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Solo $1M Substack via expert-PM interviews

How Lenny Rachitsky took an Airbnb PM playbook, packaged it as weekly Substack issues, and grew to $1M+ ARR solo — paid newsletter as a flywheel.

The playbook

  1. 1
    Pick an expert niche where you have credibility

    Lenny was a PM at Airbnb during the hyper-growth era. That credibility transferred 1:1.

  2. 2
    Interview people higher on the ladder than you

    Every issue features a senior PM at a famous company. Their network promotes the issue.

  3. 3
    Free issues with paywall mid-post

    Lenny gives away 60% of every issue; the meaty career advice sits behind the paywall.

  4. 4
    Spin off podcast + community + reads

    Same brand, three monetization surfaces. Each one feeds the others.

Sources

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