Return On Intelligence (ROI)

One of the things I always did at the start of my business, whether it was going well or not, was try and spend more on software than maybe I was comfortable with

Which probably goes against what everyone thinks and does. But I think I see it more now with AI tools that are genuinely useful.

I was doing it with things that you might not be able to see an immediate saving or benefit from it.

But with AI tools, there is always a benefit or saving to spending on them.

So the amount of people who are refusing to pay like £18/month for Claude or ChatGPT, where if it saved them an hour, you would be disgusted if you were not getting paid £18/h in your own business.

And realistically, it’s probably going to save you a lot more than that, even if you didn’t use it to write content.

We optimise for subscription costs, which is a really weird metric in the business, which I’ve never seen someone be incredibly successful because they spend less than everyone else on subscriptions.

What I always try and optimise for is how can I leverage my intelligence? Because I know that that compounds, whereas just cutting subscription costs doesn’t.

The same goes for ideas - We hold them because we think ‘If I share my best framework, someone will steal them and I’ll have nothing left.’

But the thing with ideas is that they’re not depleted through using them.

They’re refined through exposure to other people’s thoughts.

Every time you share an idea, you get feedback, you get connections, refinements, opportunities.

They make your original idea more valuable.

And the paradox is that the best ideas you have have no value until you’ve deployed them.

So an idea in your head is worth nothing. An idea in a draft folder isn’t worth anything.

An idea that’s been tested in public is something that can compound.

I used to be really bad at waiting until my ideas were perfect and they all linked up and they all made sense before I shared them. Now I share as fast as possible and use what resonates the most with people to then weave them all together and make something more cohesive and coherent.

Think about your Return on Intelligence more than your Return on Investment, and you will find your business grows.