Happy Saturday Besties,

We just started our 2-week holiday. But we’re not leaving you empty-handed (eared?). In addition to this fantastic newsletter, look out for what we’re dropping next:

• 🏆️ 4 “Best of” podcast episodes that look back on our best stories of the year.

• 💡 2 bonus episodes of The Best Idea Yet dropped on our TBOY feed.

• 🔮 1 Business Predictions Pod for 2025

• 🎁 Plus, our Christmas Card to you at the bottom…scroll to open.

Btw, for a holiday present, can you tell a buddy about TBOY? That would be the best gift yet.

Jumping in TBOY-style to our 2024…

• We had our 1st live show in NYC (It made business news feel like a concert)

• We won our 1st major award: the Webby for Best Business Podcast (because of your record voter turnout)

• We launched a 2nd show: The Best Idea Yet (it hit #2 in Business Podcasts)

• We even pulled off the 1st ever podcast recorded inside a robotaxi (then Waymo became the innovation of the year)

For our investors, here are the numbers for 2024…

• Revenue grew 20%, all ads sold-out

• This show, TBOY, was consistently in the top 200 charts on Spotify every day

• And we passed 300K followers… just on Spotify

But the biggest business win we’re proud of? It’s actually our corporate structure:

We are 50/50 shareholders (Jack, Nick, that’s it). And we’re proud of it (TBOY stock certificate is framed up on the wall).

But our show is nothing without you. So thank you to every Yeti who wrote us a comment, DM, or a review in 2024. We get to be on these mics everyday because of you.

Go celebrate the wins and we’ll see ya in the new year. And check out the TBOY podcast feed for that awesome bonus content while we’re gone.

Our Top Takeaways of 2024

1. Don’t be a people pleaser.

McDonald’s pulled salads from the menu. Why? Because the great majority of customers didn’t want them, so it was hurting their biz. Keeping salads on the menu was a people-pleaser move — it was taking care of others (the rare McDonalds salad eater) instead of taking care of themselves (the majority of customers, the franchises, & the shareholders). Focus first on filling your own cup so that you’re best able to fill others’.

2. The greatest gift you can give your family is financial transparency.

Money convos can be awkwarrrrd, dark, even morbid, but they don’t have to be. Because gifting, prenups, and wills are about legacy, sharing, and protecting the family. Since uncertainty leads to anxiety, we think clear is kind when it comes to finances (and pretty much all things tbh). This holiday, ask your parents to contribute to your kid’s 529 savings account — It’s a great way to start bigger, more positive conversation about legacy.

3. To scale a brand, find its lowest-common denominator.

The movie/musical, Wicked captured our attention with a trademark color, Wicked green. That distinctive color allowed the brand to speak without words, a logo, a name, or a font. All you need is that shade of green, and you know it’s Wicked. Find your brand’s lowest-common denominator to scale it most effectively.

4. There is a case for going with your gut

Your gut is actually a combination of expertise, awareness, and risk-tolerance. Data is a great way to make decisions, but you your gut is also a mix of data.

• Psychology Science Magazine points out that deep experience informs gut, but is often overlooked.

• In another study, NIH Medical trainees that used intuition had equal/greater accuracy than quantitative analysis.

• (fyi, this section of 12 Takeaways was a gut move)

5. Great branding needs tension

Ghost, the energy drink, is more radically transparent than we’ve ever seen — they list the exact amount of all key ingredients. In that sense, it’s mature. Meanwhile the flavors are wildly immature (Swedish Fish & Sour Patch Kids). That’s the tension, and that has made the brand appealing.

6.  If you’re not asking for a Signing Bonus, you’re leaving money on the table.

70% of hires who got a signing bonus asked after they go the job offer. Why After? Because at that point you have the leverage—the company has already committed to you. HR has already invested in interviews and determined you were the top choice. So that’s when you make decision. Show how excited you are to work with them, then ask for a signing bonus to ease the transition. Worst case they say is no. If they do rescind an offer because of your bonus ask, that’s not a company you want to work for.

7. The Cupholder Effect: When 1 small detail determines entire business’ success.

When buying a car, you’d think people care about the style, 4WD, horsepower, etc. But one of most critical buying factors is the cupholders. They’re a huge part of the customer experience, even though they requires the least car industry expertise. The number of cupholders, their location, and their size can determine if the purchase is made. It’s the same with wifi on an airplane. Watch out for the cupholder effect. If you get the cupholder wrong, you’ll lose the sale.

8. The best minds in business… change their minds.

When new information presents itself, consider changing your mind. Netflix refused to do ads for 14 years… but now its ad-supported plan is its growth-driving Profit Puppy.

9. Get rich slow.

The S&P 500 has grown 11%/year since 2008. That sounds slow. But it can get you rich. $100 invested in S&P 500 in 2008 would be worth $500 today. Slow isn’t sexy. That’s why so many still fall for get-rich-quick schemes. We saw it with crypto, meme stocks, lottery tickets, and now sports betting. If someone says you can get rich fast, they’re probably lying. The people who get rich tend to get there slow.

10. The secret to a successful side hustle isn’t communication, it’s over-communication.

When we started our original newsletter as side hustle in 2012, we were afraid to tell work. But when we finally did, our bosses were cool with it. Instead of sneaking around, worried, we could be open & honest. Don’t just communicate your side hustle to your boss — over-communicate. The cost of over-communicating with your boss is it may become annoying (which you can correct). But the Benefit is transparency, trust, and comfort. Olympic rower Justin Best said that over-communication with his banker boss was the key to his success in both the Olympics and in Investment Banking.

11. Need another reason to invest in retirement? You pay less taxes if you do.

Stock market gains in a regular brokerage account like Robinhood are taxed twice: 1) when you earned the money 2) on any gains you make. Stock market gains in a retirement account (like an IRA or 401k) are only taxed once. Our government wants us to plan for retirement so much it’s giving you a hall pass on a tax payment.

12. Who we gave holiday tips to:

First, some best practices: Cash or check is best (Venmo feels less special). And you should envelope and card that thing, tell ‘em how you appreciate them with words on paper (studies show it feels like more in an envelope). Give to those who’ve supported you and your family all year:

• Jack: An extra payment to our regular babysitters, house cleaner, and our kids’ teachers got a $150 gift certificate to the best restaurant in town.

• Nick: We keep a Google Spreadsheet we add to all-year-long, so when the holidays roll around, no one’s forgotten (not even our legendary UPS guy, Karloff).

The Best Idea Yet

 🍬 Did you know PEZ was initially intended to help people quit smoking? The PEZ Dispenser is this week’s episode of The Best Idea Yet.

Listen to the untold origin stories of the products you’re obsessed with… New 45-minute episodes drop every Tuesday. And you can listen to the wild Pez story right now.

Plus, here’s a hint on our next episode of The Best Idea Yet dropping on Tuesday 12/23:

It’s the biggest toy company on earth… 🧱 

And one more thing. You didn’t think we forgot our holiday card….

— Nick & Jack