Stuff of Note [Articles, Concepts, Gadgets, Books, Tech, and More for January 2024]

This blog post is just a collection of things I feel were of note lately. They might be physical products, articles, or even a new way of thinking I'm interested in.

The only requirement to make this list is that it had some sort of impact on my life or business.

#1 [Product] New Camera, Who Dis?

I finally pulled the trigger and upgraded to the DJI Osmo 3. I bought the Osmo Pocket years ago and decided it was worth the investment to get the latest model. 

#2 [Idea] Side Hustle I'm Currently Obsessed With 

Creating video reviews for the Amazon influencer program is my new obsession. I've written at length about it recently, but it consumes me now, and I absolutely love it. 

It's a new spin on the Amazon affiliate program that lets me earn commissions when people watch video reviews that we've made of Amazon products. The kicker though is that these reviews appear directly on Amazon product pages. This means you can make money without driving any of your own traffic!

#3 [Software] This Has Gotten 10x Better Lately

I don't know how I lived without ScribeHow. It makes training employees or outsourcing tasks a breeze.

Think of it like Loom, but it turns your screen recordings into easy-to-follow SOPs (standard operating procedures). I've actually been embedding these on some of the blog posts on this website

I started using it in 2022, and it's gotten even better since thanks to some serious elbow grease by their development team and the rise of new AI technologies they've integrated.

Here's a video I made awhile back showing it in action, but keep in mind, it's changed a lot since!

Here's an example of what a scribe can look like if you embed it on a website. I made one for a pretty complex process that included 28 different steps.

#4 [Product] Organizing Piles of Pills

This double sided pill organizer by Koviuu is sexy.  Am I... old?

#5 [Clothing] Favorite Clothing Company (Tie)

I'm at the point where about 80% of my casual wardrobe comes from either Public Rec or NoBullProject.

Wearing the All Day Every Day Pants from Public Rec makes me feel like I'm getting away with something.

NoBull is more focused on gym apparel for both men and women. They're not really my little secret anymore since they started sponsoring the Cross Fit games.

Honorable Mention: True Classic Tees.

#6 [Misc.] Guilty Pleasure on YouTube

I'm obsessed with Mr. Ballen on YouTube. I'm definitely not alone there either since he's now amassed over 8 million subscribers on YouTube and millions more across his podcasts and other socials.

He is just a fabulous story teller and creates minimalistic videos about strange, dark, and mysterious stories. Quite possibly the most bingeable content creator I've ever come across. 

I've actually written about Mr. Ballen in the past and shared why I think he's one of the smartest YouTubers of all time. 

#7 [Misc.] I Don't Care What My Wife Says...

I Think You Should Leave by Tim Robinson. This is the funniest show on TV, regardless of what my wife thinks. 

There is no middle ground on this show. Either you get it and think it's the pinnacle of humor, or you absolutely hate it and see nothing funny about it. 

Fair warning, it is often extremely low-brow and not family friendly. 

#8 [Reading] Best Book I Read in 2023

The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel. Fair warning, this book will not teach you how to be rich. It's much more than that. 

Here's a full list of my favorite books from 2023 if you want more book recommendations.

#9 [Product] Scribbles That Matter

I love pens.

Scribbles That Matter (STM) is a company that I've been digging lately, and their pens feel like you're writing with a stick of butter...or something? Idk, words are hard man. They're good pens! That's all I know. 

You can grab a 5 pack for $19.99 here.

#10 [Misc.] Company I'm Breaking Up With 🙁

99Designs. I've spent $1,000s of dollars with them, and I've always been happy with their work, BUT they just dropped the ball so hard on my latest project, it's hard for me to ever consider using them again. 

The designer was actually, fantastic. He created a book cover for the book I co-authored "The 5 Pillars of Wholesale," and it was excellent. 

The problem though was that he totally disappeared before delivering the final files. He said he was sick (which I do believe), but the support team took 4 weeks to help me get a new designer to finish it. 

They delayed our book launch by nearly 2 months. I simply can't recommend them anymore. If I use them again, I'll be extra cautious. 

#11 [Software] Skooooool's Out...

I launched a program called the Amazon Influencer Program Insiders and decided that I wanted to leave Facebook to host the course and community. 

So, I jumped onto Skool, and I love it. 

It's a beautiful mix of your online course materials and a community with a neat gamification spin. Members can unlock different things by engaging more. The engagement rates for me have been astronomically higher than any engagement I've ever had on Circle or Facebook groups. 

Read my full overview of Skool here. 

Don't take my word for it though. Alex Hormozi just invested in it so...

#12 [Idea] I've Changed My Perspective on Burnout 

I used to think that burnout was rooted in working too much. It's probably safe to assume most people think that way too. 

Now I believe that it's very often much deeper than that. 

Some of the happiest times in my life were times I was "working too much" but doing work I loved. On the other hand, some of the most miserable times of my life were when I wasn't working very much because I just didn't like the work anymore. The amount of time spent wasn't the issue; it was the amount of fulfillment. 

So, I think the cure for burnout is deeper than simply taking a break or going on vacation. It might be time to actually pivot and find something you love again. 

#13 [Software] I Left Money on the Table Not Using This... 

GeniusLink is a tool that makes sure that you're earning as much as possible from the Amazon associate program. It uses "automatic localization" to send every visitor to the right product in their country's Amazon store to help us earn commissions from each Associates program, not just the US.

It's super affordable (you pay as you go per click), and it pains me to think how much money I left on the table not using GeniusLink sooner. Also, it does much more than just link localization, but that is mostly what I'm using it for. I still use ClickMagick for general link tracking and most other things that GeniusLink can also do. 

#14 [Product] My $15 Workout Secret Weapon

When was the last time you intentionally worked out your forearms? They're the red-headed step child of the muscle groups. 

Sure, you get some activation on most lifts, but why not be deliberate and really grow some size and strength in them?

I saw forearms as a low hanging fruit muscle that I could focus on to build strength across all my other lifts. The best part is that the greatest workout I've found for forearms comes from a $15 item you can get on Amazon where it has a 4.5 star average rating out of 2.6k+ ratings on Amazon. 

It's designed for standard weight plates and it's extremely durable. I usually max it out at about 10lb plates for 3 reps (1x up and 1x down is one rep for me), and that leaves me absolutely spent.

#15 [Idea] AI and Economies of Scale vs. Economies of Skill

The real winners of the rise of AI right now are the solopreneurs and indiehackers who have always lacked economies of scale and leverage their skills to get more out of less.

Having the skill to find and implement the different AI tools and functionalities that seem to pop up every day is a great equalizer for the underdogs.