After 6.5 years of working on all kinds of things - making content, posting YouTube videos, creating a course, writing an eBook, building a SaaS, doing sponsorships, etc. I realised something big:
I never had a real business plan.
I was just… winging it. Doing a bit of everything, for everyone.
And while that worked (sorta), it wasn’t something that clearly pointed toward my $1M goal.
So, I finally sat down and spent days brainstorming (with help from ChatGPT) until I figured out what I really wanted to build:
Who am I serving (target audience)
What problems am I solving
What business can I stick with for years
And what path gives me the best shot at crossing $1M
And after all that exploration… I finally have a plan. A real one!
More about this soon, but I feel like this is the moment when everything started to make sense. 🤩
$1M Journey Update
Since the last issue, I made $898 toward my $1M goal
$270 from X ads (getting paid to post my thoughts is pretty cool 👍)
$628 from my course that I launched back in 2020
It still blows my mind that this course keeps earning money after all these years. It made over $179k total so far. This is the power of passive income. 🤯
Other than that, I didn’t launch any new projects this week. Instead, I focused on:
Getting the Tuple video out
Finalising the new newsletter structure (how does this one feel? Hit reply and let me know)
And starting to work on a few new ideas that I plan to launch next week (you gotta keep me accountable on this one 😄)
On a personal note, we’re moving into our first apartment and had a ton of things to do… including me drilling stuff like I knew what I was doing lol 😅
Don’t worry, this was just me having a bit of fun for a minute. There was a professional who took care of the real job.
Wins, Failures, Lessons
Wins
Newsletter crossed 100 subscribers 🥳
We’re now at 130 readers. Thank you, this means a lot! 💜Joined Hacker Residency Live
I was nervous when they invited me to participate, but everyone was exactly as I imagined: fun, smart, and very nice! Meeting indie hackers I’ve followed for years was such an amazing moment. Looking forward to seeing them IRL.Published the Tuple video
I poured a lot of time and energy into making this video as good as I could make it, and I’m happy with how it turned out. With this, I’ve completed 5 out of my 6 sponsorship contracts. One more to go!
Failures
Didn’t launch any new projects this week 😬
No new app, no new revenue-focused project. This is something I’m working on next, and I already have a challenge in mind to push myself to ship more consistently.
Lessons
Take time to think before you build
Clarifying what I want to do, who I want to serve, and the problems I want to solve has already given me more direction than I’ve ever had.Systems > Motivation
Motivation comes and goes. Systems stay.
That’s why I created this newsletter template, and why I want to build similar systems for content creation, making videos, building and shipping apps - so things work even when I don’t feel like it.
Actionable Tip
If there’s a “cheat code” for builders, it’s this:
Create content. Consistently.
Not to go viral. Not because it magically makes you money.
But because it gives you distribution, feedback, and opportunities.
Content is how you learn what people care about.
It’s how you attract users and how they discover your product without you begging them to try it.
And the best part?
You don’t need to be clever.
You just need to show up. But you have to do it consistently.
This ties perfectly to this week’s creator spotlight…
Creator Spotlight
Andi is a perfect example of what happens when you just start creating.
This past month:
One of his posts went viral
He grew to 4k+ followers
Earned $1,000 in 31 days from his tool that analyses your website and gives you tips on how to improve it
All because he showed up.
A great reminder:
Your product might be amazing, but content is what brings people to the door.
Conclusion
I have a clearer plan and systems that stack toward something bigger. Now that I finally know who I’m building for and how, the path to $1M doesn’t feel blurry anymore - it feels inevitable, as long as I keep showing up.
Next week: new ideas and (hopefully) a launch. Hold me to it. ☺️
Have a great one!
Florin Pop
If you enjoyed this issue, forward it to one friend who’s building something, and you’ll get rewarded. Let’s grow this little community of builders, one at a time! 😄