Sam Parr is founder and CEO of TheHustle, a newsletter with 1.7 million readers a day.

We talk about how to start a giant newsletter, writing, conferences, happiness, validating business ideas and community.

Watch the full Sam Parr interview here:

We’ve chopped up this hefty interview into little digestible clips, and put them on a separate “clips” we hope you subscribe on YouTube:

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Sam Parr originally worked for the TV show American Pickers, then started an online liquor store in college, then, started and ran a hotdog stand called Southern Sam’s: Wiener’s as Big as a Baby’s Arm, then started a roommate matching app called Bunk, which was then acquired by Apartment List.

When I first him he had an online store selling a poison ivy remedy called Itch Juice. Then he started a small conference called Bootstrap Live, which then turned into HustleCon, which then got really big and spun off a company called TheHustle which is a newsletter with around 1.3m readers a day. Then he spun off even more products like Hustle Trends and The Ideation Bootcamp.

The power of newsletters. "The math works out, and reach is better than social."

• People primarily know you from your company TheHustle. At its core it’s just an email newsletter you send out everyday. Now it’s 1.3 million people or so. 

• How did you start the newsletter? What’s the story behind it? 
• Would you start a newsletter again today?
• Why is an email newsletter so powerful? 
• What do you think of SubStack?
• “Building your business on Instagram (or whatever platform) is like building a store where the landlord jacks up the rent every 18 months.”

Where do you learn from? "You are annoyingly inquisitive."

• You are annoyingly inquisitive. How much money do you make?? Who is your CEO?? What is their salary?? How did you hire them??

• Where do you learn from? Do you read? Podcasts?

What helped you succeed when you were young? (Between 18-25 years old):

• What are some actions you took in your young adult life (18-25) that benefitted you tremendously throughout your life this far?

How do you spot “good writing” or a “good writer?”

• How do you spot “Good Writing” ?

• You’re a naturally good writer it seems….was that a skill you learned or just intuitively knew. 
• You first started Anti-MBA, a book club.
• What do you look for in a writer. Is it the resume? 
• When someone applies, do you read their stuff?
• How would a writer get an interview with you.

What is copywriting? How did it affect your life?

• What value did copywriting have in your life. 

• Copywriting as a skill. Not as a career.
• How many people Sam has got into the Copywriting Course.

Are conferences screwed? "Conferences are cool, but trade shows are where da money at."

• You originally did Bootstrap Live → Then HustleCon → Grew That → Now fully digital. 

• Are conferences screwed? 
• Pro’s/Con’s of conferences. 
• Trade shows can get far more money in sponsorships.

What do you get out of podcasting? "The reach is insane."

• What do you get out of podcasting?

• How big is the reach?
• Easiness vs return?

How do you maintain a good Facebook Groups community and subscription product?

• You run the Trends.co group on Facebook.
• Do you constantly kick out members?
• How do you have time to participate so much?
• The Trends community is the only Facebook Group I ever check anymore. 

• What makes it “good” ?
• How do you think about curating it?

How do you validate new business ideas?

• How do you go about validating if an idea can work?

• Ways you validate. Bootcamp.
• Jobs → Trends.

Why did you move to Austin? "Starting a community."

• Why leave San Fran and live in Austin?

Happiness...what does it mean to you? "Wife, Dog, Nature."

• What is a good life to you?

• You once posted a photo of you walking on some trail in the middle of nowhere. It said “Wife, dog, nature….what else do I need.” Do you think that’s true?
• Who is your ideal model for life? 

Follow Sam Parr:

🖥 Website: TheHustle.co

🖥 Website: Trends.co

🖥 Website: Ideation Bootcamp

🐦 Twitter: @TheSamParr

Follow Copywriting Course:

🎦 @Kopywriting

🎦 Copywriting Course Clips

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🐦 @NevMed

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This was a super fun conversation with one of my best buddies, and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!

Sincerely,

Neville Medhora - Copywriting Course