Show notes
Brett Williams (better known as Brett from DJ on X) built a design business over a weekend, scaled it to $80K/month… and still didn’t quit his job.Now he has, and he runs a $2M/year one-person business.In today's episode, he helps you steal his playbook:Brought to you by:Amplitude: The market-leader in product analyticsJira Product Discovery: Build What Matters To Business And UsersThe AI Evals Course for PMs and Engineers: Use code “ag-product-growth” to get $800 off.Timestamps:Preview - 00:00:00How Brett Started a Business with Full-Time Job - 00:02:41Why Brett's Approach is Different - 00:07:59Concept Behind Packaging - 00:09:47Ad - 00:12:31Ad - 00:13:10Strategies to Reach Success - 00:14:33Common Requirements of Clients - 00:17:25How Long is Brett's Turnaround - 00:21:04Focus on Distribution Platfrom - 00:24:43Brett's Life on Twitter - 00:28:29Design in Figma -- Tutorial - 00:32:41Ad - 00:35:31Importance of Using AI Skills Right - 00:36:12Handling Thumbnails - 00:55:09Ending Notes - 01:08:23Key Takeaways1. One guy. One Trello board. $2 million a year. DesignJoy is what happens when you stop overcomplicating and start executing. No team. No agency overhead. No client onboarding flow. Brett built a $2M/year design business with just a landing page, a Trello board, and relentless output. People pay for clarity and DesignJoy offers just that.2. He was making $80K/month… and still didn’t quit his job. Most founders quit when the side hustle hits $10K. He waited until $80K/month, then still applied to 60 jobs. Why? Because deep down, he wasn’t sure it would last. That’s the quiet truth for many solo builders: it’s not just about making money, it’s about believing you deserve it.3. His offer is stupidly simple and that’s what makes it genius. One flat price. One request at a time. One-man turnaround in ~48 business hours. That’s it. Clients don’t need to scope projects, negotiate timelines, or wonder what they’ll get. It’s design like Netflix: press play, get results. As they say, simplicity scales better than process.4. DesignJoy was built in 48 hours and validated in real-time. No growth strategy. No “perfect launch.” Just a clean offer built in a weekend, launched Saturday, clients by Sunday. And then? He kept going not by making it absolutely complex, but by refining the exact same system for years.5. He designs faster than most teams can Slack about it. He doesn’t wireframe, brainstorm, or explore 12 directions. He one-shots full high-fidelity designs in Figma using instinct, experience, and a deep mental library of design patterns. No templates. Just speed, conviction, and clarity - honed from years of obsessively consuming great design. In essence, real mastery as Robert Greene has proclaimed for years!6. He doesn’t chase perfection, he chases velocity. His goal isn’t to win design awards. It’s to get you 90% of the way there, fast. And if the first version isn’t right, he doesn’t defend it, he just ships another one. That’s why clients love him. That can be another reason why he’s making more than like 99.99% of the designers!7. His distribution channel is only X (Twitter) and here how he nails it. He treats X (Twitter) as oxygen. He’s not there to share random thoughts he’s there to build distribution. Whether it’s revenue milestones or AI-powered design tutorials, everything he posts is battle-tested for reach. And right now, nothing is outperforming high-value, visual tutorials. So, if your work involves AI somehow, make sure you’re dropping banger visuals. Overall, if I conclude his content strategy, it would be this: highly valuable content, jumping on trends, controversial/hot takes, etc.8. He doesn’t trust Figma anymore. Ask him what Figma has become, and he won’t hold back: “They’re building for developers, not designers.” He’s watched the updates shift toward dev mode and tokens while UI/visual designers get left behind. 9. But why he doesn’t do any meetings with clients? He built his business around the idea that great work is communication. His clients don’t want another Zoom call, they want a landing page by Friday. That’s why he wins. Every deliverable speaks louder than status updates.10. Here’s how you can build a one person agency around your expertise:→ Productize your strongest skill.→ Limit what you offer to what you’re best and fastest at.→ Pick one platform and post with consistency and clarity.→ Work solo if you can but systematize everything.Sounds too simple but truly that’s only the sauce.Check it out on Apple, Spotify, or YouTube.Where to Find BrettTwitter: BrettCompany: DesignjoyCourse: Productize YourselfRelated Podcast:How this Ex-Amazon VP makes $950k/yr post retirementUp NextI hope you enjoyed the last episode with Harish Mukhami (where we built AI Customer Success Agent). Up next, we have episodes with:Thomas Occhino - CPO, VercelAman Khan - AI PM @ Arize AI, Spotify, CruiseNan Yu - Head of Product, LinearFinally, check out my latest deep dive if you haven’t yet: Career-Launching Companies: These are the Companies You Should Work ForIf you want to advertise, email productgrowthppp at gmail. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.news.aakashg.com/subscribe