and happy Sunday!

Stop Running From Emotions—And Start Being More Productive

Emotion avoidance may seem like a coping mechanism, but it drains productivity and blocks personal growth. In his latest column, Michael Ashcroft argues that we should stop running from our feelings and instead embrace them, no matter how uncomfortable they are. By doing so, we allow these emotions to change and move through us, ultimately achieving transformative growth. This approach is not just about mental health but also about increasing productivity and tapping into your full potential.

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The Internet Demands Greatness

The internet is a grand stage, where the rewards of success are huge but attention is scarce. If no one is paying attention, though, how do you break through?

The answer lies in taking risks: the internet only rewards outsized bets. Luckily, scarce attention means that if you fail, no one cares. In this essay, Evan explores three key strategies to create outsized returns on the internet: thrill your customers, ship as quickly as possible, and create a new category.

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How I Bought a Business for $0

Food entrepreneur Justin Mares was looking for a small SaaS business to acquire when he stumbled across Notify, a Shopify plugin that he acquired for a whopping $0 out-of-pocket.

Mares recounts his journey from admiring Notify's potential to successfully growing it into a million-dollar business. He attributes his success to a unique negotiating strategy: choosing either price or terms. Mares walks through his playbook of negotiation, business evaluation, and leveraging existing revenues for acquisitions. He also points to a few areas where he sees opportunities to buy and scale small assets.

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The Psychological Needs of the Extremely Ambitious

If you want to change the world, one place you might start is to raise the ceiling of human accomplishment. There are many ways to do this, but an overlooked one is to address the psychological needs of ambitious founders.

Dr. Gena Gorlin argues that the unique pressures and demands of entrepreneurs requires its own specialized form of psychological intervention. Helping entrepreneurs function better might be one of the highest-impact ways we can push society forward—in this essay, Gorlin explains how.

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Power Laws Have More Power Than You Think

In the world of infinite content, hits will continue to dominate, argues media expert Doug Shapiro. He explains how mechanisms like information cascades and reputational cascades on the internet bolster hits—and erode the middle.

This article provides a detailed perspective on the power laws that govern the distribution of online content, how luck drives hits, and how top talent benefits from it all.

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That's it for this week!