Podcast Episode Summary

The Foundr Podcast with Nathan Chan

Episode 590: (Solo) Why You Need to Do Things That Don’t Scale
Release Date: September 23, 2025
Host: Nathan Chan

Episode Overview

In this solo episode, Nathan Chan dives into the crucial early-stage entrepreneurial lesson: the importance of “doing things that don’t scale.” Drawing on his own decade-long journey building Foundr, as well as stories from successful founders, Nathan explains why manual, high-touch actions are the secret to understanding your customers, gaining traction, and laying the foundation for sustainable growth. The episode is filled with actionable examples and candid advice, making it indispensable for new founders and anyone looking to build authentic brand relationships from the ground up.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Origin: "Doing Things That Don't Scale" ([00:49]–[01:24])

• The concept was first popularized by Paul Graham, co-founder of Y Combinator.
• Nathan emphasizes he makes “no claim to this one”—the strategy is credited to Graham but has been transformative at Foundr.

2. Why Early-Stage Founders Should Avoid Automation ([01:24]–[02:30])

• “It is so incredibly important not to try and systematize everything, not to try and automate everything, and not to try and think too much further ahead on your journey.” — Nathan Chan ([01:24])
• The real advantage of being small: you can compete with bigger brands by offering a level of personal attention they can't.

3. Nathan’s Foundr Example: Personal Replies to Every Email ([02:31]–[03:40])

• Early in Foundr, Nathan personally replied to every new subscriber’s email.
• “I read every single email and it was crazy... I did that for the first 12 to 18 months at Founder and it was amazing to hear the stories of people in our community, how they were finding us, why they started to sign up to our email list and how we could help them where they were struggling.” — Nathan Chan ([02:56])
• This one-on-one engagement revealed what people loved, disliked, and truly needed from Foundr.

4. Other Real-World Examples of Doing Things That Don’t Scale ([03:41]–[05:14])

a) Rena and Flow: Building from Nothing ([03:41])

• Foundr students who made $25,000 in their brand’s first two weeks by DMing hairdressers and new salon clients on Instagram, building relationships without ads or automation.
• “They just sent a friendly message... no automation, no paid ads, just old fashioned Instagram DMs and relationship building. That catalyst was how they grew their brand.” — Nathan Chan ([04:23])

b) Healthish (Nathan’s Other Business): Manual DMs and Follows ([04:43])

• The team manually found and followed customers from competitor brands, messaged new followers with special coupon codes, and built buzz and sales directly from this personal outreach.
• “We DM’d people that followed us or liked images... and we got sales every sing[le time]. It is so powerful.” — Nathan Chan ([05:00])

5. Tactics You Can Apply Now ([05:15]–[06:40])

Nathan provides a rapid-fire checklist for founders:

• Write handwritten thank-you cards to every customer.
• DM new followers privately on social media platforms.
• Send voice notes or personalized video replies.
• Create custom product bundles for influencers or thought leaders in your niche.
• Go out of your way to demonstrate care and attention—authenticity builds emotional connection.

“Just the more personal you can be, the better. It goes a long way.” — Nathan Chan ([05:37])

6. The Mindset: Competing with Giants ([06:41]–[07:23])

• Large companies simply can’t offer highly personal touches at scale.
• Small brands can win by making each customer feel individually valued—a point of differentiation.
• “Don’t be intimidated by big players. You can do things that they can’t or they’re not even thinking about.” — Nathan Chan ([07:05])

7. The Call to Action ([07:24]–[end])

• For founders in the earliest stages: Routinely ask, “What can I do that doesn’t scale?”
• These early actions will reveal what your ideal customers respond to, setting the stage for what to scale later.
• Nathan invites listeners to DM him or email with feedback and stories.
• Brief plug for Foundr Plus, Foundr’s all-access membership for e-commerce brand builders (“$1 trial for 14 days”).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It’s really about curiosity, it’s really about understanding things and doing things that don’t scale. Because a lot of those things you won’t want to scale, a lot of these things won’t work.” — Nathan Chan ([01:35])
• “Was it time consuming to read every single email?... But I learned so much. I was able to connect with our early-stage community... I worked out very, very quickly where we needed to focus.” — Nathan Chan ([03:17])
• “So many people, they’re like, ‘I launched my product, I’m not getting as many sales.’ Like, well, how many people have you spoken to?” — Nathan Chan ([04:58])
• “You can do things that [big brands] can’t or they’re not even thinking about. And this is how you grow. This is how people talk about your brand and this is how you find out what works.” — Nathan Chan ([07:05])

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:49] – Introduction to “doing things that don’t scale”
• [01:24] – Why not to automate everything as a founder
• [02:31] – Foundr’s early email strategy and lessons learned
• [03:41] – Success story: Rena and Flow’s manual outreach
• [04:43] – Manual work at Healthish for customer engagement
• [05:15] – Actionable tactics for founders
• [06:41] – How small brands can beat big brands with personalization
• [07:24] – Final advice and call to action

Final Thoughts

Nathan Chan’s episode is a motivating, nuts-and-bolts guide for new founders on why—and how—to execute personal, “unscalable” actions to build deeper customer relationships and better products. By sharing honest examples from his own journey and those of Foundr alumni, Nathan drives home the principle that scrappiness and empathy are an early-stage founder’s secret weapon.

Recommended for: Anyone launching or growing a business who wants to create real connections and get direct, invaluable feedback from their audience.