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24 episodes
The final axiom in Steve's e-commerce axioms series: embrace the simplest, most economical solution when the outcome is comparable. Why parsimony isn't the same as being cheap.
Steve twenty-first axiom is a reality check for founders: complex projects, from launches to new software, tend to run over budget and past deadline, and that is not a sign you failed.
Steve traces this axiom back to a 7th-grade programming class in Germany, then applies it to PPC launches, shipping plans, and hiring: expect the first attempt to break, then fix it.
Steve's axiom series continues: why steady incremental steps beat waiting for one big idea, and how to apply iteration across finance, hiring, and marketing.
Steve's eighteenth axiom makes the case for incremental progress over waiting for perfect, illustrated with his own path from a million-dollar year to a million-dollar day.
Steve breaks down Axiom 17 — a line borrowed from his five-year-old daughter — on staying even-keeled with vendors, staff, and travel chaos instead of losing it.
Steve's sixteenth e-commerce axiom reframes the hard parts of running a business, freight, tariffs, launches, as the moat that keeps competition out, not a reason to quit.
Steve's fifteenth axiom covers boomerang delegation, when a task you hand off eventually lands back on your desk, and how clearer delegation prevents it.
Steve's fourteenth axiom is a simple prioritization gut-check: before investing time or money, ask whether the payoff is actually worth the effort, and keep asking as things change.
Steve's Axiom 13 is about avoiding predictable bad outcomes, from unchecked HS codes triggering huge tariffs to skipping reference checks before a hire.
Steve's next e-commerce axiom: accountability, good and bad, builds a culture where people take pride in their work. How "putting your name on it" shows up everywhere in a company.
Steve eleventh axiom: entrepreneurs win by getting more out of fewer resources than big companies have, and why that means being deliberate about every dollar and every hire.
Steve's tenth axiom is about moving quickly on decisions instead of overthinking them, from hiring to product launches, and treating mistakes as data instead of disasters.
Steve's e-commerce axiom series continues with "no score, no game": why every department needs objective metrics, not just sales, to actually be managed.
Steve's eighth entrepreneurial axiom: startups mean assembling the plane mid-flight, and why chaos-tolerant founders differ fundamentally from people who want a steady routine.
Steve unpacks Axiom 7 — 'I'm getting tired of being right all the time' — on when to trust your gut as a leader and when to let the team learn by doing.
Steve's sixth e-commerce axiom, built on a story about his mentor learning as a kid that putting off cleanup only makes the mess bigger. A short case for beating procrastination.
Steve's fifth e-commerce axiom: data-driven decisions outperform emotional ones. He explains the '3D method' and how to apply it to marketing, hiring, and spending calls.
Steve's fourth axiom is about thinking a step ahead: how promotions get gamed, policies backfire, and even well-meant government aid can quietly hurt the businesses trying to hire.
Steve explains Axiom 3: every upgrade is a downgrade at first, on why teams resist new systems and how leaders can push through the pain to a genuine long-term gain.
The first in Steve axioms mini-series: why relying on one channel, even a strong one, caps a brand value, and how to think about incrementally expanding into new channels or markets.
Part of Steve's e-commerce axioms mini-series: a real business needs a predictable, profitable cost per acquisition, not just growing revenue. Why paid traffic beats waiting on organic "pixie dust."
Steve opens his axioms mini-series with the philosophy that shapes every meeting he walks into: set your biases aside, let people make their case, and decide with an open mind.
Steve shares Axiom Zero, his own version of Socratic humility, and why starting every business decision from 'I don't know nothing about nothing' leads to better outcomes than false confidence.