School Was Never for Me
I graduated by the grace of one merciful teacher. The building said I’d amount to nothing. Tyk Sullivan on what school actually measures, and what it misses.
Insights
Operating Notes.
Lessons paid for in practice: capital, companies, performance, and perspective. Written by Tyk Sullivan. Everything publishes here first. Subscribe via RSS.
All essays
The Last Word Was Grace
Facing execution, Paul closed his final letter with one word. Tyk Sullivan on grace, empty chairs, and the one ledger a scorekeeper has to stop keeping.
Get It in Writing
Handshake deals feel like trust and function like amnesia. Tyk Sullivan on why written agreements protect relationships, not just money.
The Entrepreneur Omelet
Eating well when busy is a decisions problem, not a discipline problem. Tyk Sullivan on the ninety-second omelet and guarding the door, not the plate.
The 50th Law - What 50 Cent Taught Me About Business
Fit, feared, and professional: Tyk Sullivan on the template he took from 50 Cent as a kid, The 50th Law, and living inside your own brand.
Not Good, But Dominant
Tyk Sullivan played one season of football on pure strength and zero system, then quit. On talent vs. hard work, and the honest accounting of both halves.
Florida Is a Wild Place
Lawns mowed in G-strings, a four-wheeler beside a Ferrari, helicopters overhead. Tyk Sullivan on the GTA energy of Florida and who it is actually for.
I Was Dropshipping Before It Had a Name
Tyk Sullivan ran a print-on-demand shirt site before dropshipping was a term. What the model actually is, where the margin lives, and who should bother.
We Broke Into the Gym
Tyk Sullivan’s first gym memory is breaking into one. On desire as the scarce input, and how to start training when the front door is wide open.
Your Biggest Hater Sounds Like You
Your most dangerous critic uses your own voice. Tyk Sullivan on borrowed doubt, the two voices, and building evidence your brain cannot argue with.
Why Did Jesus Have to Die on the Cross?
God did not pretend sin did not matter, and He did not leave us to pay. Tyk Sullivan on the cross: where perfect justice and perfect love meet.
Jesus Did Not Stand Fifty Paces Away
Jesus could have healed from a distance. He touched the man first. Tyk Sullivan on the miracle inside the miracle: grace moves toward the mess.
Do So Much Work That Failure Becomes Unreasonable
The seat at the table is not reserved for the smartest or loudest. Tyk Sullivan on producing so much evidence that overlooking you becomes unreasonable.
Courage Is the Trait That Makes Everything Else Matter
Confidence is the receipt. Courage is the purchase. Tyk Sullivan on rejection, repetition, feedback, and acting before the outcome is guaranteed.
Sleep: The Input I Keep Losing
Tyk Sullivan writes about discipline and holds some of the worst sleep scores in his own circle. On sleep as the multiplier input, and why it is an evening discipline.
What Is Risk Management? (Plain English)
Risk management is deciding, in advance, how much you can lose without changing your future. The pieces in plain English. Educational, not advice.
An AI Wrote My Term Paper in 2015
A paper worth half the grade, one primitive essay tool, twenty-five pages of confident nonsense. Tyk Sullivan on the AI leverage lesson he learned a decade early.
List Everything. Let the Market Surprise You.
Tyk Sullivan listed his occupied rental on Airbnb at a number nobody should pay. A company booked it for a commercial shoot. Offers, not surveys, measure demand.
Nobody Is Coming to Save You
Fault is history. Responsibility is logistics. Tyk Sullivan on why ownership is a relief, not a burden, and the audit that turns waiting into a to-do list.
The 4 AM Inheritance
Work ethic is not taught. It is transmitted by proximity. Tyk Sullivan on watching his dad work 4 AM to 6 PM, and how to borrow a work ethic you did not inherit.
Proof Beats Promises
Every competitor makes the same promises, so the market prices promises at zero. Tyk Sullivan on the proof ladder: borrowed, demonstrated, and accumulated evidence.
Visualize the Imperfections
The woo version deserves its reputation. The working version changed Tyk Sullivan’s life: flawed, detailed mental images that feel like memories you have not had yet.
The Perfect Day Is Ordinary on Purpose
Ask people their perfect day and they describe a vacation. Tyk Sullivan on designing the repeatable Tuesday instead, and aiming the ambition at protecting it.
Your Product Is Fine. Nobody Knows You Exist.
Most stalled businesses are unknown, not unwanted. Tyk Sullivan on the awareness problem founders keep misdiagnosing as a product problem.
The Shopping Cart Theory
The shopping cart is the purest character test in modern life: no reward, no punishment, no witnesses. Tyk Sullivan on second-order people and why the cart tells the truth.