Hi Reader,
There's a moment in every meaningful project where the pace slows, the outcomes blur, and the growth curve feels painfully flat. You're showing up, doing the work, adjusting the sails—and still wondering: Is this even working?
That stretch has a name: The Blade Years.
My friend Bobby Martin studied 172 startups for his book The Hockey Stick Principles and found that nearly all successful companies follow a predictable pattern:
- Tinkering Phase: Where ideas form and initial concepts emerge
- The Blade Years: The extended period of steady work, refinement, and gradual growth
- The Inflection Point: Where something clicks and acceleration begins
- Surging Growth: Where scale becomes both opportunity and challenge
But most founders never make it past the Blade Years.
Because they don't feel like progress. They feel like iterating, failing, and trying again. They feel like staring at a quiet bank account and wondering if you're still on the right track. They feel like grasping onto one meaningful "yes" just to keep going. They feel like loneliness, self-doubt, and endless tinkering in the dark—still holding your vision even when others question it.
Most founders quit here. Not because they weren't capable—but because it's hard to keep believing in a curve you can't yet see.
Truth be told, most community builders live in the Blade Years far longer than they expected. On a chart, this phase looks like a flat line, but in reality it feels quite rocky. In your heart, it feels like questioning everything.
Is This a Dip—or a Dead End?
In his book The Dip, Seth Godin makes a crucial distinction that every entrepreneur needs to understand.
The Dip is a temporary setback—the long slog between starting and mastery. It's the valley you have to cross to get to the other side. Godin argues that the Dip is actually where winners are made, because most people quit here. Those who push through the Dip when others quit are the ones who eventually dominate their field.
The Dead End, on the other hand, is exactly what it sounds like. It's a situation where no amount of additional effort will fundamentally change the outcome. Dead ends don't get better with time or persistence—they just drain your resources.
The distinction matters: Can I keep going? Should I? And how do you tell the difference?
Here's what to look for: In a dip, you see small signs of traction—people engaging, referring others, implementing what you share. The foundation is solid, but growth is slow. In a dead end, even your biggest supporters aren't engaging consistently, and no amount of tweaking changes the fundamental response.
If you're struggling to tell the difference or need guidance navigating your own Blade Years, I'm here to help—this is exactly where I focus my work with community leaders.
Do the Numbers Support the Dream?
Let's say your community offer is $50/month, and you're aiming for $5,000/month in revenue. That's 100 members.
It sounds simple on paper, but building a community that size requires more than just great content. It requires reach, relationships, and genuine resonance with your audience.
Those "overnight successes" who launch to 100+ members on day one usually had something most people didn't see: a large, engaged audience, years of consistent showing up, or a substantial marketing engine already in motion.
If you're not there yet, it doesn't mean you're behind. It means your work might be building the audience that makes community possible.
That could look like refining your message and establishing your thought leadership; showing up in spaces where your ideal members already gather; building trust through podcast interviews, guest teaching, or collaborations; or growing your email list with intention and consistency.
If you don't have the numbers yet, it doesn't mean your idea is flawed. It means your next right step might be visibility, not scaling. Or starting with smaller groups at higher price points. Or running time-bound experiments while you build your broader audience.
[If you're feeling stuck with your community model, check out my Reach/Revenue Matrix - it'll help you see exactly where you are and determine what strategic move makes sense next.]
It Doesn't Have to Be All or Nothing
Community doesn't have to be your full-time income right now for it to be worthwhile.
I work with brilliant community builders who:
- Run communities as meaningful side projects while maintaining other income
- Use community to support and enhance their consulting or coaching work
- Build community slowly while other revenue streams pay the bills
Seasoned community leaders treat their community as a long-term investment, not a quick cash grab.
The pressure to make community your entire business model immediately can actually damage what you're building. When you're desperate for revenue, you make different decisions—often short-term ones that prioritize transactions over relationships.
What to Watch For in the Blade Years
Revenue is one kind of proof. But not the only kind.
Look for the quieter signs: People show up consistently, even when the group is small. Members reach out with ideas or questions. Someone implements what you shared and circles back to tell you it helped. They engage with each other, not just with you. They refer someone they care about without being asked.
These are the early indicators that something real is taking shape. These moments are how lasting communities actually begin. They signal that trust is building and momentum is forming.
Community is slow magic. It compounds. And often, the most important work happens in the Blade Years.
Permission to Be Where You Are
Give yourself time and space for things to take off. Surging growth without significant investment of effort and time is the exception, not the rule.
As you evaluate where you are, ask yourself: Are you building something genuinely valuable for the people you serve? Do members show up consistently? Do they engage with each other, not just with you? Are you learning what works and what doesn't?
If yes, you're likely in a dip worth pushing through. The Blade Years are part of the path, not a detour from it. Keep going, but be strategic about how you navigate this season. You're building capacity and learning what works.
If no, it might be time to pivot. Maybe your pricing needs adjustment. Maybe your audience needs refinement. Maybe your format needs to change. There's no shame in course-correcting based on what you've learned.
But don't abandon what you've created simply because it's taking longer than expected or because it doesn't match someone else's timeline. Most of what looks like overnight success was years in the making.
Your timeline doesn't have to match anyone else's. Your model doesn't need to look like theirs. And the foundation you're building might be more solid than it seems.
The Blade Years are not wasted time. They're where you figure out what actually works. They contain the lessons and experiments that eventually lead to breakthrough.
The most worthwhile things take time,
Laura
P.S. I'm speaking about building a community that aligns with your business model at the Build Your Influence Ecosystem Summit next week. If you're navigating your own Blade Years and want to connect with others on the journey, register here for free.