I paid Tony Robbins $150,000 for coaching. His advice changed how I build companies.
A few years ago, I went to Tony's Business Mastery program while I was running AppSumo.
I walked away with dozens of insights, but one has stayed with me ever since.
The Old Way
Before that trip, I thought the best way to grow was by building more stuff.
We kept adding products, features, and people, thinking that more equals better.
But each launch felt heavier than the last.
And momentum was slowing.
One Simple Shift
Then Tony said something that changed how I saw business: Love your customer more than you love your product.
If you do that, you will always see the market shifting before everyone else.
Think about it.
In our lifetime, we have gone from cassette tapes to Walkmans to iPods to the phone in your pocket.
The customer never changed.
The product did.
What Actually Worked
At AppSumo, every major leap we made, from selling deals to building tools to helping creators grow, came from obsessing over one thing: the entrepreneur on the other side of the screen.
If we had fallen in love with the product, AppSumo would not be where it is today.
Obsessing over our customers kept us alive and helped us grow from $3M to $84M.
Your Only Asset
Every product has an expiration date.
Every business model eventually gets copied.
The only durable asset you have is trust.
When your customer believes you understand them better than anyone else, they will follow you into whatever comes next.
Three Questions
Ask yourself:
- Who are you serving?
- What progress do they want right now?
- How can you help them get there faster and stronger?
But the people you serve will always want the same thing: to make progress in their lives.
That is your compass.
Stay loyal to it, and you will never lose your way.
Conclusion
The best companies are not built by falling in love with products.
They are built by obsessing over the people they serve.
When you focus on your customer's progress, you will always know where to go next.