The Only Lesson That Matters After 25 Years Building Online Businesses
The difference between thriving and surviving in tech (and life)
In 25 years of my career, I've seen one trait separate the winners from the forgotten.
Not all lessons are created equal.
Some lessons we learn are small. Little reminders along the way of what truly matters.
Other lessons are giant. They fundamentally change the course of our entire lives.
Over my 25 years of experience building online businesses, this is the single most important lesson I've learned about succeeding in the digital world (and in anything in life):
Be curious.
And here's why:
When you explore, you find opportunities.
If you don't do anything, nothing is going to change.
If you want something different, you gotta do something new.
In the digital world, things have been changing pretty fast. But with the mass-adoption of AI, everything accelerated 10x.
It's very easy to fall behind in less than a year with the current pacing of things in the digital world.
You gotta be constantly exploring and learning.
As Nathan Barry said during the keynote at Craft + Commerce 2025 [45:25 - 45:50]:
Be curious
Connect with people
Never stop creating
This career advice deeply resonated with me when I watched the recording.
For me it translates into this:
"Being curious" is the engine that drives everything.
"Connecting with people" 10x progress for everyone.
"Never stop creating" is about making an impact by sharing your knowledge and giving back to the community.
TL;DR: Stay curious, learn by doing, give back. That's how you stay relevant in tech (and life) and make an impact.
What's the one thing you're curious about right now that you could start building this week?