Week 76 - Building Outpst in Public
There’s a point in a long race where everything changes. 
You’re not at the beginning anymore and you’re not even close to the end.
You’ve gone far enough to feel it but not far enough for it to mean anything yet.
That’s what this week felt like.
Mile 22 of a 50 mile race.
I spent most of the week in Oregon for a wedding. Early mornings were for work, laptop open before anyone else was up. Afternoons shifted into being present, family, friends, conversations you don’t get every day.
Somewhere in between I was trying to squeeze in a workout just to feel like I had some control over the day. From the outside it probably looked like a great week, and it was, but underneath it there was this constant feeling.
Running, but not moving.
That feeling followed me into the work. For the past two weeks I’ve been pushing product harder than I ever have.
The Melt.
40% off. End of season. Clear inventory. Recover cash.
It worked. It did what it needed to do, but the whole time it felt off. I didn’t start Outpst to push product. I started it to build something people felt connected to.
To tell stories. To create something that meant more than just another thing to buy.
And for a couple weeks there, it felt like I drifted from that.
At the same time something finally clicked.
Custom orders and wholesale.
I’ve always known they were important, but I never fully understood when they matter most.
This week made it clear.
Slow seasons aren’t dead periods, they’re buying seasons. While everything feels quiet on the surface, people are planning ahead. Shops, brands, partners.
That realization flipped a switch. Instead of trying to survive the slow, I started leaning into it. Reaching out, building, creating those relationships.
Something that probably should have clicked a long time ago.
In the middle of all of it, I started thinking about where Outpst is actually going. Not just in terms of product, but in terms of identity.
This week we shared the Voyage Denver feature, one of the first times the story behind Outpst has really been told outside of just me. We also pulled together a full community collage, every single person who’s tagged Outpst all in one place.
That felt different.
That felt like what this is supposed to be.
But it also forced a realization I’ve been avoiding.
I want to go all in on storytelling.
That’s the brand. That’s the direction.
But right now I don’t have the time.
And more than that, I’ve had a hard time letting go of control to make it happen.
Which brings me back to the feeling of this week.
Mile 22.
Where effort isn’t the problem. You’re putting in the work. You’re showing up every day. But if you’re not careful, you can spend a lot of energy going nowhere.
So I started changing how I work.
Up until now everything has lived on one long, never-ending to-do list. Every task sitting next to each other like they all matter the same.
And that’s the problem.
They don’t.
This week I started breaking things down differently. Separating tasks by type. Prioritizing based on impact. Structuring my days instead of just reacting to them.
It’s simple.
But it’s already changing how things feel. Less like running in place. More like actually moving forward.
That’s where things stand right now.
Somewhere in the middle. Not at the start. Not anywhere close to the finish. Just putting one foot in front of the other and trying to make sure it’s in the right direction.
More soon,
Coop