I’m very suspicious of fast growth.

Think about it like this.

Let’s say I have a little house party going. 

Rosé, cheese board, kimbap, and flaming Cheetos (because that combination is very much my personality.)

Just me and a dozen of my friends, and a handful of acquaintances that my friends brought, who have been vetted and are def aligning with the vibe.

The party is so fun. People are dancing in one corner — but not the kind of dance where you look cool and sexy, but the kind where the point is just to get goofy and silly together.  Another group, on another side of the room, is playing Cards Against Humanity and exchanging very offensive jokes. Everyone has the same sense of humor, and is dying laughing.  

And, in yet another corner, a couple other people are having a deep heart to heart. Tears AND laughter. Next to them, another pair of friends are having a philosophical discussion about the nature of ethics in multiverses. 

I’m flitting from group to group, hugging friends, refilling their rosé glasses, and having the best time.

The house party guest list grows, but slowly. One person says, “oh man, this discussion is too good. i gotta invite my friend Chidi who is an ethics professor to this party. He’d LOVE to be here, and Simone would adore him. Lemme text him.”

Another person says, “this game of Cards Against Humanity has me in stitches. I have a friend who has another edition of this game. I’m gonna call him and ask him to bring it over.”

Let me ask you. 

Would YOU bring five hundred brand new unvetted guests flooding into this party in the next hour? 

No, you would not.

My business has always been built from community, and that has always been QUALITY over quantity. When I say quality, I mean — people who “get” me, and each other. People who adore me, and each other. 

People who share a common set of values, a common “language,” and even a common sense of humor (even if we are different in many important ways).

In a high quality community, there is (1) mutual trust and affection, (2) a strong sense of culture, and (3) high quality discussions.

That’s what makes communities fun, nourishing, resilient, and sustainable. I lose that… and I lose everything good about my business. 

Can I grow in quality AND quantity? For sure. Can I do it fast? Not in a million years. It’s been this way since I was a tiny business working with just a handful of folks 1:1. And it’s still this way now.

And it ain’t never gonna change.

Any time I have a massive spike in audience numbers, I will always be watching carefully and making moves to “temper and cull” so I can control for quality, and safeguard the culture.

As the party host, the worst thing I can do is (1) cease to have fun at my own party, and (2) make my existing guests feel like there is no longer a place for them. And slow, organic, incremental growth is an essential measure for both.

This is the way I think about audience growth as well as adding people to my paid programs. I have zero desire to “blow up” and actively do not want it. Now you know why.