Business Athletes: Mike Strives

Hello and welcome to Business Athletes everyone! 

Each week, we’ll explore the athlete-like habits behind a different business leader. In less than 5-minutes, we aim to provide you with practical tactics that you can quickly apply in your day-to-day.⚡️

In the 8th edition of our newsletter, we sat down with Mike Strives, founder of user feedback tool Upvoty and feedback widget Feedefy.

Mike has been building SaaS businesses since 2010 as a solopreneur, scaling them to over $50,000 MRR, and later selling one for >$1,000,000 in 2023.

He’s also well-known for building multiple projects in public on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube, and now shares his learnings through the Zero to SaaS platform & community.

Read time: 3 minutes 31 seconds

Pre-Game Preparation

Optimising The Evening For A Winning Morning

I always wake up the same time every day: 07:00.

For that, I’ll usually go to bed around 23:30 after I had a nice sauna session (in my backyard) and a good read on my Kindle.

The key is making sure that I get my 7+ hours every night. This ritual does that - it brings me into the perfect sleep mode.

Tools Of The Trade

I use many tools, but Notion is main one for me.

I always plan my day (and week) ahead in Notion; but also, each and every day, I sit down with a coffee and look at my planning, calendar, and tasks in Notion and decide what to work on as well.

Gaining Energy From Different Environments

Over the years, I came to the conclusion that diversity is the phrase word here, in terms of my work environment. I like to change where I work and feel in movement throughout the day.

In the morning I start with a coffee at home in the kitchen counter, then I go to the co-working space where I meet with fellow entrepreneurs to brainstorm and co-work. After lunch, I usually go to my dedicated private office for the focus deep work sessions.

Gameday

Flow State

I reach a flow state through an intentional process. I write down what needs to get done, put on some focus music, turn off notifications and other distractions, and then I’m in it.

It doesn't matter where I am; I am able to get into flow state pretty easily because I don't have to think about what needs to get done. I have it written down in front of me, and with noise-canceling headphones, I'm always good to go!

Managing Distractions

Notifications are your worst enemy. Turn them off, and you'll 10x your productivity.

Off-screen time is the key. I'll close my laptop and go for a quick walk outside. No screen and noise, plus fresh air, is the golden combo.

Beating The Tough Tasks

If I'm stuck on something, I leave it for what it is and come to it later.

There's no win in trying to get it right when you're stuck. I move on to the next thing, and then come back to it with a fresher perspective.

The best thing to do is to pick something you like doing. Don't go from a boring or tough task to another one. A win always fixes the mood and helps; and it’s easier to get a win with something we like doing that another boring task.

Post-Game

Rest Through Movement

Quick off-screen breaks like walking outside, reading, or just going to visit a fellow entrepreneur in the same building and having a coffee are things that help me re-energize.

After work, I always go for a quick run outside to clear my mind. And in the evenings, I like to read and go for a 15-minute sauna session, which helps me get into sleep mode.

I’m also always reviewing my work and performance. I try to learn from every situation, and I document what I learn, but I pretty quickly move on to the next project as I just like to keep going.

The Business Athlete Mindset

How High-Performers Behave

High-performance is pretty simple: it’s doing the thing that needs to be done right now in order to grow.

Inspiration From Sports

I always admired Mike Tyson. Seeing him train for his upcoming fight against Jake Paul, to me, is next level.

Subscribe below so you don’t miss next week’s interview with a founder that has conquered both Dragons Den and Y Combinator’s Demo Day, just like a business athlete.⚡️

If you're currently building a team and want access to the wisdom of the world's best, sign up to Elite Team Talks!

New interview every week. Never any spam.

🏆 Business Athletes is a newsletter and community focused on studying and celebrating high-performance in business and in life.