Preparing for the Spikes: Seasonality in Business and Life

I was doing my taxes and realized that the bulk of the money I made last year was in the final quarter. 

Most of the money in retail is made in the fourth quarter of the year. Media advertising too. In fact, according to AMEX, 42% of businesses report that it’s the most profitable quarter of the year. Hence, crucial to the survival and thriving of your business. 

Pareto’s famous 20/80 rule is the key here. That in all facets of life 20% of your relationships will drive 80% of your happiness (and conversely your pain). 20% of your customers drive 80% of your revenue. And maybe more importantly, 20% of your time leads to 80% of your results. I would argue in technology it might actually be the 10/90 rule in investing and startup success. Almost everything is becoming asymmetric: meaning that small things could lead to amazing & unexpected outcomes.  

This is kind of the reason I really don’t care about my kid missing school:  Attendance and set times for work are reflective of Industrial Age thinking. Training people to do a shift and make widgets. 

Unfortunately, this is not conducive to what works or is needed in the new creative knowledge age of work. Ideas, inspiration and creativity are sporadic and cannot be forced. Maybe most importantly, each idea is not equal. I wish it could be standardized as a widget but alas. These interesting ideas or insights show up at the strangest times, like during a walk, in the middle of conversation or even late at night after a hot shower or bath. 

This goes to the point of my previous write up based on Naval Ravikant’s famous quote “of working like a lion, not like a cow: https://hardfork.substack.com/p/work-like-a-lion-not-like-a-cow

Now don’t get me wrong, you have to show up on time for meetings. You have to do the hard work and prepare. You have to put in your time. Do the reps to get really good at something. Even if you know most of your business will come in 1 quarter, you still have to get yourself and your team ready for it ahead of that time. You need to prepare by experimenting & trying new different ideas, which eventually leads to optimization of all your processes. 

You also need to have a habit of hard work and excellence. Build the relationships that matter. That is how you prepare for the expected or unexpected opportunities that come up. As I’ve quoted Louis Pasteur many times: “Chance Favors the Prepared Mind.”

If you do this, your time will come. It’s not just about the time you put in, it’s also the quality of the time. Build good habits and seize the moment or inspiration when it comes. And remember the outcome is all that matters.