Justin Welsh 's Linkedin Analytics

The myth of overnight success: It doesn't exist. What looks like luck is usually: • Years of unseen effort • Relentless persistence • Countless failures and lessons Most people: • See the highlight reel • Chalk success up to "luck" • Ignore the behind-the-scenes work Success is an iceberg. The visible part is tiny compared to what's beneath. Stop waiting for your lucky break and start creating it through your work. Your "big break" is built daily, not discovered. Want to create your own luck? There's no better place than LinkedIn. Here's your playbook: https://lnkd.in/eh9pVVuf

Most people don't fail at business building. They simply never start. Why? Because it feels safer to: • Stay in the job they hate • Dream about "someday" • Watch others take action • Discuss ideas that never launch But here's the truth about work: Playing it safe is the riskiest move you can make. The people who succeed aren't special. They just stopped avoiding failure. They learned how to build something real. They pushed through the fear. They took messy action. And that's exactly what successful business owners understand: Success lives on the other side of failure. I recorded 19 hours behind-the-scenes of building an online business. I call it: The Creator MBA Over 6,000 entrepreneurs have joined to learn the path to building a one-person business. Stop avoiding. Start building with us. Watch lesson 1 today: https://lnkd.in/gBnHYrjW

99.9% of people have the "next big thing." 0.1% actually build it. It's addicting to: • Talk endlessly about your idea • Find validation before taking action • Never move past the planning stage The result? The idea dies in conversation. Real entrepreneurs: • Keep ideas close • Act on the first step • Learn from taking action Remember: Ideas are worthless without execution. The market rewards results, not intentions. Less talking. More building. Want to build together? Try my $1,000 New Business Challenge. 21 days. 21 small actions. Free to participate. 8,000+ people have already enrolled. Join today: https://lnkd.in/eN5XWs8F One small action each day. That's how you start building.

Life is short. Don't spend it in a bad job. Millions wake up dreading Monday. Dreading meetings. Another day of the same old thing. Here's what I know: When you're doing work you love? Mondays feel different. When you're building something? Every day has purpose. When you're in control of your time? Life feels lighter. But most people stay stuck. Why? Because change is scary. Because "what if" holds them back. Because society says "play it safe." Stop waiting for permission to love work. The greatest risk isn't trying something new. It's staying somewhere that dulls your spirit. Settling for "good enough" when "great" is possible. Want to build your escape plan? Join 35,000+ ambitious pros in The LinkedIn Operating System course. You'll learn how to: 1. Build an audience 2. Be seen as a leader in your field 3. Generate income outside your 9-5 And do something you love. 70+ LinkedIn Top Voices can't be wrong. Watch it now: https://lnkd.in/eh9pVVuf

Life doesn't define you. Your response does. Too many people get stuck in their stories: "I got fired." "My business failed." "I missed my chance." But the most successful people I know? They don't identify with what happened TO them. They build their identity on how they HANDLED it. That's where real work begins: • Reframing setbacks • Choosing growth • Building resilience How you respond to challenges says more about you than the challenges themselves. The business world rewards people who can transform obstacles into opportunities. I've helped 30,000+ people do exactly this on LinkedIn. They turned layoffs into launches. Rejections into redirections. Failures into foundations. LinkedIn has been my foundation for that. Through this platform, I've built: • An audience of 700K+ • Multiple income streams • Time freedom for my life The best part? It's repeatable. 70 LinkedIn Top Voices have done the same. Start here: lnkd.in/eh9pVVuf Give it a shot — something new awaits.

The ultimate career hack: Build the company you want to work for. There's a solopreneur movement right now. And for good reason. Think about it: The majority of people I know wish for: - A boss who values their ideas - Work that aligns with their passions - A schedule that fits their personal life Why wait for someone else to create that for you? You have the power to build your ideal workplace. It is *not* easy. It will likely take years of hard work. But is it worth it? Hell yes. Because at the end of the day, no one will invest in you more than you'll invest in you. Want to take the first step? Build an audience here on LinkedIn. Here's the blueprint that took me from 2,000 to 725K+ followers: https://lnkd.in/eh9pVVuf Then, once you have an audience, build your first small business. Remember: Your dream job isn't out there. It's within you.

Most people wake up at 65 and wonder where life went. They followed the script: • Good grades. • Safe job. • Steady paycheck. Then, one day, they realize: Time is running out. Dreams are fading. Confucius said it perfectly: "We have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one." That wake-up call? It doesn't have to be at 65. It can happen right now. Stop living someone else's life. Stop chasing someone else's dreams. Stop following someone else's path. Your second life is waiting. Making the leap is terrifying. Building something new is hard. That's exactly why I built The Creator MBA. It's everything I wish I had when I started my second life: → Real strategies (no fluff) → Proven systems → Clear roadmap 5,000+ entrepreneurs have already started their second chapter. Ready for yours? Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gBnHYrjW

Perfection kills progress. Most people I talk to? They're stuck in the same cycle: - Work on version 1. - It's not perfect. - Quit. Here's a hard truth: nobody starts at the top. That first blog post? Probably terrible. That first business pitch? An absolute mess. That first product? Totally flawed. But this is exactly how successful entrepreneurs operate - they ship anyway. They understand that business growth happens through iteration, not perfection. The question isn't "is this perfect?" It's "what can I learn from this?" Look at any successful person's early work. It's almost always embarrassing compared to what they produce now. Mine included. That's the process! Want to know the real secret to building something great? Give yourself permission to be terrible first. After 6 years of building a $10M business, I recorded all of the messiness and how you work through it. I called it The Creator MBA. Inside, you'll discover how to: → Build fast, learn faster → Ship imperfect work confidently → Create a sustainable one-person business 6,000+ have already joined and are building their messy first versions of business. Perfection is the enemy of progress. Start terrible, end up amazing. Watch it here: https://lnkd.in/gBnHYrjW

I noticed something funny about decision-making. When I'm agitated? Every option seems important and urgent. I quickly jump between choices, convinced each one could be the best or worst decision of my life. But when I deliberately slow down — take a walk, sit quietly, sleep on it — the noise fades. The complicated becomes simple. The options reduce to two or three. The unimportant falls away. The calmer I am, the more clearly I can see what matters and what doesn't. This works for everything: business decisions, creative problems, and even relationship issues. So, next time you're stuck or overwhelmed, try this experiment: Wait. Do nothing for a day. Let your mind settle. Then decide. Don't be fooled by the feeling that urgency equals importance. Often, it's the opposite. The best decisions come from a quiet mind. P.S. If you enjoyed this writing, learn how I built an audience of 700K+ writing for 84.7M+ impressions monthly here: https://lnkd.in/eh9pVVuf Image credit: pathsofstoicism

Most successful people aren't busy. They're free. While so many people are trapped in: • A job they don't love • A life they didn't design • A schedule they don't control And focused on: • The car they drive • The watch they wear • The vacations they post The true success story is: • Working when they want • Creating stuff that matters • Saying NO without fear I've spent 6 years building a business that gives me that freedom. Was it easy? No. Was it worth it? Absolutely. The secret isn't working harder than everyone else. It's working smarter and building an audience that values what only you can offer. Want to join me? I've created a step-by-step system that's helped 6K+ entrepreneurs build lean, profitable, one-person businesses. It's called The Creator MBA: https://lnkd.in/gBnHYrjW A different life is waiting. But only you can build it.

Environment crushes willpower. Almost every time. Good work isn't about pushing harder in a broken system. It's about designing a space where good choices become the default. I used to believe in "just try harder" until I saw how environment wins in the long run. Now I ask: "How is my environment making this hard?" Then I change that first. Not the behavior. Your business shouldn't require superhuman effort. And your life shouldn't be an endless grind. Small environment tweaks → big results. Stop battling yourself. Redesign your surroundings instead. I wrote about it in my Saturday essay yesterday. Read it: https://lnkd.in/eisEzpEK Then ask yourself: What's one thing in your environment you could change this week?

What if the good life was right in front of you all along? Do meaningful work. Make enough money. Stay healthy. Help others. Love your family. See the world. That's it. We make life complicated, but the best version is refreshingly simple. I spent years chasing complex goals only to realize: The most satisfying achievements aren't fancy titles or expensive possessions. They're the fundamentals done consistently well. When I simplified my priorities, everything got clearer. Less mental clutter. More meaningful action. Higher overall satisfaction. The path isn't about adding more. It's about removing distractions until only the essential remains. Strip away the unnecessary. Focus on what matters. Let everything else fade into background noise. The good life isn't complicated. Start living it.

Success isn't about big ideas. It's about resilience. The most successful people I know don't obsess over perfect plans. They work through the mess everyone else avoids. Here's what they understand about business that others miss: Discomfort isn't the enemy. It's the pathway. Most people quit when: - Clients say no - The market changes - Their first launch fails - Competitors beat them But building something meaningful requires sitting in that mess longer than everyone else. This is how real success happens. Not through genius, but through grit. Not through perfect ideas, but through persistent execution. People who win aren't smarter. They simply outlast. That's why I built The Creator MBA to help you choose this path. Over 6,000 entrepreneurs have already joined to build their one-person businesses. Inside you'll find: → 14 chapters of real strategies I've used → 111 lessons on actually doing the work → LinkedIn & Twitter growth systems → My Notion setup for running everything Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gBnHYrjW

The truth about building in public: • Most people won't understand how you work. • They won't get why you're sharing. • They won't support your business dreams. But here's what successful people know: • The opinions that matter are from the people doing the work. • The ones who are building their own paths. • The ones who understand the journey. Everyone else? They're spectators. Commenting from the sidelines. Waiting to see how your story ends. Your job isn't to convince them. Your job is to keep building. Keep sharing. Keep growing. Because one day, they'll call your overnight success a "10-year journey." And you'll know the truth. Come start your journey in The Creator MBA. Over 6,000 entrepreneurs have joined to build businesses their way. Inside, you'll find: → 14 chapters of real strategies I've used → 111 lessons on actually doing the work → My LinkedIn revenue growth systems → My Notion setup for running everything Stop waiting for permission from other people. Start building a new future. Watch here: https://lnkd.in/gBnHYrjW

Every big change in my life started the same way — I was afraid. Quitting my job? Terrifying. Moving to the mountains? Uncomfortable. Starting my business? Felt impossible. But fear shouldn't be a stop sign. Think of it as an arrow. The phone call you don’t want to make. The idea that won’t leave you alone. The move that feels risky. They’re not obstacles. They’re invitations. So, I try and follow a simple rule: If something makes me nervous, I try my best to lean in. Not because I like fear. I don't. But because I know what’s on the other side — something great. What you resist gets bigger. What you confront gets smaller. What's scaring you right now? Maybe that's exactly where you need to go next.

It's time to put your life first and your business second. Most people build a business first... Then try to cram their life into whatever space remains. That's backward. Decide how you want to live first. Then build a business that fits around it. Want to travel? Learn to sell a product, not a service. Need deep work? Design for four-hour meeting-free blocks. Crave family time? Structure your day to end at 3pm. Remember: Your business is a tool created to serve you. So make sure your business enhances your life. And if you're tired of building someone else's version of success? The Creator MBA is your roadmap out. 6,000+ entrepreneurs have used this exact system to build a smarter, easier business. An online business built around the life they actually want. Start lesson 1 today: https://lnkd.in/gBnHYrjW

Most people wait for the perfect moment. But here's the truth: Perfect moments don't exist. Perfect conditions don't exist. Perfect plans don't exist. The most successful people in business don't wait. They build through consistent small actions. A post. A sentence. A sketch. A new belief. This is how real work happens. Not through some huge effort. Through small steps that compound over time. The question isn't "how do I create something massive?" It's "what small thing can I build today?" Start by building here on this platform. - A better profile - Better content - Smarter openers - Better calls-to-action - A better system Here's my 90-minute operating system you can set up: https://lnkd.in/eh9pVVuf Watch it and start making impactful small changes today.

True wealth isn't in your wallet. It's the time you spend living life. I've downgraded my life several times: Fewer possessions. Simpler business. Easier routine. Each subtraction added more luxury. What I gained: - Days with room to think. - Time to think without interruption. - Sleep that actually feels like sleep. - The ability to be present with my wife. But, we're sold the opposite: More meetings, faster responses, constant updates, bigger everything. But here's the thing: I might make less money when I create less content. I might miss "opportunities" when I don't respond to DMs. I might fall behind the new trends when I read books, not feeds. But I don't care. I'm not interested in being busy and important. I want the freedom *not* to be. What small thing could you subtract today to add a little luxury to your life? Delete it.

Most people have luck wrong. They think it's random. Something that happens to you... But after years of watching successful friends, I've noticed a pattern: The "luckiest" people aren't always the smartest or most talented. They're the ones who front-load the work. How do they do it? By understanding that luck is mostly just math. They: - Read more - Write more - Build more - Meet more people - Connect others more It's not about knowing some secret formula to build success. It's about taking more shots than everyone else. While others are waiting for luck to strike, these people are busy creating opportunities. Want to know the five specific ways to engineer more luck in your life? I break down "getting lucky" in this week's Saturday Solopreneur. 185,000 readers are getting the issue tomorrow morning at 8:15a EST Subscribe here: https://lnkd.in/eymFT7nF Tomorrow, luck comes to you.

I don't chase growth anymore. I'm optimizing for freedom. And intentionally keeping things small. I own very little stuff. I can work from anywhere. I say no to almost everything. Chasing less has actually given me more: • More time to create • More freedom to move • More clarity on my life Most entrepreneurs are drowning in complexity trying to build something impressive. But what if the goal wasn't to build an empire? What if it's to design a simple life that feels right from the inside, even if it looks boring from the outside? The real win isn't scaling to 100 employees. It's building something sustainable that serves you instead of consuming you. Because the world doesn't need your company to be bigger... It needs it to exist long enough to be useful. Here's my entire business system I used to design this life and work integration for 6 years: https://lnkd.in/gBnHYrjW