Brendan Dell

Product positioning + high-impact messaging for category leading technology companies. Also wrote a book, built the course the $1B Pitch, host the podcast $1B tech, and do some angel and early stage investing.

President 

GTMfund

GTMramp Member

Zeconomy, Inc.

Positioning + messaging, investment narrative, GTM

Messaging + GTM Advisory

Sudozi

The 12 Immutable Laws of High-Impact Messaging

Stories define our reality. The stories you tell--as an individual, a business, an organization--will shape yours. 

LEARN TO MOVE MARKETS

In this book, you'll find the laws that govern the creation of high-impact messaging.

Craft high-impact messages and you can shape culture, drive sales, incite movements--mold the world around you.

Fail, and craft bland apathetic messages, and you'll find yourself yet another voice, lost in the crowd.

While there is no singular template for crafting a high-impact message, there are laws that govern what works. This book is your guide.

Author

Hewlett Packard Enterprise

Messaging and GTM advisory for print and global healthcare.

Strategic Advisor

App Annie

Messaging Consultant

Expedia Group

Positioning and product messaging, GTM strategy, content strategy

UserTesting

Panasonic

Product naming and positioning, messaging, GTM for eco solutions

I spent the last 10 years building my messaging and positioning consultancy from 0 to 7-figures, working with some of the largest brands in the world. Companies like HP, Panasonic, Expedia, Y-Combinator Portfolio companies and 100+ more.

Then, last year, I quietly blew the whole thing up.

I had spent my career helping big tech sell more stuff that no one needed. It worked. 

I generated $300M+ in revenue and raised over $80M in venture capital.

The only problem? I felt empty. I wanted a new path. 

One day, walking with a friend, he asked me how I built my business. I was walking him through my philosophies, frameworks, and approaches. Something I had done many times over the years, coaching folks on the side, with great success.

When he said, "Dude, this is killer. Why don't you help people do this?" 

ENTER THE FREELANCE FORMULA
A decade of 7-figure freelancing distilled into a simple framework that can help anyone transform their skills into a 6 or 7 figure business.

MY POINT OF VIEW
All over the world, people are over worked and underpaid. They have wonderful skills, but there’s a problem: They don’t know how to sell them effectively on the open market. 

So I developed The Freelance Formula. Inside we give you a roadmap to start, differentiate, and “scale” a highly profitable 1-person business. 

Start-up
Specialization
Differentiation
Customer acquisition
Scale
Systemization
Beyond

Today the community is 1,000+ strong, with folks from 50+ countries and top companies like Coinbase, Warner Brothers, HP, and Y-Combinator, growing every day. 

MY MISSION
Everyone on the planet should know how to monetize their expertise. It diversifies your income, serves as the gateway to entrepreneurship, and creates a freedom of income, impact, and lifestyle. 

THE NEXT STEP
To join the Strategic Freelance revolution, join my newsletter at brendandell.com.

Jeff works 90 hours a week.
Drives a Tesla. Has 3 phones. Lives in his inbox.

Sara works 25 hours a week.
Spends her afternoons with her kids. Rides her bike in the middle of the day.

—

Jeff makes $500K.
Sara makes $220K.

—

Jeff is burned out, reactive, always “on.”
Sara is calm, focused, building long-term assets.

—

One is rich in money.
The other is rich in time.

—

Only one is free.

Success isn’t how much you earn.
It’s how much life you own.

Creator of The Freelance Formula (1,400+ Success Stories) | Ex-Advisor: HP, SAP, Expedia, YC Startups, 100+ More

The billionaire in a private jet misses the old days.
The millionaire in first class wishes they had a jet.

The exec in a sports car wants to be a millionaire.
The employee in an old car dreams of a sports car.

The guy on a bike wishes he had a car.
The pedestrian dreams of a bike.

More will never be enough.
Until enough finally becomes more.

A lot of people chase the dream of never working again.
Passive income. Early retirement. Escape.

But that’s the wrong target.

The goal isn’t to stop working.
It’s to stop working on things that don’t matter.

- Frivolous tasks
- Meaningless meetings
- Fake urgency
- Shiny-object projects

Real freedom is doing work that actually matters —
On your terms, with people you like, for reasons you believe in.

15 years ago I got laid off for the first time.
It was crushing.

I went through all the emotions—grief, anger, denial.
—
A week of panic that ended in one clear decision:
No one would ever control my earnings again.
—
I started a business as a copywriter.
Scratched and clawed.
Made all the mistakes.
But I kept going.
—
Fast forward—what started as a $75/hour hustle became an $83K/month strategy business.
Numbers I couldn’t have imagined as an ex-bartender.
—
More than the numbers, what really mattered was this:
No spreadsheet could cancel my life.
—
I NEVER would’ve had the courage to do this if I hadn’t been laid off that day.
—
Today, you won’t see me in the comments.
It’s 60 degrees and sunny here in Central Oregon.
I’ll be outside climbing.

And nobody gets to tell me no.
—
It wasn’t easy.
It still isn’t always.
But it was worth it.

Because I control my time.
—
If freedom is what you want, maybe this is your push.
—
Freelancing isn’t for everyone.
But maybe, just maybe, it’s for you.

The best career advice I ever got was only 6 words:

"Who owns your Tuesday at 2pm?"

If it's not you, you're not free.

Test it right now:
- Can you take a walk?
- Pick up your kids?
- Say no to a meeting?
- Close your laptop?

Most people can't.

Not because they're lazy.
Because they traded their time for someone else's dream.

The lie we believe:
"Just a few more years, then I'll be free."

The truth we ignore:
Those years are your life.

You don't need to be rich to own your Tuesday afternoon.
You need to stop letting other people own it.

Freedom isn't a retirement plan. It's a Tuesday afternoon.

10 years ago I thought success meant:
- Corner office
- Executive title
- Team of 50
- $10M budget

Today I know success means:
- Working when I want
- No boss to ask
- Team of 1
- Time with my kids

The goal was never to build an empire.
It was to never miss bedtime stories.

What does success mean to you?

Person A makes $600K/year.
60-hour weeks.
6 vacation days.
Slack never stops.

—

Person B makes $300K/year.
25-hour weeks.
Work ends at 2pm.
Plays outside every afternoon.

—

Person A is richer on paper.
Person B is richer in life.

I haven't asked for permission in 15 years.

Not to take a vacation.
Not to leave early.
Not to say no to a meeting.
Not to blow off work on Wednesday and go climbing instead.

The last time I asked permission, I was 27.
Sitting in a gray cubicle, rehearsing how to ask my boss if I could leave at 4 PM for a family dinner.

He said yes.
But the humiliation of having to ask stuck with me.

I was a grown adult.
Negotiating for my own time.
Like a child asking to use the bathroom.

That night I made a decision:
Never again.

It took 18 months to build the bridge out.
Late nights. Early mornings. Side projects that became main projects.

But eventually, I crossed over.

Now when I want to do something, I just do it.
When I want to ski on Tuesday morning, I ski.
When a client meeting doesn't make sense, I decline.

Not because it was easy.
Not because it was handed to me.
But because I built a life where I'm the one who decides.

The price of permission is higher than you think.
It's not just the ask — it's what asking does to you.

Freedom isn't about the money.
It's about never having to ask.

Every time I travel, I’m reminded of the same thing:

Everywhere you go, it’s just people doing people things.
Eating lunch. Walking the dog. Arguing with their partner. Laughing with their kids.

We romanticize other cultures as better.
We move across the world chasing some perfect place.
But everywhere is just somewhere — with different weather and better bread.

The sooner you realize we’re all the same,
The sooner you find joy where you are.

Everyone says “AI changed everything.”
But I’ve never met a single founder who said:
“This tool changed my business.”

(Unless they’re selling it.)

Useful? Absolutely.
Game-changing? Rarely.

It's just an accelerant. That's all.

If I had to rebuild my solo business from scratch…

These are the 15 things I’d do EVERY DAY to hit $30K/month in 12 months or less:

(You might want to save this one for when you need it).

1. Decide I don't need a niche, I need a clear solution to a painful problem
2. Write 2–5 post drafts, publish only the one that divides the market
3. Follow up with 1 old boss or colleague (warm > cold)
4. Say no to anything that doesn’t scale or compound 
5. Send 3 DMs to people already living that problem
6. Speak with 1 person (Zoom or IRL) who has budget and authority to hire me
7. Run a daily Leverage Audit — what’s still manual that shouldn’t be?
8. Ask the Domino Question: what makes everything else easier?
9. Protect 90 minutes for deep, focused work (no Slack, no tabs)
10. Write one down 10 Prickly Points of View. Save them for tomorrow's content.
11. Save screenshots of client wins, praise, or results (Still employed? Do this at work too) 
12. Divorce myself of the idea my worth is my hours (charge based on value)
13. Write down my Perfect Day (remember why you're doing this)
14. Do 10 minutes of outreach even when I don’t feel like it
15. Define tomorrow’s Next Right Step and protect that time with my life

People like to think success is luck. 
Really it's just habits. 

Habits that anyone can learn.

15 habits → $30K/month is inevitable.

Which of these is your top 3? 👇

Everyone says building a business is hard.

Complex funnels. Sophisticated tech stacks. Burnout as a badge.

But after 15 years and millions in sales…

The hardest part is this:

- Picking one problem
- Making one offer
- Doing it simply and consistently

Most people can’t do that.

Not because they’re lazy.
Because they believe two lies:

- It has to be hard.
- Someone else already did it.

This is zero-sum thinking.
But opportunity is not finite.
It expands when you commit.

Try this instead:

What if this were easy?

That one question can change your whole business.

People say they hate sales.
But every person on the planet is in it.

When you ask for a raise — that’s sales.
When you post on LinkedIn — that’s sales.
When you go on a date, pitch an idea, or tell your story — it’s all sales.

You’re in it whether you like it or not.

The truth is:

Most people are selling all the time —
They just don’t realize it.
So they do it badly.

No clarity.
No intention.
No leverage.

A key idea in The Freelance Formula is this:

Taking control of your narrative isn’t manipulation.
It’s the only responsible way to earn in the modern world.

Because when you control the narrative,
You change the perception of value.
And when you change the perception of value —
You change the perception of you.

The mantra in our community is this:
Change the story → change the price → change your life.

10 Entrepreneurs Who Built Wealth Without Overworking

You don’t need to grind 100 hours a week to build a life of freedom.

Here are 10 entrepreneurs who prove it:

1. Steph Smith – Built and sold multiple digital products while traveling the world. 

2. Jason Fried – Co-founded Basecamp (>$25M/year) and HEY. Built a calm company culture: no deadlines, no daily meetings, Fridays off.

3. Tori Dunlap – Founded Her First $100K. Built a feminist finance empire, then took a month-long sabbatical without slowing growth.

4. Ali Abdaal – Turned YouTube into a multimillion-dollar engine, then stepped back to write books and reduce screen time.

5. Anne-Laure Le Cunff – Built Ness Labs while advocating for mindful productivity. Now teaches neurodivergent-friendly creativity systems.

6. Courtland Allen – Created Indie Hackers to help developers escape startup theater. Sold it to Stripe, stayed indie.

7. Jack Butcher – Built Visualize Value solo. Scaled to $1M+ revenue.

8. Noah Kagan – Founder of AppSumo ($100M+ business). Shares burrito pics, builds in public, takes long walks.

9. Sahil Bloom – Writes every day. Owns multiple companies. Spends mornings with his son.

10. Ryan Holiday – Writes bestselling books from a farm in Texas. Mornings for work, afternoons with family.

Earning well shouldn’t have to cost you your life.

Do you agree?

Most people don’t realize this:
Every job is just a consulting business with one client.

You offer a skill.
They pay a retainer.
You deliver deliverables.

The only difference?

- You gave them exclusivity
- For "security"
- At below-market rates
- With no leverage

And they can cancel anytime.

My big realization was this: You either have leverage—or you are someone’s leverage.

Is it possible that AI is just a classic common-knowledge cascade?

Smart people hear other smart people say it’s real, assume they must understand it, and start repeating what they think other smart people expect them to say.

Tulip Mania. South Sea Bubble. Eugenics. WMDs pre-Iraq. Etc.

Same social physics.

Tomorrow morning, millions will wake up dreading Monday.

Not because they hate work.
But because they hate working on someone else's terms.

The antidote isn't vacation.
It's ownership.

Own your time.
Own your work.
Own your outcomes.

Because the goal isn't to escape your life.
It's to build one you don't want to escape from.

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