Welcome to The Flywheel š”
A fun, thoughtful analysis of the world's most interesting companies, every other Tuesday.
The Flywheel: A witty, approachable, and informative dive into the most interesting companies in the world.
A free, periodic newsletter that puts you in the conversation. Learn what makes the difference between a company thriving and stagnating.
Over 5,000 top investors, thinkers, and entrepreneurs receive The Flywheel every other week.
Each article is a deep dive into one company.
The topic is chosen, researched, and written by Jake Singer, an ex-Amazon Product Manager who loves thinking about flywheels.
Featuring: hand drawn flywheel diagrams.
Jake Singer @jakesing_
Since thereās not much going on today, figured Iād drop a new Flywheel! This one is about @zillow and their massive pivot towards instant offers. Take a few minutes to distract yourself from the election and check it out šš¼šš¼ https://t.co/uQwfDWuEmxSubscribe now! Itās 100% free, and itās super easy to unsubscribe if itās not for you.
About The Flywheel
The Flywheel started in August 2020 when Jake was leaving his job at Amazon. While there, he became drawn (no pun intended) to the concept of the flywheel, which is used internally to describe the components that lead to increasing, accelerating growth. The canonical Amazon flywheel looks like this:
Jake realized that the same framework could be applied to other companies, and he was riding his Peloton a lot in those days. Thus, The Flywheelās first post was born.
Since then heās written posts about Stitch Fix, Zillow, DoorDash, Lululemon, and Zoom.
What is a Flywheel?
In a simple graphic, a flywheel explains the success formula for a company or system. As X increases, it leads to more of Y, which in turn increases Z. As Z increases it flows back to X and the cycle begins anew. I believe that behind every successful company is a flywheel that is well understoodāat least internally.
A companyās flywheel explains why it becomes easier to run a business as it continues to operate. Like compounding interest, investments in one area of the business flow through to every other area of the business. These set off a series of accumulating advantages that the company enjoys over time. A company that understands its own flywheel can identify where the wheel is spinning smoothly, and where a little bit of grease might come in handy.
Audience Love
The Flywheel is read by top investors and entrepreneurs. Just a selection of some of the twitter love:
Jake Singer @jakesing_
There's a lot of buzz about @beondeck in tech twitter, but what's one more voice adding to the pile? Just published the latest Flywheel where I look at why business school is disruptable, and why I believe On Deck is the one who's going to do it. A brief threadšš https://t.co/JrtD6TOobE
Jake Singer @jakesing_
When I first tried @stitchfix my stylist picks weren't very good, which made me not want to put in the work to help them improve my recs. Chicken and egg. It made me wonder whether the company was doomed to failure or had a path for success. A brief thread šš¼šš¼ https://t.co/5IyzO6Q6t9
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