Most Ideas Won’t Work — But Action Will

Running your own projects is tough.

You’re figuring things out as you go, second-guessing decisions, and doing the work even when no one’s watching.

That’s why I’m always inspired by people building something from the ground up. Watching others test ideas, stay consistent, and make progress—bit by bit—reminds me it’s possible.

It’s not about overnight wins. It’s about showing up, learning fast, and staying consistent.

So I want to start spotlighting others in some stories.

 🌟Founder Spotlight

This week’s story is about Courtney Claghorn, founder of SUGARED + BRONZED.

She didn’t start with a big plan.

She grabbed $1,000, turned her dining room into a spray tan studio, and got to work after her day job.

No website. No marketing. Just word of mouth and a willingness to test an idea that might not go anywhere.

That mindset is what built SUGARED + BRONZED—a brand now nearing $50 million in annual revenue.

Her customers didn’t just get tans. They felt part of something—relaxed, welcome, and excited to share the experience.

That organic buzz carried more weight than any ad spend could.

She paid attention to what worked. When she saw clients getting sugaring treatments from someone renting a back room, she brought it into the business.

That simple move made the company less seasonal and more stable.

Everything about her approach reflects a truth most entrepreneurs know well: most ideas don’t work. The only way to find the ones that do is by testing. Again and again.

That’s how I run my business, too. I’m always testing out new ideas. Most of them fizzle out. But a few stick—and those are the ones that move things forward.

SUGARED + BRONZED didn’t grow because of a perfect strategy. It grew because Courtney kept showing up, adjusting fast, and focusing on what people actually wanted.

You can read the full version of the story here…

A quick word from one of our sponsors…

Outrank Your Competitors on Amazon—Fast!

Stack Influence automates micro-influencer collaborations to significantly boost external traffic and organic rankings on Amazon. Trusted by top brands like Magic Spoon and Unilever, it's your secret to dominating page one.

Get 10% OFF this month!

🧰 Tool of the Week

Courtney’s story is a great reminder that when you’re testing ideas or building something from scratch, you end up asking a lot of questions.

That’s exactly why I’ve been using Perplexity.

Perplexity is an AI-powered research assistant that blends the speed of Google with the depth of ChatGPT—backed by real-time sources.

You ask a question, and it gives you a clean, cited answer using live data from across the web. No fluff. No rabbit holes. Just useful, verified information you can build on.

A few things I like:

• It shows you exactly where the answer came from—with clickable sources

• You can ask follow-up questions and it keeps the context

• The "Pro Search" and "Deep Research" modes go way beyond surface-level answers

• You can upload files, ask questions about them, and even generate summaries or responses

I’m using it to dig deeper into topics faster—whether it’s market research, tool comparisons, or finding legit examples from real users.

It’s a key part of my workflow for writing, building, and validating new ideas—without bouncing between 10 tabs.

It’s one of the tools I’m using in my challenge of building 100 tools over 1,000 days!

If you do any kind of research-heavy work, this is one of the sharpest tools you can keep open.

Great ideas don’t always come from strategy sessions or perfect plans.

Sometimes they show up in the middle of a messy experiment, a simple question, or a random pattern you almost overlook. Courtney’s story is proof of that.

So if you’re in the middle of testing, building, or figuring it out—keep going.

Ask better questions. Stay curious. Let the process surprise you.

See you out there!