The Internet Is Tired. That’s the Opportunity.

Read time: 6 minutes

Hey, welcome back.

Last week, I talked about how great ideas carry equal weight in brilliance, but not all are equal in execution. You can read that (and all past issues, here).

Before you read on:
If you’re serious about making 2026 one of the best years of your life, I’ve put together a short exercise that helps you reflect on where you’ve been, clarify what actually matters next, and set a calm, grounded direction for the year ahead.

It’s not motivational fluff, just a quiet, structured way to think clearly.

You can download it here → Your Best Year Ever Guide

I’ve been thinking about why so much content that should be useful just… passes straight through me lately.

It’s not that the ideas are bad.
A lot of them are solid.
Some are things I genuinely believe.

But they don’t register anymore.

And when I sat with that feeling, I realised it wasn't the ideas that had changed.
It’s the environment they’re landing in.

As this week's newsletter is all about juxtaposing real authenticity against AI - here's me and my wife in Cape Town this week, with our pet shark and Pterodactyl. Only you can decide what's real or not.

What I’ve Noticed in Myself

A few years ago, I paid real attention to advice online.

If someone shared a thoughtful breakdown of how they built something, I’d read it slowly.
If someone explained how they thought about health, work, or money, I’d save it.
I’d try things.

Now, I’ll read something technically excellent and forget it minutes later.

Not because I don’t care.
Because my brain has seen too many versions of it already.

AI has sped this up massively. The gap between an idea forming and it being published has almost disappeared.
That’s impressive.
It’s also flattening.

When Speed Removed the Weight

I’ve built businesses in very different eras of the internet.

When Heights was early, every decision felt heavy.
Every piece of thinking came from lived frustration.
Burnout. Insomnia. Trying to function when my brain clearly wasn’t working properly.

When I spoke about that, it wasn’t a strategy.
It was just honest.
And people felt it.

Now, I see similar ideas everywhere, packaged perfectly, stripped of context.
The insight survives.
The human story disappears.

And without the story, the insight doesn’t land.

The Things That Changed My Life Didn’t Arrive as Advice

If I’m honest, most of the decisions that changed my life didn’t come from someone telling me what to do.

They came from watching someone else live.

Seeing how someone handled pressure.

How they talked about success without performing.
How they chose health over ego.
How they admitted uncertainty without collapsing.

Those moments stayed with me.
Not because they were instructional.
Because they were human.

Why I Stopped Wanting to Teach

At some point, I noticed that the more I tried to “help” by explaining, the less interesting it felt.

Not for the reader.
For me.

I don’t want to spend my time repeating principles I already know by heart.
And I don’t think you need that either.

What feels more honest now is sharing what I’m actually experiencing.
What I’m noticing in real time.
What’s confusing.
What’s working.
What I’ve changed my mind about.

If there’s a lesson in there, you’ll see it.
If there isn’t, that’s fine too.

Where the Opportunity Is

Now, I know you might be thinking, "Cool Dan, but where the f*cks the 'opportunity' you've mentioned?"

Here it is:

Whenever a system gets saturated, attention moves sideways.

Right now, attention is moving away from:
polished advice
perfect explanations
high-output teaching

And towards:
specific experience
context
personality
presence

People don’t want more answers.
They want to see how answers are lived.

That’s the opportunity.

What This Means Practically

The people who will matter most online over the next few years won’t be the best explainers.

They’ll be the clearest signal of a real human navigating reality.

Someone who:
shares what actually happened this week
talks about decisions while they’re still unfolding
admits uncertainty without collapsing into it
doesn’t rush to turn every thought into a lesson

That kind of sharing doesn’t compete with AI.
It can’t be replicated by it.

A Personal Realisation

Some of the moments that changed my life didn’t come from advice.

They came from seeing how someone else lived.

How they handled burnout.
How they spoke about success without performing.
How they made decisions quietly, without broadcasting them as lessons.

Those things stayed with me.
Not because they were useful.
Because they were real.

That’s what’s missing now.
And that’s what people are responding to again.

What You Get Out of This as a Reader

Here’s the part that matters for you.

If the internet is tired of instruction, you don’t need to become louder or smarter.

You can:
stop trying to sound impressive
stop translating everything into advice
stop pretending clarity you don’t have yet

And instead:
pay attention to what’s actually happening in your life
share from experience, not authority
let people take what they need and leave the rest

Whether you’re building a brand, a business, or just a clearer sense of self, this approach compounds.

Because it attracts people who are paying attention.
Not just consuming.

This Is Why I Write This Newsletter

Not to teach.
Not to optimise.
Not to compete in the idea economy.

But to document lived experience in public.
To think honestly.
To stay human in a system that’s getting very good at producing content and very bad at producing meaning.

If something here resonates, use it.
If it doesn’t, ignore it.

That choice is yours.
That’s the point.

One Thought to Leave You With

When everything becomes scalable, what isn’t becomes valuable.

The internet may be tired.
People aren’t.

They’re just waiting to recognise themselves again.

To staying human in public,
Dan

P.S. Something I Built to Help You With This

Over the years, I’ve used the same reflection and planning process to reset my direction, personally and professionally.

It’s not motivational fluff.
It’s structured, honest, and grounding.

So I’ve turned it into a short guided exercise you can complete in one focused sitting.

It helps you:

Reflect on the last 10 years, 5 years, and the past 12 months
See what’s been draining you versus what’s energised you
Get clear on what actually matters next
Set a direction for the year ahead
And create a simple mantra you can live by

If you want to give 2026 a real foundation, you can download the guide here → Your Best Year Planning Guide

And if you want the Word doc of the guide, you can get it here → Word doc of Best Year Ever Guide

(No pressure. Just a tool, use it if it feels right.)

Diary of a CEO with Konstantin Kisin

Excellent communication on the challenges we find ourselves facing in the west as a consequence of comfort.

Listen Here

What's Stopping You - Timothy Armoo

When an old friend becomes a new Sunday times best selling author, you got nothing but pride. This book has incredible business and life advice for all.

Read Here

Landman

Late to this one but wow it's entertaining. Brilliant series about oil, the power dynamics, the necessity for it, and the many types of characters that deliver it to us.

Watch Here

A 2020 study published in Emotion found that people who learned to accept their “non-ideal emotional states”, including low motivation, low energy, and neutral days, experienced significantly higher overall well-being and lower stress.

The key insight: self-acceptance amplifies emotional resilience, while self-judgment weakens it.

📌 Quick Takeaway →

Your average days aren’t failures; they’re emotional training grounds.
When you stop punishing yourself for being human, everything in your life compounds faster.

→ Link to study

In my goal to help more entrepreneurs/people who are looking to level up their careers, I've just started taking 1-1 consulting calls (only 1 a week)

Why book a call? Some of my expertise/success:

I've built 5 startups. 1 win, 1 fail, and 3 still going.
E-Commerce: Heights - with revenue over £30M a year.
Community: Foundrs, one of the UK's top founder communities
Podcasting: Leaders Media - I bootstrapped a media company that made the UK's top business podcasts including Secret Leaders, with over 50M downloads across the network.
Health/Mental Health: Overcame burnout, insomnia, depression & anxiety in pursuit of success. Hear me on Steven Bartlett's on Diary of a CEO
Angel Investing: I've invested in over 100 startups
Coached & Mentored: Certified coach & 5* mentor on Mentorpass
Personal Brand: Over 400,000 followers across social

So if you're interested in booking a session with me to talk all things business or building a personal brand, book for 30-minutes or 45-minutes. (limited spots).

Book a Call with Dan