How to be successful with just 10 fans

And why a few good people are all you need

There’s a famous essay called 1,000 true fans.

It says you don’t need millions of dollars, customers, clients or followers to make a living or build a successful business — you just need a thousand true fans.

But what if you don’t even need 1,000? What if you only need 10?

The secret of 10

The secret of any great business (it’s not really a secret) is that success is built on a very, very small number of people.

Ten people who know you, trust you and respect your work — that’s all you need.

Those ten people will each come back with new problems for you to solve, for years to come.

They’ll each introduce you to 3–5 more great people you can help.

They’ll share advice that improves your offering, so you can help ten more people.

And they’ll create more value for your practice than 1,000 fans or a million followers ever could.

A new model

This idea, of 10 good people, changes the way you build your business or measure success.

Great writers, lawyers, doctors, and creators, aren’t interested in vanity metrics, sales tactics, or growth strategies. They’re not trying to become best-sellers or LinkedIn-famous.

The best business builders are very busy giving away enormous amounts of value to 10 good people.

Because they know that 10 quickly turns to 100, and from there…who knows.

A few really, really good people — that’s all you need.