5 Stories, 5 Weeks - Issue #4
Hey friends, welcome to the 4th issue of my #5Weeks Weekly Digest.
Also welcoming new subscribers and buyers to my products.
Thanks for the early support and generous gesture!💖
If you missed the previous issues, you can check them here.
And, if you received this email from someone else, do consider subscribing, and you’ll get a special gift.
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I’m more than half-way through my challenge.
What did I learn from the past weeks?
- You can only focus on one thing, in my case, writing stories.
- Everything else is a bonus: Gumroad page, copywriting, marketing, newsletter, etc.
So far, I’m loving it! I feel I can do it longer than just 5 weeks. Of course, the longer it is, the less pressure I’d become.
A few mishaps as I sometimes forgot I had a day-job.😅
But it’s manageable now, and I have a good leeway to make it a long-term habit.
The original model didn’t work as planned though.
Idea → Build → Launch → Marketing
So, it’s now pivoted to just these as you can see from the graphics below.
Idea → Launch (Pre-order)
With both Build and Marketing being pushed back.
The main reason is to not get overwhelmed. And get myself into another burnout.
And, here’s the hint of what is next after the initial #5Weeks ends.😉
Pushing back Build and Marketing, and since it’s another #5Weeks, I’ll just continue to use the hashtag.
Having said that, I'm so, so sorry that this will affect the delivery of the products to you.
But, I will promise you it will be worthwhile, and not just half-baked crappy ones. I will also have more time to create better guides.🤞🏼
Alrighty then, let's get to what’s happening on Week 3.
⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️
Story #3: Show your work like you’re interviewing for a job
When I first heard of it, I said, “Nah, that’s not me.”
I always separate my personal projects from my day-job’s work.
I want to have that freedom to do whatever projects I want to do, in my own way. No one to boss me, or give feedback. Away from the norm.
The bad effects of being an obedient employee for far too long.
But, why does it make more sense now?
We were hiring somebody to fill up the gap in our newly minted team.
First, we checked on LinkedIn to look for our “star” player. 30 minutes in, we were overwhelmed. Even after we filter by roles, profession, skill set, etc, there are still thousands of them. Sure, a bad newbie move as “recruiter”, I know.
I was against using job boards at first, but one of our teammates convinced me “remote” job boards are different from the conventional ones.
The search continues…
So we tried posting the role on Remote OK and We Work Remotely.
It’s kind of work since we had 4 applicants, but we weren’t impressed with the resumes.
[Side note: seriously guys, put more effort on your resumes. Get our friends at The Remote Hive to help.]😉
My boss told me I needed to tweak our job description. I agreed to it.
But life happened after that. I have to postpone everything.
While in my hometown, Miri, prepping for my #5Weeks challenge in coming weeks, I was looking for a Notion template that I can duplicate to sell.
That’s when I stumbled upon an interesting note.
Product #3: Friendship Manager, Not just a CRM
What is it?
It’s a Notion template to store your contacts. Just like any other CRM, but different.
Why did I create this?
I wanted a place to store information about the people I met, digitally.
There are plenty of CRM apps out there, but I don't want to sign up to another platform that can only be used for one function.
Since it’ll be in Notion, it’s easier for me to relate or link it to my other databases.
And, it’s customizable and easier to set up and tweak to your liking.
I’ve also written an essay on how this template has helped me hire a star employee.
Why am I calling it Friendship, instead of just CRM?
Ever since I left the rat race and became a solopreneur, I have the luxury to say “no” and only work with the people I’m comfortable with.
Most of the time, we ended up becoming friends. Hence, the “Friendship”.
What you will get?
- Notion template
- A guide on how to use the template, and how to set up a form for easy add
When can I get it?
I’m targeting two weeks from the launch date.
If you get it now, you will be automatically added to the "5 Stories, 5 Weeks" newsletter.
Any changes or updates will be sent straight to your email, so you won’t miss a thing.
Do you have discount offers for early supporters?
As this is part of my #5Weeks challenge, you'll get the other 4 micro products for free if you pay $15 for one of the products. Check out my mini store here.
Also, you'll get future automation guides (email reminders for rental tracking, subscription payments, etc.) for free.
Does this work on the free version of Notion?
Yes, all you need is a free account plan.
I guess that's all for this week's issue. I'm still learning, and will definitely improve the content.
If you have any ideas or suggestions, please do me a favour and click on the "Reply" button.
Or if you prefer to have a face-to-face call, head over here to chat.
Stay tuned every Friday for the next issues.
Until then, have a good weekend!
Cheers,
Leif-FG!🚀