F*ck the Algorithm: How to Build a Business without Praying for Virality

I am UnMarketable.

There’s a reason I called the book “F*ck the Algorithm“, and it’s not because I’m mad that my last social post didn’t get enough likes (I don’t use social media for business).

It’s because after years of watching entrepreneurs, creators, and small business owners pour their best ideas, energy, and time into platforms they don’t control, I’m done pretending the system isn’t broken.

The algorithm isn’t some magical force that rewards hard work and creativity. It’s a tool. And it’s not built for you.

It’s built for the platform. It’s built to maximize time on site, ad clicks, and revenue, none of which necessarily line up with your success. Your visibility, your reach, even your ability to connect with the audience you earned?

That’s secondary at best.

At worst, you’re free labor for a machine that has no loyalty to you, no matter how many clever videos you post or how perfectly you follow the trending rules.

That’s why it’s time for a different approach.

You’re Not Crazy. The Game Really Is Rigged.

You’re not imagining it.

Your posts used to reach more people. You used to feel like if you worked hard enough, posted often enough, stayed creative enough, the system would reward you.

And maybe, for a while, it did.

But the business model for these platforms was never to keep giving away free attention forever.
It was to hook creators with free reach, and then, slowly, monetize that reach through paid ads, boosted posts, and constantly shifting visibility rules.

Today, even the most loyal, creative entrepreneurs find themselves stuck in a loop: post more, hope for better reach, get discouraged, pay for ads, repeat.

Meanwhile, the platforms keep getting richer, not because your business is growing, but because your content is keeping people scrolling, clicking, and spending.

That’s not a sustainable way to build a real business. That’s a treadmill you were never meant to get off of.

The Real Problem With “Building an Audience” It’s tempting to think that the solution is just building a bigger audience.

“If I just had 10,000 followers…”
“If I could just go viral once…”
“If I could just get the algorithm to notice me…”

But here’s the truth nobody tells you until it’s too late: Followers aren’t ownership.

You don’t own your Instagram followers.
You don’t own your TikTok views.
You don’t even fully own your YouTube subscribers.

You are renting an audience inside someone else’s system. And at any moment, with one policy change, one algorithm tweak, one accidental flag on your account, your reach can disappear without warning.

You need more than followers. You need to build on platforms you own.

What Ownership Really Looks Like

Ownership means building assets that no platform can take away. A blog that gets found through search, not social.

An email list where you can contact your audience directly. Books, podcasts, courses, real products that live outside the social media hamster wheel.

Ownership means that every piece of content you create doesn’t just vanish after 24 hours. It keeps working for you.
It keeps bringing in leads, sales, opportunities, quietly, steadily, behind the scenes.

It’s not about going viral. It’s about building a system that doesn’t need viral moments to survive.

That’s real business infrastructure. And once you have it, no algorithm shift can take it away.

How to Actually Start Building Something Real

You don’t have to quit social media altogether, but you do have to stop relying on it as the foundation of your business.

Here’s what real leverage looks like:

Use social media as a doorway, not a destination. Every post, every video, every interaction should have a goal: push people toward your owned platforms.

Prioritize evergreen content.

Blog posts, long-form articles, podcasts, books, things that people can find months or years from now.

Build your email list like it’s your retirement plan.

Because honestly, it is. A direct line to your audience will always be your most valuable asset. I don’t have one because (as I’ve said many times), I really don’t like writing newsletters.

Create products, not just posts.

Posts entertain. Products build equity.

Measure success differently.
Not by likes, not by follower count, but by how many real relationships and real assets you’re stacking every month.

The Hardest Part: Slowing Down

Social media trains us to expect instant feedback. Instant validation. Instant success.

Real business growth doesn’t work that way.

It feels slower at first. It feels less exciting. It’s not sexy. But what you’re building is real.

And real always beats rented.

The truth is, most people will keep chasing the algorithm because it’s easier to hope for a quick win than it is to build something slow and strong.

Let them.

You’re not here for dopamine hits. You’re here to own your future. You’re here to build something that compounds, not collapses. You’re here to say F*ck the Algorithm, and mean it.

If you’re tired of chasing algorithms that don’t care if you succeed or not, and you’re ready to start building a business that actually belongs to you, grab a copy of F*ck the Algorithm, available now on Amazon.

Because it’s time to stop feeding their machine, and start building your own.