You're already in the top 0.1%

A couple of days ago, I saw a tweet from Adam.

He’s making about ~$1K/month from his projects, but feels empty, unworthy, and unsure if it’s even worth continuing.

It hit me hard.
Because that was me for 5+ years.
And it’s the story of most entrepreneurs.

Here’s what I’ve realized:
Everyone has an idea.
But 90% never act on it.
Out of the few who do, 90% quit before anything happens.

If you’ve built a little internet business, if you own a domain and it’s live, if it’s making any money, even $100/month, you’re already in the top 0.1%.

And if you’re reading this newsletter on a Saturday morning instead of scrolling cheap dopamine content, you’re way ahead of the crowd.

The trap

Social media only shows the top 0.1% of the top 0.1%.

The 19-year-old founder making $300K/month.
The multi-millionaire who bought Bitcoin in 2009.
The fitness guy whose abs look like they were carved in 3D.

You almost never see the ones grinding without results, even though they make up the vast majority.

“I’m useless.”

For my first 4 years, I didn’t even know what “startup Twitter” was.

I was surrounded by friends and family who didn’t understand.
I felt lonely every day.

It took 2 years to make my first $1 online.
2 years of complete void.
No support from anyone, no traction, nothing but the same feeling crippling every day.
I’m useless.

Even after my first startup made enough money to pay the bills, I felt behind.
I was the one working the hardest, yet my friends with jobs made more money and had more free time.

By the way, here’s something I didn’t know back then:
A startup making $1K/month is a $36K asset if you sell it (MRR × 36 months is a common rule of thumb).
That’s a year’s salary for many people.

But I didn’t see it that way.
I saw failure.

At one point, I fell into depression.
I quit entrepreneurship and got a job.
6 months later, I was fired, so I came back to building.

And for two more years…
Nothing.

By year five, I was making $500/month, living off my wife’s support, feeling like a complete failure.

Then, out of nowhere, one of my projects took off.
And everything flipped.

Looking back

I wouldn’t erase a single failure.

The void is what makes the flip moment feel so good.
The pain gave me a story worth telling.

Without it, I’d just be “some guy who got lucky,” and you wouldn’t read my newsletter.

If you’re building, you’re already amazing.
If you’re making a little money, it’s just a matter of time.
The struggles, the emptiness, the crippling self-doubt, they’re the foundation.
They’re part of the process.

Don’t give up.
It’s all worth it in the end.

I root for you.

— Marc lou