How I Work: $77K/Month Solopreneur

The speaker, a solo entrepreneur earning $77,000 monthly, attributes his success to a consistent work ethic and a focus on "shipping" new ideas. He has built 35 startups and operates on a principle of constant creation rather than taking days off, even during holidays. He emphasizes that many people have brilliant ideas but fail to execute them, while he has never encountered someone who failed after trying multiple times. His daily routine is highly structured and repetitive, starting every day, 365 days a year, with coffee and breakfast with his wife, followed by a gym session. They currently train for Hy Rocks, incorporating sled pushes, squats, and running. After returning home, he enters "work mode" by staying completely offline for a significant block of 4 to 6 hours. During this "deep work" period, he avoids checking his phone, emails, or social media. He explains that social media, especially with the rapid advancements in AI, can trigger a fear of missing out, leading to wasted time and decreased motivation. His phone remains off, as it's considered the "worst enemy" of deep work. During this deep work block, he opens his code editor and dedicates 4 to 6 hours solely to coding and creating. He avoids customer support emails or bug fixes at this time, as such interruptions would divert him from his primary goal of creating new products. He reveals that out of his 35 startups, 30 of them were unsuccessful, making little money and attracting few users, resulting in a 5% success rate. He likens this to rolling dice, stating that consistent attempts increase the chances of a successful outcome, leading to happy users, income, and the ability to leave a traditional job. He reflects on how his current routine, involving early mornings and constant computer work, would have seemed "crazy stupid" to his student self. However, seeing people enjoy his work and use his apps motivated him to embrace this routine, realizing it led to more positive outcomes. Now, he focuses less on the potential output and more on what he wants to exist. He recently launched a macOS app that analyzes posture via webcam, inspired by his own experience of spending long hours at the computer and wanting to avoid slouching. This was a new type of app for him, using Electron for macOS. Before its release, he performed final checks on the licensing system and email delivery. The app launched around 3:00 PM with a tweet, and was also shared on LinkedIn, Threads, and Reddit, quickly attracting first customers. The app generated approximately $1,000 in revenue on its first Thursday and received positive feedback, with users posting about it on Twitter. Seeing his app in users' hands is described as the "ultimate happy moment." Another type of app he enjoys creating is driven by curiosity. For example, he developed "Trust Me" after seeing a tweet about people faking revenue. This sparked the idea of a platform to showcase verified revenues, allowing users to identify scammers. This app has since evolved into a marketplace, generating over $35,000 per month. He has a vast to-do list of ideas, so extensive that he wouldn't be able to complete them even if he lived for 200 years. He finds that every day, his to-do list grows longer, as feedback and problems from existing projects generate new ideas. After completing a project, he reviews his list and chooses the next item based on its potential impact on users and his own happiness. The biggest barrier to success, he believes, is the fear of showing new creations to the world. He compares it to going to the gym for the first time: the initial fear is immense, but completing one session significantly reduces it, making subsequent attempts easier. He stresses that the only way to validate an idea is to ship it with a buy button, a principle made even easier with AI. He holds a controversial view on AI, suggesting that while many people are obsessed with productivity and using AI agents, the fundamental KPI remains unchanged: the number of things shipped. His own AI setup is simple: a code editor and a single-threaded chat with an AI to develop new features, which he releases quickly. In the last three months, he's shipped 300 features on his marketplace and six new apps in 2026 with AI, demonstrating that a basic AI and code editor can achieve significant output. Towards the end of the day, around 4:00 PM, he goes online to check Twitter, emails, and perform less creative tasks. Dinner is at 5:30 PM, often extended by watching "Better Call Saul." This is followed by a walk, after which he completely disconnects from work. His phone is off, the computer is off, and there's no work-related discussion. They might watch a movie or read before bed, going to sleep at 9:00 PM every night. A 30-minute to 1-hour wind-down routine, including dimming the lights, ensures instant sleep. He never sets an alarm and wakes naturally between 6:00 and 7:00 AM. He emphasizes the importance of good sleep, noting that in his earlier years, he was often sleepy and struggled to focus. With good sleep, he feels more emotionally stable and focused. He observes a common mistake: people spend months on a "brilliant idea," only for it to become a "pet project" they are emotionally attached to, even if it takes years to become profitable. He argues it's more effective to keep "rolling the dice" and shipping new ideas, as one might take off significantly faster, and each new launch provides learning opportunities and helps build an audience. He concludes that consistently launching new things is the recipe for eventual success.