20 years of sowpub. The best lessons. #1

[GordonJ]

Twenty years ago this year, we started a BUSINESS forum, with the focus being mostly on making money, careers, Entrepreneurship but with a lot of leeway for almost anything.

We learned that some people just can't control themselves when it came to politics and religion, so we took that mostly off the table. Civil discussions are always welcome, but not the CHEST THUMPERS nor the PROVOCATEURS who don't believe in civility.

So we like to talk about the many ways of doing business or making money.

We believe, you don't get paid for doing nothing. Universal Basic Income is still an election or two away.

And, as noted we believe that working with people is necessary, there aren't any lone wolfs who truly did it all by themselves. So working with compatible people is also at the top of our list, and working in harmony, being on the same page, the same team, solving problems in the direction of goals.

So, HOW?

Oh boy, or as the old guys used to say; "Good Golly Molly". Today we are more likely to hear cursing and foul language which is further evidence of the corrosion of civility. My junior high English teacher used to say, when you curse to express yourself, you just reveal your ignorance to the world.

We have a rich language, but I guess some people who curse a lot need to use it to fit in. with their group. Anyhow...

OK, so how? 1001 ways.

Best way to make money is...

the one which suits YOU. To be continued this afternoon. Well, THIS afternoon if my ISP stays up.

One of the biggest mistakes made by would be Entrepreneurs is trying to follow a plan, blueprint or formula which doesn't fit their personality.

We have long advocated a personal approach to building YOUR business, and spending some time to pencil things out, using either MY SQ1 program, or something like Harvey Brody's view from the rooftop, to having goals. Whatever works for you. There are many routes to the top of the mountain, if that is where you choose to go. I prefer staying in the valley selling maps up the trails.

One of the best resources for IDEAS on making money and business is Dien's HIDDEN BUSINESS IDEAS newsletter. It has been almost a decade since he did his books, and the one, 57 $ecret Money Making Ideas is very good example of what a good looking indexed eBook looks like. If we can persuade Dien to release it, albeit almost 10 years old, it has VALUE.

Here are a few of the businesses Dien looked at, but first, MY collection goes way back to George Haylings (505 Odd Enterprises, etc.), Melvin Powers, Jim Straw, Dean F. V. DuVall, Joe Karbo, Jerry Buchanan and many others. Some of the first guys online, other than myself, included Ron Ruiz, Bill Myers, Bud Weckesser, etc. etc. Combined, Dien and I probably have almost everything written about starting a business from home.

Anyhow, some ideas:

Local HOTSHEET for Pet Friendly apartments. One of my kids is having this PROBLEM right now, finding an apartment in the area desired, which allows dogs. I think this could be a very part time, HOTSHEET, simple web page, type of business.

Dien has several ideas for pet lovers, including poop scooper (now a franchise), pet gifts, doggie costumes (10 years ago, somewhat of a novelty, today, a booming business with lot of demand), and the ONE type of dog which could make you a lot of money just by renting him/her out...big demand here too, if you love pets, owning one of these could be a big income op.

Get paid for giving advice. I just reread this in his book, and it is very good, his first suggestion 9.5 years ago, ETHER (ether.com) is still going strong.

A decade ago he wrote about TRANSLATION, and just recently posted something here about starting a translating business, maybe that guy got his idea from Dien long ago???

A decade ago he wrote about how HOT vinyl was getting, and today, a boom in records. Like Glenn Osborn said, Dien is psychic.

I could easily make a long list (and will if there is any interest) of business ideas, from the past 50 years that I've been collecting them, and I like the ODD, unusual, not often thought of type businesses...some, like THE OFF KEY SINGING TELEGRAM business, I've actually done. Others I have witnessed or seen for myself how viable some are.

My take on all this for the last 20 years, is...

I like a "bread and butter", practically auto-pilot income stream which pays the bills and frees up my time, and then pursue other things. I think most of you have something like this going too. Maybe a job (and having a job you like is a good thing), maybe an absentee cash cow, or investments...but what I see over the last couple of decades, most SOWPUBBERS have done many different things. Maybe we do attract the ADD/ADHD crowd, eh?

Or maybe we just like try new things and see what we can do with them.

Gordon

PS. Due to high winds, I've got to hunker down and anchor some things, so I'll be back with more on this, later.

[GordonJ]

Dien and I have had a lot of different business experiences, my default preference, which has been a lifetime of nuance, is PUBLISHING. Wanted to write and publish since about 9. My old toy rubber printing press turned out a nice 4x6 "Newspaper", hand delivered to about 10 neighbors. News, gossip, and an ad. Something like:

Polly got stung by a bee.
Sue rode her pony at the fair.
Jay will pull weeds. Just yell.

That was about it. It was published as ink supply allowed, after a hard day of weed pulling, I might turn out two or three issues in a day. No work, no press.

I've had the typical childhood Entrepreneur routes too, sold flowers and seeds door to door. Sold Christmas Cards and wrapping paper, GRIT newspaper, then at 15...I began an advertising business with the ACTION AD CLOCKS (story and pics in the archive). I also sold kitchen products from the KRISTEE PRODUCTS COMPANY, and later did very well with the defender of women pepper spray.

Besides my 20 years of various social work, I've taught golf, delivered singing telegrams, wrote resumes...and had a whole bunch of temp jobs too.

But PUBLISHING has always been my cornerstone. When Joe Karbo introduced me to the HOTSHEET, it really changed things up. The story, the Cliff Notes version, is, Joe paid 20 bux a week for a one page flyer for BOATS FOR SALE, which had a price reduction. A limited number, about 200 were mailed out and received a day before the info was made public. It gave Joe and his group time to make a decision on whether to buy a boat or not.

I thought it was a lot of money for a single sheet of paper, but Joe and his pals would have paid much more, BECAUSE it was HOT information.

A HOTSHEET, in my opinion, has a limited shelf life, and limited distribution.

Along with the Yacht and Boat HOTSHEET, he also got a few in the mail for liquidations, close outs and overstocks.
Back then, no faxes even, so everything was done on phone (with expensive long distance) and via mail, the letter.

I've beaten the PUBLISHING horse to a glue like state, and today, the Internet takes the place of much of the "paper and ink" products/projects of days gone bye.

Now, here is something I don't get. And more than a few of you may feel like I'm throwing darts in your direction, well, I probably am.

You are online. You have a computer or access to one. Probably have a smart phone too.

With a place like Rev.com available to you, for 1 dollar a minute, a 15 minute TALK, is easily and quickly converted to text. My last transcription was 20 minutes, and although they ask for 48 hours, I had my text back in about 3 hours of the same day...and it was perfect.

I added some pics, formatted a bit, used some bullet points, emphasis and VOILA a one day INFO product. Nothing earth shattering, but still a PRODUCT which I could sell, or give away, or use for other things...but the point, I had a

PRODUCT. DONE IN A DAY.

And some of you reading this, could, NO, SHOULD do the exact same thing.

But, it is your time, your life, go ahead mosey along now, take your sweet time, get everything lined up, organized, perfected and maybe some day, when you get around too it, you'll have a product.

It is one of the prime reasons I don't consult anymore, nor offer those services...many other people out there to motivate, and coach you to your goals. I don't have the time to wait on people who don't have a sense of urgency about their lives, their projects, their products.

I think URGENCY is one of the prime reasons why some people can get a lot done while other folks, the majority, never get around to getting their one brilliant idea out of their heads.

Anyhow, PUBLISHING is still one of the avenues to consider for your side hustle, full time gig, a now and then thing, or as a hobby even. From HOTSHEETS to books and courses and everything in between.

Try it.

GordonJ

[GordonJ]

In our early days, we had a lot of outside salespeople here at SowPub. These folks were the "shoe leather", direct marketers. There were successful YELLOW PAGE salespeople.

We had a lot of guys selling ads on mugs, restaurant placemats, hotel room menus, daily special menu boards. Others sold products door to door or office to office.

Cookware and cutlery. Cleaning items. We had curb painters and deck washers.

Realtors and chattelers. I loved this place. (Sounds like a Toby Keith song).

Then the roller coaster ride aka, the INTERNET marketing stuff took center stage. This forum came about when eBay was exploding, and making the buying and selling of chattel a BIG DEAL (still is).

We existed BEFORE Facebook, Amazon was still mostly a bookstore. Five years before YouTube. And you will find in our archives, notes, comments and people embracing the new in the pursuit of making a buck.

Many have done well with those and other NEW Internet platforms. And it continues, twenty years later. So many new things, it could be a huge distraction too.

The Making Money, Biz-Op, even the Get Rich Quick crowd have found a permanent and evergreen place on the Internet.

There are so many ways today, to do the HOW, it may be the biggest opportunity the Internet gives us...the OPPORTUNITY to waste time, spin our wheels and get deeper and deeper into a rut.

Today, many early sowpubbers are entering their 60's. They were young 40 ish folks, and there were many in their 30's too.

Twenty years has gone by pretty fast.

What would you tell a beginner? What wisdom would you share with a son or grandson, or grand daughter starting out on the Internet with the idea of making their living online?

Feel free to share.

My advice to the young is DON'T. Make your IM a side hustle. Make it a part time gig. Explore. Don't commit to any one way. Instead, go out in the world, have adventures if you are in your 20's. Get to know how the world works. Take a few jobs. Do different things.

Learn how to balance your checkbook, or debit card. OBSERVE. Then IGNORE much of what you see going on because you are watching self serving distractions.

If they were in their 30's, then the advice would be different, if they were married or starting a family, or if they were single, each a worthwhile track and no right or wrong. The family person needs a stable FOUNDATION, and jobs are OK. Focus harder when on your side gigs.

Single people. OK, you've had your adventures (or should have), NOW get down to business. DECIDE on doing something which gives you the lifestyle you want. Today, you can swing 2 dead cats (oh, the memories) and knock over a dozen people traveling the world, working out of a suitcase, on their phones, with only a laptop...

and doing so from the sandy beaches of Bali, Hawaii, France. And that has an appeal to those younger people. Not so much to us old geezers who can get our own bed sick in a few days on South Beach.

If you are in your 40's. You should know yourself, and again, depending on if you have become a family man or a forever bachelor, it may be the most productive decade of your life.

If in your 50's...friend, TIME is running out on you, and the sands through the hourglass are going much faster.

In your 60's. Probably too late. Historically and statistically speaking, with exception of course, we all love the Col Sanders stories.

So the HOW you choose may depend on your age, is my point. Young people think they have a full tank of time. And maybe they do.

Older people KNOW time is running out.

What advice do you offer?

Based on the above, we can see why different APPEALS work with certain groups, with young males you can't go wrong with their prurient and ego wants. So we see a lot of the FAST CARS, McMansions, boats, bikini clad girls...all things a 13 year old boy wants, even when they are 33.

If there is a universal lesson we've learned here, it is a MESSAGE TO MARKET match works best. Be it online or off. You have to speak the language of your Target and Prospects.

We have focused on making money within the idea of self fulfillment here. Doing a money making activity which may not be a passion, but it isn't a dread either.

One way to look at the potential is via AGE, and it often corresponds with an upward mobility on the Maslow Pyramid.

Another way is via SPEED. Fast money is made by fast transactions. Sell your TV today online, on your front porch, or via an ad on a bulletin board at the supermarket. SUSTAINABLE money takes longer. Ongoing, recurring and so-called passive income takes the longest to set up, with a few exceptions.

Today, there are so many teens, with their popular YouTube channels making tons of money, older people are bewildered. WTF? How can some idiot on youtube do stupid stunts and haul in millions a year? It does baffle us older, albeit maybe not yet mature geezers.

HOW. The answer is yours, and yours alone, it must be personal because we aren't the same. But if you aren't there yet, then consider:

Your AGE.
Your marital status, family.
Location, and if by choice, why?

GOALS. What do you want and why? (The 35 year old SQ1 question which the majority can't answer).

The I N T E N T OF YOUR money making efforts. Speed and fast cash? Longer term? Something to do with your day? A passion or hobby?

If you use the search feature of the forum, in the old forum, you may find some fantastic ideas.

In 2006 we had an upgrade to software, and it pretty much reset the forum to blank, thanks to Dien's archival skills we were able to save a lot of that early work.

Now then, which way and HOW do you want your income coming in?

Gordon

[GordonJ]

I still listen to the many hours of recordings I did with Harvey Brody a decade ago. One of the best things that came out of that for me was, learning about SLOP and MESS.

And once Harvey opened my eyes to it, very clear to see it permeates life at all levels, but especially in the money making realm.

It is today, one of my very first looks at all so-called business or money making opportunities...what is the SLOP and MESS ratio?

No slop and mess? ME buying something, selling it for more than I paid.
ME, creating my own information product be it a report, HOTSHEET, guide or whatever and setting up a simple AUTOMATIC VENDING site.

Add a person, just one, and suddenly I'm having to wear galoshes. Two people between me and the customer, then waders...and more than that, I need scuba gear for all the slop that comes with it.

I basically quit doing affiliate marketing about a decade ago, I think my last Clickbank check came in 2010 or so. When Jim Straw passed, it was the end of about 80% OF my affiliate incomes.

Just too much slop and mess for me. Even today, I do very little, once in awhile I buy a hotsheet and follow a handful of affiliate marketers most of whom bore me to death with their daily emails (yes, I did sign up for them, but doesn't mean I care).

IF you have to rely on someone else doing something, then you have created a little bit of slop for yourself, certainly manageable or so you think.

But, again, today it is one of the first things I look at when considering any business proposal, any income stream or any biz-op.

By my own standards, if I can keep the S&M to under 10%, then I may have a go at it, anything above 20% is an automatic NOT INTERESTED at this point.

During this period of review, I'll go over some of the better lessons I gleaned from my conversations with Harvey and some of the things I learned from the experience working with Ben Suarez and Harvey and with Green Tree Press. Sometimes, the negative things offer up the most positive of life experiences.

Gordon

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by GordonJ

During this period of review, I'll go over some of the better lessons I gleaned from my conversations with Harvey and some of the things I learned from the experience working with Ben Suarez and Harvey and with Green Tree Press. Sometimes, the negative things offer up the most positive of life experiences.

Hi Gordon,

I can't wait to soak up some of those lessons!

I still think Harvey's "toll position" teachings are some of the most important on the planet! (Though I'm also keen to learn more about Green Tree Press, and any gems from Bud Weckesser's legacy...)

You still see people making the same "toll position" mistakes...

Some friends of mine were making good money selling games as affiliates. They created a website with reviews of the games. They knew how to do SEO so Google would send lots of traffic their way...

Then, a Google update - I think it was Panda - killed their business! People - who were only coming in from Google - stopped coming. And their business stayed dead...

Who had the toll position here? Google did. So Google had the power to kill it...

If they hard started up an email list, for example, they could have built up a following of people they could contact, who could come and buy other games...

But, they never built their own toll position. So they were vulnerable to being wiped out!

People are making the same mistake with Facebook... They build a following on Facebook. But unless they also get that following to follow them off of Facebook somehow - they are also vulnerable to being killed!

If you're an "old timer" on Facebook, you may remember the game Farmville... Everyone was farming, and sending updates to all their friends. Farmville was made by Zynga. In 2011, Zynga was making $389 million in cash flow a year from Farmville and similar Facebook-based games.

But then, Facebook decided to change how they did things - and it killed Zynga's games! In 2014 and 2015, Zynga made ZERO cash flow! Now, they're starting to build back up again...

But the analysis is, who owned the toll position? You know who did? It was Facebook. They owned the platform and the traffic. That's why Facebook was able to kill Zynga's business...

$389 million cash flow wouldn't be too bad...

But, because they didn't own the toll position, they were vulnerable to getting killed...

Harvey Brody's toll position lessons still hold, more than 50 years after he came up with them!

I like to try to hammer this into my thick skull every now and then...

Best wishes,

Dien

[GordonJ]

Originally Posted by Dien Rice

Harvey Brody's toll position lessons still hold, more than 50 years after he came up with them!

I like to try to hammer this into my thick skull every now and then...

Best wishes,

Dien

Me too. These will be familiar to you, but to the group, we should explore them individually too.

The View from the Rooftop; rungs up the ladder.

Kicking out the chocks, going down the runway.

Iron filings on the table, magnet underneath.

And within the Toll position, some CONTROL ideas.

Pencil out the process. Pick the people you work with carefully.

And healthy eating, thinking and living.

One reason why I like Harvey Brody so much is; he represents the penultimate one man band success story (with some help from family).

He had a business. Many employees. Got to the point the employees were pains he could do without. SIMPLIFIED his business.

Works out of his home. Has a handful of customers. Sells millions of dollars a year of products he owns and controls. Makes a decent profit. He is one of the first millionaires whose work I encountered almost 45 years ago. He is the only one who has had a five decade business running smoothly and without slop and mess (not too much anyhow).

Low key. Flies low, collects the dough. NOT a self promoter like Kennedy, Abraham, and Halbert used to be, although all gave a nod to Brody's guidance and influence.

So his talks were taken seriously, and I not only recorded them with his permission, I took copious notes and although it seemed at time to be a Codec or a crypto type file, his lessons have been invaluable to me.

I've incorporated the VIEW FROM THE ROOFTOP into the Square One Workshops and the POA (pyramid of accomplishment) works similar to the rungs up the ladder...TIME increments going forward.

Harvey goes up the ladder, I go to the right on my timeline, but with the same idea, to see the finished result at the start (bottom of ladder, or at the X on the lifeline, X=NOW).

What lessons stick out for you Dien? I also like the pre flight checklist, before you kick out the chocks.

Probably our best kept secret is the iron filings and magnet, and I think you will agree, neither of us has maximized that lesson, have we?

Gordon