Hey Reader,
If you were wondering where I've been for the last 8 months... I was taking the time to figure out some things in my career.
The last thing I shared here was my solopreneur struggles in January. I documented the cash flow issues, the desperation for clients, the lack of leverage. I called it a failure and thought I'd learned my lesson about building a sustainable business.
But I was looking at the wrong problem entirely.
I Survived, But Something Was Missing
After that post, I kept trying to build my design business. Some good months, some bad months. Always hustling for the next client, never quite getting ahead.
Then I stumbled upon Alex Hormozi's Acquisition.com Scaling course. After going through it, I knew what I needed to do. I was technically at Stage 1 of the Acquisition.com framework... I was monetizing, but barely.
During those inconsistent months, I noticed something. Even when struggling with cash flow, some projects energized me while others drained me completely.
The pattern became clear: I was most excited during the strategic conversations - understanding the business problem, analyzing user behavior, thinking systematically about constraints. The actual design execution felt like work.
I realized I'd built a business around my skills, not my interests.
The Stage 0 Revelation
Recently, I went through the Acquisition.com scaling framework again and everything clicked.
I wasn't failing at Stage 1. I was working on the wrong Stage 1.
Instead of continuing to optimize a business that only partially aligned with my interests, I made a strategic decision: go back to Stage 0 and build the RIGHT business this time.
Stage 0 isn't about having no business, it's about systematic discovery of what I should actually be building.
What I'm Building Now
I'm using Stage 0 to build a Product-Market Fit coaching business from the ground up, leveraging my interests and analytical abilities in service of founders who value systematic thinking.
Here's why: Those strategic conversations I loved? They were always about product-market fit. How do we know if people actually want this? What signals indicate we're on the right track? How do we systematically move from validation to traction?
These founders weren't looking for design execution... they were looking for systematic thinking about their biggest business challenge.
What This Newsletter Becomes
Starting now, this becomes my Stage 0 laboratory. I will build a coaching business systematically, applying the same frameworks I'll help other founders implement.
If you're interested, here's what you can expect:
70% Documentation: My business building experiments, framework development, systematic optimization of my own Stage 0→1 journey, and experiments to automate my workflow
20% Coaching: PMF methodologies I'm learning and testing, client insights (with permission), and systematic approaches to traction
10% Personal: Real decision-making processes, strategic pivots, and behind-the-scenes moments that inform systematic business building
This isn't polished, but it'll be systematic discovery in action.
How You Can Get Involved
If you're a seed-funded founder stuck between validation and PMF, I'm offering free discovery sessions while I'm in Stage 0. These aren't sales calls, they're learning partnerships where we both benefit.
You get systematic thinking applied to your PMF challenges. I get real-world experience building my methodology.
Book a free session here or just reply and tell me your biggest PMF challenge.
If you're not a founder but you're curious about systematic business building and strategic repositioning, stick around. You'll see exactly how I leverage systems to build the right business from Stage 0.
What Changed
The difference between January and now isn't that I fixed what was broken. It's that I discovered what was actually working and decided to build around that instead.
I survived as a design solopreneur, but I found my interest in systems thinking and business problems. So instead of optimizing the wrong business, I'll be building the right one.
That clarity feels like the first honest strategic decision I've made in months.
Thanks for sticking around during the silence. Let's build something that actually leverages our interest!
Kai
P.S. If this new direction doesn't interest you, no hard feelings... unsubscribe and I wish you well. But if you want to watch systems thinking applied to strategic business building, stick around.
What's Next: Next week I'll share a case study with an AI startup that made me realize where my analytical thinking could add value. Reply and let me know what you're working on. I read every response.
