Jimmy John’s Brutal Lesson on Winning Big

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Good morning Grinder,

Why Success Feels So Elusive

Let me ask you something real. Have you ever found yourself staring at your life, wondering why success still feels out of reach? You’re working, you’re hustling, you’re doing all the things people say you should do—reading the right books, attending the seminars, listening to the podcasts—and yet the breakthrough you dream about hasn’t shown up. Maybe you’ve even caught yourself thinking, “Maybe I’m not cut out for this. Maybe other people are just born luckier.”

If you’ve ever felt that, then you need to hear Jimmy John Liautaud’s story. You may know him as the founder of Jimmy John’s Sandwiches, the chain that exploded from a single small shop to a billion-dollar brand. But what you might not know is the raw, honest, unglamorous road he took to get there.

I recently watched an interview between Jimmy John and Ken Coleman, and it hit me harder than I expected. It wasn’t another feel-good business highlight reel. It was real talk about the grind, the doubt, and the sacrifice behind success. And I think it’s something every one of us who’s chasing a dream needs to hear.

Excuses Don’t Build Empires

When Jimmy John graduated high school, he wasn’t on anyone’s list of “most likely to succeed.” His grades were poor, his options were slim, and his father gave him a brutal ultimatum: join the Army or start a business. With borrowed money and no clear path, he chose the latter.

He could have spent his time complaining about what he didn’t have. He didn’t have money. He didn’t have connections. He didn’t even have confidence. What he did have was a decision: to try. To act. To stop telling himself stories about what wasn’t possible and instead build something from scratch.

That’s the first truth his story reminds us of—success doesn’t respond to excuses. It doesn’t care how unfair life has been. It doesn’t reward self-pity. Success only responds to action.

How many times have you caught yourself saying, “I can’t because…”? Jimmy John had all the same reasons to quit, but he didn’t. He found a way forward anyway. That’s the difference.

The Power of Keeping It Simple

Here’s the part of the interview that made me smile. When Jimmy John opened his first shop, he didn’t build some elaborate menu with dozens of options. He started with four sandwiches. Just four.

That decision wasn’t about being fancy—it was about being practical. He couldn’t afford to be complicated. He had to be fast, efficient, and consistent. And that simplicity became the foundation of his empire.

Think about that. While most of us think success is about doing more, adding more, being more—what if it’s actually about doing less, but doing it better than anyone else?

Jimmy John didn’t win because he offered everything. He won because he chose a few things and made them excellent. And that’s a principle that stretches beyond sandwiches. In business, in relationships, in personal growth—simplicity has power. Complexity is the enemy of execution.

Ask yourself: where are you overcomplicating your life? Where could you strip it back and focus only on what truly matters? Because when you do, that’s when momentum starts.

The Grind Before the Glory

There’s another part of Jimmy John’s journey that we don’t like to hear, but it’s the truth: the grind came first. In those early years, he wasn’t living the glamorous entrepreneur lifestyle. He was working eighteen-hour days. He was delivering sandwiches himself. He was cleaning bathrooms. He was doing whatever it took.

That’s not the part of success most people want. We want the highlight reel, the cars, the freedom, the recognition. But the harvest only comes after the planting. And in Jimmy John’s case, that planting season was years of sweat and sacrifice.

He said something in the interview that stuck with me: “If you don’t outwork everyone else, you’re not going to win. Period.” That’s a sentence most people don’t want to believe. But the truth is, the grind is the rite of passage every success story requires. The difference between those who make it and those who don’t is often just who can outlast the season of hard work long enough to reach the season of reward.

Where are you in that cycle right now? Are you still planting? Are you grinding? Or have you reached the harvest? And more importantly—are you willing to stay in the grind long enough to earn the glory?

What Jimmy John’s Story Teaches Us

At the end of the day, Jimmy John’s journey isn’t about sandwiches at all. It’s about life. It’s about resilience. It’s about understanding that excuses don’t define you—your actions do. It’s about realizing that simplicity beats complexity. And it’s about embracing the grind as the necessary bridge to get from where you are to where you want to be.

The most powerful part of his story is that he wasn’t “special.” He didn’t start with the best hand. He wasn’t handed a golden ticket. He was just relentless. He made decisions that others wouldn’t make. He took responsibility when it would have been easier to quit. And in doing so, he built not just a business, but a life filled with freedom, options, and legacy.

And here’s the truth you and I can’t escape: success is supposed to be hard. If it were easy, everyone would have it. The fact that it’s hard is the very reason it’s so valuable.

So where does this leave you? You don’t need to build a billion-dollar sandwich empire to learn from Jimmy John’s lessons. What you need is the courage to stop making excuses, the wisdom to simplify your focus, and the grit to endure the grind.

I want to challenge you this week to look at your own life with clear eyes. What excuse have you been clinging to that it’s time to let go of? What part of your life or business could be simpler, sharper, more effective? And are you truly giving everything you’ve got in this season, or are you holding back waiting for a shortcut that doesn’t exist?

Because the truth is, your breakthrough might be closer than you think. But it will only come if you’re willing to embrace the hard truth.

If you’ve ever doubted yourself, if you’ve ever wondered if you’re cut out for success, this interview will wake you up. Take an hour, grab a notebook, and watch it.

Let it remind you that you don’t need to be perfect, you don’t need to have it all figured out—you just need to be willing to do the work.

Here’s to your grind, and here’s to your harvest.

Best wishes,

N. Amadeus

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