GTM or GTFO | Network or Nothing

If you could do only ONE thing to grow in any market (yes, even this AI-crazy one) build relationships.

My Introduction to GTM or GTFO

If you think your product is the moat… you're already sinking.

The only real moat is a great GTM. Build it. Execute it. Or GTFO.

Anyone can build a product in minutes now. But you 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 half-ass your GTM.

Sales is hard. Marketing is hard. Customer success is hard.

And yet… 80% of people suck at it. Same emails. Same generic calls. Same AI “I saw you liked INSERT NAME’s post - wanna buy?”

No personality. No humour. No reason to care. I'm tired of seeing the same crap. But I am energized by the 3 kids who came to my door today offering to wash my car for $20.

No funnel.No automation. Just personality and directness. They crushed it. So yeah, good planning and awesome execution works!

So following along with “GTM or GTFO” if you want to learn with me, laugh with me (sometimes at me) and actually get better at GTM

I’m a Fractional CRO, and some people thinks that means I am a consultant and don't execute. But, I execute. I experiment. I build. I just do it across multiple companies at once. I am 110% a full-time GTM Operator.

Right here, right below, every two weeks you will get short drops.

1) Getting sh$t done - practical GTM wins and mistakes

2) My life as a Fractional CRO - solopreneur stuff, client life, how to not mess it up and some wild ideas

If you’re hunting for silver-bullet hacks, wrong inbox. GTM or GTFO.

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Getting Sh*t Done

The relationship flywheel (in a world drowning in AI)

Scroll LinkedIn for sixty seconds and you’ll see a flood of “instant AI lead engines,” “zero-touch funnels,” and “hands-free pipeline.”

Automation is great… until

1. everyone automates the exact same way

2. there is no human left

What still cuts through? Humans who care and lead with kindness

AI can:

• Draft a convincing intro email

• Flag a prospect’s job change the same day it happens

• Summarize a coffee-chat transcript into CRM notes

• and now it can provide AI coaching and simulations that crush (more on this later)

AI cannot:

• Earn trust in a single handshake

• Show they care

• Remember your prospect’s marathon time and send them a congrats text on race day (ok maybe it can)

• Make someone laugh on a rainy Thursday and think, “I like working with these folks” (not yet anyway)

That’s why warm intros and referrals still close 3–5 × better than cold.

Relationships compound. Algorithms plateau.

Build the flywheel that will pay off forever

1. Daily touch list
   Five people in your ICP. One value-first note each. Article, intro, small win, etc. NO PITCH.

2. Event stacking
   Offer up a monthly “huddle” on Zoom, or an in-person dinner. Topic is whatever you are passionate about - others will share the passion. Put them in the calendar now and never cancel.

3. Signal → gesture
   - Birthday? Post a goofy GIF and mail a book.

   - Funding round? Ship a bottle.

   - Job change? Send a short LinkedIn voice memo or video chat (I love Quibbly for this - DM me and I’ll shoot you a video message using it so you can see how cool it is. If you use it due to my recommendation I get enough to buy a coffee :)

   so I’ll buy you a coffee in return!)

   - Use AI to surface the moment so you don’t miss it, then be human.
   

   Note: I get the exact same copy and paste message from the same people every time I make a new announcement. Sure it’s kind, but it would be so much better if that person took an extra 3 seconds and showed me they weren’t copy and pasting. I respond to every single one I know is written by a human.

4. Give > Get
   Review a deck, refine a pricing page, jump on a “quick” call. People remember who showed up.

5. Close every loop with gratitude
   Handwritten thank-you notes, thoughtful gifts under $50, or a public LinkedIn shout-out. Cement the bond. You would appreciate it if people did this for you. You would remember. Do it for them.

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Life as a Fractional CRO

Client management without burnout

It starts with one extra call, one deck tweak, one “quick thought” in Slack. Then touch points triple. Going above and beyond is great… until it eats the calendar.

How to stay helpful and sane

• Cleary set expectations and scope on day one – Meetings, response times, channels, etc., all verbally and ALSO in writing.

• Yes-No-Yes script – “Yes I can help, no it’s outside scope, yes here’s a mini-project to tackle it.”

• Rehearse the line – Practice with peers until it rolls off the tongue. You have to be able to say NO (and refer back to scope/expectation discussion and document).

• Offer new paths – When needs expand, call it out and propose a fresh expectation setting discussion and agreement if necessary. This is an opportunity to right-size the engagement if needed. No free stretch.

Your job isn’t to say yes to everything. It’s to deliver what was agreed upon exceptionally.

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GTM or GTFO action

1. Open your calendar and book a ten-minute value touch with three past clients today.

2. Write your Yes-No-Yes boundary line and read it out loud five times.

Do both before you log off.

Relationships win; boundaries keep you in the game.

Get it done or GTFO.

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Thanks for reading

Know a founder who trusts AI more than people? Forward this to them.

See you next week.