These old school businesses are making millions

About this video

Sam and Shaan discuss three common founder mistakes through a conversation with blue-collar entrepreneurs running a mobile emissions testing business, then explore fascinating emerging businesses including The Onion’s successful print magazine revival, nostalgic dairy delivery, and Joe Lamont’s AI-powered Alpha School. They also share insights on decision-making frameworks, the resurgence of physical media, and innovative educational technology.

Key takeaways

• Many founders prematurely dismiss growth channels after superficial attempts—Sam warns against the ‘it didn’t work’ narrative without proper data, experimentation, or tracking; he shares how The Hustle’s first successful Facebook ad came after dozens of iterations, eventually spending $8-10M on that channel
• Founders must actively use their own products and walk through customer journeys from a user’s perspective; mystery shopping reveals gaps in visibility, value proposition clarity, and core flow that internal teams miss
• Optimize the core system before expanding geographically; the instinct to expand often stems from avoiding the harder work of fixing the funnel, and applying Charlie Munger’s principle that ‘a smart man does first what a dumb man does last’ improves long-term outcomes
• Decision-making quality depends on mental state, physical health, and emotional control; Shaan describes using written Socratic dialogue with himself to expose sloppy thinking, and both hosts emphasize that writing forces clarity in a way verbal reasoning cannot
• Physical, curated media (magazines, newsletters, printed reading collections) is experiencing a resurgence driven by nostalgia and information diet consciousness; The Onion’s print edition tripled revenue to $6M annually, suggesting high willingness to pay for quality curation
• AI-enabled personalized education shows promise through Alpha School’s model: AI tutors deliver 2-hour daily learning with mastery-based progression (90% vs. 70% thresholds), while the remaining time develops life skills and grit through challenges like training seven-year-olds to run 5Ks

Episode details: published September 3, 2025 · 38K views · 1:10:34 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. The business ideas, figures and results discussed are the hosts’ and guests’ own claims, shared as brainstorming and entertainment — not verified facts and not investment advice.

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