Good morning, friends!

On Jan. 5, James Clear refreshed the page and watched his email list hit 1 million subscribers.

The first thing he did? "I took a screenshot," he said in an interview with The Profile. "The thing about getting to a million subscribers is that it took me eight years, so I knew it was coming, you know what I mean?"

Clear, the author of New York Times bestseller Atomic Habits, has been writing on his website JamesClear.com since 2012. He's one of the best and most interesting individual creators on the internet yet he had a moment of doubt that almost made him quit before he started.

"When I began writing in 2012, I thought I was too late," he says. "It seemed like blogs and newsletters had already peaked. It’s not too late. Someone is starting the next 1 million-person email list right now. The internet is in like the second inning. Get in the game. There is a lot of fun ahead."

I wanted to know: How did Clear build his brand? Why did he write a book? What mental frameworks does he use to generate ideas? And of course, what lessons can he share about how we can be more intentional about our day-to-day behavior?

In this interview, Clear explains his process in detail and offers practical strategies to help us form better habits in the new year. I hope you enjoy.

Check out an excerpt of the interview here, or watch the full interview below:

Read on the Website Here

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PROFILES.

— The kings of shaving [**HIGHLY RECOMMEND**]
— The busiest young star in Hollywood
— The man who flies around the world for free
— Fashion's most powerful artist
— The most hated influencer in the Rockies
— The Bitcoin millionaires locked out of their fortunes
— The star who doesn't age
— The music giant betting on podcasts

PEOPLE TO KNOW.

The kings of shaving: Grooming products startup co-founders Jeff Raider and Andy Katz-Mayfield found themselves in a room at the Federal Trade Commission headquarters where they were grilled for hours by antitrust regulators. Their apparent sin: competing too well against razor giant Gillette. Isn't antitrust law supposed to work the other way? Here's the story of what happened when Harry's got a $1.37 billion acquisition offer. (Inc Magazine)

"I would say some people were super excited, and some people were less excited."

The busiest young star in Hollywood: Sometimes, it's easy to forget that Zendaya is only 24 years old. She has conquered Disney and Marvel. She even won an Emmy for Euphoria, quietly building an empire for herself. Her next challenge is figuring out who she really is when the cameras aren't rolling. "I don't really know Zendaya outside of the Zendaya who works," she says. "I didn't realize how much my job and my art were a part of my identity as a human.”

"What I appreciate the most about working with Z is that there's no ego and no bullshit."

The man who flies around the world for free: Ben Schlappig, 25, rarely leaves the airport, and when he does he’ll rest his head only in luxury hotels. He is one of the biggest stars among an elite group of obsessive flyers whose mission is to outwit the airlines. They’re self-styled competitors with a singular objective: fly for free, as much as they can, without getting caught. (Rolling Stone)

Fashion's most powerful artist: Legendary makeup artist Pat McGrath made her mark on beauty by crafting makeup looks for close to 100 runway shows every year since the 1990s. McGrath has been responsible for many merch-moving, money-making trends. Remember the 2012 resurgence of colored mascara? That was her. Ombré lips in 2013? Also her. Then, in 2015, Pat hit beauty world gold. She launched her own line, Pat McGrath Labs, which reached a $1-billion valuation within three years of its launch. Meet the powerhouse who stays out of the limelight. (Allure)

"In my career, I have chosen to embrace freedom over fear."

The most hated influencer in the Rockies: David Lesh, 35, has been skiing in the Colorado Rockies for 16 winters. During many of them, he was a professional. In 2012, frustrated with his arrangement, he started designing his own mountain-sports outerwear, founding a company called Virtika. He gained traction on Instagram by trolling the Great Outdoors. By last summer, Coloradans circulated a petition to have his business license revoked and to have him banished from the state. Death threats piled up, targeting not just him but his child (he doesn’t have one) and his dog. What a story. (The New Yorker)

“I want to be able to post fake things to the Internet. That’s my fucking right as an American.”

The Bitcoin millionaires locked out of their fortunes: Bitcoin, which has been on an extraordinary and volatile eight-month run, has made a lot of its holders very rich in a short time. But the cryptocurrency’s unusual nature has also meant that many people are locked out of their Bitcoin fortunes as a result of lost or forgotten keys. They have been forced to watch, helpless, as the price has risen and fallen sharply, unable to cash in on their digital wealth. (The New York TImes)

“Through the years I would say I have spent hundreds of hours trying to get back into these wallets."

The star who doesn't age: Because Jennifer Lopez doesn't have enough going on, she just added more to her plate. In 2020, she launched a beauty line with products that align with her signature “five s’s” for a flawless look: sleep, sunscreen, serums, supplements, and vivir sano, which is Spanish for “living a healthy lifestyle.” In this profile, she discusses everything from her skincare routine to her Super Bowl performance to social justice.

“The idea of using the song ‘Let’s Get Loud’ [was about] never staying quiet and always using your voice against any injustices in this world."

COMPANIES TO WATCH.

The music giant betting on podcasts: In the past two years, Spotify has spent close to $900 million acquiring podcast production and technology companies. The company has already converted more than 20% of its 320 million total users into podcast listeners. But many of Spotify’s biggest partners and competitors question if it’s wasting money on a niche business. For all the time and money spent on this initiative, has the strategy worked? (Bloomberg)

“We believe that over time more than 20% of all listening on Spotify will be nonmusic content.”

This installment of The Profile is free for everyone. If you would like to get full access to all of the recommendations, including today’s audio and video sections, sign up below.

AUDIO TO HEAR.

Barbara Corcoran's relentless drive: Barbara Corcoran went through many ups and downs that nearly shattered her dreams to becoming a real estate icon. But there was one moment that shook her to her core. In the early 1970s, her boyfriend of seven years Ray Simone had an affair with Corcoran's own secretary. As she was packing her things to leave and start her own firm, Simone said: "You'll never succeed without me." In this podcast, she explains that everything she's succeeded at was thanks to an insult that fueled a raging fire within. (Link available to premium members.)

Kris Jenner on becoming an entrepreneur: The Kardashian family matriarch Kris Jenner believes that the key to being a successful entrepreneur is the ability to fall, brush off the failure, and get back up on your own two feet again. "Always have a Plan B," she says. "I'm really great at adapting to different situations quickly. You need to always be ready to pivot." Mistakes are acceptable, Jenner says, so long as you are intentional about learning from every single one of them. (Link available to premium members.)

Jim Chanos on lessons from a legendary career: Famed short-seller Jim Chanos cashed in as Enron unraveled during the dot-com collapse of the early 2000s. In this podcast episode, you hear a different side of Chanos. He discusses his early career and what lessons investors can learn by studying the biggest frauds in recent history. (Link available to premium members.)

VIDEOS TO SEE.

Gwynne Shotwell’s passion to move humanity forward: Gwynne Shotwell was the seventh employee at SpaceX, and she worked her way up to president of the aerospace company. In this rare interview, she discusses SpaceX's race to put humans into orbit and explains how she managed to build a multi-billion dollar relationship with NASA even though SpaceX’s first three launches blew up. (Link available to premium members.)

Jack Dorsey on the future of Twitter: This conversation is from two years ago, but it gives a glimpse into the brain of Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. "Right now, the dynamic of the system makes it super easy to harass and abuse others through the service," he says. "Unfortunately, the majority of our system in the past worked entirely based on people reporting harassment and abuse." In recent years, they've applied machine learning to try to be more proactive around where abuse is happening. This is an interesting interview to watch in light of recent events. (Link available to premium members.)

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