How The Compound Effect Actually Works [It's Not Sexy]

When I started writing online, I (aka my ego) had high expectations. I thought my writing was good and people would pay to read my articles and ideas. After all, I had always been a “high performer” in my corporate life and was ready to knock it out of the park.

Except that I didn’t, and it was one humbling that no one prepares you for.

I did not amass a big following overnight.

I did not land a publisher deal after a couple of trials.

I did not grow a 6-figure business in 90 days.

Now, I did achieve all of these things eventually (after a lot of hard work and a gruesome reality check), just not in those timeframes, because they are not realistic.

People overestimate what they can achieve in one month and underestimate what they can achieve in one year.

That’s the essence of the compound effect in one sentence: you have to let strategy turn into action and marinate in time.

Compound effect = Strategy + Action + Time

In the past 18 months, I’ve coached 100+ clients (Founding Members) and I never promise results or sell frameworks that give you “results in x time” because I can’t guarantee the future. No one can. All I can share is what I’ve done and how I’ve done it. And if it has worked for me, I have evidence and business proof that it can work for you, and bring similar results.

The problem is that many people want to find shortcuts in the equation:

Strategy + Action + Time = Junk miles (tons of work but no results)

Strategy + Action + Time = Sophisticated procrastination (grant plans on paper but nothing happens)

Strategy + Action + Time = No results - just yet (you are building the muscle)

When you see outliers there, I encourage you to scratch the surface and understand the full picture because no one becomes a Substack Bestseller in 3 months without a legacy.

No one grows a 6-figure business overnight because they applied a “5-step solopreneur template” regurgitated by Claude’s cousin.

If you are feeling frustrated because you are not seeing traction after publishing content for two weeks, it’s time to do a mindset calibration.

This is how the compound effect actually works.

(Spoiler alert: it’s not sexy).

Year 1: Nothing happens

You’re learning a new skill and have no clue. Most people quit here. Don’t: This is the foundation for what’s next.

Year 2: Something happens

You start to see some pockets of success from what you did in year 1.

Keep going - you are on the right track. This is the land of momentum if you play your cards well.

Year 3: Everything happens

Now people pay you for what you learned (and did) in year 1 and year 2.

Experience becomes leverage.

Those boring days that led to (seemingly) nothing start to yield dividends.

The hard work you did three years ago when no one was watching starts to pay off.

This applies to most things: your business, writing books, mastering a new skill...

See, no shortcuts here. Just compound effect.

Let your tree do its thing underneath. It’s not because you can’t see it that it’s not happening 🌳🍋

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Lemons & Lemonade 🍋

I’m growing a sustainable writing-speaking business and I want to bring you along (FREE Goodie below 🎁)

This month’s webinar for paid subscribers is about Becoming a Paid Speaker.

I’ll share the mindset, strategy and a clear roadmap to help you:

✔️ Build your speaker brand (infrastructure)

✔️ Create a strong offer (speaker portfolio)

✔️ Find clients and get paid (monetization formula)

🗓️ Thursday 25 Feb 8pm EST || Friday 26 Feb 9am HK || 12pm Sydney

🎬 Recording available for paid subscribers

The first step is to revamp your LinkedIn Profile (that’s where I get most of my clients). And to get ahead, you can get my framework for FREE (14.99 US$) - this month only.