Streamlined Solopreneur: Easy Productivity & Tech Systems for Solopreneurs

LinkedIn Learning is a force in the online course space, with hundreds of courses, millions of learners, and a well-oiled machine for putting out great content. I, along with today’s guest, Carrie Dils, are fortunate to be long-time instructors for the platform. I invited Carrie on to catch up, and I thought it would be fun for us to exchange notes on how we come up with ideas for, and then record, our LinkedIn Learning courses. In Build Something More, it gets even more fun as we talk about the courses we thought would do SUPER well but turned out to…well…not.

Top Takeaways:

• Carrie and I both followed in the footsteps of people we learned from; if you have an appreciation for learning, teaching is a great next step!
• Carrie likes to pitch ideas for courses on topics she wants to know more about. In order to teach something well, you need to know it well!
• We both shared our love of recording in LinkedIn Learning’s campus booths. Having a stellar process, and the right environment for instructors is a big win. If you’re creating courses, the advice we share in this episode can help you figure out what works best for you.

Show Notes:

• Carrie Dils
• Carrie on Linkedin
• Carrie on Twitter
• Morten Rand_Hendrikson on Twitter
• Join the Creator Crew

Sponsored by: TextExpander | LearnDash

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Streamlined Solopreneur helps solopreneurs stop doing it all themselves, with simple systems that give them their time back.

Each week, Joe Casabona shares one practical idea — a system, tool, or strategy to help you get your time back without having to make another decision, hire employees, or sell your soul to AI.

Looking for a place to start? Take the Solo Systems Starter Quiz. 60 seconds, 8 questions, and I will tell you what system you should build first, and exactly how to build it (so YOU don't need to make another decision). https://streamlined.fm/quiz 

Connect with Joe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcasabona/

Cory Miller dolled out so much great advice in Episode 4 that we're getting a twofer. He tells us about how one of iThemes' most popular products came out of solving a big problem they had. Then he tells us the importance of maintaining an email list.

Listen to the entire episode at https://howibuilt.it/004

Be sure to subscribe at https://howibuilt.it/subscribe  

This clip is brought to you by WP Wallet

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Streamlined Solopreneur helps solopreneurs stop doing it all themselves, with simple systems that give them their time back.

Each week, Joe Casabona shares one practical idea — a system, tool, or strategy to help you get your time back without having to make another decision, hire employees, or sell your soul to AI.

Looking for a place to start? Take the Solo Systems Starter Quiz. 60 seconds, 8 questions, and I will tell you what system you should build first, and exactly how to build it (so YOU don't need to make another decision). https://streamlined.fm/quiz 

Connect with Joe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcasabona/

A few weeks ago we talked to Louis Nicolls about the importance of having a good newsletter that helps people — some targeted, educational resource. Brennan Dunn knows a thing or two about that and has built an empire around segmentation and personalization. The last time he was on the show, we talked about Right Message. Today, we talk to him about email templates and newsletter strategies that we can implement with his new tool, Palladio.

Top Takeaways

• Brennan equates emails to sales pages multiple times. Yes, they are a great way to establish trust and be a resource for subscribers...but we also want them to stand out and make them memorable for when we need to sell.
• Instead of doing educational emails, pausing them and doing a sales sequence, Brennan recommends mixing in targeted sales messages through your emails. This allows you to show helpful resources at a time the subscriber is ready to buy...making it a win/win for both of you.
• Evergreen, or “Shadow” newsletters as Brennan calls them, are a great way to build a resource, be consistent with your newsletter, and focus on other tasks around marketing or building your list.

Show Notes

• Brennan Dunn | Brennan on Twitter
• Palladio
• Create and Sell Newsletter
• CaboPress
• How to Actually Sell to Your Email List with Samar Owais
• Building a Newsletter People Will Actually Read (and Recommend) with Louis Nicholls
• Join Creator Crew for ad-free, extended episodes.

Sponsored by: WP Wallet | LearnDash

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Streamlined Solopreneur helps solopreneurs stop doing it all themselves, with simple systems that give them their time back.

Each week, Joe Casabona shares one practical idea — a system, tool, or strategy to help you get your time back without having to make another decision, hire employees, or sell your soul to AI.

Looking for a place to start? Take the Solo Systems Starter Quiz. 60 seconds, 8 questions, and I will tell you what system you should build first, and exactly how to build it (so YOU don't need to make another decision). https://streamlined.fm/quiz 

Connect with Joe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcasabona/

When you have a membership or subscription, your goal is to prevent churn, or people leaving. The best way to do that is to deliver value. But it's also a matter of how often you ask your subscribers to evaluate the value they get. Here's what Brian Krogsgard recommended.

Listen to the entire episode at https://howibuilt.it/003

Be sure to subscribe at https://howibuilt.it/subscribe

This clip is brought to you by WP Wallet

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Streamlined Solopreneur helps solopreneurs stop doing it all themselves, with simple systems that give them their time back.

Each week, Joe Casabona shares one practical idea — a system, tool, or strategy to help you get your time back without having to make another decision, hire employees, or sell your soul to AI.

Looking for a place to start? Take the Solo Systems Starter Quiz. 60 seconds, 8 questions, and I will tell you what system you should build first, and exactly how to build it (so YOU don't need to make another decision). https://streamlined.fm/quiz 

Connect with Joe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcasabona/

Most people who start a business hate it when they get away from the actual work and move towards managing — the business and the people. But not James Laws. James has started several successful businesses and his favorite part is building the culture, ensuring employees are happy, and ultimately making sure everyone feels fulfilled…so much so that he wants to help more founders do just that. And he plans to, with tools, software, coaching, and more. But that’s a long game. It all starts with his podcast. Tune in to learn how James is using his podcast and blog to establish authority, build an audience, and learn about this new field.

Top Takeaways:

• Building an audience in a brand new space is hard! You need to essentially learn the “rules” of the field and play by them to gain a following and trust.
• If you’re trying to establish expertise, but do interviews, think of them as exchanging notes to help establish authority while also getting perspective.
• The first step to making money with your content is to build an audience so that you share future endeavors with them. The key is to solve their problems with your free content...then you’ll understand them (and vice versa) making your paid products worth it for them.

Show Notes:

• James Laws
• James on Tiktok
• James on Twitter
• Join the Creator Crew

Sponsored by: Nexcess | TextExpander | LearnDash

• (00:00) - Hey Everybody!

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Streamlined Solopreneur helps solopreneurs stop doing it all themselves, with simple systems that give them their time back.

Each week, Joe Casabona shares one practical idea — a system, tool, or strategy to help you get your time back without having to make another decision, hire employees, or sell your soul to AI.

Looking for a place to start? Take the Solo Systems Starter Quiz. 60 seconds, 8 questions, and I will tell you what system you should build first, and exactly how to build it (so YOU don't need to make another decision). https://streamlined.fm/quiz 

Connect with Joe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcasabona/

Too many people decided they want to make an online course, spend 6 months making it, and launch to crickets. Rebecca Gill knew better, and her advice from Episode 2 can save you a ton of time (and heartache).

Listen to the entire episode at https://howibuilt.it/002

Be sure to subscribe at https://howibuilt.it/subscribe

This clip is brought to you by WP Wallet

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Streamlined Solopreneur helps solopreneurs stop doing it all themselves, with simple systems that give them their time back.

Each week, Joe Casabona shares one practical idea — a system, tool, or strategy to help you get your time back without having to make another decision, hire employees, or sell your soul to AI.

Looking for a place to start? Take the Solo Systems Starter Quiz. 60 seconds, 8 questions, and I will tell you what system you should build first, and exactly how to build it (so YOU don't need to make another decision). https://streamlined.fm/quiz 

Connect with Joe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcasabona/

It’s the first-ever feedback episode! I read a couple of reviews — one good, one bad, and how I’m adjusting — and then answer listener questions. It’s a fun episode! We cover getting started in content creation, growing your audience, configuring a Stream Deck, and podcast interviews.

Show Notes:

• My Live Stream Kit
• My Stream Deck blog post
• My Stream Deck video
• A specific use case for launching apps
• Masters of Doom
• Feedback
• Join Creator Crew

Sponsored by: WP Wallet | Nexcess | LearnDash

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Streamlined Solopreneur helps solopreneurs stop doing it all themselves, with simple systems that give them their time back.

Each week, Joe Casabona shares one practical idea — a system, tool, or strategy to help you get your time back without having to make another decision, hire employees, or sell your soul to AI.

Looking for a place to start? Take the Solo Systems Starter Quiz. 60 seconds, 8 questions, and I will tell you what system you should build first, and exactly how to build it (so YOU don't need to make another decision). https://streamlined.fm/quiz 

Connect with Joe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcasabona/

Jason Coleman was the very first guest on How I Built It, and he started the show strong with a ton of fantastic advice. Here's my favorite: a bit about why charging monthly might not align with the value you deliver, as well as how to handle negative reviews.

Listen to the entire episode at https://howibuilt.it/001

Be sure to subscribe at https://howibuilt.it/subscribe

This clip is brought to you by WP Wallet

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Streamlined Solopreneur helps solopreneurs stop doing it all themselves, with simple systems that give them their time back.

Each week, Joe Casabona shares one practical idea — a system, tool, or strategy to help you get your time back without having to make another decision, hire employees, or sell your soul to AI.

Looking for a place to start? Take the Solo Systems Starter Quiz. 60 seconds, 8 questions, and I will tell you what system you should build first, and exactly how to build it (so YOU don't need to make another decision). https://streamlined.fm/quiz 

Connect with Joe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcasabona/

How good is creating niche content? How about understanding the purpose of your content and focusing on providing value? Alexis Grant, founder, and CEO of They Got Acquired, understand the importance of both of these things. She has launched not one, not two, but 3 content businesses — successfully selling her previous ones. Today she’s here to share her insight on why she started They Got Acquired, doing research to produce good content, and how sponsorship is playing a bigger role than she expected.

Top Takeaways:

• They Got Acquired has a very specific niche in mind: businesses that have sold for between $100,000 and $50M. All of their content is focused on telling those stories and helping similarly positioned businesses.
• They are using their podcast of the same name to build trust and grow their audience. Allowing people to hear them forges a better connection and gives the business more identity
• Sponsorship has played a bigger than expected role! They are increasing the output of their newsletter and will monetize their podcast for season 2. Lexi’s advice: ask for too much at first. You can always come down if they say no.

Show Notes:

• Alexis Grant
• Alexis on Linkedin
• Alexis on Twitter
• Join the Creator Crew

Sponsored by: Tailor Brands | Nexcess | TextExpander

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Streamlined Solopreneur helps solopreneurs stop doing it all themselves, with simple systems that give them their time back.

Each week, Joe Casabona shares one practical idea — a system, tool, or strategy to help you get your time back without having to make another decision, hire employees, or sell your soul to AI.

Looking for a place to start? Take the Solo Systems Starter Quiz. 60 seconds, 8 questions, and I will tell you what system you should build first, and exactly how to build it (so YOU don't need to make another decision). https://streamlined.fm/quiz 

Connect with Joe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcasabona/

Have you ever seen a great talk, video, or even podcast episode that dolled out some fantastic advice, only for you to forget it before you implement it? Maybe that feeling is amplified when you go to a conference. There are so many great takeaways...how can you remember it all? 

It's almost like you need a TL;DR for when that happens. 

And How I Built It has been going pretty much weekly for nearly 7 years! As we approach 300 episodes, I wanted to surface some of the best advice from asking "how did you build that" over all that time. 

So I'd like to introduce How I Built Bits, a weekly clip show that aims to be around 15 mins, replaying some of the best clips from How I Built It. New episodes come out on Saturday mornings. 

If you'd like to learn more, head over to https://howibuilt.it/clips. And of course, be sure to subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.