Issue 159, Part Time CEO Newsletter

Hey, it's Dhiren 👋,

I missed writing to you last week.

The days after Diwali hit me hard! Travel, exhaustion, and an infection that knocked me flat.

So when the meetup I’d signed up for came around, I almost stayed home. But I pushed myself to go, and I’m glad I did.

I got to meet Dan Martell, author of Buy Back Your Time, right here in Dubai! Total fanboy moment.

He was on holiday and decided to host a casual meetup.

It turned into a full house. Around 70 to 100 people showed up, most holding copies of his book, waiting to get them signed.

No big stage. Just Dan, standing in the middle of a crowd of founders, sharing what he has learned about winning in business and in life.

Hearing him talk that day made me realise how often we forget the basics while chasing what’s next.

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🧠 The Simple Rules We Forget

As founders, it’s easy to get caught up in the mechanics of growth.

I’ve felt that this past year; scaling programs, refining systems, growing the coaching business.

It’s not wrong to want to grow. But sometimes growth gets noisy.
And in all that noise, it’s easy to forget what actually makes growth happen..

Dan shared a framework he calls VPC: Value, Proximity, Consistency.

• Value means always give more than expected. Don’t show up to take, show up to help.
• Proximity means getting around people who make you think bigger. Be in the rooms that stretch you.
• Consistency means staying in touch. Call. Text. Cheer others on. Let them know you care.

It hit me because it sounded familiar, almost like BNI’s Visibility, Credibility, Profitability. but this felt deeper.
Because when you strip everything back, the truth is simple.

Relationships build everything.
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​And standing there in that room, surrounded by founders nodding along, I could feel it.

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🧠 Who You Build With

As Dan spoke, I looked around the room.
People weren’t just listening. They were connecting to him, to each other, to the reminder that we’ve all come this far because someone opened a door for us..

And I thought about my own journey.
The mentors who took my late-night calls.
The friends who made introductions that changed everything.
The clients who became collaborators.

None of that came from strategy decks or funnels.
It came from people who cared.W
e talk so much about scaling systems and automating relationships, but the real magic still happens in conversations, messages, and moments of support.

That afternoon reminded me that proximity isn’t just about being in the right rooms.

It’s about being remembered in them.

Growth doesn’t come from what you build.
It comes from who you build it with.

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Your Turn

This week, I have been thinking about the relationships that made the climb possible and the ones I might have let drift.
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- Who has helped you get to where you are today?
- Who have you not checked in on for a while?
- Maybe today is a good day to reconnect. No agenda. Just gratitude.

🧭 Know a founder who needs to hear this?
Forward this. It could be the push they need.
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📢 Dhiren’s Updates

A photo from last week’s meetup with Dan Martell.
So cool to see him in person and hear him share what really matters.

📌 Dhiren’s Pick of the Week

🎥 Dan Martell’s most-watched video: How to Leverage ChatGPT

If you enjoyed this week’s story, this video is a great follow-up.

Dan breaks down how to use ChatGPT to boost productivity, clarity, and creativity as a founder.

👉 Watch it here​

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ps: did someone forward this to you?​
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Cheers,