The Weekly Edge 📅

50 Weeks. 50 Rules. 50 Great Reads.

The Rules you’ll find here are NOT new ideas—they are simply everyday reminders. Each one represents a timeless business fundamental that most of us already know but too often ignore. And when we ignore the fundamentals, the cost—personally and professionally—is steep.

These 12 Chapters of The Executives Institute are completely FREE. All it requires is a few minutes of each week, for 1 year—and a willingness to look honestly at how you lead, decide, and execute. Deep dives into each individual Rule is limited to Executives Institute Members – when you’re ready, enroll!

Small weekly reminders.

Big long-term results.

Get grounded in what makes a business worth building—and worth leading.

Every business that endures is built on more than hustle—it’s built on clarity, discipline, and timeless fundamentals. In this opening chapter, we focus on what truly matters in the early stages: solving real problems, staying curious, questioning your assumptions, and building something that actually works. These Rules remind us that the foundation isn’t just where you start—it’s what you return to every time things get shaky. Whether you’re launching, rebuilding, or leading through change, this is where the work begins.

Ask yourself: “Am I building on clarity—or just momentum?”

GO TO CHAPTER 1: Foundations First featuring these 5 fundamental Rules:

• WEEK 1— Rule No. 1: Solve a real problem.
• WEEK 2— Rule No. 2: Fall in love with the problem, not the solution.
• WEEK 3— Rule No. 6: Your first idea is rarely your best.
• WEEK 4— Rule No. 10: Never stop learning.
• WEEK 5— Rule No. 15: Work on the business, not just in it.

Deep dives into individual Rules are limited to Executives Institute Members – except Rule No. 1.

All visitors can experience Rule No. 1: Solve a real problem—(the only publicly available rule) as a preview of the insight, impact and opportunity inside each of the 50 Rules.

Who you serve—and how clearly you serve them—determines your future.

Before strategy, before scale, before standing out—you need to lock in who you’re truly for. Clarity around your customer isn’t optional. It’s the bedrock of every smart decision that follows.

In this chapter, we cut through the noise and confront the reality: if your brand is fuzzy inside your walls, it’s invisible outside them. Your brand is not what you say—it’s what your best customers believe. That belief is earned when you understand them deeply, speak their language, and deliver on your promise with focus and discipline.

Ask yourself: “Could every person on our team describe our ideal customer—and why they choose us?”

GO TO Chapter 2: Know Your Customer, featuring these 4 fundamental Rules:

• WEEK 6— Rule No.11: Your Brand is Your Promise
• WEEK 7— Rule No.12: Know Your Customer Deeply
• WEEK 8— Rule No.18: Your Calendar Reflects Your Priorities
• WEEK 9— Rule No.21: Clarity Creates Confidence

Deep dives into individual Rules are limited to Executives Institute Members – Enroll Today!

A strategy isn’t a slide deck—it’s the choices you make when it counts.

Strategy isn’t theory. It’s not a vision statement, a retreat, or a set of slides collecting dust. Real strategy shows up in what you say no to. It’s the clarity to focus, the courage to commit, and the discipline to stay the course—even when it’s inconvenient.

This chapter is about getting brutally honest about direction.

Are you playing the long game—or chasing short wins that feel good in the moment but cost you in the end?

Ask yourself: Am I bold enough to make fewer, sharper moves that matter?

Are you asking the right questions and measuring what truly drives progress?

Strategy without execution is just wishful thinking. So we cut through the fluff and get to the heart of it: define what matters, measure it relentlessly, and align your daily actions with your bigger goals. In the real world, strategy lives in your calendar, your budget, and your habits. That’s where it either lives—or quietly dies.

GO TO Chapter 4: Strategy In The Real World, featuring these 5 fundamental Rules:

• WEEK 14— Rule No. 3: Differentiate or die.
• WEEK 15— Rule No. 4: Play the long game.
• WEEK 16— Rule No. 5: Make fewer, bolder moves.
• WEEK 17— Rule No. 25: Ask better questions.
• WEEK 18— Rule No. 26: Define it. Measure it. Achieve it.

Deep dives into individual Rules are limited to Executives Institute Members – Enroll Today!

Discipline over dreaming. Action over analysis.

Everyone has ideas. Few have the discipline to see them through. Execution is where businesses are built—or broken. It’s not about being busy; it’s about doing what matters, doing it well, and doing it now.

Momentum beats motivation. Focus beats frenzy. And progress only comes when you stop planning and start moving—with intention. This chapter is a gut check for every leader who’s ever felt stuck in the swirl of strategy but hasn’t shipped the work.

If you’re serious about results, it’s time to do the hard things first—and learn by doing, not waiting.

Let’s put the ideas to the test.

GO TO Chapter 5: Execution Beats Ideas, featuring these 5 fundamental rules:

• WEEK 19— Rule No. 7: Momentum beats motivation.
• WEEK 20— Rule No. 8: Don’t mistake movement for progress.
• WEEK 21— Rule No. 9: Focus beats multitasking.
• WEEK 22— Rule No. 27: Do the hard things first.
• WEEK 23— Rule No. 28: Learn by doing.

Deep dives into individual Rules are limited to Executives Institute Members – Enroll Today!

Leadership means saying the thing no one else will—and acting on it.

Every leader hits a point where the next step forward isn’t a tactic—it’s a decision. A hard one. The kind that keeps you up at night, strains relationships, or forces you to admit something’s no longer working. This chapter is about those moments.

Whether it’s letting go of a longtime employee, cutting a failing initiative, or delivering feedback no one wants to hear—progress demands courage. Complexity is often a cover for fear. Avoidance masquerades as patience. And silence signals permission. Real leadership begins when you stop nibbling around the edges and face what’s difficult, directly.

These aren’t Rules for convenience. They’re Rules for conviction.

GO TO Chapter 6: Hard Conversations, Hard Decisions, featuring these 4 fundamental Rules:

• WEEK 24 — Rule No. 14: Know when to let go.
• WEEK 25— Rule No. 19: Stop doing what doesn’t work.
• WEEK 26— Rule No. 42: Feedback is a gift.
• WEEK 27— Rule No. 50: If you’re going to eat shit, don’t nibble.

Deep dives into individual Rules are limited to Executives Institute Members – Enroll Today!

Revenue doesn’t solve everything—but without it, nothing gets solved.

Sales isn’t just a department—it’s the engine that drives your entire business forward. Without revenue, even the best product, team, or strategy will stall. This chapter is about building a sales foundation that lasts—one rooted in real value, clear numbers, and a story worth buying into.

Ask yourself: Are we selling something people believe in—or just something we hope they’ll buy?

You’ll get clear on what drives profitability, why cash flow is the true pulse of your business, and how to build once and sell again and again. But this isn’t about tactics. It’s about mindset. Great salespeople don’t just pitch—they lead. They cast a vision. They move people.

If you want staying power, you need more than a great offer. You need a machine that knows its numbers, protects its margins, and sells something bigger than a product. Let’s build that now.

GO TO Chapter 8: Sales – the Lifeblood, featuring these 4 fundamental Rules:

• WEEK 32— Rule No. 13: Know your numbers.
• WEEK 33— Rule No. 20: Cash flow is king.
• WEEK 34— Rule No. 38: Build once, sell forever.
• WEEK 35— Rule No. 40: Sell the vision, not just the product.

Deep dives into individual Rules are limited to Executives Institute Members – Enroll Today!

Culture isn’t what you say—it’s what you tolerate, reward, and repeat.

You don’t build a culture with slogans. You build it with standards—and the consistency to enforce them. Every compromise lowers the bar. Every act of courage raises it. Over time, those choices shape not just your environment, but your legacy.

Ask yourself: Are we building a culture that raises the standard—or one that quietly lowers it?

Great businesses outlive great products because they’re built on something deeper than a market win. They’re built on values that don’t shift with the season. A culture you can count on isn’t always the easiest to build—but it’s the only one worth following.

Your people are watching. They’re learning what’s acceptable by what gets overlooked. They’re deciding how high to aim based on how often you raise the bar. And when things go wrong, they’ll look to the top—because that’s where the real bottlenecks begin.

Culture doesn’t drift. It either climbs or collapses. Lead like it matters—because it does.

GO TO Chapter 9: Culture You Can Count On, featuring these 3 fundamental Rules:

• WEEK 36— Rule No. 34: Great businesses outlive great products.
• WEEK 37— Rule No. 35: Raise the bar, then raise it again.
• WEEK 38— Rule No. 46: Don’t outgrow your values.

Deep dives into individual Rules are limited to Executives Institute Members – Enroll Today!

The leader grows or the business stalls. There is no neutral.

Businesses don’t burn out—leaders do. And when they do, the business follows.

This chapter is about building the kind of leadership that endures—not just for a season, but for the long haul. The kind that outlasts market swings, outgrows old habits, and stays sharp when others coast. To lead at that level, you have to treat your time like capital, move with urgency when it matters, and protect against downside at every turn.

Ask yourself: Am I building a leadership style that will still work—and still matter—ten years from now?

But longevity isn’t just about tactics. It’s about people. You need a network that challenges you, not just cheers for you—because you don’t scale a company without scaling yourself.

This is the difference between a leader who lasts and a leader who gets left behind. Let’s build the former.

GO TO Chapter 10: Leadership That Lasts, featuring these 4 fundamental Rules:

• WEEK 39— Rule No. 16: Time is your most precious asset.
• WEEK 40— Rule No. 17: Speed Matters.
• WEEK 41— Rule No. 29: Protect your downside.
• WEEK 42— Rule No. 39: Your network is your net worth.

Deep dives into individual Rules are limited to Executives Institute Members – Enroll Today!

It’s not the hard problems that kill a business. It’s the easy ones you ignored.

Every business faces challenges, but it’s rarely the complex issues that bring you down—it’s the simple, obvious problems left unchecked. Profit isn’t a dirty word; it’s the foundation you can’t afford to neglect. Yet many leaders shy away from confronting profitability head-on, letting opportunity slip through their fingers.

Ask yourself: Is my business coasting on past wins—while small, fixable problems quietly compound into future crises?

Remember, the bottleneck is always at the top. If leadership doesn’t see clearly, act decisively, and hold themselves accountable, the entire business will suffer. Reputation compounds over time—each decision either builds or erodes it. And your edge? That sharp, unique advantage is yours to own, defend, and sharpen relentlessly.

Complacency and comfort are the silent killers. They disguise risk as stability and lull you into dangerous passivity. This chapter is your blueprint to spot the common traps, protect what matters, and keep your business—and yourself—on the cutting edge. Because in business, survival favors the vigilant, not the comfortable.

If you haven’t challenged your assumptions, pressure-tested your profitability, or sharpened your edge lately, this chapter is more relevant than ever.

GO TO Chapter 11: Avoiding the Common Pitfalls, featuring these 4 fundamental Rules:

• WEEK 43— Rule No. 30: Profit is not a dirty word.
• WEEK 44— Rule No. 47: The bottleneck is at the top.
• WEEK 45— Rule No. 41: Reputation compounds.
• WEEK 46— Rule No. 44: Own your edge.

Deep dives into individual Rules are limited to Executives Institute Members – Enroll Today!

Recommit to what matters. Let go of what doesn’t.

You’ve done the work. You’ve wrestled with the hard decisions, embraced discipline, faced the brutal facts, and built something real. But before you charge ahead—pause.

This chapter isn’t about doing more. It’s about doing what matters. It’s about cutting the noise, protecting your mind, and recommitting to the race you were built to run.

Build trust before you sell. Protect your bandwidth like it’s capital—because it is. Give more than you take. And remember: speed fades, but alignment compounds.

Growth isn’t linear. But reflection makes it meaningful.

Ask yourself: What will I carry forward? What will I leave behind?

GO TO Chapter 12: Reflection and Recommittment, featuring these 4 fundamental Rules:

• WEEK 47— Rule No. 37: Build trust before selling.
• WEEK 48— Rule No. 43: Run your race.
• WEEK 49— Rule No. 45: Protect your mental bandwidth.
• WEEK 50— Rule No. 48: Give more than you take.

Deep dives into individual Rules are limited to Executives Institute Members – Enroll Today!

You’ve made it through all 12 chapters—the full arc from Start to Scale—Congratulations!

You’ve wrestled with vision, execution, people, profit, and the truths no one likes to say out loud.

The Rules don’t promise ease. They promise clarity. And with clarity comes the responsibility to act. You now carry 50 timeless principles built not just for growth, but for resilience—for weathering seasons, setbacks, and reinvention.

Your business story is still being written. But you’re no longer writing blind. You have a map. You have Rules. And you have the awareness to know when to follow them, when to break them, and when to begin again.

So here’s the final truth: Every great leader, every enduring business, gets here—this edge, this reckoning. The ones who last aren’t the ones who avoid it. They’re the ones who face it, own it, and rise.

This isn’t the end. It’s your new beginning. Let’s keep building.

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