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October 23, 2024 • 1hr 2min
You Have 70 Days to Win the Year
My First Million
In this episode of My First Million, Sam Parr and Shaan Puri discuss several interesting business topics and strategies, including:
Using the last 70 days of the year to focus on one key priority
The marketing genius of investment advisor Ken Fisher
A proposed 350-foot statue monument for San Francisco
The value of talking to investment bankers before selling a business
The contradictions between VC advice and how VCs actually operate
The hosts share insights from their own experiences as entrepreneurs and investors, while analyzing interesting business models and strategies they've encountered.
You Have 70 Days to Win the Year
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Key Takeaways
- There are about 70 days left in the year - just enough time to focus on one priority that could make your whole year a success
- Ken Fisher built a $12 billion investment advisory firm through masterful direct response marketing, spending $60 million per year on ads
- Famous monuments like the Statue of Liberty can generate over $150 million in annual revenue and $70 million in profit
- Talking to investment bankers 6-12 months before you want to sell your business can provide invaluable insights on how to improve your company's value
- Venture capitalists often give advice to founders that contradicts how VCs actually operate their own businesses and manage risk
Introduction
In this episode of My First Million, Sam Parr and Shaan Puri discuss several interesting business topics and strategies, including:
- Using the last 70 days of the year to focus on one key priority
- The marketing genius of investment advisor Ken Fisher
- A proposed 350-foot statue monument for San Francisco
- The value of talking to investment bankers before selling a business
- The contradictions between VC advice and how VCs actually operate
The hosts share insights from their own experiences as entrepreneurs and investors, while analyzing interesting business models and strategies they've encountered.
Topics Discussed
Using the Last 70 Days of the Year (0:00)
Sam kicks off the episode by noting there are about 70 days left in the year - just enough time to focus on one key priority that could make the whole year a success. He encourages listeners to use this as a "wake up call" to sprint towards an important goal.
Some examples he gives:
- If trying to get in shape, start a strict "life or death" diet today
- If wanting to quit your job and start a business, put in your notice now
- If trying to hit a growth goal or raise funding, lock in and focus solely on that
Sam argues 70 days is the perfect amount of time to make a significant change - long enough to be realistic, but short enough to create urgency. He references Frank Slootman's philosophy that you should only have one true priority at a time.
"Figure out the 1 priority, the 1 thing that if you just did this one thing, the whole year is a win. And use the 70 days to do it and wipe everything else off the calendar." - Sam Parr
Sam's Personal Health Goal (2:50)
Sam shares that his key priority is getting in the best shape of his life. He's already lost 15 pounds but wants to lose 10 more by year end. To do this, he's focused on changing 4-5 key habits:
- Planning health/meals first thing in the morning - He uses the My Body Tutor service for accountability
- The "four point swing" - Avoiding late night snacking by going to bed earlier
- Treating weekends like weekdays - Maintaining healthy habits on weekends
- Finding substitutes for snacking - Replacing chips with other quick pleasures
Sam emphasizes the importance of planning meals/workouts upfront to avoid poor decisions later in the day when willpower is depleted.
Jamie Beaton's Education Hacking (10:17)
Shaan shares the story of Jamie Beaton, a 29-year-old from New Zealand who has become an education prodigy:
- At 17, was accepted to 25 top universities including Harvard, Yale, Princeton
- Now has 7 degrees and 1 PhD from schools like Harvard, Oxford, Stanford
- Started a college admissions consulting business called Crimson Education as a sophomore
- Crimson Education now does $120-150 million in revenue, valued at $500 million
The company charges up to $200,000 per year to help students get into top universities, starting as early as 5th grade. They encourage students to start businesses, podcasts, publish research papers, etc. to stand out.
Sam and Shaan debate the ethics of this approach - Sam respects the hustle but dislikes the focus on gaming the admissions system rather than genuine learning. Shaan argues there is still value in attending top schools for the network and expanded worldview.
Ken Fisher's Marketing Genius (25:32)
Sam shares the story of Ken Fisher, a billionaire who built Fisher Investments into a $12 billion company through masterful direct response marketing:
- Fisher Investments manages $275 billion in assets with 3,500 employees
- Recently sold stake to private equity at $12.5 billion valuation
- Spends $60 million per year on marketing - far more than competitors
- Uses compelling headlines, landing pages, free guides to generate leads
- Has an "army of salespeople" that follow up aggressively with prospects
Key insights:
- Fisher applied direct response marketing tactics to an industry (finance) that typically doesn't use them
- He focused on being "two notches above average" at marketing in a space where competitors were poor marketers
- Fisher has been a Forbes columnist for 20+ years, building credibility through content marketing
- The company charges 1-1.25% in fees, generating massive revenue on $275B in assets
"If you have a disease and a medicine replaces what's missing, you will feel better, but the majority of people are reliant on medications that don't make them feel better." - Sam Parr on why Fisher's marketing works despite mixed investment performance
Proposed San Francisco Monument (39:25)
Shaan shares a proposal for a 350-foot statue called the "American Colossus" to be built on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay. Key details:
- Depicts Prometheus as a symbol of innovation and manifest destiny
- Trying to raise $170 million to build it
- Projecting $94 million in annual net income once built
This leads to a discussion on the economics of famous monuments:
- Statue of Liberty: $154 million annual revenue, $70 million net income
- Mount Rushmore: $50 million revenue, $20 million net income
- Pearl Harbor: $50 million revenue, $23 million net income
Sam and Shaan are surprised by how profitable these monuments are, though they're skeptical this particular statue would be approved in San Francisco.
Talking to Investment Bankers (46:19)
Sam shares advice on the value of talking to investment bankers 6-12 months before you want to sell your business:
- Bankers can provide insights on your company's current value and weaknesses
- This feedback creates a roadmap for improving the business before selling
- You can also talk to bankers before entering a new industry to understand dynamics
Sam's 5 key questions to ask bankers:
- What deals have gotten done recently?
- Which ones traded at the highest multiples and why?
- What deals didn't get done and why?
- Who are the buyers and why are they buying?
- If my business did XYZ in a year, what would it trade for?
"I feel like I learned more in those seven hours than I would have in seven months of just operating my business. It was so clarifying." - Sam Parr on talking to bankers
The Venture Capital Double Standard (54:28)
Sam and Shaan discuss how venture capitalists often give advice to founders that contradicts how VCs actually operate their own businesses:
- VCs want founders to go "all in" on one idea, while VCs have diversified portfolios
- VCs tell founders to focus solely on upside, while VCs make guaranteed money from management fees
- VCs encourage founders to live on scraps, while VCs make millions in fees regardless of performance
They note that a VC raising a $400 million fund will make $80 million in guaranteed fees over 10 years, even with poor performance.
"VC's, while they want you to be all in and they want you to live on scraps and they want you to have no diversification and stay super laser focused...they themselves have a very different picture of risk." - Sam Parr
Conclusion
This episode of My First Million covered a wide range of business topics, from personal goal-setting to analyzing successful marketing strategies to understanding the economics of famous monuments. The hosts provided valuable insights for entrepreneurs on topics like:
- The power of focused sprints to achieve key priorities
- How to apply direct response marketing tactics to industries that don't typically use them
- The value of talking to investment bankers well before trying to sell a business
- Understanding the incentives and double standards that exist in venture capital
Overall, the episode showcased Sam and Shaan's ability to analyze interesting business models and strategies, while also sharing practical advice from their own entrepreneurial experiences. Their conversational style and mix of high-level concepts with tactical tips makes the podcast both entertaining and actionable for listeners.