After three fairly successful videos, I pulled the plug on the original version of our quantum mechanics course. So. I shut it down. But the literal course correction is starting to get VERY exciting.

I’m sorry this is brutal but honest: Mailchimp has a terrible UI and the emails look awful.

As a business, the Pasayten Institute’s model is to demonstrate value to individuals at scale, which will bring in money through appeals for access and brand loyalty. But this raises a paradox:

How do you justify paying for access when your whole goal is to build and share physics knowledge without barriers?

While my exposure to the tactics deployed by management in tech was deflating, the strategy was fascinating. One of the most valuable tools I gained from my corporate experience was the User Story.

When I explain the Pasayten Institute to folks, the most common question is some variation of: “why isn’t this a nonprofit?!”

My response? I tried. No dice.

Instead. I elected to model the Institute as a B-corporation.

I knew that I was going to need some way to finance the mission of institute, which is

“To build and share physics knowledge, without barriers.”

In some sense that means putting out physics material online, for free, which isn’t exactly a sustainable business model. At least by itself.