10 lessons on bootstrapping a $200m business | Patrick Campbell (ProfitWell)

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Patrick Campbell is the founder and CEO of ProfitWell, which he bootstrapped and sold for over $200 million. In this special episode, we explore 10 big ideas from Patrick, including tips for hiring employees who align with your company values, creating winning pricing and retention strategies, determining the right time to raise money, and more. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to scale your SaaS business, this must-listen episode offers practical and actionable advice that will help you avoid missteps and think differently.

Find the transcript for this episode and all past episodes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/10-lessons-from-bootstrapping-a-200m

Where to find Patrick Campbell:

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/Patticus

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickccampbell/

• Email: [email protected]

Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

Referenced:

• Douglas Atkin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/doatkin/

• Patrick Campbell’s guest post on Lenny’s Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/saas-pricing-strategy/comments

• ProfitWell: https://www.profitwell.com/

• The Cadence: How to Operate a SaaS Startup: https://medium.com/craft-ventures/the-cadence-how-to-operate-a-saas-startup-436aa8099e8

• Edward Snowden on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Snowden

• The Flywheel: https://www.hubspot.com/flywheel

• High Output Management: https://www.amazon.com/High-Output-Management-Andrew-Grove/dp/0679762884

• Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don’t Have All the Facts: https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Bets-Making-Smarter-Decisions/dp/0735216355

• Powerful: https://www.amazon.com/Powerful/dp/1939714206/r

• The West Wing on HBOMax: https://www.hbomax.com/series/urn:hbo:series:GX5nwgQDNJZ6aoQEAAAHJ

• Notion: https://www.notion.so/

• Descript: https://www.descript.com/

• Coda: https://coda.io/

• KTool: https://ktool.io/

• Tweet Hunter: https://tweethunter.io/

• Apple Watch Ultra: https://www.apple.com/apple-watch-ultra/

• Loom: https://www.loom.com/

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Patrick’s background

(05:12) Building a team

(07:38) How ProfitWell handled a conflict using their guiding principle, the most charitable interpretation

(10:41) Why new hires need to fit in with the company culture

(12:19) The bootstrapping vs. funding debate

(13:38) When