Stop Giving Up So Easily

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With the launch of the Spotify/ChatGPT integration, I thought I would test it to create a Halloween playlist and an associated image. Bang! It did it. A playlist of horror movie soundtracks, including the Wednesday TC show. Very cool.

The internet is a massive graveyard full of people’s promising projects who quit right before they would've worked.

Why? Because shouting into the void without any response for months on end is one of the loneliest things one can do. You write, you post, you record, you do it again and again, and nothing. Crickets. You start questioning whether you're wasting your time.

Here's what actually happens if you don't quit:

These numbers aren’t even all that impressive. But I think my numbers are typical of what one can expect if you’re starting at zero.

Maybe you’re even doing better than I am?

If so, congratulations. You’re one of the few who didn’t quit after podcast episode 8, newsletter 12, or at 900 followers on X.

You also prove my point, it’s nearly always the most stubborn ones, not the smartest ones, who persist and win. Anyone smart would quit in the beginning because the early data and feedback are usually so poor.

It takes vision, guts, and naive stupidity to keep going.

Which is why, for the type A people who read my newsletter, maybe we all need to aim to be less smart and more stupid?

Q: Why do people quit at episode 12 or 3,000 followers specifically? What's happening there?

They get tired. They get bored. They moved to a new town. Got promoted, new job, new hobby. Life happens. Humans are inherently novelty-seeking, even when we know it's not good for us.

Posting the same ideas and on the same themes 100 different ways on X is a challenge. But posting it 50,000 different ways is called building a career.

You can only persist if you love it. Most don't. They see it as a means to an end. To be successful as a founder of a startup, a newsletter, or even a large X account, it means you have to adopt it as your identity. Or maybe more accurately, it adopts you as its identity.

Q: What actually changes when you cross the threshold? Does it suddenly get easier?

Yes. Practice makes perfect. There is a threshold for every new project where once you hit that magic number, you can feel that it’s working. It can be 10 customers for a new consulting service, 1,000 followers on most social media sites, or $10,000 ARR for a SaaS startup.

The key is when people start coming to you. Reputation turns into conversations. One subscriber tells another. The algorithm starts working with you instead of against you. Your quality improves from reps. Word of mouth kicks in. You're no longer pushing, you're steering.

It doesn't become effortless, but it stops feeling futile.

Q: How do I know if I'm quitting too early versus just picking the wrong channel?

Ask yourself, “Do I love doing this?” If you're only doing it as a means to an end, you've already picked the wrong thing. I could post on X multiple times a day for months because I actually enjoyed it (still do). Writing this newsletter is a passion, not just a project. If it feels like a chore at week six, it'll be unbearable at week 60.

Tune in to the signals, even if they're faint. Did it spike to 100 views, but then back down? That's still growth. Most people quit not because they make progress, but because it’s nonlinear and much slower than they wanted.

Q: What got you through the hard weeks when nobody was watching?

Honestly? I deeply questioned many times whether building an audience on X, LinkedIn, or this newsletter was really worth it. What kept me going was that I embraced my authentic self. I wrote, posted, and engaged in conversations only with the people I wanted to and who I thought ‘got’ me.

I also hedged. I didn't put all my effort into one channel. When the livestream felt discouraging, the newsletter was working. When X felt slow, consulting calls were converting. Having multiple channels meant I always had something working, even if nothing was exploding yet.

Q: Should I focus on one channel or try multiple at once?

I did and still do multiple things, but I only do the ones I have conviction in. I don’t dabble. I commit. In over three years, I have never stopped posting on X multiple times a day. The same goes for LinkedIn. I haven’t skipped a week with this newsletter yet, and I don’t plan to. If you spread yourself too thin with only half-hearted effort, you'll likely quit all of them. I couldn't care less about Instagram.

Pick one channel in the beginning. For me, it was X. Commit fully until you master it. Use that as a springboard into something else. My newsletter grew because I could leverage traction from X and the consulting program. They compound.

Q: What if I don't have time to post multiple times a day for months?

Then you won't break through. I'm not saying that to be harsh. I'm saying it because there's a critical mass required to hit the algorithm, build momentum, and reach the threshold where it starts working.

Posting twice a week on X might feel consistent, but it's not enough volume to create the compounding effect you need. You're not giving the algorithm enough data. You're not staying top of mind. You're not getting enough reps to improve.

If you can't commit to the volume required for the channel, you need to adjust your expectations. Maybe what you’re doing is just a hobby project? Maybe it’s a way to learn and give you an edge somewhere else? That’s smart. But don't fool yourself into thinking you can do it halfway and still break through. You can't.

(You can always hire someone. Many do. And there is nothing wrong with it, in fact, what VC or CEO worth their stock allocation doesn’t have a ghostwriter helping them at this point?)

So many stop at episode 12, even though episode 20 would've been the breakthrough. They abandoned their newsletter at 500 subscribers when 1,000 was three months away. They give up on X at 2,800 followers, right before the inflection point at 3,000.

You won't know which episode is the one that changes everything. You won't know which post finally clicks. You won't know when the algorithm decides you're worth amplifying.

So here's my advice: Pick the thing you're about to abandon. Do 12 more episodes. Write 12 more editions. Post for 12 more weeks.

Then, if you still want to quit, quit. But most of you won't need to. Because by then, you'll have crossed the threshold. You'll know it's working. And quitting will be the last thing on your mind.

The ones who win are simply those who were too stupidly stubborn to quit.

This episode hits Apple CEO rumors, OpenAI’s app marketplace, the rise of spec-driven development, deepfake ethics, and the grind behind creating viral content. Plus: Mark Cuban’s AI challenge, Sora’s cultural shockwave, and Gregory’s chaotic SF event planning.

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I'm Gregory Kennedy, former creative director, 3x head of marketing, and founder of Vibe Your SaaS. I help early-stage startups build real momentum with strategic clarity, AI-driven execution, and zero BS.

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