Welcome to Edition 10 of the High Performance Playbook.

This week, I’m going a bit contrarian with an idea that may sound strange at first, but becomes more clear the more you think about it.

If you’re new to the HPP, my name is Austin Wright. I’m excited to bring you this playbook and system I’ve developed over the last decade as a multi-business entrepreneur, father, and wellness advocate.

If you’re into: health & fitness, personal finance & investing, business growth hacks, and how to level up all areas of your life, the High Performance Playbook is for you.

These are the strategies and frameworks that separate the 1% from the .01%.

If you enjoy the content and get some value from it, please share this link with a few friends and help me spread the word! There’s no better compliment than a referral.

Now let’s dive in.

Ready? Start your engines… Let’s GO:

Mindset & Psychology

This is the biggest risk to your progress in 2025.

You must avoid it at all costs…

It’s stability.

I used to think stability was actually the goal.

Build the business.

Stack the cash.

Find a rhythm and stay in it.

That’s what success looked like from the outside.

But then I started noticing something strange. The longer I stayed comfortable, the more I felt stagnant.

The safer I played it, the more disconnected I became from my edge. My ambition didn’t disappear, it just got buried under routine.

Meanwhile, the world was changing fast. And the pace of change was increasing.

AI was going mainstream. Markets were flipping. Consumer behavior was evolving overnight.

And I realized:

What used to feel like security…

Was actually a slow death.

If you're not adapting in 2025, you're already falling behind. And it’s going to get even crazier in the next 24 months.

So I started testing things.

I implemented AI in all of my businesses - testing tools that answer phones, handle billing issues, and even follow up and nurture leads. We replaced voicemails with an AI that never takes a day off or needs a lunch break.

We implemented a customer feedback loop, all using AI. Here’s how it works: The AI sends about 100 random texts per day to clients asking them how their experience is on a scale of 1-5.

For anyone who says “5,” the AI then sends them a link to post a 5-star review on Google or Yelp.

It gets better - when the person posts the review, the AI responds to them on behalf of the owner. And we’ve trained it to respond exactly like I would if I were typing. It’s basically me, 24/7.

And what happened?

Our customer experience leveled up. Our team got sharper. Our business improved. I got time back to focus on more high-impact activities.

The craziest part to me was when I was training the software to speak exactly like me. It writes emails from learning how I wrote tens of thousands of emails over the years. It sends texts and responds to customers in the exact same manner that I would. It even captures my tone, my empathy for clients, and my enthusiasm.

But turning this over to a new technology was not comfortable. It was a learning curve that involved a lot of faith.

But it wasn’t just about software. This is just one example.

I had to shift my mindset from playing defense to offense. From managing “what is” to building “what could be.” That’s when everything changed.

I don’t chase trends. I build systems.

I don’t scale chaos. I scale clarity.

And I no longer confuse movement with momentum.

The entrepreneurs who win today are the ones who move fast, pivot hard, and implement without ego.

If you're holding on to 'stability,' be honest - are you grounded… or just paralyzed by fear disguised as discipline?

The truth is that stability isn’t safe anymore. It’s the riskiest thing you can chase.

And in 2025, your ability to adapt isn’t just a skill, it’s survival.

In my lifetime, I’ve seen dozens of companies that were once market dominators fall into complete oblivion because they were not ruthlessly future-focused. Here are 10 of the craziest ones that you may remember:

1. Blockbuster

   • Missed the shift to streaming. Turned down an early offer to buy Netflix for $50M. Focused on brick-and-mortar rentals while the world went digital.

   • 💀 Outcome: Bankrupt by 2010. Netflix is now worth half a Trillion.

2. Kodak

   • Invented the digital camera… and buried it. Their fear of cannibalizing film sales made them ignore the future they helped create.

   • 💀 Outcome: Filed for bankruptcy in 2012.

3. Nokia

   • Ignored the smartphone revolution. Dominated mobile in the early 2000’s but failed to adapt its OS and ecosystem when iPhone and Android exploded.

   • 📉 Outcome: Market share collapsed; sold phone business to Microsoft in 2014.

4. BlackBerry

   • Over-relied on physical keyboards and corporate IT dominance. Failed to prioritize user experience and app ecosystems.

   • 💀 Outcome: Exited smartphone market entirely; pivoted to enterprise software.

5. Sears

   • Ignored e-commerce. Had the infrastructure and customer base to become Amazon before Amazon - but didn’t modernize fast enough. They were the world’s largest retailer for more than 20 years straight.

   • 💀 Outcome: Bankrupt in 2018, a shell of its former retail dominance.

6. Yahoo

   • Missed multiple opportunities. Declined to buy Google for $1M and botched several acquisitions (e.g., Tumblr). Failed to become a true search or content platform leader.

   • 📉 Outcome: Acquired by Verizon for a fraction of its peak value.

7. MySpace

   • Couldn't scale or innovate beyond its initial product. Ignored user feedback, slow to pivot UX, and let Facebook eat its lunch.

   • 💀 Outcome: Lost relevance by 2010.

8. Toys “R” Us

   • Outsourced e-commerce to Amazon. By the time it tried to catch up, it was years behind in digital strategy.

   • 💀 Outcome: Bankrupt in 2017.

9. Borders Books

   • Didn’t embrace e-books or digital sales. Let Amazon and Barnes & Noble outpace them digitally.

   • 💀 Outcome: Closed all stores in 2011.

10. Xerox

• Created innovations, but didn’t commercialize them. The Xerox PARC research center developed GUI, the mouse, and Ethernet—but others capitalized.

• 📉 Outcome: Still alive, but a shadow of its innovation potential.

These monster companies didn’t just fall behind; they refused to evolve.

These are some of the clearest examples in business history of what happens when legacy breeds arrogance and innovation is ignored in the name of chasing stability.

Don’t get caught standing in the same place while your competition is evolving.

Health & Fitness + Longevity

Your health shouldn’t be treated as a side hustle…

I’ve been fortunate enough to build companies that generate 7 and 8 figures.

But here’s the truth no one likes to say out loud:

None of it works if my body breaks down.

For a long time, I treated my health like a checkbox:

Squeeze in a workout if I had time.

Sleep when the launch was over.

Hydration? Optional.

But the more responsibilities I took on, the more I realized:

Your business doesn’t need more energy. You do.

So I flipped the script:

• Workouts go in the calendar like investor calls, non-negotiable.

• Sleep is a performance multiplier, not a luxury.

• And momentum doesn’t start in the inbox, it starts with how you treat your body.

We admire founders for their work ethic.

But what’s the point of building something massive if you’re too burned out or sick to enjoy it?

Your health is not a side hustle.

It’s the operating system that powers everything else.

Protect it like your business depends on it… because it does.

Personal Finance Tip of the Week

Pay Yourself a Salary, Then Bonus Yourself with Strategy

Too many business owners blur the lines between business income and personal wealth.

Here’s a smarter framework:

1. Set a consistent salary through payroll, even if you own the company.

   This creates predictable personal income and keeps your books clean (especially for taxes, lending, or future investors).

2. Distribute additional profits strategically via:

   • Owner’s draws (pass-through tax efficiency for S-corps/LLCs),

   • Dividends (for C-corps, taxed separately), or

   • Performance-based bonuses (to take advantage of deductible compensation).

3. Time those distributions around your personal tax bracket and business cash flow. Taking a big bonus in a high-income year? That could cost you more than it’s worth.

Treat your business like it’s separate from you, because eventually, if you’re doing it right, it will be.

Business Playbook

For a long time, I thought I had a learning problem.

I kept jumping from one course to the next, downloading playbooks, saving threads, listening to every podcast on 1.5x speed, thinking more knowledge was the key.

But my business wasn’t moving. And my confidence wasn’t growing either.

Then I realized: I didn’t have a learning problem. I had an execution problem.

I wasn’t applying what I already knew.

The shift came when I stopped hoarding information and started shipping outcomes.

Instead of:

• Bookmarking another framework, I launched the MVP.

• Instead of watching another YouTube breakdown, I sent the pitch email.

• Instead of perfecting a Notion doc, I picked up the phone and just made the call.

Everything changed when I started implementing in real time, before I felt “ready.”

My business started to grow. And so did my belief in myself.

Speed compounds. Consumption doesn’t.

The faster you act, the faster you learn what works.

The faster you learn what works, the faster you grow.

If you’re stuck, try this:

Put down the podcast. Close the tab.

Pick one idea, and go do it.

You might not feel ready.

Do it anyway.

Thanks for reading!

If you enjoyed this week’s newsletter, please share it with some friends! Let’s all get better together.

🗓️ STAY TUNED:

In next week’s newsletter, I’m going to share 7 pieces of ‘untrue’ business advice you need to know. You won’t want to miss it!

Have a great week!

Here’s to your success,

Austin Lamar Wright

If you’re social, let’s connect! - Follow me on X for daily business breakdowns, lifestyle hacks, and a behind-the-scenes look at what I’m doing to build a $100M wellness and fitness portfolio across the US.

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P.S.

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_{Disclaimer: The ideas shared in this newsletter are those of the author, and this is in no way intended to be medical, legal, or financial advice. Always do your own research and consult with licensed professionals.}