My First Million

The best business ideas come from noticing what's working and doing it better, faster, or for a different audience.

Curiosity is a superpower

Shows up across survival, relationships, resilience, and discovery capabilities

Investing in genuine curiosity about others creates massive advantages in negotiations and relationships

Curiosity can be time-consuming and may distract from achieving specific objectives

Business partner who asks thoughtful questions and remembers details creates such strong relationships that people want to do repeat business

Problem Across the Table Model

Visualize both parties sitting on the same side of the table with the problem/obstacle on the other side, rather than ad

Last Impression is Lasting Impression

People don't remember how interactions started or most of what happened - they remember the most intense moment and how

Tactical Empathy Framework

Demonstrating understanding of another person's emotions and perspective without agreeing, designed to build trust and e

Listening Hijack Prevention Framework

A system to resist the two main impulses that destroy active listening: the urge to correct and the urge to relate

Steel Negotiation Model

A framework that replaces 50/50 compromise with finding the optimal blend of ideas, like steel being 2% carbon and 98% i

Build trust and gather proprietary information before making any deal proposals

The other party voluntarily shares information they normally wouldn't reveal, both parties understand the real constrain