Here's a boast-worthy note: We sold $150,000 in book sales in ten days . . . with no major publisher and no bookstores.Related: 5 Books to Read Before Starting Your Business[1]Now, I know some best-selling business books enjoy tens of millions of dollars in sales, but we're an independent website in a small niche (real estate investing) that earned its haul in just over a week. And, as you can imagine, we were quite pleased. After all, according to the Huffington Post[2], the "average U.S. nonfiction book is now selling less than 250 copies per year and less than 3,000 copies over its lifetime.”So how'd we do it? One word: intentionally.By that, I mean that we didn't just write a book about buying rental properties[3] and put it out there. We planned. We strategized. And we launched hard. Following are just a few of the things we did to achieve a six-figure launch, and how you can repeat our success.1. Start building your email list now . . . or partner with someone who has one.I’m not going to lie: We have a large audience. Our business, BiggerPockets.com, is the web’s largest website geared toward real estate investors. We get a lot of traffic, and having a big email list that had been “pruned” numerous times to include only happy, committed members helped us get the word out immediately.Now, maybe you don’t have a big email list. Which is why you need to start building one today. I’d recommend using SumoMe.com[4] to set up several email capture boxes on your site (because SumoMe is amazing, and it’s free to use!).Next, provide incredible content to members of that list. Don’t just "sell" them. "Engage" with that list. Make your emails stand out because of the quality you provide.If you don't personally…

In the last 10 months, Rent the Runway has lost its chief operating officer, chief financial officer, chief marketing officer, chief creative officer, chief technology officer, chief people officer, and head of partnerships. Some of those executives were let go; others left by choice. Four of the seven departed in the last two months.It is a significant exodus in a short time, and many former employees describe a corporate culture at the fashion company that is unwelcoming, stressful, and occasionally hostile.Jennifer Hyman, Rent the Runway’s chief executive, says that the changes are simply a natural step in the life of a fast-growing startup. “Like any startup in hyper-growth mode, growth often brings change, and with it, evolution in the executive team,” she says.But former employees tell Fortune that the turnover is due to serious problems with the corporate culture at the New York-based dress and accessory rental company.‘Unpredictable and erratic’Five former senior employees, all female, spoke withFortune on condition of anonymity because they did not want to jeopardize existing relationships or, in some cases, violate nondisclosure agreements. Each of them described a stressful work environment that can be unwelcoming and non-inclusive. Three of them likened the atmosphere at Rent the Runway to the 2004 film Mean Girls. Each one made that reference separately, without prodding.“The culture is unpredictable and erratic,” says one former employee. “Everybody knew and talked about it amongst themselves, but it was never formally acknowledged. It’s not like there were complaints to HR. People were too afraid. There wasn’t even really an HR.” The former employee adds that there were “frequent screaming matches” in the office between top executives.Since May, Rent the Runway says, its general counsel has also been its head of human resources. Prior to that, the HR team reported to the CFO.A different former…