8 pieces of wisdom from 8-figure founders

I recently spent 5 days hanging with 7 & 8 figure founders in New York.

My 8 biggest takeaways:

1. Schlep blindness

• We avoid hard, boring tasks - even when they hide gold mines

• If you push through the fear and tackle them, you’ll have less competition

• Most said they wouldn’t have started if they had known how hard it would be

The tasks everyone hates often lead to the biggest opportunities.

2. Get around the right people

• They pick their circle on purpose, not by chance

• Each puts themselves near people playing bigger games

• Everyone had a story about a key person who changed their path

Your circle sets your ceiling.

3. There's no perfect path—make your own

• No two journeys looked alike

• They had guides but no maps

• All trusted their gut when the "rules" didn't work

The best paths aren't found - they're made.

4. Think bigger

• Ambition is a good thing

• It's okay to keep raising your baseline

• Aggressive timelines result in more output (even if you don't hit the milestone)

Your goals should feel unrealistic.

5. Perfectionism kills progress

• They ship before it's ready

• Done beats perfect, every time

• They build momentum through action, not planning

Launch it fast - you can fix it later.

6. Hobbies are important

• None buys the "all work" hype

• Each guards their fun time like a hawk

• Sports, art, music - these fuel their best ideas

Rest isn't the enemy of work - it's the secret sauce.

7. Choosing the right partner is everything

• Who you marry is key

• The right partner makes success easier

• The wrong one makes it nearly impossible

The most important person is the one you go home to.

8. They secretly like the pain

• Most confessed to loving the hard parts

• Not the pain itself, but what it builds

• They feared growing "soft"

The pain makes the journey even more rewarding.

Which hits home for you?

P.S. I had a great time running with the crew at Pitch & Run, a run club for founders & investors to hang out.

Bookmarks ❤️

Here are a few of my favorite posts and things I’ve found on the internet this week:

1. The 5 biggest mistakes I see founders make when writing content

2. The method I used to write a client post which generated 300k+ views and had Business Insider reach out for a feature

3. One of my favorite entrepreneurs Andrew Wilkinson shared his experience of managing ADHD in business, something a lot of us can relate to

P.S. If you’re strapped for time and need some help with your LinkedIn content, then let’s talk.

Until next week

Tom ✌️