Have you done this?
Start the day watching motivational videos on YouTube.
Spend an hour responding to emails that don't matter.
Then burn two hours "researching" what competitors charge.
Another hour tweaking your website copy.
You feel productive as hell.
You made exactly zero dollars.
Meanwhile, your pipeline sits empty and bills pile up. But somehow scrolling through other people's websites feels easier than picking up the phone or sending a DM.
This is the trap every entrepreneur falls into:
Confusing motion with movement.
Activity with progress.
Busyness with business.
The Two-Activity Rule
I recently learned something from John Whiting that taught me something that cut through all my productive procrastination:
There are only two activities that matter when you need revenue:
Revenue-producing activities
Future revenue-producing activities
Everything else is just wasted time.
Those YouTube videos that got you "motivated"? Not on the list.
The emails about nothing important? Not on the list.
That competitor research rabbit hole? Definitely not on the list.
And your website copy tweaks while real prospects wait for you to reach out?
You get the idea.
What Actually Moves the Needle
Revenue-producing activities are obvious:
Sales calls
Sending proposals
Following up with prospects
Delivering work that gets you paid
Future revenue-producing activities are the systems that create more of the first category:
Building email lists
Creating content that attracts leads
Setting up referral processes
Developing products you can sell repeatedly
Notice what's not on either list: perfecting your brand colors.
Reading about productivity methods.
Organizing your desktop.
Watching YouTube videos about entrepreneurship.
All that stuff might matter someday.
When you have the luxury of time and a full bank account.
But when you need money more than anything else, it's just procrastination with a productivity costume.
The Tinkering Trap
I'm guilty of this constantly.
I'll spend hours building the "perfect" system instead of using a good enough one to actually generate business.
I'll research the ideal AI tool instead of using the tools I already have.
I'll create a full lead magnet but then spend days editing it and never publish.
It feels like I'm laying the groundwork.
Building frameworks.
Being strategic.
Really, I'm just avoiding the uncomfortable work of selling myself.
Because reaching out to prospects feels vulnerable.
Following up feels pushy.
Having conversations with clients about bounderies is awkward.
So I tinker instead. I optimize. I research. I prepare to prepare.
The Hustle Reality Check
Here's the uncomfortable truth: when you need revenue, you need to hustle.
Not the toxic, grinding, never-sleep kind of hustle.
The focused, intentional, do-what-pays kind of hustle.
Every hour you spend on activities that don't directly create or enable revenue is an hour you can't get back.
Every day you delay the hard conversations is another day your bank account stays the same.
The market doesn't care how beautiful your website is if nobody sees it.
Prospects don't care about your perfectly organized CRM if you never reach out to them.
They care about results.
Solutions.
Value they can't get elsewhere.
What I'm Cutting
This week I'm asking myself one question before every task: Does this create revenue today or build systems that create revenue tomorrow?
If the answer is no, I'm not doing it.
No more YouTube motivation sessions when I should be making calls.
No more competitor research rabbit holes.
No more responding to emails that don't move the needle.
No more website copy tweaks while prospects sit waiting.
The perfect email template can wait. The brand guidelines can wait. The motivational playlist can definitely wait.
The bills can't.
Making the Switch
If you're stuck in activity mode, here's how to shift into progress mode:
List everything you did last week.
Put each task into one of three buckets: made money, will make money, or neither.
Be honest about that third bucket.
The course you bought but haven't implemented? Neither.
The endless planning sessions without execution? Neither.
Reading all those emails? Neither.
Now look at your calendar for today.
How much time is blocked for activities that actually move money toward your bank account?
If it's less than 80% of your available work time, you're probably confusing motion with movement.
The Hard Part
The reason we avoid revenue-producing activities isn't because we don't know what they are.
It's because they're uncomfortable.
Cold outreach feels scary.
Sales conversations require confidence.
Following up means risking rejection.
Publishing is putting yourself out into the world so people can judge you.
Tweaking your logo feels safe.
Research feels smart.
Planning feels productive.
But safe, smart, and productive don't pay the bills.
Revenue comes from doing the work that matters, not the work that feels easy.
The Bottom Line
When you need money, everything else is a luxury.
That perfect brand? Luxury.
The ideal workflow? Luxury.
The comprehensive marketing strategy? Luxury.
Revenue first.
Everything else second.
Because you can't optimize your way to success if you don't have a business worth optimizing.
Stop tinkering.
Start selling.
The market will tell you what needs fixing once you're actually in it.
This is Letter #11 of 'Solopreneur Letters' – a series I’m writing where I share the hard-earned wisdom I wish I’d had when I started on my solopreneur journey. See the full list:
I've been guilty of this before. Starting to align myself a little better with this thinking, though. Good to have it reinforced so well with your excellent observations.