Idea Ripper // ArchiveCards: 1555 [Live] | Updated: 2026-10-14
Card #c1347IR // #c1347Verbatim excerpt
"Barstool is looking to hire writers. We don’t pay at all, but we make up for it by offering zero benefits."

— Source: Cancel Me If You Can (Dave Portnoy)

[Use when]

You can't pay yet and need contributors who care about the work itself.

[Why it matters]

Only a few people answered. Three of them became the original "Core 4" with Portnoy, and one still writes for Barstool two decades later. A blunt ad screens out everyone except the people who would do the work anyway.

Filed under situations:When the team is looking to you to leadWhen it’s day one and nothing exists yet

More from Cancel Me If You Can

#c1344"At this point the business model was pretty simple: if I could sell $3,400 worth of ads in the newspaper, I would break even."You're running a new venture on thin cash and the finances feel vague. #c1345"How do you sell ads for a newspaper that doesn’t exist? On promises."You need paying customers before you have a finished product. #c1346"I’d sift through all my competitors’ publications in Boston and call every single one of their advertisers every single week to poach them…You're looking for your first customers and your competitors publish who theirs are.

Same situation, different book

#c1337Marine Corps Leadership 101 for a campaignYou're running a first-time team on an underdog project.From Courage Can Save Us #c1314Moving out of mom and dad's houseYou're leading a team through a complex separation or launch and need everyone pointed the same way.From Digital Impact #c1246Build leaders before you knock on doorsYou're launching an effort and are tempted to start the work before you have people to lead it.From This Is the Plan #c1240Small groups are the secret sauceYou're trying to sustain a long effort on willpower alone.From This Is the Plan