the master plan (for now)

I’ve filmed the first 6 episodes of Thought Liters. In this post, I’ll lay out the master plan for how the launch will go.

Also, for the 13 (!) people who subscribed since the last post: this is where you’ll get a glimpse at the good / bad / ugly behind the biggest risk I’ve taken in my career — launching this series.

For those brand new to this newsletter: check out my last post, The Real S***, to get up to speed.

The pilot season of Thought Liters (a 6-pack!) will feature six Pittsburgh-based founders who were gracious enough to test out a revolutionary concept: talking business over a drink with me. One was filmed in my basement, one at a guest’s home, two at the guests’ offices, and two at the Allegheny HYP Club in downtown Pittsburgh. Scrappy. From those, I’ve realized two things — one strength, one opportunity:

Strength: I confirmed that the guests loved the concept. They were glad to try it out, and were so jazzed up that they had follow-on guest recommendations. Nice!

Opportunity: As filmed, the raw content doesn’t really align with my goal of creating a new, refreshing type of business content — my attempt at making the Hot Ones of the business world.

Each guest was gracious enough to film with me for about an hour — which would fit the traditional podcast mold. Don’t get me wrong: the conversations are great. But an hour-long business podcast…not exactly going to break through. So here’s the master plan for how I’m going to launch the content both to align with the goal, and do right by each guest.

The Master Plan

Launch Date: January 2025.

Guests: In order: Matt Chute, Jeff Lizik, Pete Schramm, Jordan Herbert, AJ Lewis, Daniela Osio. All cool people; check them out!

Content Types: will test all, to see how audience responds.

• Flagship: 10-15 minute video; quick cuts; lighthearted conversation. The most likely form to achieve my goal. (Hot Ones; Chicken Shop Date - esque) This will be the priority post.

  • And the biggest risk — again, the look and feel is just a lot different than typical business-y stuff.

• Podcast: Full-length audio; minimal cuts. The entire interview, telling the whole story as recorded. Traditional; similar to most business podcasts. If someone wants it, they can have it there.

• Standalone: 6-10 minute video; single guest; single topic. In the case that a segment of the full-length is so good it should stand alone as a video. (Likely published in its own YouTube playlist; My First Million does this)

• Shorts: Videos under 60 seconds; clips; cut either from Flagship or Standalone.

• Full Video: Self-explanatory. I might not publish this at all, or may make it the first of a later benefit set for…idk, paid subscribers? (to YouTube, newsletter, etc) Or, eventually, I’ll release it as “vault” type content.

Launch Locations: YouTube, podcast platforms, YT / IG / TikTok (until it’s banned)

Initial Evaluation: Realistically it’ll take a few dozen videos to get something viewers consistently, directionally respond to. But my goal for H1 2025 is to have 10+ episodes published. Then, I’ll do a mid-year review and make bigger tweaks as necessary.

What about $$$? I mean, there is none. That’s why this is the biggest risk of my career. I don’t expect to rake in dollars from views alone. I do plan on offering sponsor inventory in:

• The content’s “what”: Presenting sponsorships like Hot Ones does; segment sponsorships like Sundae Conversation does. Beverage / food partners, etc.

• The content’s “how”: Location / Equipment sponsors. Film in a new hotel or luxury tour bus; film everything on a specific smartphone, etc.

• The content’s “who”: This is the fuzziest one for me. Ex: a company sponsors the show and places their CEO as the guest (sorta like PR). Or: a company sponsors the show, names a target guest, and they get to meet the guest post-recording. Actually the most potential here; just not sure how to execute.

Expectations: None. I want to get the content out (10+ videos, 30+ clips, 12+ newsletters in H1 2025), test the waters on sponsorships (maybe 1 in H1 2025?), and keep the guests flowing in. Once audience builds, then I’ll be more judgey.

That’s about it. I’ve been neck-deep in editing since the turn of the year to get the first eps out — and that’s now where I’ll return. Master plan, unfolded.

As a final ask: if you know folks who would enjoy following along with this, feel free to forward this post. Or, if you know someone who should get involved with Thought Liters, as a guest or eventual sponsor, I’m all ears.

Until next time — cheers.

Adam