Here is How I’m Making $64K/Month
Last month, I made $64,432. Today, I’m pulling back the curtain on what that actually means, what’s broken behind the numbers, and why I’m starting my build-in-public journey.
This isn’t a humble brag. After paying my team, California claiming its 54%, and supporting a family with two kids in Los Angeles, the reality is more complex than the headline suggests. More importantly, I want others to learn from both my wins and my mistakes as I work to grow this business.
Here’s the honest breakdown of each revenue stream, what’s not working, and exactly how I’m fixing it.
The Newsletter: $33K/Month (The Foundation with Cracks)
My newsletter remains the tentpole of everything I do. At $33,000 per month, it’s the reliable engine that keeps everything else running. But beneath that solid number, there’s a problem that keeps me awake at night: churn.
The hidden challenge: Paid subscribers are essentially flat month over month. I’m running on a treadmill, working harder just to maintain the same position. Every month, I need to acquire enough new subscribers to replace the ones who cancel, plus additional growth on top of that. It’s exhausting and unsustainable.
The math is brutal when you think about it. If I have a 5% monthly churn rate and want to grow 10% month over month, I actually need to acquire 15% new subscribers every single month. That’s not growth; that’s barely treading water with extra steps.
My three-pronged approach to fixing this:
Increasing annual subscriptions by creating irresistible packages that lock in committed readers for longer periods. Annual subscribers churn less frequently and provide more predictable revenue. I’m experimenting with exclusive bonuses, direct access to me, and bundled resources that make the annual commitment feel like a no-brainer.
Dialing in content quality and topics with surgical precision. I’m analyzing which pieces generate the most engagement, which ones convert free readers to paid, and which ones cause people to stick around longest. The data is telling me stories I hadn’t noticed before.
Recapturing my viral social media growth from years past. My newsletter grew fastest when my LinkedIn and X content was consistently hitting viral numbers. I’ve gotten comfortable, but comfort is the enemy of growth.
The Podcast: $18K/Month (Growing but Unfocused)
The podcast has become a nice diversification play, bringing in $18,000 monthly through sponsorships. I’m proud of building this revenue stream, but I’m honest enough to admit it’s not where it could be.
The core issue: I’m not driving loyal, consistent listenership the way successful podcasters do. My download numbers are decent, but engagement and retention metrics tell a different story. People aren’t coming back week after week with the same enthusiasm.
Three specific improvements I’m implementing:
Cutting screenshares from audio episodes. This sounds technical, but it’s actually about respect for the medium. When I’m showing my screen during an interview, audio-only listeners miss crucial context. It creates a suboptimal experience for the majority of my audience who consume the show while commuting or exercising.
Restarting short-form content and investing in clips. The podcast creates hours of content every week, but I’ve been terrible at atomizing it into digestible, shareable pieces. I’m bringing back clip creation as a core part of my content strategy.
Focusing on more sculpted interview guides. My best episodes happen when I’ve done deep preparation and have a clear arc in mind. My weaker episodes feel meandering because I’ve relied too heavily on spontaneous conversation. Preparation beats improvisation.
Sponsorships: $12K/Month (Passive but Limited)
Sponsorships continue to find me, which is a luxury problem. At $12,000 monthly, they provide nice supplemental income without much active effort on my part. I’m selective about brand fit and only promote products I actually believe in.
But I recognize this is a missed opportunity. I haven’t actively tried to grow this revenue stream because other priorities have taken precedence.
My focus areas for expansion:
Growing social media followings systematically rather than sporadically. Sponsors pay for reach and engagement. The bigger and more engaged my audience, the more valuable I become as a partner.
Learning how other creators promote brands without compromising their audience’s trust. There’s an art to integration that I want to master. The best creator-sponsor relationships feel natural and valuable to the audience.
Coaching: $1.4K/Month (Small but Strategic)
Coaching brings in the smallest amount at $1,400 monthly, but it provides disproportionate value to my other work. The conversations I have with coaching clients directly improve my writing by exposing me to new challenges and perspectives.
I’ve been growing this channel again deliberately because the input quality is so high. Every coaching call gives me material for newsletters, insights for podcast episodes, and a deeper understanding of what my audience actually struggles with.
My improvement strategies:
Getting better as a coach through dedicated study. I’m reading books on coaching methodology, taking courses, and treating this as a craft worth mastering rather than just a revenue stream.
Offering purchasing power parity discounts for people who need them. Not everyone can afford premium coaching rates, but many of those people have the most interesting challenges to work through.
YouTube and X: $578 (The Platforms That Pay)
At just $578 combined, YouTube and X represent the smallest slice of my revenue pie, but they’re among the most important for long-term growth. These platforms actually pay creators directly, which creates interesting incentive alignment.
The stagnant X problem: My X growth has plateaued, which limits everything else I’m trying to build. X is often where content goes viral, where conversations happen, and where opportunities begin.
My revival strategy:
Building in public starting now. Transparency creates engagement, and engagement drives algorithmic distribution.
Infusing more X-audience-relevant content into my posting strategy. Each platform has its own culture and preferences. I need to tailor my approach rather than cross-posting the same content everywhere.
The Build-in-Public Inspiration
I’ve been inspired by creators like Marc Lou, Pieter Levels, Adam Robinson, Zach Wilson, and Jay Clouse who share their journeys transparently. Their openness creates deeper connections with their audiences and, counterintuitively, more business opportunities.
Building in public isn’t just about transparency for its own sake. It’s about creating accountability, learning from community feedback, and documenting the process so others can learn from both successes and failures.
The Reality Behind the Numbers
Here’s what $64,432 in monthly revenue actually means in practice:
After paying my team, taxes, and living expenses in Los Angeles with two kids, the take-home reality is significantly different from the gross number. California’s tax burden is real. Family expenses are real. Business costs are real.
This isn’t complaining; it’s context. The number sounds impressive in isolation, but context matters for understanding the actual financial picture and growth imperatives.
Why I’m Sharing This
I want to build something bigger, and I believe transparency accelerates that process. When you share your real challenges, people can offer genuine help. When you admit what’s not working, you create space for better solutions.
This is the beginning of my build-in-public era. I’ll continue sharing the real numbers, the actual challenges, and the specific strategies I’m using to grow each revenue stream.
The goal isn’t just personal growth. It’s creating a resource for other creators who are building similar businesses. We can learn faster together than we can individually.
If you’re building something similar, what’s working for you? What challenges are you facing that I might be able to help with? The best part of building in public is the community that forms around shared struggles and successes.
The journey from $64K to whatever comes next starts with honest assessment of what’s actually working and what needs to change. Consider this my public commitment to that process.
