This edition is brought to you by Docci.ai

Good morning to all new and old readers! Here is your Saturday edition of Faster Than Normal, exploring the stories, ideas, and frameworks of the world’s most prolific people and companies—and how you can apply them to build businesses, wealth, and the most important asset of all: yourself. 

Today, we’re covering Craigslist and their journey to becoming an accidental empire built on simplicity, community, and a steadfast refusal to chase profit at the expense of values.

If you enjoy this, feel free to forward along to a friend or colleague who might too. First time reading? Sign up here.

What you’ll learn:

• How Craigslist proved the power of doing one thing well and sticking to it

• Lessons on simplicity as a feature, not a bug, location matters, even online, and staying weird

Cheers,

Alex

P.S. Send me feedback on how we can improve. We want to be worthy of your time. I respond to every email.

Craigslist

Craigslist: The Accidental Empire

In 1995, Craig Newmark was just another software engineer in San Francisco. Fresh off a layoff from Charles Schwab, he started an email list to share local events with friends. Simple. Useful. No grand plans.

But sometimes the most powerful ideas start small.

That list grew. People began using it to post about jobs, apartments, items for sale. Newmark saw a need and built a basic website to host these listings. No fancy design. Just a straightforward, text-heavy page that got the job done.

"I was just trying to give people a break," Newmark recalls.

Early on, Craigslist was a side project. Newmark kept his day job as a programmer. He ran the site out of his apartment, answering user emails himself. Money wasn't the goal. Community was.

The dot-com boom hit. Suddenly, everyone wanted a piece of the internet. Venture capitalists circled, offering millions to monetize Craigslist. Newmark said no.

"I already had a comfortable living," he explains. "I didn't see a reason to squeeze out every last dollar."

This decision shaped Craigslist's future. While other startups chased growth at all costs, Craigslist stayed lean. No flashy offices. No aggressive expansion. Just steady, organic growth driven by word of mouth.

By 2000, Craigslist was big enough that Newmark stepped back from day-to-day operations. He hired Jim Buckmaster as CEO, a move that proved crucial.

"Jim's a much better manager than I am," Newmark admits. "He understood how to scale the site while keeping our values intact."

Those values? Simplicity. Community. Usefulness over profit.

Craigslist faced challenges. Scammers. Legal issues around certain listings. Competitors with slicker interfaces. But its core strength - being a free, easy-to-use platform for local communities - kept users coming back.

"We're not trying to be everything to everyone," Buckmaster once said. "We're just trying to run a good classifieds site."

This focus paid off. By 2023, Craigslist was generating $379 million in annual revenue. Not bad for a site that looks like it's barely changed since 1999.

But perhaps Craigslist's most remarkable achievement is how it's resisted the typical Silicon Valley trajectory. No IPO. No pivot to become a "platform." No aggressive data collection or ad targeting.

Just a useful tool that does what it says on the tin.

Newmark, now worth billions, has turned his attention to philanthropy. He's given away hundreds of millions to support journalism, cybersecurity, and veterans' causes.

"I'm still that nerd who wants to do some good in the world," he says.

Craigslist's story isn't one of meteoric rises or dramatic pivots. It's about steady growth, sticking to principles, and the power of simplicity. In a tech world obsessed with disruption, Craigslist disrupted by not disrupting at all.

Sometimes, that's the most revolutionary act of all.

Lessons

Lesson 1: Simplicity is a feature, not a bug. Craigslist's bare-bones design isn't a flaw - it's a deliberate choice that's central to their success. Users appreciate the no-frills approach. It's fast, functional, and familiar. Craig Newmark explains: "We're not trying to maximize revenue. We're trying to maximize usefulness." This focus on utility over aesthetics has kept users coming back for decades.

Lesson 2: Location matters, even online. Craigslist's success is built on hyper-local focus. Each city has its own site, tailored to local needs and culture. This granular approach has helped them dominate local markets across the globe. As of 2023, they operate in over 700 cities worldwide.

Lesson 3: Stay weird. In a world of slick, corporate websites, Craigslist's quirkiness is an asset. It feels authentic and human. Newmark embraces this, saying: "We're a bunch of nerds. We're proud of that." This authenticity resonates with users and sets them apart from more polished competitors.

Lesson 4: Don't chase growth at all costs. Craigslist has resisted the typical Silicon Valley trajectory of aggressive expansion and monetization. They've turned down countless offers from venture capitalists. Jim Buckmaster, CEO since 2000, says: "We're not trying to be everything to everyone. We're just trying to run a good classifieds site." This restraint has allowed them to stay true to their core mission and values.

Lesson 5: Trust your users. Craigslist relies heavily on its community to self-regulate. Users can flag inappropriate content, and the site operates on an honor system. This approach keeps costs low and fosters a sense of ownership among users. Newmark notes: "Our users are overwhelmingly trustworthy and cool."

Stop wasting time on manual document work

From invoices and forms to receipts and contracts, Docci pulls structured data from your documents with speed and precision. It combines next-gen OCR and AI to do what traditional systems can't—without the usual LLM hallucinations.

I’ve used Docci on some messy, non-standard documents, and it handled them better than anything else I’ve tried. It’s fast, accurate, and doesn’t need constant babysitting.

If you're still entering data by hand or fixing broken workflows, it’s time to see how far things have come.

Automate your data extraction with Docci today.

Further Readings

• Craigslist's official blog - Provides updates and insights directly from the company.
  https://blog.craigslist.org/

• "How Craigslist's Founder Realized He Sucked as a Manager" - Fast Company article on Craig Newmark's leadership journey.
  https://www.fastcompany.com/3007377/how-craigslists-founder-realized-he-sucked-manager

That’s all for today, folks. As always, please give me your feedback. Which section is your favourite? What do you want to see more or less of? Other suggestions? Please let me know.

Have a wonderful rest of week, all.

Recommendation Zone

⎯

Stop wasting time on manual document work

From invoices and forms to receipts and contracts, Docci pulls structured data from your documents with speed and precision. It combines next-gen OCR and AI to do what traditional systems can't—without the usual LLM hallucinations.

I’ve used Docci on some messy, non-standard documents, and it handled them better than anything else I’ve tried. It’s fast, accurate, and doesn’t need constant babysitting.

If you're still entering data by hand or fixing broken workflows, it’s time to see how far things have come.

Automate your data extraction with Docci today.

Why Faster Than Normal? Our mission is to be a friend to the ambitious, a mentor to the becoming, and a partner to the bold. We achieve this by sharing the stories, ideas, and frameworks of the world's most prolific people and companies—and how you can apply them to build businesses, wealth, and the most important asset of all: yourself.

Faster Than Normal is a ‘state' of being’ rather than an outcome. Outlier performance requires continuous, compounded improvement. We’re your partner on this journey.

Send us your feedback and help us continuously improve our content and achieve our mission. We want to hear from you and respond to everyone.

Interested in reaching Founders, Operators, and Investors like you? To become a Faster Than Normal partner, apply here.