Deciding to skip business school to start a gym in 2013 changed my life forever. 

Here’s what happened next: 

2013: Launched United Fitness in Huntington Beach, CA, and grew to 6 locations

2016: Founded Gym Launch and switched from privately owning gyms to doing in-person turnarounds

2017: We transitioned from in-person turnarounds to a licensing business and helped over 4500+ facilities transform their businesses.

2019: Our supplement company, Prestige Labs, launched to help those gyms create another profit center and provide their customers with high-quality nutritional products.

2020: Started ALAN, a software company that helps brick-and-mortar businesses get twice as many people in the door on average for one-third the price of a front desk admin.

2020: Founded Acquisition.com, to invest in and help grow companies. Made our first 3 investments.

2021: We sold our majority shares of ALAN to a strategic partner and a 66% stake in Gym Launch and Prestige Labs to American Pacific Group.

It’s been a ride.

Today, through Acquisition.com we participate as minority or majority partners and use the same models that helped scale each of our companies.

If you own a profitable and growing $1M+ in EBITDA company and you’d like us to see if we can help you grow faster:
➡️ Reach out at Acquisition.com

Always looking to meet great companies and founders.

And if you're below that revenue/EBITDA, we’ve created resources to help entrepreneurs get to that point for free. You can grab Acquisition.com free courses, books, and articles here:
🔗 Youtube @AlexHormozi
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🔗 Podcast: The Game w/ Alex Hormozi
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🔗 Free Courses at Acquisition.com
🔗 Speaking Inquiries: acquisition.com/speaking

Alex Hormozi

23 yrs old: Left my consulting job. 
24 yrs old: Opened 5 gym locations.
26 yrs old: Closed down 6th gym. Lost everything. 
26 yrs old: Got back to launching gyms and lost everything for a 2nd time. 
26 yrs old: In desperation, started licensing model as a hail mary. It worked. 
27 yrs old: "Gym Launch" does $3M profit the next 6 months. Then $17M profit next 12 months.
28 yrs old: Started Prestige Labs. $20M the first year.  
29 yrs old: Launched USEALAN.com, a software company for agencies to work leads for customers. 
31 yrs old: Sold 75% of UseAlan to a strategic buyer in all stock deal. 
31 yrs old: Sold 66% of Gym Launch & Prestige Labs at $46.2M valuation in all-cash deal to American Pacific Group. 

To all the gladiators in the arena, we’re all in the middle of writing our own stories. The worse the monsters, the more epic the story.

You either get an epic outcome or an epic story. Both mean you win. 

Keep crushing. May your desires be greater than your obstacles. 

#timeline #entrepreneurlife #alexhormozi

Founder Acquisition.com, Co-Founder Skool.com. Get your free scaling roadmap👇

Unpopular Opinion: 



We can Normalize ignoring the opinions of people who have smaller dreams for your life than you do.

She has 5800 followers. Her average post gets 19 likes. 
Took home ~$1M this year. True story. 

This is a real friend of mine. Her entire client acquisition comes from her 5800 Instagram followers. Her average post gets 19 likes and 1 comment. 

Her business? She helps registered dietitians bill insurance correctly. Super niche market. 

She doesn't need 5M followers. She doesn't need to "hack" the algorithm. She understands one simple rule. There is a real person on the other side of those views and treats them that way. Engages with them that way. 

Some businesses don't need more followers. They need the right followers on their accounts.

Your 9 to 5 is not killing your dreams. 
You wasting your 5 to 9 is. 

Best job to have when going after your dreams is the one where you get 129 days a year off to pursue your dreams with full-time pay. Oh yeah, that’s every 9-5 job. Analyze every minute of your life outside of your 9-5 and see where your energy is going. THAT will determine and show you how much your actions are matching your aspirations.

your 9 to 5

If you're growing, you will have growing pains. 
If you're shrinking, you will have shrinking pains. 
If you've plateaued, you will have plateauing pains. 

Basically... everything is painful and everything feels hard.  Business is hard no matter which cycle you are in. 

It's going to suck and it's going to be painful at all stages. Going up, going down, or staying the same. All feel painful. 

Having frameworks to think through which cycle you are in and how to stay the course makes it a little bit more bearable. Business is hard. You just can't give up. 

I hope this helps one person on linkedin. 
- alex ✊🏽

To achieve your goals this year. 
You don't need a mentor.

You're allowed to:
1. Fire yourself up
2. Create your own deadlines
3. Hold yourself accountable
4. Do more than anyone asked you to 
5. Make yourself proud

If you're waiting for someone to believe in you, start with yourself.

- alex ✊🏽

Rich people buy time. 
Poor people buy stuff. 
Ambitious people buy skills.
Lazy people buy distractions.

I sold my last company for $46,200,000
Here are 8 lessons I learned that can help you in 2026: 

#1 Sell to rich people until you have the money to sell to all the poor people. The middle is where you get killed. Rich people pay for speed and convenience. 

#2 You lack priorities, not information. Problems are easy to solve if you know what you’re after. 

#3 Things are hard because your team isn’t as good as you think they are. Your standards are too low. Your best talent you have not even hired yet. 

#4 Lots of rules mean you have dumb people. The more talented and capable your people are the less structure you need in your company. Only hire people who will raise the bar of the other team members. 

#5 If you want to get bigger, get better. Better leads to growth. Bigger leads to bloat. 

#6 You work all day but you can’t get anything done because you allow too many things that don’t matter distract you. Sometimes you have to let fires burn. 

#7 Building a brand takes a long time. However, it is the most valuable thing you can own. It gives you the ability to get incredible returns on advertising. It’s difficult to imagine something better than a strong brand. It just takes time. 

#8 You need to know the inputs and outputs of your money-making system, broken down to the absolute smallest action. That way you can scale it while sustaining your margins.

You can’t wish for both growth and comfort.

The price of the first is the second.

Growth doesn't happen on good days. 
It happens between them.

- Alex ✊🏽

Work + Big Goals = Ambition
Lazy + Big Goals = Entitlement

Big goals don't make you different.
Big work does.

Obsession is the antidote to mediocrity. 
Action the antidote to anxiety. 
Purpose the antidote to laziness.
We aren’t broken.
We just need something to live for.

- Alex ✊🏽

We’re hiring for a sales role. 
It’s fully remote. 

The role is called Sales Development Representative (Setter). 

Who this is for:
1. You are a top performing rep at your company
2. You are extremely hard working
3. You are looking for growth
4. You have business acumen (plus if you’ve sold to small business owners).

What we offer you:
1. Daily Sales Training & 1-1 coaching
2. Professional Skill Development (leadership, business strategy, marketing, etc)
3. Performance based career growth (the best get promoted)
4. Access to our team of A-Players
5. Uncapped commissions

What we expect from you:
↳ High work ethic (Monday-Saturday)
↳ Follow our proven sales process
↳ Train with your coach daily
↳ 200+ Dials per day
↳ Manage your pipeline & follow up properly
↳ Admin work for data collection
↳ Be a team player

If this sounds like your or sounds like someone you know, apply via the link in the comments today. 

P.S. This role is also great for someone who’s tried to launch a business.

People underestimate how much brute force you have to use to will your goals into existence.

You don't have to say YES to every meeting ❌
Nothing is precious until it is scarce.

👉 For ecom brands 

I will tear down walls for you... *insert generic promises of being the best goddam ecom growth consultant in the world*

Let's cut that BS, and talk business owner to business owner. 

You're looking at someone who has helped clients generate $40 million in additional revenue through email and copy. 

I happen to be someone who knows what it's like to leave money on the table by not having retention marketing in place. 

I know what it's like to be alone without someone to talk to about the way things are going with your business. And I've been there and know how to make things work.

So, reach out to me if you need help scale your brand.

Here's my website:

https://shahzadkhan.co/

Oh and in case you didn't know (which you probably didn't lol), I happen to be an award-winning copywriter with 3.5k projects under my belt. 

This means you're in good hands. 

Let's strike up a conversation and see if we're a good fit!

Shahzad Khan

Pakistani banks treat freelancers like criminals.

I tried opening a bank account back in the day and the manager asked... 

"Sir, ap kia karty hain? Letterhead dein."

I explained I write copy and have clients abroad.

He looked at me like I was running a scam.

"Aapko documents laane hongay. Source of income proof. Client contracts. Tax returns."

Bhai, I have worked with 1800 different clients and I usually work on different platforms. 

Meanwhile, the guy next to me deposited 15 lakh cash. No questions.

This is Pakistan.

Cash from "property dealing" - no problem.
Dollars from actual skill-based work - sus.

I've had accounts frozen. LITERALLY.

We're out here competing globally, earning foreign exchange for the country, and getting treated like we're doing something illegal.

No wonder people hide their income.

Award-Winning Copywriter ⚜Ecom Growth Consultant⚜Scaling DTC Brands By Leveraging Email Marketing ⚜ $40+ Million In Revenue Generated & 3500+ Projects ⚜ Founder The Laptop Living & Conversion Crush ⚜ Speaker & Trainer

Pakistani freelancers and agency owners are earning foreign exchange for this country.

Our reward? 

No PayPal. No Stripe. Blocked VPNs. No electricity.

We compete against people with real infrastructure. 

They click a button and get paid. 

We route money through three platforms, pay fees on fees, and then explain to our bank where it came from.

Government loves talking about "IT exports" in speeches.

But we don't have PayPal.
We can't use Stripe.
Our VPNs get blocked randomly.
And banks treat our dollars like drug money.

You want more freelancers? 

Stop making our lives harder.

It's 11 PM in Multan.

7 AM in New York.

Your client just woke up.

They have "urgent feedback."

You have a choice:

Answer now and kill your sleep.
Or answer tomorrow and lose the client to someone who won't.

This is your life.

Every night.

While your friends are at chai, you're on Zoom.

While Pakistan sleeps, you work.

Because the time zone tax is real.

And nobody talks about it.

Gurus say "work from anywhere!"

"Be your own boss!"
They don't mention your boss lives 10 hours behind you.

"Freedom!"
They don't mention the wedding you took your laptop to.

I've done all of this.

Still do sometimes.

But I've also built systems that reduce the midnight calls.

Cohort 18 isn't just copywriting theory.

It's how to actually build a business from Pakistan.

With all the challenges that come with it.

The Laptop Living - Ed Tech Startup Award

Received the Ed Tech Startup Award at the Arfa Karim Technology Awards.

When I started writing full-time, I never imagined we'd create this kind of impact.

And to receive this from Arfa Karim's parents - that part I'm still processing.

What a journey. Alhamdulillah.

Overwhelmed, grateful, and just getting started.

More to come from The Laptop Living.

I quoted $1,800 for a trial month.

The client said $2,000.

I sat there confused.

Did he just... raise my price?

Yes. He did.

Because he valued the work more than I did.

That moment taught me something I'll never forget.

We think clients want cheap. 
They don't. 
They want good.

And when you undercharge, you don't look affordable. 
You look unsure.

Like you don't believe in your own work.

That client saw my hesitation in the price. 

And corrected it for me.

After 3,500+ projects, I've noticed this pattern over and over.

The best clients never negotiate down. 

They know what good costs.

The ones who haggle? They'll be a problem later anyway.

Stop undercharging.

Your price is a signal. Make sure it's saying the right thing.

I once reached out to an American millionaire for advice.

Told him my challenges. 

He told me point blank... "Shahzad, I'm not your therapist."

It stung. 

But it was something I needed.

I had been waiting for years. 

Waiting for the right moment. 
Waiting for permission. 

Waiting for engineering to fail completely so I could finally say "I had no choice but to do my own thing."

This made me realize nobody owed me anything. 

The moment I accepted that, I stopped waiting and started doing.

Nobody is coming.
Not the government. 
Not your parents. 
Not some course.
Not superman.

Just you.

The sooner you realize this, the better.

You can't be a freelancer your whole life.

I learned this the hard way.

For years, I kept the whole pie.

No expenses. 
No team. 
No dependencies. 
Every dollar was mine.

Until I realized this doesn't scale.

You can't grow past a certain point alone. 

There are only so many hours. 
Only so many clients you can handle.

So I started thinking in margins.

First hires were painful. 

Delegating felt like losing control and trusting others with my clients felt risky.

Still figuring it out honestly.

But here's what I know now.

If you have consistent work, start building a team.

Freelancing is the first chapter.

How I went from $15/hour to $100/hour. And then back to $70.

At $15/hour, I was a complete beginner. 
Didn't know what I was doing. 

And honestly, my work was probably worth that at the time.

Then I got better. 

Started getting more demand. 
Got pickier with clients. 

Raised my rate slowly until I hit $100/hour and found clients willing to pay it.

That felt like the goal. 

High rate. 
Few clients. 
Premium positioning.

But then I decided to scale. Work with more people.

And I realized something most people don't talk about.

Scale and high rates don't work together.

At $100/hour, I could only work with 2-3 clients maximum. 

So I dropped to $70.

Not because I couldn't charge more. 

But because I wanted room to negotiate and take on more clients. 

Your rate depends on your model.

If you want to go solo, charge more.

If you want to go far, you know what to do now 😉

People think I went from engineering straight to copywriting.

Here's what actually happened:

Engineering job. Quit.
Family business. Did that.
CSS exam preparation. Did that simultaneously.
Tried becoming a broker. Yes, really.
Started freelancing again. 

All at the same time.

Most people would call this unfocused.

But here's what that phase taught me: 

Life isn't linear.

If I had "focused" on engineering only... I'd be in a job I hate.
If I had "focused" on CSS only... I might be a bureaucrat somewhere.

The thing that worked - freelancing into copywriting - wasn't my first choice.

It was one of many experiments.

And it clicked.

Your career might not be linear either.

That's okay.

Try things.

Cohort 18 of the 6-Figure Copywriter is open.

Maybe copywriting is your thing. Let's find out.

https://lnkd.in/d5ZGq-hW

My UPS has done more for my career than any degree.

Engineering taught me theory I never used.

My UPS kept me online when WAPDA decided 3 PM on a Tuesday was a good time to cut power.

Client call in 10 minutes. 
Bijli goes. 
Laptop at 12%.

Degree can't help you there.

But that beeping UPS? 

Buys you 45 minutes. 

I've lost count of how many times that machine saved a project.

Meanwhile my degree sits in a drawer. 

Pakistani freelancers don't need better universities.

We need better electricity.

Until then, UPS is the real MVP.

PS. (University was important though, it helped me make connections, get to know myself better, and what the world is like).

I just closed a client on a sales call. 

Here's what happened.

First thing I did was not talk about work.

I asked where he was based. 

I mentioned how I've seen videos of the mountains and that lake with the church. 

Told him it looks beautiful.

Two minutes of small talk. 

Then we got into it.

He asked about my background. 

I told him I started as a mechanical engineer. Hated it. 

Pivoted to writing in 2017. 

Didn't know what I was doing. 

Figured it out over time. 3,500 projects later, here I am.

He asked about relevant experience. 

I mentioned company names that I have worked in the same niche as his. 

He asked about my research process. 

I walked him through it. 

Amazon reviews for objections. 
Ad spy tools for what's working. 
Surveys for why people didn't buy. 
Reddit. 
YouTube comments. 
TrustPilot.

Then I asked him a question.

"What's the expansion plan? EU first or straight to US?"

He told me they already tested US in December. It worked. Now they need someone focused fully on that market.

Then I mentioned something personal.

I told him I've had neck pain for two years. 

Went to physiotherapy for three months. The physio told me neck pain usually starts from below. And explained the mechanism like I was a doctor lol.

He paused.

"You're pretty much our target audience then."

Call ended. 

He said I was one of the best candidates. Trial coming next week.

What made this work?

I didn't pitch. I had a conversation.
I didn't beg. I showed I was already in demand.
I didn't just answer questions. I asked my own.

And I found a way to connect personally. 

Not as a freelancer. 
As a human who actually understood their customer.

That's the difference.

Just wrapped the launch session for Cohort 18. 

Hundreds of people showed up live. 

Some joined from their homes. 
Some joined from their cars. 

I remember when I did my first cohort. 

People who showed up had no idea whether I was going to deliver on my promise or not. 

Now? 

Thousands of students. 
Millions generated. 
Careers built. 

But the nervousness never fully goes away. 

Every time I go live, there's still a moment of "Will anyone show up? Will this help them?" 

Then I see the chat filling up. 

And I remember why I do this. 

Not for the money (though that's nice).... For the messages I get 6 months later. 

"Bhai, I got my first client." 
"I just hit $3K this month." 
"My family finally understands what I do." 

Those messages are everything. 

If you missed the live session - check out the session here --> 

https://lnkd.in/dUVgTjYj

We're just getting started. Let's build.

I have hired over 20 people throughout my career and interviewed more than 300 candidates.

Here's the difference between someone who gets the job and the person who doesn't make it.

Initiative.

Most people do exactly what they're told. Nothing more.

Client says write 5 emails. 
They write 5 emails. Done.

But the people who grow fast? 

They think. They care. They take ownership.

They notice the landing page doesn't match the email, they redo it... not wait for bajillion years before they flag it. 

They suggest a better subject line even though nobody asked. They spot a hole in the funnel and mention it.

They act like the client's business is their business.

After 1,800+ clients, I can tell you this is the one thing that separates people who get referrals and retainers from people who get ghosted after one project.

Clients don't just want someone who can write. They want someone who can think.

Someone who takes things off their plate instead of adding to it.

My English isn't perfect.

But I still outearn most native speakers.

A famous YouTuber once shortlisted me for a project. 

Made it to the final round and then got rejected. 

The reason was... "We want someone native."

That stung.

Everyone told me my English wasn't good enough. 

I remember clients telling me to go find another thing to do because they figured my English wans't good.

And honestly? They weren't entirely wrong. lol

But here's what I learned after 3,500+ projects...

Perfect English isn't what clients pay for.

They pay for:

— Understanding psychology 
— Knowing what to write 
— Research that finds the right angle 
— Words that make people buy

The actual writing? 

AI can handle that now. 

It can make you sound native in seconds.

But AI can't understand why a tired father in Texas clicks one headline over another.

That understanding is the skill. Not grammar.

Should you improve your English? Yes.
Should you let it stop you? No.

Red flags I've learned from 3,500+ projects.

❌ If they ask for a discount before even seeing your work, run. 

They don't value expertise. 

❌ If they tell you "we've worked with 5 copywriters and none of them worked out," just know you won't be different. 

You'll be number 6. The problem isn't the copywriters.

❌ If they dangle a "big project" but want you to do a small trial first, that big project doesn't exist. It never did.

❌ If they hire you as the expert but want to control every single word, they don't want a copywriter. Let them type it themselves.

❌ If they're "too busy" to respond to your messages but expect instant replies from you, they'll be "too busy" to pay you on time too. I have $1,000 stuck with a "busy" client right now. It's been 2 months. Still waiting.

❌ If they micromanage every detail of the copy, it usually means they're desperate. This project is their last hope. And that desperation will drown both of you.

❌ If they're in the manifestation, frequency, or mindset space, be careful. I've found that many of them are not in a good place themselves. Learned this the hard way.

The good clients? 

You feel it in the first message. 

Respectful. Clear. Trusting. 

They hired an expert because they actually want an expert.

Ten years ago, two cousins graduated from the same university.

They were very much alike, these two.

Same family. 
Same degree. 
Same dreams.

Both were bright, ambitious, and eager to build a better life.

Recently, they met at a family wedding.

They were still alike in many ways. Both were married. Both had children. Both had worked hard for a decade.

But there was a difference.

One was still saving for his first car. The other had just bought his house.

What Made The Difference?

It was which currency they chose to earn in.

One picked the PKR track. 
One picked the USD track.

Same effort. Same 10 years. Completely different life.

If you want to fast-track your growth, you'll need to have USD by your side. No other way.

Join me here --> https://lnkd.in/d5ZGq-hW

Harsh truth about making money in Pakistan...

The more you earn, the more people ask for udhar.

If you're a freelancer making decent money in Pakistan...

You have a target on your back.

Everyone needs udhar.

And you're the obvious choice.

"Online se tou aata hi rehta hai."

Here's my system:

Step 1: Invest in something visible. 

Things they know and can see. 

Like home renovation or a physical business. 

When money is "locked up," people stop asking.

Step 2: Know your outflows.

Where does the majority of your cash go? Use that as a reason to say NO.  

Step 3: Learn to say no without explaining.

"Nahi de sakta bhai."

Full stop. No excuse. No justification.

The more you explain, the more they negotiate.

No is a complete sentence.

I sometimes feel that being in a position where people ask you for support is also a blessing. So, depending on who's asking and what the circumstances are, it's okay to help. 

If you want to be in a position where people come to you for support, join here --> https://lnkd.in/d5ZGq-hW

You're shouting in the wrong room.

Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok are entertainment platforms. 

People scroll to kill time. Not to hire copywriters.

(It can work if you spend a lot of time curating an audience that might be interested in hiring you).

But Upwork? 

Someone typing "email copywriter" at 2 AM has their wallet open.

LinkedIn? 

A founder scrolling at 6 AM is looking for solutions.

The pyramid is simple:

- Bottom (Low Intent): Facebook, Instagram, TikTok — People scroll. They don't buy.

- Middle (Medium Intent): LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube — People consider. They research.

- Top (High Intent): Upwork, Direct outreach, Referrals — People BUY. Money in hand.

You're spending 90% of your energy at the bottom.

I'm not saying quit Facebook. 

I'm saying have a mix of high-intent and low-intent people audience.

For 6 years I made the same mistake.

Get a few clients. 
Stop pitching. 
Relax.

Then they'd leave. 

And I'd panic and start again.

2023 broke that cycle.

I looked at my pipeline and it was empty.

And it took 6-8 months to recover.

That's when I learned.

Your pipeline today is your income 3 months from now.

Now I never stop. 
Cold outreach. 
Content. 
Referrals. 
Everything.

Even if I have to cut margins and hire people just to do more outreach, we don't stop.

This is the mindset shift most freelancers miss.

In 2015, I was put in jail.

See, I graduated as an engineer.

But my GPA was below 3.0.

In Pakistan, that's basically failure.

The message was clear:

You're not good enough.
You can't have the good jobs.
You can't have the good opportunities.

This jail had invisible bars.

I didn't have access to the things "successful" people had.

All because I wasn't a high-achieving student.

For 2 years, I believed it.

Multiple job rejections from coke to a small sugar mill in muzafargarh. 

$0 income.
Depression.

Then I discovered copywriting.

A skill that didn't care about my GPA.

And slowly, I broke out of that jail.

$500 first client.

$5K months.
$40+ million generated for clients.
300K+ following.

The same society that jailed me now asks for tips.

If you're in a similar jail...

If some metric has convinced you you're not enough...

There are doors you haven't found yet.

Cohort 18 of the 6-Figure Copywriter is open.

I'll show you where the doors are.

https://lnkd.in/d5ZGq-hW

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The Battle

Alex Hormozi

Shahzad Khan

Followers

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Performance ScoreAlex Hormozi's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreShahzad Khan's LinkedIn Performance

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The Battle

Alex Hormozi

Shahzad Khan

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Alex Hormozi's LinkedIn Performance

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Performance ScoreAlex Hormozi's LinkedIn Performance