Previous-Version Content Model
Create content that solves the problems your earlier self faced
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 96%
The Previous-Version Content Model begins with the creator’s own development rather than an abstract target persona. The creator selects an earlier stage of life or business, recalls the specific pressures and knowledge gaps present then, and creates material that would have accelerated that earlier version’s progress. Because the problems are firsthand, the resulting language, examples, and recommendations tend to feel informed rather than forced. As the creator advances, the reference point can move forward too, allowing established followers to evolve alongside the brand while new followers enter at earlier stages. External research can still refine assumptions, but personal experience supplies the initial problem map and gives the content its credibility.
Origin
Extracted from The Jasmine Star Show during Jasmine Star’s explanation of how her content and audience have evolved together across multiple business iterations.
Core principles
- 01Serve a person whose pressures you understand firsthand
- 02Use past struggles as evidence of real audience needs
- 03Let the audience evolve alongside the brand
- 04Avoid chasing personas you do not genuinely understand
How to run it
- 1
Select an Earlier Version
Choose a past stage of your journey that closely resembles the audience you can credibly serve now.
Pro tip Use a specific period such as two or five years ago rather than your entire history.
Watch out Do not select a persona merely because it appears commercially attractive.
- 2
Recover the Pressure Points
List the decisions, fears, constraints, and recurring questions you experienced during that period.
Pro tip Review old notes, messages, or plans to recover the language you actually used.
Watch out Avoid rewriting your past with knowledge you only gained later.
- 3
Identify Missing Knowledge
Ask what you wish you had understood and which information would have changed your actions.
Pro tip Prioritize lessons that produce a concrete decision or behavior.
Watch out A personal story without a transferable lesson is not enough.
- 4
Create Practical Content
Translate each lesson into content that gives the earlier version of you a usable next step.
Pro tip Use examples that reflect the circumstances you genuinely faced.
Watch out Do not make the content so autobiographical that the audience cannot apply it.
- 5
Track Audience Evolution
Watch whether followers progress alongside your material and adjust the problems you address as your own expertise advances.
Pro tip Keep entry-level content available while introducing material for later stages.
Watch out Do not assume every existing follower will accompany every business pivot.
In the wild
A founder who has grown beyond seven figures recalls the operational bottlenecks she encountered after her first million in revenue. She creates a series explaining delegation, management, and the transition from working in the business to working on it for founders now approaching that threshold.
→ The content attracts customers whose current problems match the founder’s proven experience.
Common mistakes
Inventing an Attractive Persona
Targeting people you do not understand can make the content sound uninformed, needy, or disconnected from their real pressures.
Teaching Without a Next Step
Sharing what happened to you is not sufficient unless the audience can translate the lesson into action.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for founders, educators, and personal brands whose expertise grew from lived experience.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal when the intended customer has needs substantially different from anything the creator has experienced or researched.
From the transcript
“The question I'm asking is what did I need to know five years ago?”
“He says you are most powerfully suited to serve a version of who you once were.”
“It simply became, how do I create content for the previous version of me?”
From the episode
How to Build Long-Lasting Client Relationships in Business