September 16, 2025

I’ve been thinking about this lately: Compounding versus resetting.

It’s a powerful concept that makes you question how you spend your time and energy every single day.

It all comes down to one critical question more people should obsess over:

“Am I spending my energy on something that compounds or something that resets to 0?”

The Reset Trap

Most things reset to 0 if you’re not careful. These are the daily activities that demand your attention but don’t add long-term value or momentum.

Once they’re done, you’re back at the starting line.

These tasks often look like:

• Misc emails
• Status meetings
• Slack pings
• One-off projects

Compounding Efforts

But the good stuff compounds. These are the actions and systems you build that grow over time, creating a foundation for future success.

Each effort stacks on top of the last, generating momentum.

The work that compounds includes:

• Stacking ARR
• Building a following
• Publishing content
• Hiring well
• Shipping product updates
• Investing early

Conclusion

The key takeaway is to be mindful of where your energy is going. Are your daily actions building towards a larger goal, or are they tasks that simply disappear once completed, leaving you at the same starting point the next day?

By consciously choosing activities that compound, you create lasting value that grows over time. It’s the difference between running in place and building a staircase to your goals.

Take a moment to evaluate your own work and ask what you can do today that will continue to pay off tomorrow.