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I know there's been a lot of demand for more content beyond the daily TikToks, and I'm excited to finally launch this.

Here's what to expect: Every week, I'll send you 3 deals worth looking at, 2 insights that'll help you think smarter about buying businesses, and 1 story from my own journey — the wins, the mistakes, and the lessons in between (yes, format inspired by James Clear’s 3-2-1 newsletter)

Think of it as your weekly briefing for the small business acquisition world. Scan it over coffee. Save the deals that catch your eye. Skip what doesn't apply.

Let's get into it.

If you're planning to buy a business using an SBA loan (the most common way people finance small acquisitions), there's a rule change you need to know about.

The old way: You could ask the seller to leave some money in the deal (called a "seller note") and count that toward your down payment. It was a great way to reduce how much cash you needed upfront.

The new way: As of June 2025, the SBA capped these seller notes at just 5% of the deal — and the seller can't collect any payments on it for 10 years. No interest. No principal. Essentially, they're giving you an IOU that sits frozen for a decade.

Why it matters: Most sellers won't agree to these terms. Only about 1 in 4 will. So if you were counting on seller financing to close your deal, you'll need a new strategy — either bring more cash, or structure the seller note separately from your equity contribution.

Here's something most first-time buyers don't realize: lenders want to fund you.

The numbers tell the story. Through September 2025, SBA lenders deployed $8.29 billion in acquisition loans — that's up 35% from last year. It's the fastest-growing segment of the entire SBA program.

Why? Because acquisition loans are safer. The default rate for acquisition buyers is 1.93% — compared to 2.71% for other SBA loans. That's nearly 30% lower risk.

Why it matters: You're not begging for financing. You're a preferred borrower. Buying an existing cash-flowing business is structurally safer than starting from scratch, and lenders know it. When you're negotiating, don't be sheepish — lean into the fact that the data is on your side.

Last Friday, I stayed up until 10:30pm building something I'd been putting off for months: a personal AI assistant using OpenClaw.

Three hours later, I had a transcription pipeline for TikTok/YouTube videos and a cron job that checks weather to help schedule tennis. No real coding — just describing what I wanted and watching it work.

RaffleLink has been in slow-grind mode for months. Features take forever. Progress feels invisible. But this? Instant feedback. Describe a thing, watch it work, feel that spark of "holy shit I made that."

We forget sometimes — the reason we got into building and acquiring things wasn't because we love spreadsheets. It was because we wanted to make something.

If you're in a grind right now, find something small you can ship. Doesn't have to be your main thing. Just something that reminds you why you started.