My plan to escape the algorithm
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For the last few years, my business has been tied to LinkedIn. Every piece of content, every conversation and every client was all organic. And it worked... It built the business from the ground up. But a creeping feeling started to set in... When your entire business depends on a single platform and a single type of content, you’re not an owner. You’re a tenant building your house on someone else’s land and you’re always at the mercy of...
I don’t want that anymore. So, I took a step back and asked a different question... Instead of asking “How do I win on LinkedIn today?”. I started asking, “How do I build a business that can’t lose tomorrow?”. The answer is what I’m calling Project Autonomy. Here’s the plan I’m putting into motion. Step 1) The Content Backbone Over the last 2 years my own habits have shifted. I’ve stopped scrolling endless short-form feeds and started investing my time in long-form YouTube and a few high-quality emails. It began to feel hypocritical and misaligned to create a type of content I no longer consume. This created a strategic problem: My conviction is in the depth of long-form... ... but my business still requires the reach of short-form for the top of the funnel. The 'traditional' answer is to force it. Run two separate content engines and burn out creating work you don't believe in. But that's not a system... It's a chore. The strategic move was to stop treating them as two workflows. My primary focus is now a single workflow: Creating deep, valuable long-form assets in the form of client workshops and YouTube videos. The short-form content is now simply a natural output of that primary work. Not a separate creative process. It's an act of extraction. The most valuable clips and insights already exist inside the core asset, waiting to be pulled out. This aligns my personal conviction with my business strategy. I focus 100% on creating the deep-dive content I believe in, and the system provides the top-of-funnel assets automatically. Nothing is forced. Nothing misaligned. Step 2) The YouTube Strategy My strategy for YouTube is built around a classic marketing funnel (TOF, MOF, BOF). Two styles of video.
The lifestyle content is the Top of Funnel (TOF). It builds connection and answers the question, "Who is this person?". The deep-dive strategy content is the Middle of Funnel (MOF). It showcases expertise and answers the question, "Can this person help me?". This approach builds a relationship first, then demonstrates value. The Bottom of Funnel (BOF) then happens off-platform, inside my email list and Skool group where I can make specific offers to a warm/hot audience. Step 3) The Distribution Instead of constantly feeding the LinkedIn machine to chase reach, I’m changing its job. The long-form YouTube channel is now the engine. LinkedIn, IG, and email are the distribution system. They serve three specific purposes:
This is the director’s commentary on the business I'm building, where I document the journey and explain the principles behind Project Autonomy. This is what builds the trust and context that makes the deep-dive content valuable. Essentially, these platforms are NOT the foundation. They point to the core asset; they are not the asset themselves. Step 4) The Product An unstructured library of content is the fastest way to create inaction and churn. So I’ve restructured my entire platform around a single principle: It must be a sequential, self-guided journey. It’s no longer a random library of workshops. It's a clear pathway designed to create a specific result at each level. The journey starts in The Vault. New members get a clear path and are given everything they need to make their first £3k online with an offer built from their lived experience. The system is designed to deliver that first crucial win. The system then automatically presents the natural and logical upgrade paths. For those who want deeper support and collaboration, there is The Forum (community). For those who want high-touch, direct guidance, there is The Partnership (1:1). The product itself does the guiding. The ascension from one level to the next is a built-in, automated feature of the journey. It's a system that creates results, not a folder full of videos. Step 5) The Leads There are two ways to acquire a new client acquisition system in business:
The 'time' path is the default. It's the ~12-month grind of trial-and-error, rookie mistakes, and burning cash to learn a new skill. It's just another form of hustle, and the core principle of Project Autonomy is to REJECT HUSTLE. The 'leverage' path is different. It treats a predictable traffic system as an asset to be acquired, not an expense to be managed. Starting in October/November, I'm making a considerable investment to acquire this asset. The mentor is the acquisition consultant; the ad spend is the capital. It’s a strategic choice to buy a proven system rather than paying for it with my own time and mistakes. It is the most direct expression of the entire philosophy: Build a business that runs on owned assets, not on my personal effort. Step 6) The Goal This isn’t a plan to remove myself from the business. It’s a plan to remove dependency. I want a business that runs on systems and assets that I own, not on whether I win the algorithm lottery on any given week. A business where the work I do today continues to provide value and generate results in six months, without my constant manual input. This isn't about 'passive income'. 'Passive' is a myth in any business where client results are the benchmark of success. Passive systems deliver passive results. The real goal is leveraged impact. Building assets that work for you, so you can show up for your clients where and when it matters most. It's the only version of the dream that works. That’s what Project Autonomy is really about. Ownership. I'll be documenting this entire journey weekly. If you're building towards the same kind of freedom and autonomy, follow along. Until next time, |
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