10 Lessons To Run a Successful Business from Derek Sivers' Anything You Want

14 Apr 2026 #books

What started as a hobby became a millionaire business.

To sell his own music, Derek created a website and called it CD Baby. His friends asked him to include their CDs too. Years later, he sold it for millions.

To stop answering the same questions, he wrote Anything You Want. You could notice his take on succint writing and short books.

Here are 10 lessons I learned from reading it—I’m practicing the 10-idea list habit and the 7-word summary:

#1. Your business is your utopia. It’s your world where you make all the rules.

#2. You don’t have to make it look corporate. Forget about a privacy policy and terms and conditions. It’s your world. Make it anything you want.

#4. Share something people want and charge for it. Starting a business doesn’t have to be complicated after all.

#5. You don’t have to grow big, big. It isn’t about growth, but being happy.

#6. Have a simple business model. CD Baby charged an onboarding fee and another one per CD sold. Derek stole his business model from another publisher.

#7. Get to know everyone who contacts you. Your best clients are your current clients.

#8. Always think about your clients. Make them happy, even when asking for favors.

#9. Every confusing word makes you lose money. That applies for your website, emails, and every piece of copy. Rejecting sales calls makes you clarify your message.

#10. If if doesn’t excite you anymore, move on.