There's a hidden cost almost nobody talks about.
And if you're not careful, it quietly drains your time, your energy, and your potential…long before it touches your bank account.
I call it the "Research Tax."
Here's how it usually plays out:
Someone wants to start making money online.
So they start researching.
"How to build a newsletter." "Best AI tools for content creation." "Newsletter monetization strategies."
A few days go by, and they find a new method.
"Oh, maybe I should try this instead..."
So they start researching that.
Then another approach pops up.
Then another.
And the cycle repeats.
Every time they switch directions, they lose weeks of progress.
Momentum dies.
Confidence drops.
And they end up feeling further behind than when they started.
The cruel irony?
If they'd just picked one approach and built it consistently, they'd be making money by now.
But I get why this happens.
Most people think they need to figure everything out before they start.
The perfect niche. The perfect platform. The perfect strategy.
But here's what I learned:
The fastest way to stop paying the Research Tax?
Pick a platform that handles the complexity for you.
I spent 3 months researching newsletter platforms.
Comparing features. Reading reviews. Building comparison spreadsheets.
Then I found one that just... worked.
No complexity. No technical setup. No "figure it out yourself" documentation.
Your readers want great content. You want growth and revenue. beehiiv gives you both. With stunning posts, a website that actually converts, and every monetization tool already baked in, beehiiv is the all-in-one platform for builders. Get started for free, no credit card required.
The difference?
I stopped researching "which platform is best" and started building.
Week 1: Set up took 20 minutes. First email sent same day.
Week 3: Hit 500 subscribers using their built-in growth tools.
Week 4: First sponsor offer through their ad network.
Same 3 hours per week. Just stopped researching and started executing.
That's the real secret to beating the Research Tax.
Not finding the "perfect" setup.
Just picking tools that remove friction and actually starting.
For me, that platform removed the technical friction.
But there was still another tax I was paying...
The "Manual Work Tax."
Even with the right platform, I was still spending hours on repetitive tasks:
Manually responding to every subscriber email
Updating spreadsheets with engagement data
Sending welcome sequences one by one
Managing lead magnet delivery
Hours per week on tasks that didn't grow the newsletter.
Then I discovered something that changed the game.
AI that actually executes tasks, not just suggests them.
Most AI tools just talk. You still have to do the work.
Build smarter, not harder: meet Lindy
Tired of AI that just talks? Lindy actually executes.
Describe your task in plain English, and Lindy handles it—from building booking platforms to managing leads and sending team updates.
AI employees that work 24/7:
Sales automation
Customer support
Operations management
Focus on what matters. Let Lindy handle the rest.
Here's why I'm telling you about both:
Because the Research Tax compounds in two ways:
Researching which tools to use (instead of just starting)
Manually doing work AI should handle (instead of automating)
I paid both taxes for months.
Then I realized:
The people making money aren't researching the "perfect stack."
They're using tools that work and building consistently.
That's it.
The right platform for the newsletter infrastructure. The right automation for the repetitive work. 3 hours per week for the content.
Stop researching. Start building.
Drop a reply: What's the ONE thing you've been researching but haven't started yet?
I read every one - and if you're stuck, I'll help you get unstuck
Talk soon,
Digital Savage
