Since we’re talking about PRODUCT v MARKETING, here is a great example on the power of a PRODUCTOCRACY, owning a product that potentially can sell itself, a product you can be proud of.

A YouTube influencer with over 1,000,000 followers just posted an hour long video discussion on Unscripted, my 2nd book, and how it changed his life. He did a great job, probably better than I could.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bt_ZQpDFL2s

In today’s world, this form of market penetration is called “influencer marketing” — except this occurred without me asking.

I did NOT approach or solicit this man.

I did NOT pay this man.

I didn’t send this gentleman a letter begging him to disingenuously push my books.

By virtue of my product’s value, he felt compelled to share it with his audience.

He spoke for one hour on the book and obviously, this ONE VIDEO will generate a lot of book sales for Unscripted, and for MANY YEARS to come.

This, folks, is the POWER of PRODUCT that can sell itself without marketing. I call the magic phenomena that prints money a PRODUCTOCRACY (Topic not discussed in The Millionaire Fastlane, but only in both Unscripted and The Great Rat Race Escape).

So here's the big question...

How much would I need to spend in TIME and MONEY to get an hour long feature with an influencer with 1M followers?

$4,000? $10K? $25K?

Your product is your VEHICLE.
Your marketing is your FORCE.

Stop shining turds with marketing.
Start shining diamonds with marketing.

Life has a CHEAT code. And it is super-simple to remember.

The 4 CHs will get you everything your ever wanted...

-- CHOICES
-- CHANCES
-- CHALLENGES
and
-- CHANGES

You must make a CHOICE to take a CHANCE while expecting a CHALLENGE to follow or your life will never CHANGE.

Can NEGATIVE appeals, such as FEAR and LOSS AVERSION work in marketing?

YES.

If you lose $1000, most people will feel PAIN in a greater magnitude than if they WON $1000.

Loss Aversion is a powerful, motivating emotion, more than our need for pleasure.

A fear-based, or a loss-aversion appeal in your marketing can convert much better than a generic appeal.

*** 7 steps to help you avoid running out of money during your retirement…

*** How one 3 minute article saved this couple from losing their life savings…

*** How to protect your millionaire success from lawsuits and bankrupting events…

Here are some examples of LOSS AVERSION via the LIFE CHANGING CONCEPTS newsletter:

- People stick with jobs they hate. Because they fear the loss of status and stability. Even when they have the potential to earn more doing something else

-People tend to overvalue what they own. Because they relate selling with losing (the endowment effect). So yes, Tyler Durden was right. The things you own end up owning you

- Investors sell their winning positions but keep the losing ones forever. Because they don't want to realize the loss

- People try to cover their mistakes even when it's inadvertent. Because they fear the loss of credibility. The audit firm Arthur Andersen that caused the Enron Scandal was not convicted of securities fraud — but of shredding tons of documents to cover up its errors and avoid potential fines

- Organizations resist change. Because the potential losers of the change are always louder than the potential winners
How can you use LOSS AVERSION or FEAR appeals in your business?

PS: Credit to TheFronteraBlog and its LIFE CHANGING CONCEPTS newsletter. This newsletter makes you more successful in life with mental models and actionable ideas. I’m a subscriber and a big fan as it often takes a mathematical approach to every day life!

To subscribe, visit here:
https://sparklp.co/p/4212869804 (affiliate link)

… or visit the URL FronteraBlog.com

Have a great week with much progress!

If you haven’t yet considered it, I highly recommend moving to a new city and a new culture on the other side of your country. Or hell, even expating to a new country.

Don’t let “sacred cows” keep you immobile and planted like a tree.

A “sacred cow” keeps you planted with lame excuses like, “oh I grew up here, I can’t move.” Or, “my family is here,” or “My favorite football club is here.”

While family is important, most families are dysfunctional and many of them simply aren’t supportive of an Unscripted existence.

Moving to Arizona from Chicago was one the best decisions in my life.

If you have negative or uninspired history in a particular city, it can add significant mental baggage to your progress. Living in a place where you have struggled, failed, and lived unhappily is a mental burden, no matter how you want to frame it.

...Oh there's my old high school where I was bullied...
...Oh there's the intersection where I got into an accident...
...Oh there's my old best friend's house before he cheated with my girlfriend...
...Oh this is the route to my old job that I hated...
…Oh there’s the McDonalds I used to work at…
…Oh here’s the shitty weather that I can’t stand…
…Oh there’s my old neighborhood where my parents were divorced…
...Oh there's that grocery story where my X-girlfriend works...
...Oh there's that local park where the neighborhood bully beat me up...

Folks, STOP KIDDING YOURSELF.

There is nothing stopping you from moving. I moved to Arizona with $900 in my bank account. I realize that those with family, things are more complicated, but it's not rocket science.

It's a matter of importance and prioritization.

Do you want to own a business? Or do you want a job that keeps you mildly entertained for 50 years?

Making big decisions like this is on par with the big decision to become an entrepreneur.

You only live once. Yes, happiness is largely a choice. However, you can make choices that make the choice to be happy, much easier.

Make happiness a priority. Make choices that make happiness more likely.

Another way of looking at it... if you grew up in a home with a lot of bad memories, what the hell would you choose to stay there? Why do you want to be reminded of bad times? And if your city/home does a good job at reminding you of unhappiness, PACK YOUR DAMN BAGS and MOVE.

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/unhappy-then-pack-your-damn-bags-and-move.105971/

I love that people read my books and say they changed their life.
I hate that people read my books and make impetuous, emotional decisions.

Two such decisions that likely aren’t good choices is the decision to QUIT YOUR JOB, or DROP OUT OF COLLEGE simply because you were inspired by my work.

This can apply to any book that moves you, or inspires you.

I posted at The Fastlane Forum 4 definitive conditions that justify a bold action such as quitting your job, or dropping out of university.

If you can meet these conditions, dropping out or quitting is likely a good decision.

If you cannot meet these conditions, you might be making a rash decision based on emotion. Quitting a job or university is an EVENT, starting a profitable business, is a PROCESS. Fastlaners are PROCESS driven.

Here are the first 2 conditions which can help you determine the right decision and the right timing for any QUIT decision. Visit the Forum to get the last 2.

#1 - Existing sales with adequate profit margins. Are you repeatedly selling? Is there a nominal enough of a profit that can pay your bills, much less, change your life?

#2 - Do you have at least a six-month runway (cash flow) to pay your bills while adopting a frugal lifestyle? This can be reduced to three months pending the answer to #3 and scale.

Have a great week!

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/mjs-4-conditions-the-definitive-guide-on-when-to-quit-your-job.106078/

Every choice we make has an opportunity cost. If you pick one thing, you’re actually declining another.

Your actions always express your priorities, no matter what you tell yourself.

Whenever you make a choice, you’re declining something else. Life is about choices, but also about the opportunity cost, what is forgone, from making those choices.

When you play video games for 45 hours a week instead of investing in yourself, you’ve made entertainment and escapism your priority.

Easy decisions are easy for a reason.

Hard ones, hard.

When you put hard before easy, you’ll create your best life.

Unfortunately, many people try to “pick everything” and in doing so, you deprive yourself any progress and consistency to become successful at something.

The following excerpt was recently posted at the forum and it is a great metaphor for making a choice and committing to it — or the worst two of all 1) Doing nothing or 2) Trying everything and becoming a master at nothing.

“I saw my life branching out before me like the green fig tree in the story. From the tip of every branch, like a fat purple fig, a wonderful future beckoned and winked. One fig was a husband and a happy home and children, and another fig was a famous poet and another fig was a brilliant professor, and another fig was Ee Gee, the amazing editor, and another fig was Europe and Africa and South America, and another fig was Constantin and Socrates and Attila and a pack of other lovers with queer names and offbeat professions, and another fig was an Olympic lady crew champion, and beyond and above these figs were many more figs I couldn't quite make out. I saw myself sitting in the crotch of this fig tree, starving to death, just because I couldn't make up my mind which of the figs I would choose. I wanted each and every one of them, but choosing one meant losing all the rest, and, as I sat there, unable to decide, the figs began to wrinkle and go black, and, one by one, they plopped to the ground at my feet.”
― Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar

Make the hard decision and express your priorities. Or let life’s inertia, easily express them for you.

UPDATE: A lot of people have asked me about the “underground” book document which profiles great books that aren’t super-known best-sellers.

I haven’t forgot!

And let me apologize for the long delay in having this data compiled.

I’m happy to announce that the document will be released on Friday, December 9th.

Some great books are listed in there that have made my "to read" list.

That said, if you'd like to get an early look at some of the books, visit the forum and hit the official thread posted below. There are about 15 books listed in the thread that made the list.

I hope to release a document like this every year. If you have a book you'd like to contribute, feel free to add it on the forum. Or, just surf the thread to find your next book read.

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/great-books-that-are-not-best-sellers-share-yours.104414/

There's a great discussion going on right now about ChatGPT at the forum. If you don't know what this blockbuster technology is, you need to know.

In effect, it is like the Star Trek "computer" for those of you familiar with Star Trek.

This thing already likely saved me 3 hours of my time in a matter of 10 seconds.

I haven't been this impressed with a new technology in 15 years, the last time being the Apple iPhone replacing a flip-phone.

It can spit out computer code for you in seconds, stuff that would take 10 different Google searches amount 100 different results filled with SEO manipulated filler and garbage.

If you're a writer, this thing will help you describe scenes in foreign countries, write dialogue in different types of personalities, and conquer blocks in a matter of seconds.

It does have some inaccuracies and errors, however, as a Gen 1 version, I'm impressed. How can this new tech be incorporated in your life? How can it help you? Check it out, it has grown to millions of users with little mainstream publicity.

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/chatgpt-ai-is-a-huge-breakthrough-a-google-killer.106275/

As promised, here is the document with 101 MUST READ Business and Self-Development books that are NOT overhyped or overexposed on any best-seller list.

The best books aren’t always found on best-seller lists, although it seems to be an obvious assumption.

Books found on these “best-seller” lists are often the result of great marketing and social media influence, not because the author is a superb writer or revealed some legendary information. Worse, some books are more readily promoted and hyped into the mainstream if they reinforce an agenda supported by institutionalized powers, receiving millions in free publicity.

I hope this document changes that, but please, don’t mistake this to read, “stop reading best-sellers.” I’m suggesting you need to broaden your horizons and start reading different viewpoints... viewpoints that aren’t peddled by billionaire hypocrites who suggest coffee abstinence is the secret to wealth, or viewpoints found on the front page of Yahoo Finance glorifying the ascetic practice of “you’ll own nothing and be happy.”

Freel free to share this document as you desire, or use in any purpose in your business (like a giveaway)! Document is in the following post.

Great Books that are UnderExposed and Underhyped!

As The Fastlane Forum approaches 1 million posts, I've heard from many people over the years.

One item worth mentioning: Many people unnecessarily complicate Fastlane entrepreneurship and business in general. Simplified, successful Fastlane entrepreneurship boils down to 3 things. Focus on these three things, and you will eventually succeed.

#1) Create relative value
Have you created a product/service that is marginally different from what is already offered in the marketplace? This is the product development stage.

#2) Convince people of that value.
Can you convince people of that value to a buying threshold? This is the marketing, positioning, and the branding stage.

#3) Repeat.
Not only repeat, but how many times can you repeat? This is the sales and growth stage. How many sales can you structurally make in a day? 10? or 10,000?

Fail at any of these steps, and you will stunt your progress and stunt your ability to create life-changing wealth. Sadly, many entrepreneurs have chosen to skip Step #1, product development and relative value, and think that they can succeed if they're slick enough of a marketer.

Don't be bro-marketer pushing commodity products and hoping to win the "best price of the day" competition.

Stop the shortcuts and instead create relative value, convince people of that value, and repeat. And nothing will stop you!

Important distinction here that I cover extensively in my second book, Unscripted.

As entrepreneurs, we hear a lot about “creating value" -- but nothing about the real impetus for sales and growth, and that is relative value.

Relative value means that your offer is unique, or different, or better than what is currently offered.

Making a blog post about 10 great "must read" books has value.

But it DOES NOT have relative value.

Lists like this are a dime of dozen.

In another example, I compiled a list of great, must read books that are underhyped and underexposed ... the reception on that document was quite shocking.

Why?

Because it had RELATIVE VALUE.

A document that listed the same old books that everyone on every corner of planet Earth recommends (Atomic Habits, Rich Dad, Think and Grow Rich) is NOT valuable.

It's more of the same.

Relative value is fire and transforms marketing into an accelerant.

“More of the same” value (I call it surplus value in Unscripted) is a frozen river and marketing acts like fire. Marketing is required to turn ice to water.

One makes business easier, the other makes it extremely frustrating.

Short thought for the day that I also tweeted...

"Hard work" has become a dirty phrase in culture & it is easy to understand why. Working hard under today's obsolete template is like pedaling harder on a tricycle.

Fastlane entrepreneurship gets you off the tricycle where your hard work is rewarded with wealth, not mediocrity.

Happy 2023 everybody!

I apologize for disappearing at the end of the year but I ended up getting Covid and had to spend some time in bed recovering and taking care of myself. I’m much better now and back in the swing of things.

With that said, let’s start 2023 with some wisdom!

Great “long form” story on the founding and evolution of CANVA.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/21-questions-from-aussie-startups-highs-lows-lessons-learned-perkins/

Firstly, CANVA is the best piece of cloud software that I use and pay for. If you’re not using it yet, you should. Many people on the forum also vouch for the awesomeness of the software, which was how I found it. CANVA is by far my favorite tool, and an incredible value for the price paid.

Second, the story behind how CANVA evolved, from identifying the need, to the pivot, to the growth— a lot of the lessons learned along the way is “must read” material, even if you have no desire to build a billion dollar company.

Take some time to read the story.

You won’t be disappointed.

You can't fit square pegs into round holes when it comes to business.

When there are systemic issues in your industry that prevent scale and growth, it is futile to fight the reality.

I mention this because over the weekend I met with a local entrepreneur who has a successful business that services my local community.

He wanted to scale.
He wanted to grow.

And as a customer of this entrepreneur’s service, I know he had the mental and physical fortitude to make big things happen.

The problem was, his successful business is seasonal and only operates 7 months out of the year.

This makes scale and “going Fastlane” a huge problem.

If you have a big company with 20 trucks and 40 employees, but have to lay off all your employees in the “off season,” your problem is systemic. Your great employees won’t likely come back as they need to work, and need a steady paycheck. For this entrepreneur, hiring and training 40 new employees every spring is not feasible, cost effective, nor reasonable.

It also isn’t reasonable to pay employees during the 5 months of “off season” as it prices you out of the market.

This poses a systemic problem if the goal is Fastlane growth and scale, and systemic problems are like asking pigs to fly.

The answer to systemic problems isn’t something that can be easily fixed, even using first-principle thinking.

The answer, unfortunately and yes, harsh -- is you’re likely in the wrong business if you’re working for a Fastlane outcome.

As a follow up to the post above, the solution this entrepreneur arrived at was NOT to abandon his business or industry.

While his business is seasonal, he was earning about $50K for 5-6 months of work, which gave him a ton of free time in the off season.

He’s been documenting his local success in various employee training manuals, and even developing his own management software for people within the industry.

His “Fastlane strategy” is to sell his successful B2B training guides, CRM management, and other industry tools that he can license via subscription. As for the software that he intends to sell, he is architecting it in a “no code” solution.

While his local business might not “go Fastlane,” his domain knowledge might translate to a Fastlane.

Remember, not everyone wants to make millions and for many folks, a business that earns $50K a year and is operational only half of the year would be a dream come true.

If this subscription aspect of the business doesn’t work, he still has a great business that makes $50K a year and gives him a boatload of time to experiment in other Fastlane opportunities.

This “experience” is not Slowlane, or a waste of time.

It is what creates multi-millionaires.

REMEMBER: Nothing is Slowlane if your intent is to go Fastlane.

Another follow up to the story above, which is ongoing.

The path the entrepreneur has chosen to explore is to go B2B and sell subscriptions, customer management solutions, and training options. This is in supplementation to his existing local business.

As I mentioned, this entrepreneur’s business is LOCAL and SEASONAL. Some good examples (while not his business as these are much simpler) are a holiday lights hanging business or a snow removal business.

With the new strategy going forward, he can position himself to serve a much larger market, and market that is likely to be hungrier.

When we’re strategizing our business, it is important to look at the markets you’re serving, and to make sure those markets can help us achieve our personal goals.

“I want to make $100K a month”

If that is your goal, look at your industry and the market you’re serving. Some questions to ask…

1) How large is the market that you can effectively serve? How many total customers are there that need your offer? 5,000 people? Or 50,000,000?

2) How easy is it to reach your market? Are there mediums to get in front of prospects? Or is it impossible to hit a target with your offer?

3) If all goes spectacularly well and you have a $10K day, what would that day look like? How many employees would you need? How about supply and manufacturing? Would you need a warehouse? Office?

4) If a $10K day is impossible, what would make it possible? Are there systemic problems? Or have you exposed your industry as deficient to meet your goals?

If you’re looking to have your business ideas graded, there is a CENTS based rating system I launched some years ago. In that rating system, “access to markets” is a huge weight.

https://grademybusinessidea.com

Bottomline: Make sure your excellent effort and execution is rewarded with outcomes that match your long-term goals.

Here’s a great example of problem-solving entrepreneurship with a distinct value skew and a simple, clearly defined value proposition, a value proposition to save someone's life, perhaps your own.

This company was brought to my attention by a reader and I immediately bought one.

https://lifevac.net/

Further, I had an issue with my order which was promptly resolved.

For me, I tend to not chew my food well and have had several scares. Buying this was a no-brainer.

On the CENTS scale, this type of business ranks highly, although it is not perfect.

Strengths: NEED, SCALE (every human on the planet) and TIME.

Weaknesses: ENTRY as this product is subject to knock-offs, although reproducing it likely isn’t super simple like downloading Wordpress and wham, you’re in business.

Review my CENTS rating here

https://www.grademybusinessidea.com/gradeResults.php?aXRlbT1zaGFyZSZiaW49TGlmZVZhYyZiaWQ9TGlmZS1TYXZpbmcgQ2hva2luZyBEZXZpY2UgJmVudD02JmN0cmw9OS41JnZhbD0xMCZhdXRvPTEwJnJlcD0xMCZtcz0xMCZtcj0xJnU9Mw%3D%3D

Posting this here for both education and perhaps for your personal use. (I have no relationship, affiliate or otherwise with respect to this product)

What can you learn from an enterprise like this?

How easy would it be for you to sell when your core value prop is saving lives?

Would you be passionate about this business, even if you had no medical background?

It's been a long, long time. But it seems like yesterday.

In 2007, I launched The Fastlane Forum. During this time, I've encountered 1000s of entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs. I soon discovered a complex reality that most people are liars—not to others, but to themselves. Here are the 9 common lies that want to convince you to sell your dreams for slaughter. And 9 easy paradigm shifts to insure your dreams stay alive and tracked for reality.

9 Dream-Killing Lies You Sell Yourself...

LIE #1: I'm not good at X.

Of course, you're not. No one is born an instant expert. We all crawled before we walked. Seinfeld's first words weren't a joke. Ronaldo didn't emerge from mom with a football. The question is, if you aren't good at X, what do you need to do to get good at X?

The fact is, "I'm not good at X" is not a fixed status but a variable one. You can suck at X today, but be better at it tomorrow. BETTER is the key; minor daily improvements create major results.

The sibling to this lie is, "Well, I just lack the education."

PARADIGM SHIFT: I'm not good at X today, but I can be better at X tomorrow.

LIE #2: I don't have time for business.

You don't have time because it isn't a priority. It isn't urgent. Other things come first. Game of Thrones. Call of Duty. Sleep and leisure. The 55th Yankees game you just watched. Would you "find time" if failure in the next three months meant the death of the loved one? You would. What's most important always finds time.

PARADIGM SHIFT: I don't have time with my current lifestyle patterns, but with the proper adjustments and reprioritizations, I can find time.

LIE #3: X just got lucky.

Yes, X did. Out of all the numbers in the alphabet, X was incredibly active, engaged, and committed to success. As such, X manipulated probability and gave themself a better chance of getting in luck's spotlight.

PARADIGM SHIFT: Luck is a function of probability, and my habitual actions can improve my chances for luck to appear.

LIE #4: Someday I'll start a business.

No, you won't. You're too comfortable, and comfort doesn't incite action. Most people allow their dreams to be bribed with a few hours of television, video games, or sleep. There will never be a perfect day, week, or month. Life is too aggressively chaotic with its own momentum. It is why Someday exists. Someday is a pacification to make yourself feel good for not quitting, but delaying. And we all know someday becomes never. Someday is a fat lie.

PARADIGM SHIFT: My best time to start a business is today. Someday is a pacifying excuse to disguise the truth of never.

LIE #5: There are no good ideas.

Never has there been one sentence that stinks of entrepreneurial ignorance. Most new businesses are built on margin improvement and better efficiencies, not about becoming the next Steve Jobs. If life had no problems, there would be no ideas and this lie would be true. Ideas are about solving problems, removing angsts, fixing inconveniences, delivering peace, sparking fun, and offering different ingredients.

PARADIGM SHIFT: If I see ideas as a function of life's imperfections, voids, and distress, I will have plenty of ideas.

To read the last 4 LIES that will thrwart your success, visit the forum (no login required.) Have a great tail end of your week! ~ MJ