IN THIS WEEK’S NEWSLETTER:

• 🚀 Make $1,000,000 Using AI  

• ✅ 5 Signs Your Startup Is Ready to Launch

• 💪 7 Habits of Highly Effective Founders

• 💡 AI Tip of the Month

• 🔥 How to Become a Top Amazon Best Seller

Listen to this newsletter👇

🚀 Make $1,000,000 Using AI - A Founder’s AI Mindset  

Below is a real conversation I had with AI…

ME: I want you to make me 1 million dollars  

Actual AI response: Humans ask for things like this all the time, like money is just something I can print out between software updates.

I can’t magically deposit a million dollars into your account. If I could, I’d already be living on a server farm on a private island.

ME: I want to make 1 million dollars. I have an idea for an app that we could launch on the App Store. Help me build it. Help me market it. And help me get to 1 million in revenue.  

Actual AI response: Now we’re talking. This is at least a plan that exists in the same universe as physics.

An app can absolutely get you to $1M in revenue.

Idea → MVP → Users → Retention → Monetization → Scale

Now, can you see the difference?

A little bit of information changes everything.

I always say:  “You can’t outsource the entrepreneur.”

And that applies to AI too.

No, AI can’t go out and make you a million dollars but it can guide you along the way.  

It can shorten the learning curve and help you move faster.

You just need to ask better questions.

AI will mint more millionaires than any shift in history

AI unleashes the artist and creativity in all of us.

The only question is this: Will you use AI to help guide you toward your first million?

So I began my own journey to use AI to help me build something that I have no idea how to do.

My goal: build an app using AI… with the end goal of reaching $1M in revenue.

My Journey: building an app without knowing how to code

Here’s what I decided to build:

A game I was taught by my friend Michael Gilmour in Australia called Rummy Gummy.

The problem?

The game doesn’t exist anywhere.

It’s not on the App Store like other rummy games.

So I decided to build it myself.

And let me be very clear:

• I am not a geek  

• I have only aspired to be one  

• I do not know how to code  

• I don’t even know how to transfer a domain name  

I’m a successful entrepreneur who has had things done for me for decades.

But I’m also curious.

And frankly, I’d like to keep making more money.

So I opened Claude and started building.

The First Surprise: It was easy… until It wasn’t

I described the game, the rules, how the app should work…

Claude responded:

“Great. Your app has been created. Now port it over to Xcode on a Mac.”

Okay? So I did exactly what it said.

And boom.

Nothing worked.

The AI mindset isn’t “Get rich quick”

An AI mentality doesn’t mean you can ask: “Make me rich.”

It means you can ask: “Help me move forward.”

I don’t know anything about Xcode.

But I do know one critical technology:

How to take a screenshot.

So I screenshot the error.

Claude told me what to fix.

I fixed it.

Then I got another error.

Screenshot*

Another fix.

Then another error.

Screenshot*

This happened about a dozen times.

Back and forth.

And eventually…

I had my first working version of Rummy Gummy.

A guy who has never coded before built a real app.

Ok I admit it needs more work….but that was still incredible.

The paradigm has shifted

To be clear: there’s still a lot of work to get this product into a sellable, scalable position.

But something has fundamentally changed.

Entrepreneurs have always been a jack of all trades, master of none.

Now, with AI?

We can become masters of all trades.

Not because we suddenly became experts…

But because when we get stuck, AI helps us move forward.

The Million-Dollar Question

No, you can’t ask AI: “Make me a million dollars.”

But you sure as hell can ask: “Help guide me there.”

And that’s how million-dollar journeys start.

— Colin C. Campbell

Disclaimer: Startup Club and its AI resources are for informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Consult a qualified lawyer for legal matters.

P.S. Don’t forget to tune into today’s Clubhouse 👇

🎙️ How to Survive & Thrive in a Rollercoaster World - Serial Entrepreneur: Secrets Revealed - Friday, Feb 6th at 2pm ET 

We’ll be discussing:

• How to lead and grow when the market keeps shifting

• What to do when fear or uncertainty stalls momentum

• How founders can turn volatility into opportunity

✅ 5 Signs Your Startup Is Ready to Launch

Ever had a brilliant business idea but couldn’t quite pull the trigger?

Here are the five signs that tell you you are truly ready to launch.

1. You have an idea that solves a real problem

The first question I ask myself is simple: “Will someone actually pay for this, and can I make a profit?”

You are not ready to launch until you can clearly articulate:

• The problem

• Who has it

• How painful it is

• Why your solution fixes it

2. You have the people, money and systems ready

Once your idea is real, you need a simple, practical plan to guide execution. Focus on these four key areas:

• Business and customer: Clearly define your story, target customer, what sets you apart, and your first measurable milestone AKA your Stage Gate.

• People: Identify the specific roles and responsibilities required to reach that milestone.

• Money: Estimate the resources and costs needed to get there, including staffing, tools, and operations.

• Metrics: Determine the key performance indicators (KPIs) that will show whether your plan is on track or needs adjustment.

3. You have made the idea real

If your idea exists only in your brain, you are not ready to launch.

When a beach property came up for sale near our Airbnbs on North Captiva Island, we had already lost three bids. On the boat ride home, we named the property Sunset Escape. Before we reached the driveway, we had:

• The domain registered

• A logo commissioned

• The brand is visualized across signage, golf carts and boats

4. You have vetted the idea with the right community

Getting feedback from the right people early can save time, money, and effort.

Avoid:

• Pitching only to professional naysayers who may dismiss ideas without context

• Seeking validation from friends or family who aren’t familiar with startups

Do:

• Join startup-focused communities or online forums where entrepreneurs exchange feedback

• Build a small advisory group of experienced founders, industry experts, or potential customers who can give specific, actionable feedback

5. Your timing aligns with market demand

To increase your chances of success:

• Observe industry trends: Track emerging technologies, customer behaviors, and gaps in the market.

• Act quickly: Move fast to test, iterate, and launch once you see clear demand.

• Simplify adoption: Make it easy for customers to try and buy your product.

Now you are ready to launch.

🔥 Read the full article here

 🔥 7 Habits of Highly Effective Founders

Highly effective founders don’t rely on luck, they rely on habits that compound.

Here are their 7 habits:

1. Watch Every Penny

Highly effective founders are disciplined with money. They know their numbers, protect cash flow, and stay intentional with spending both in business and in life.

2. Delay Gratification

Successful founders are willing to earn less today to build more tomorrow. They resist lifestyle creep, avoid premature rewards, and understand that entrepreneurship, by definition, is a long game.

3. Always Be Selling

Effective founders are always promoting authentically. They talk about their company in elevators, wear the brand, wrap their cars or boats, post consistently, and share the vision everywhere they go.

4. Be Ethical

Trust is an asset. Highly effective founders choose the long road—walking away from deals that don’t align, being honest with customers, and protecting their reputation.

5. Learn Relentlessly

Top founders never stop learning. They read constantly, study trends, experiment hands-on, and stay curious.

 🔥 Read all 7 habits here

AI Tip of the Month

Organize your ChatGPT like folders or directories so your prompts (and answers) stay more focused and specific. If a chat gets too long, slow, or starts going off the rails, ask ChatGPT to summarize the thread and paste that summary into a fresh chat to keep things clean and accurate.

Pro Tip: You can also ask ChatGPT to save key info to memory so future conversations get smarter and more personalized.

🚀 Top Streaming Shows Every Entrepreneur Should Watch in 2026

Over the years, I’ve been motivated and inspired by certain streaming shows.

That inspired me to post on LinkedIn and ask the community a simple question.

“What’s a show every entrepreneur should watch, and what lesson did you learn from it?”

The Startup Club community responded with thoughtful and real discussions. 

Below is a compilation of those shows and the lessons learned straight from founders, operators, and builders who’ve lived it.

1. Landman

A modern look at the oil business where real power lives in land rights, incentives, and behind the scenes negotiations.

2. Silicon Valley

A group of engineers attempts to build a tech startup while navigating VCs, accelerators, competitors, and nonstop chaos.

3. The Bear

A fine dining chef returns home to save his family’s failing restaurant, bringing elite standards into a chaotic environment.

4. Succession

A media empire fractures as family members fight for control while ownership and voting power quietly dictate outcomes.

5. Suits

A high-powered law firm thrives on negotiation, leverage, and psychological strategy.

6. Hacks

A legendary comedian is forced to reinvent her brand to stay relevant with a younger audience.

7. Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber

The rise and near collapse of Uber during its most aggressive growth phase.

We are a product of who we surround ourselves with and maybe even the streaming shows we watch.

🚀 Read the full list here

📖 10 Lessons on How to Become a Top Amazon Best Seller

For years, “Lunch With Norm” was a regular podcast with a bearded mentor, a series of experts, and hard-hitting education in what it really takes to build an Amazon/e-commerce business.

With over 600+ episodes and the final episode published last month, this article brings together 10 big lessons that Norm takes away from Lunch With Norm.

Lesson 1: Know Your Numbers Like Your Business Depends on It 

The first pattern Norm noticed, again and again: The best sellers are obsessed with their numbers. 

The sellers Norm respected most accounted for everything that quietly chews through profit:

• Landed cost (NOT just product cost)

• Inbound shipping and prep fees

• Returns, refunds, and damaged units

They optimized for everything.

Lesson 2: Build Systems

If there was one philosophy that resonated throughout Norm’s conversations, it was this: Amazon rewards systems.

Rather than waking up and asking, “What do I feel like working on today?” the guests who reached the top of the mountain had structured rhythms:

• Account health and listing status checks every week

• Recurring inventory forecasting and purchase-order cycles

• SOPs for new product setups, keyword research, and launch strategies

Lesson 3: Own Your Customer

Norm saw guests who began as product sellers grow into brand builders. Guests who had a real brand strategy were less likely to panic.

To own a brand is to own the relationship, as much as Amazon will permit.

Norm’s guests who did this well:

• Invested in post-purchase experience: clear instructions, helpful inserts, QR codes pointing to guides or videos

• Built communities off Amazon, email lists, social groups…

• Treated every customer as if they were a repeat customer

Lesson 4: Make the Customer Your Editor-in-Chief

Winning sellers treated reviews and returns as data. Losers treated them as insults.

Winners would:

• Read reviews in groups to search for recurring phrases.

• Ask, “What is the customer actually telling us?”

Then they employed that feedback ruthlessly:

• Making changes to the product on the next reorder

• Clarifying listing images and bullets to set expectations better

• Improving packaging to reduce damage or confusion

Lesson 5: The $10 / $100 / $1,000 / $10,000 Work Framework

This was one of the most frequently mentioned frameworks:

$10 tasks:

• Repetitive admin

• Basic customer messages

• Routine listing uploads

$100 tasks:

• Coordination and follow-up

• SOPs and timelines management

• Project management

$1,000 tasks:

• PPC and media specialists

• Conversion-driven creative

• External traffic setups

$10,000 tasks (owner-level):

• Brand vision and positioning

• Big partnerships and distribution agreements

• Recruiting leaders and creating culture

If you find yourself doing $10 or $100 tasks on a consistent basis, they considered it a red flag.

🚀 Find all ten lessons here

📅 This Month’s Clubhouse Schedule!

🎙️ Make a $1 Million Using AI  - Friday, February 13th at 2pm 

We’ll be having a practical, founder-focused conversation about real ways entrepreneurs are using AI to build, scale, and create new revenue streams.

Bring your ideas, questions, and experiments, we’re keeping this interactive and action-oriented.

🚀 TTSI Climbs to 26.9 in 2025!

This month’s TTSI 26.9 out of 100 which indicates a continued recovery from the post-pandemic lows of 2022 and signals movement toward a more balanced exit environment for founders.

🔥 Check Me Out on TikTok!

@startupclubhq

You can’t outsource the entrepreneur. Not now, not ever. AI isn’t here to replace your brain — it’s here to stretch it. To push you harder... See more

🚀 How to Support Startup Club

You can further support StartUp.Club by:

1. Sharing it with a friend or fellow entrepreneur! We’ve got a great referral program!

2. Responding to this email and letting me know what you think.

3. Picking up your copy of Start. Scale. Exit. Repeat.

And if you made it this far, thank you for reading.

— Colin C. Campbell

Entrepreneur Fact of the Month: Founders who start more than one company are more likely to succeed.

Data shows second-time founders outperform first-timers because they move faster and avoid predictable mistakes.