The journey to your first million in revenue is not what you think it is. It's not about finding a "growth hack" or a "silver bullet." It's not about building a perfectly automated, infinitely scalable machine. The truth is, the things that get you to your first million are often the very things that don't scale. It's the unsexy, unscalable, and often unglamorous work that lays the foundation for future growth.
The Unscalable Things That Get You to Your First Million
Here are a few of the unscalable things that you'll likely have to do on your journey to seven figures:
- Manual Recruiting: You'll spend hours personally reaching out to potential customers on LinkedIn, Twitter, and email. You'll have one-on-one conversations, you'll build genuine relationships, and you'll do it all by hand.
- White-Glove Onboarding: You'll personally onboard every new customer. You'll walk them through your product, you'll answer their questions, and you'll make sure they're set up for success.
- Over-the-Top Customer Support: You'll go above and beyond to solve your customers' problems. You'll answer emails at all hours of the night, you'll jump on a call at a moment's notice, and you'll do whatever it takes to make them happy.
"Do things that don't scale." - Paul Graham
The Unscalable Advantage
The reason these unscalable activities are so powerful is that they create a deep connection with your early customers. They turn them into loyal fans, into evangelists who will sing your praises to anyone who will listen. They create a foundation of trust and goodwill that will be invaluable as you start to scale.
The journey to your first million is a grind. It's a series of unsexy, unscalable tasks that you'll have to do day in and day out. But it's also the most important work you'll ever do. It's where you'll learn the most about your customers, your product, and yourself. So, embrace the unscalable. It's the only way to get to where you want to go.