#305: Big 3: Three Wins, Three Concerns, and Three Experiments for May
Creator Science with Jay ClouseShow Notes
Every month inside the Lab, I do a full retrospective: wins, concerns, experiments, with all the numbers on the table. I've never felt comfortable putting the whole thing out publicly, but I do think the practice itself is worth sharing. So this episode is my lightweight version: three big wins from April, three things I'm genuinely worried about heading into May, and three experiments I'm kicking off. I'm also testing a new name for this format: the Big Three.
April was, by most measures, a really good month. A baby boy on the way, the biggest partnership deal I've ever signed, and a speaking slot at Press Publish LA. But sitting alongside all of that is a real anxiety: I'm watching my audience pull back, sales slowing, people tightening up. And I'm rebuilding a lot of the business simultaneously, too. This episode is me thinking out loud about all of it.
The Lab — Creator Science membership community
Circle — community platform powering the Lab
Press Publish LA — Colin & Samir's creator event, late May
Build a Beloved Membership — Jay's membership course (cohort coming July)
Full transcript and show notes
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TIMESTAMPS
(00:14) Introducing the lightweight retro format ("the Big Three")
(01:38) Win #1: Baby boy on the way — and what it means for the next six months
(04:28) Win #2: Biggest partnership deal ever — Circle for the rest of the year
(06:03) Win #3: Speaking at Press Publish LA
(07:24) Concern #1: The oxygen mask moment — slowing sales and audience withdrawal
(09:47) "Give where it hurts" — the counter-intuitive move in uncertain times
(13:41) Concern #2: Rebuilding the business from the ground up
(18:56) Concern #3: Are we trying to do too much?
(19:25) Experiment #1: Building out the team (Ana, Ritzy, and Tubey in Slack)
(27:46) Experiment #2: The Membership Summit (June 23–26) + cohort in July
(30:41) Experiment #3: A new AI-forward product model, piloting inside the Lab first
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#291: 48 Hours With Clawdbot: How I’m Using It and Initial Reactions
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