“DUDE! It’s a total game-changer! You get 2 DVDs at a time. And when you’re done watching one, you mail it back and they’ll send you the next one!”
My 2023 goal for Financial Zen is to be Netflix circa 2003.
Remember when Netflix first caught on and people couldn’t stop talking about it?
I remember it being at the tip of everyone’s tongues from friends to coworkers to cabbies in the early 2000’s.
Once you discovered it, you just HAD to tell people about it.
That’s my North Star for Financial Zen.
I want to build something so incredibly valuable that people feel like they HAVE to talk about it.
Because let’s be honest, the “red ocean” of financial planning kind of sucks.
No matter where you go, you get the same overpriced service you could anywhere else.
There are degrees of differentiation, but it’s basically Hollywood Video vs. Blockbuster. Netflix hasn’t been invented yet.
(That said, I still believe working with any professional will put you further ahead than doing it yourself.)
So far, Financial Zen’s blue ocean includes high-frequency, monthly coaching and accountability meetings, a subscription fee model and a focus on Gen X/Y/Z.
The further we wade out into our blue ocean, the more ways I find to add value.
This month we’re rolling out a tool to easily track our members’ most vital monthly financial stats.
This will also be the first year we complete mid-year tax analyses, so we have all of Q3/Q4 to make adjustments.
And I’ll also be creating a Financial Zen Community, so we can all get to know each other and strengthen our network (which could be even more important if the layoffs continue).
But the best way to improve is to hear from those that use the product/service.
So if you’ve ever thought “Boy, it’d be really great to get help with ______”, then please let me know.
Someone, somewhere in 1999 was like “Boy, it’d be really great to just have that VHS tape delivered.”
And that changed everything.
