Dear friend,

In the last week, I've had three different conversations about starting a business or landing your first clients. It’s hard. And it’s a process. Below are the steps I took.

You’ll also see how starting a business or a new project will keep you top of mind with people. It’ll gave you a reason to send messages to many people you’ve met but haven’t talked with in a while. This may seem small, but one right person can change the direction of your business and your life.

This business has given me opportunities to meet people and build friendships I never would have without it.

Now, most people will tell you, "You should go all in." when starting a new business. I think that's bad advice.

The pressure of "this NEEDS to work" is often too much for people when they're first starting out.

Making an extra $500–$1,000 a month working one day per week is possible.

Here's what I've been telling the people I've had coffee with. One friend has a background in baseball and could teach pitching. Another is a photographer who wants to find more businesses he can create videos for. Another is in the health and wellness space and needs to generate revenue and bring in new clients.

So if you're just beginning a business and need it to make money, this is for you. I'm not going to pretend I have all the answers. But I am going to show you what I did to generate $5,359 in revenue and just over $4,000 in profit in my first two months of detailing. That was working one to two days per week while holding down another full-time job.

I'm going to walk you through the steps I took. I trust that you can take them and apply them to your situation. But if you want more specific help DM me on Instagram or reply “five” and I can do a free call. (only for the first 5 people) For most people, it's a skill you already have. The problem is that most people don't know you can help them. (The biggest problem in the beginning is that no one knows you exist.)

Step 1: Do I even want to do this for myself?

I detailed my own car and realized I loved it way more than I did before. Check.

Step 2: Do I want to do this for other people?

I wasn't sure, so I knocked on 30 strangers' doors to see if anyone would pay me anything to do it. Shockingly, two people did. I made $97. Pretty cool. I liked it.

Step 3: "I don't know anyone." Everyone has a list.

Pull up the contacts on your phone and look at the number. For most people, it's somewhere between 500 and 1,000. Now look at your Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and email. Add all those contacts up. That's your list of people you can tell about what you do.

Step 4: Create your offer.

I recommend running Alex Hormozi's First 5 Clients Framework. In the beginning, the goal isn't to make money. It's to collect testimonials, get referrals, and get better. In the beginning, you won't be good. You won't know which parts really matter and which don't. So if you do your first five at a deep discount or for free, you'll learn how to improve, and most people will give you a lot of grace while you figure it out.

If you're wondering what to send, here’s a two messages I helped craft for a friend to send:

Hey _____, this may not be for you, but I’m going full-time with monthly content creation for local businesses.

I’m looking for 5 local businesses to help me launch the offer. I’ll come out for one content shoot and create:

• 3 short-form videos
• 20-40 professionally edited photos
• Everything delivered within 72 hours

The goal is to give you a month’s worth of content so you’re not constantly scrambling about what to post.

This will normally be $1,199 per month, but the first five businesses get their first month free in exchange for using the content, giving honest feedback, and leaving a review if they’re happy with it.

Would you want to see if it makes sense for your business, or do you know a local business owner who would?

Fulfillment rules (don’t send this)

The free month is not unconditional. Only accept businesses that:

1 Have a decision-maker involved.

2 Can provide access to the location, products, or team.

3 Agree to use the content.

4 Agree to a testimonial if satisfied.

5 Understand the ongoing price is $1,199 monthly.

The first five framework works because the free clients provide reps, feedback, proof, and referrals. The goal is not five free shoots. The goal is five case studies that convert into retainers.

Send 50 to 100 messages daily, but track every contact and follow up at least five times. the bottleneck is not fulfillment. It is turning attention into booked conversations. Send the message to 10 people today, then improve based on replies.

Step 5: Start sending messages.

Start with A in your contacts and work your way through z. When I started, I sent three to five messages a day. That may seem insignificant, but here's what I didn't expect: that's 21–35 messages per week. It was enough to book three to six cars every Saturday for the rest of the summer, which netted me over $4,000 in two months.

Step 6: Start with what you have.

Most people think you need perfect equipment. You don't. You need to take action. I started with almost nothing. I detailed my first car with a borrowed vacuum. Later, I found one on Facebook Marketplace for $20 instead of $100 new, and I bought a pressure washer there for $50 less than retail. I say all this to say: start with what you have. Most of the equipment you need for any business, you can find for a fraction of the price if you're willing to look.

Step 7: Never stop telling people what you do.

The more people know you, the service you offer, and how you can solve their problem, the better. It means they'll think of you when that problem comes up. You really have three main ways to let people know about what you do: warm outreach (text, phone call, or email), content (written or video), and ads. For most people, warm outreach is the simplest and brings in the most money the fastest for the effort. (It did for me.) If you want a head start, Hormozi has free warm outreach scripts you can use.

So, do you need to quit your job to start a business? I didn't. I found that having the structure of a job while slowly ramping up over time was really beneficial. That's not everyone's path, but it was mine. After 6 months I did go full time and haven’t had a job since.

If you're thinking about starting something, you don't need a lot.

You need people to talk to (your contacts), an offer (what you do), and a willingness to text or call people and tell them about it. Will you face rejection? Yes. But on the other side of a lot of no's is a life where you can say yes to what’s most important to you.

I just did the math. In those first two months, I sent around 280 texts and made $5,275. That means each text was worth $18.84 in revenue and $14.29 in profit. (280 messages divided by $4,000) Would you send 10 texts to make $143? That's what happened for me, and I think it's possible for you too.

PS I love having these types of conversations. If you have a project you are working on or a business you’re starting I’d love to help you get your fist 5 clients. Reply 5 to this email and we’ll go from there.