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What’s Been Keeping Me Up At Night

ik ben rutger en ik maak

[Heads up: At some point soon, this blog will be moving to a different location. I may move it tomorrow. I may move it in town weeks. Be prepared :-) ].

I’m really excited about something, so before I get to the “meat” of this post, I wanted to mention that . . .

Project Mojave is On the Way

Project Mojave will be opening to its 150 founding members on April 15th. So far it’s rocking my world (i.e. I’ve really enjoyed creating it). Save the date. (If you’ve never heard of Project Mojave, then you’re probably not on the “Free Shit and Discountz List”).

I can’t wait. Really.

Anyway, with that out of the way, I should probably give you a heads on . . .

Where the Hell I’ve Been (And What’s Been Keeping Me Up at Night)

A while ago, I promised an (almost-)daily video blog on market selection & business idea testing (see here and here for the first two episodes).

It’s coming (in a huge way). I promise.

In the mean time, however, it’s worth mentioning that creating a daily video blog takes a LOT of time . . .

. . . JUST the video rendering & editing & uploading of vlog episodes takes longer than it takes to write a usual blog post. Add to that the time it takes to have my transcriptionist transcribe the video, and you’ve got a hell of a process.

So, I’ve done some things to free up time . . .


How I’m Freeing Up Time to Make a Daily Market Selection & Business Idea Vlog

At the same time that my other businesses are growing, they’re taking more and more time to maintain.

The downside of this is that, as the businesses start doing better, I have LESS time to write free courses sharing my methods with you (or free audio courses like the Business Ideas Litmus Test or the Market Testing Audio Course).

So to help keep Finance Your Freedom alive when it would have (surely) died, I’ve added another two *full time* people to the Avenue 81 team (note: Avenue 81, Inc. is the name of my corporation).

If you’re interested in who I hired, here goes:

Hire #1: A Full-Time (Web) Developer

His name is Raymond, and he kicks ass. Getting him trained and integrated into my businesses, however, is a lot of work for both of us (but well worth it).

Hire #2: A Full-Time Link Builder

Yes. I’m insane.

Anyway, on-page SEO optimization — while necessary — is only about 25% of of SEO success. (Link building, on the other hand, is said to be the “battering ram” of SEO).

So while on-page SEO is absolutely necessary, you’ll need to do some serious link building if you want to compete on “money phrases.”

Of course, “serious” means different things to different people. To me, it means hiring a fulltime person to do it. (And next month I’ll likely be hiring a second link builder — after I have a training system in place).

Anyway, I often spend HOURS building links each day, so this will free up a lot of time. The catch: before it frees up a lot of time, all this training and system building is consuming shit-tons of time.

This, of course, brings me to . . .

What’s Been Keeping Me Up At Night

I once tweeted that the automated systems necessary to live a four-hour work week require about twenty, 100-hour work weeks to create.

Put another way, the systems needed to maintain a four-hour work week take massive amounts of time to create. (It’s a lot easier to manage your people on an ad-hoc basis than it is to create systems for delegation, manuals, etc.)

And believe me, it’s a LOT easier to work a 9-5 job than it is to create ANY business from scratch, let alone a business that allows you to work only 4 hours per week.

So I’ve been losing sleep over system creation, training creation, optimizing, tweaking, yada, yada, yada.

It’s a lot of work, and is has me foggy-headed and sleep deprived.

It’s also the reason why you haven’t seen many posts from me recently. (Of course, once the systems are in place you’ll be hearing from me much more frequently).

And now for something completely different (but personal) . . .

One of the Most Significant Events of My Adult Life

I’ve spent a good deal of my life moving. Moving from city to city — and from job to job — trying to find the right “fit.” I even started a Ph.D. program once, and an M.A. program a few years later. I quit both.

Anyway, after each of the above transitions, something felt a little “off.” After each new change in location or job, I was overcome with a sinking feeling of impermanence: I just didn’t feel committed to whatever I’d started and somehow knew it wouldn’t last forever.

At any rate, ever since I started working for myself, I’ve had a sense of surefootedness. A sense that I’d found myself and a way of existing in this world that was compatible with how I operate. And even though I’m working harder now than ever, it feels right, and I actually ENJOY working my ass off.

And last week I moved to Minneapolis.

Anyway, one thing you should know that I’m a fanatic when it comes to Minnesota (even though I grew up in the sunny, southern California town of Palm Springs).

So yeah, I know: Minneapolis is in the Midwest, it’s not a huge city, and people talk with funny accents. It’s kind of an odd place to be fanatic about, and frankly, I can’t explain it. This place just fits me and it always has (I lived here for 3 years prior to moving to Wisconsin).

Since my first visit to Minneapolis, it’s felt like home. So for the very first time in my life, I’m in a career that I never see changing, and I’m living in a place that I can’t envision leaving.

Ever since high school, I’ve wondered when “the rest of my life” would begin. I’ve wondered when I could stop moving, enrolling, preparing, and start building.

Anyway, last week, “the rest of my life” began. It doesn’t feel anywhere as dramatic as it sounds. But it feels right, and I’m very happy about it.

photo by ik ben rutger en ik maak

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  • scottn23
    Clay,


    Should the popup on Finance your Freedom really say the 'Business Idea Acid Test'?? Haha. Outsourcing gone wrong or new BILT title?? :)



    Scott
  • Congrats on beginning "the rest of your life."


    If there's anything that software and info complexity has taught us about life, it's life happens, things change, and agility is king.
  • Jim:


    I live in Charleston, SC. You can find my email on my blog if you would like to ask me any questions about the area.



    Cheers...
  • hi Clay, didn't have an email for you, but Victory mentions you and promotes your program in his final videos. i think it was #6 or 7 of the bunch if you want to check it out.


    he passed away early this morning. (bipolar related)



    before he passed, he feels he was inspired with something very significant for coaches, on how to meet new clients. He called it ‘a breakthrough moment’. It’s when you meet someone the first time, you immediately do a quick coaching exercise to give them an epiphany. Maybe something to demonstrate ‘it’s only when you believe that you can achieve’. Then you hand them a business card which is printed on the back offering a free consultation. Anyway, he explains it in his last video. It seems very much like a Mike Litman style thing. I’m calling the technique “Darwin’s Breakthrough”.



    http://budurl.com/victorydies



    -Brent
  • Coronado Cookie
    Congrats on the move Clay! It sounds as if everything is aligning perfectly for you ~ that's great. And you certainly are VERY busy, but that's fun when it is something you love.


    Enjoy hearing what's going on with you and looking forward to the future.
  • Glad you are finding ways to let go of certain things in your business. As a young entrepreneur, we tend to feel that we can do all things and be all things - hiring someone(s) to take that responsibility off your shoulders can be a blessing or a huge stress factor. I'd love to know how that goes and how the recruitment process grows your business and affects your bottom line.


    Anyway, cheers to finding a locale that suits your needs and feels like home.
  • mr-crash
    I'm excited.


    On a related note note - you said you were looking for someone with elevator pitch skillz in a recent tweet... I think you don't want to pay someone else to develop your elevator pitch. To me, it should be a natural extension (or contraction :P as is probably a more appropriate term) of your exec summary or even your business plan as a whole. I can't imagine you would ever want someone else doing that for you.



    Good luck :)
  • Cheryl Binnie
    That's awesome, Clay! The move, the systems, the hires, everything.
    I guess this is my first time commenting here, so you might not recognize the name. Let's just say that I'm soooo one of your fans. I found you through Naomi's interview with you at IttyBiz, and I can't wait to learn more.



    I have to admit, though, when I read the bit about your move to "a place that [you] can't envision leaving," I was (unreasonably) excited for you. I love that kinda stuff. Hooray for finding what feels right!
  • David Jacoby
    Okay, two things. When I was.... okay. Three things. Shit - four things. Four. Guess I better go "numbered list" for this one.


    1. Kudos and thank you on the system creation thing. One thing I have had to (reluctantly) admit to myself about my business life is that I lack systems for performing the work I do, even though I do the same kinds of tasks over and over again (like most of us). The thing that's significant here is that I am NOT in your position of hiring people and having to create systems so they'll know how to do their jobs. We ALL need systems in place to be able to do our jobs efficiently, and this post reminded me that I need to keep paying attention to building those systems for myself - even if I never have an employee for as long as I live.



    2. Minneapolis. In the nineties, I played in a really good but low-level touring band (like, 4 guys in a smelly van, not a crew of dudes and a bunch of hot groupies on a sweet tour bus). One of my fondest memories was a gig we played in Minneapolis on a Sunday night in a 1,000-seat venue for which precisely 3 people showed up. They paid us our $100 (no, no missing zero), and we were cut loose at 9 PM. As luck would have it, the house band at the club next door included Prince's drummer at the time, Michael Bland, and 5 other mind bogglingly good musicians. I got to see my hero drummer play 5 feet away from me. So that's Minneapolis - good job.



    3. Project Mojave: Waiting Patiently for a few more days...



    4. Friendfeed. I replied to your tweet about finding someone with elevator skills. I'm your man. And that's for real. But I'm not so much in the Twitter world, and frankly I have no idea whether or how you can respond to me there. So just send me an email and we'll talk.



    Cheers, bro!



    P.S. THANKS A MILLION for mentioning the thing about not feeling "committed to whatever I’d started and somehow knew it wouldn’t last forever," and moving past that phase of your life. I almost finished an M.A. but was never really engaged in what I was doing, even though "I was good at it." I let that one go like so many other endeavors over the years, and those endeavors included more than just business endeavors (witness the trail of women who ultimately realized I was not in it to win it - and the one who now realizes I AM). "Saying yes to your life," cheesy as that phrase sounds, puts it pretty aptly for me. It's an ongoing process, and one you're maybe never done with, but it sure as hell feels good to be saying (mostly) yes to the things in my life these days. And a lot of what I used to be stressed out about simply doesn't register as stress any more, even though all that stuff is still there. Wild.
  • Jim, there's absolutely nothing to be sorry about. I love having you around here and the EMyth is a great book and if I haven't heard of it then I'd really need to read it. You're a great guy and I'm really looking forward to working with you on Project Mojave. It's coming soon!


    Warm regards,

    Clay
  • Jim Dodge
    I'm sorry for that Clay. Anyway, I read somewhere to just pick one "guru" on this stuff you like and stick to that guy instead of trying to absorb a bunch of different people (they're definitely a few out there), and you're definitely my guy! Learned a lot of really valuable/ no fluff stuff here on here.
  • Thanks Duff. They're doing pretty well right now, but adding more people can never hurt. Great seeing you here.
  • Thanks, Jim. I read the E Myth a long time ago and really enjoyed it. I've been automating my businesses for quite some time now so I've got the system-creation thing down. It just takes a while.
  • Congrats on the move, Clay! :)


    I'm sure your businesses will do fantastically well.



    Be well,

    ~Duff
  • Jim Dodge
    Hi Clay! This is Jim Dodge. What a great post. Congratulations on starting the rest of your life. Not having that feeling is a great motivator and having it has got to be satisfying. This really resonated with me. The answer to the question, "What do you want to do with your life?" for me is "Charleston, SC...or any sunny beach place really." Based on your post and love for Minneapolis I think you can understand. The place is really more important, or at least as important, as the what.
    I hate giving unsolicited advice but your post is begging for it so please accept my apology in advance. "The Emyth Revisited" is all about beginning entrepreneur's and very specifically about how they become overwhelmed working 80 hours a week to make their business work. Not like I'm running a business myself or anything. A great problem to have. I can let you know some quick and dirty take aways or even mail you my copy. It talks about the first step usually being that small overwhelmed business owners hire help. Anyway, you are obviously a more successful guy than me, but the few hours spent reading it may save you 100's down the road - especially once you start adding staff. Sorry for the unsolicited advice. Hope all is well. Cheers!
  • Hey man congrats on your moving and finding your "solid ground." I know exactly how you feel seeing I've found the same "sure footedness" (Is that a word?) that you're talking about.


    I'm definitely keeping my eyes on what you're doing and knowing you're having success as we speak. (Loving what you're doing) You're cranking out the value and putting it all in perspective for me. (i.e. the fact it does take massive hours to set up the systems that create the "4 hour work week.)



    I'm entering into the exact same process as I'm typing this!



    The universe conspires to do us good (as long as we put forth the effort)
  • Thanks, Michael. It does feel good. Great, in fact. Was GREAT talking with you the other day. That was a lot of fun and long overdue. Hope to run into you soon.


    --Clay
  • Congrats on "coming home," Clay. I know how seriously important and good that is.


    We're all looking forward to the next phase, man. :-)
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