If you do the things you've always done, you'll get the results you've always gotten.
Questions must be answered. Ask your "computer" brain for more negative answers and it will provide this to you. Ask for positive things and it also can't stop.
Tony Robbins' Six Human Needs: certainty, uncertainty, significance, love, growth, contribution
Robbins' Classes of Experiences: feels good, good for you, good for others, serves the greater good. Transform Class 2 experiences into Class 1 experiences. Throw away Class 3 and Class 4
Helpless: Get some control back by making your bed. It's at least one thing you can control and one accomplishment you made today
Disorganized: Four Daily Tasks: write down those quick goals. Break your problem down into component parts.
Alarmed: Play it out to the logical conclusion. As in, if you're worried about money, take it to the most extreme conclusion. Will you be homeless? No, then it's not super terrible.
Indifferent/Unmotivated: Journal what you're feeling: sounds cheesy and is time consuming but works as a makeshift therapist. Combine something you don't like to do with what you do like to do, like play music while writing.
Lonely: Be more social, find a mastermind or mentor
Annoyed & Negative: Redirect Automatic Negative Thoughts and Absolutes ("this always happens"). Ask yourself, what's good about this or what could be good about this?
Depressed: smile, laugh, change your usual "predictable" reaction. Confuse your mind and break out of that pattern. Be careful with the "negative" words you use.
Bored: Move to a new location. Get your writing done in a coffee shop today, with a laptop and no charger
Distracted: shut out noise and create boundaries. Develop better habits, i.e. not checking FB, stats, email when you get bored. Separate the forest from the trees to get that clarity.
Conclusion: which is the reason you feel overwhelmed?
a. you perform best under pressure (you need a way to relax and unplug but this mode works for you): tweak those deadlines so it's interesting but you deliver on time b. you're worried of what others think: do your best, you do you. You need more confidence which you get as feedback from your victories. c. you simply can't decide: scale down so that you make lots of small decisions (i.e. just decide on the book title)
"The worst people to serve are the poor people. Give them free, they think it's a trap. Tell them it's a small investment, they'll say can't earn much. Tell them to come in big, they'll say no money. Tell them try new things, they'll say no experience. Tell them it's traditional business, they'll say hard to do. Tell them it's a new business model, they'll say it's MLM. Tell them to run a shop, they'll say no freedom. Tell them run new business, they'll say no expertise. Just ask them, what can they do? They won’t be able to answer you. Poor people fail because of one common behavior: Their Whole Life is About Waiting." -- Jack Ma
"The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The leader adjusts the sails." -- John Maxwell
Thought #1: Wealth is a choice: make up your mind. If money was distributed equally, it would be back in the "old" hands within 90 days
Thought #2: Stop fooling yourself about what you're after. Peace of mind, being able to do good in the world, is easier with money
Thought #3: Realize that you're the one holding yourself back, but don't be "happily miserable" about it
Factor #1: Relationships
Mastermind: associate with successful people (who challenge you) and not miserable people
Gossip, jealousy, nastiness. It's easy to be a critic. Why not do something if it's so easy?
Do a nice thing because it makes you feel good, before you need help, not just to use people
Be 100% there: don't try to "balance" business, family, day job, and fun
Factor #2: Abundance Mindset (skeptical vs. trusting)
Avoid the transactional trap where you either do something and expect a favor, or you play chicken to see who can do the least "work"
"Don't buy any courses... why would they give away their secret sauce?"
Zero sum: I'll have to steal money or sucker someone into working for me to make money
Factor #3: Take Control of Your Own Destiny (enjoy problems instead of placing the blame or making excuses)
Self-sabotage: one foot on the brake, the wrong kind of control, leads to "misery loves company" and trying to "save" others
Be coachable: Make some mistakes, or go into coaching with "what I've already built and here's where I'm stuck" as opposed to "I don't know where to start." Instead of a long-winded sob story, get to the point and tell me the one area where you need help.
Limiting beliefs, confirmation bias, self fulfilling prophecy, shooting yourself in the foot vs. The Four Minute Mile & The Mastermind
Find a way to enjoy building websites and making money
Minimum viable product and proof of concept: complete something so that you can contribute value
Let go of what doesn't matter
Factor #4: Time Management
Appointment Based Business: I have enough questions answered that I can now act (the calendar is immovable)
Anchoring: you become what you focus on, and your daily "time system" is only effective if you take it seriously
Train your brain. For example, set a timer for 10 minutes, start writing, and don't stop writing. The instant the timer stops, leave the computer. Don't act like you're smarter than the system. Don't just shrug it off and say "I got it."
"You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future." -- Steve Jobs "A real decision is meausred by the fact that you've taken a new action. If there's no action, you haven't truly decided." -- Tony Robbins
Criteria for updating a course you're selling:
Has it be at least 1 year since I launched this?
Is it still selling, or have sales dropped off slightly? (as I'm promoting it heavily?)
Is there something new I'd change in each module of this course?
Is there a new sexy hook I can add to justify this new course? (examples: transcripts for videos, tools/templates, coaching calls using TimeTrade)
Tune in to today's Robert Plank Show where we talk about taking action and how to decide between the "product launch frenzy" versus income streams that make you money for years to come...
Remember Four Daily Tasks? No matter how crazy or "complicated" you try to make your productivity and time management, this is what always keeps me productive:
10 minute early morning, 40 minute morning, 40 minute early afternoon, 40 minute afternoon
three day window: forget about the 100 item to-do list or 4-week plan. What's this week?
degrees of doneness: no chipping away, starting, continuing. What did you finish?
accountability & encryption: list out the acronyms of what you're going to do
distractions: don't check your phone, email, Twitter, or the news (it will find you)
Principle #1: Complete For Now / Minimum Viable Product
Keep it simple. Don't fool yourself into thinking complicated is better, or 100x half finished things are better than 1 finished thing (don't replicate the mistakes) -- get the bugs out
Abundance mindset: there's enough room for everybody. A rising tide lifts all boats.
Continuous learning, childlike curiosity
The Kid Test / The Mom Test: Can you describe what you're doing (list building, FB fan pages, Amazon FBA, etc.) to a five-year old?
It's okay to spend way more time taking action than spending time thinking
Principle #2: Publish 100 Actions
100 blog posts, 100 YouTube videos, 100 Kindle books, 100 podcast episodes (but COMPLETE one at a time)
100 Days: Give it at least 3 months (100 days) of consistent daily action (and make some progress every day)
Make some money as fast as possible as encouragement for you to keep going
Appointment based business
If you don't have your own system & schedule, everyone will pull you in all directions.
Don't plan it out ahead of time, but "put out" 100 things
Completion (day 1 isn't when you start learning, it's when your first "thing" is published)
Repetitions. Fail forward fast. Do what most people won't do.
You can't learn to drive by reading the owner's manual 1000 times.
Have a morning routine to get a jump on the day and do what matters before things distract you
Principle #3: The Light at the End of the Tunnel
Know exactly what you're building towards (i.e. 20 sales a day, 5k/month Fiverr income)
Implement and experiment.
Don't learn just to learn, re-teach or criticize.
Focus on just one thing at a time. Improve just one variable.
Principle #4: Data Scientist
Track your efforts and results in a spreadsheet
Marketplace Need: Create blog posts, videos, podcasts, products, courses that deliver on what people are asking for
Crack the code: make all the mistakes, correct them, streamline that checklist (remove instead of add), stop doing what isn't working
Track it: You're fooling yourself into think you're doing so much
Principle #5: Computer Programmer Mentality
break the problem down into manageable sub-problems or milestones.
It's ok to admit you don't know. Find out what you need to know!
Some questions have no answer, or just aren't important.
Don't look for so many questions. Find "a" path to get where you need to go.
Principle #6: Rough Numbers
Know your rough numbers (this is how 4DT came out, number of help desk tickets answered, clicks from emails, webinar attendees)
Embrace the Chaos: you need some degree of "messiness" in your business. JVZoo, RAP, multiple membership sites instead of one
Separate the forest from the trees
Principle #7: Get a Coach
Admit when you don't know something: don't "juggle" it all in your head
See what someone more successful than you is doing.
Know what the "next" problem is that you're solving. Know how to ask a real question.
Role Modeling & Anti Role Modeling: what would X do in this situation? and what would this unsuccessful person say about this?
Pitfalls to Stay Away From
Don't go down the rabbit hole: learning to program when you just wanted to create an e-book
Don't let the tiniest thing hold you up
Don't wait. Just take the action. Don't fall into victimhood, martyrism, or "waiting" for the other person to do something
Don't just fill time: it takes just as much effort to do nothing as it is to do something
Don't be a pack rat: throw away your notes and "used up" bi-products Don't Sabotage Yourself: One foot on the brake. Reversion to a comfortable state. Be uncomfortable now + comfortable later, or comfortable now + uncomfortable later. Whether you think you can or you can't, you're right.
Don't let the confirmation bias get the best of you: reinforcing what you already know or ask around until you find the answer you want
Don't let anyone take you for granted. Have a good support system of encouragement. Be an indispensable resource.
Quote of the Week: "Even the sharpest of knives cannot cut if held the wrong way." -- Rachel Wolchin
Catchphrase of the Week: "Don't hit the baseball, hit through the baseball." Some people on my Little League team even tried "throwing" the bat at the baseball to "save time getting on base." Guess how well that worked out?
Thought of the Week: You need to have enough judgement to know when to be the "drone employee" (follow the steps exactly) and when to be the creative CEO (remove steps or experiment)
Strategy #1: Four Daily Tasks & Accountability Group: four business related measurable tasks you COMPLETE, and not CONTINUE.
Strategy #2: Deadline & Three-Day Window
Strategy #3: Minimum Viable Product: what if you had to stop today? (absolute focus on one goal, milestones, and use early profits as motivation to keep going) -- avoid "fake it till you make it"
Strategy #4: Do It Better Than "That Idiot Who Doesn't Deserve It" (common enemy)
Strategy #5: What's In It For Me (help others with real solutions instead of talking about yourself)
Strategy #6: Teach Your Notes, Criteria, Checklists, and Templates (product, membership site, book, blog, podcast)
Strategy #7: Don't Compare Your Insides to Their Outsides (keep your own side of the street clean when it comes to: haters, competitors, customers) -- mind your own business, you don't know what happens behind closed doors, what and what "they" are going through. People don't care about your mistakes as much as you think. How do I know? Write down today's date, but 5 years ago. Then try to remember someone you know who embarrassed themselves 5 years ago today. You can't think of one. People won't remember your mistakes or embarrassments either.
Bonus: Think about the benefits instead of the difficulties. (i.e. that new car you'll buy instead of your hourly rate)
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About Robert & The Podcast
The Marketer of the Day Podcast interviews entrepreneurs who have been through “the struggle.”
They’ve experienced the headaches of repeat failure, trial-and-error, scaling, delegating, course-correcting, and getting their online businesses to succeed beyond their wildest dreams… and want to help you get to where you need to go.
