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webinar marketing

Milana Leshinsky – Telesummits aren’t dead! How Great Webinar Marketing Can Make a Huge Impact for Your Small Business! (AoL 118)

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Webinars, telesummits, and virtual summits. They used to be a staple in digital marketing.

In recent years, however, they’ve become rarer to see.

Why?

Because for the most part, people have used them primarily as a way to build their email list. They used it primarily as part of their funnel.

While this is a function that webinars can serve, we shouldn’t overestimate their power to connect us with thought leaders in our various industries.

Today’s guest, Milana Leshinsky, is on a mission to help people see the power that telesummits (aka virtual summits) can provide for a small business.

On top of finding out how she got to be such a huge advocate of these mediums, we find out how they’ve played a role in her own business. She also talks about the mindset you should have when building your own virtual summit.

 

SPECIFICALLY, YOU’LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT:

  • How was it that Milana first came to the US? 9:12
  • What made her change her focus of study in school from music to something completely different? 11:32
  • Why did she quit her IT job in 2002 as a mom of two? What did it get her in a relatively short amount of time? 13:25
  • How has digital marketing changed during her career? 17:10
  • Why should someone do a telesummit and what makes a good one? 19:53
  • In what ways has she been able to get back into her artistic roots? 39:00
  • What’s Milana looking forward to working on? 45:04
  • Who have been influencers in Milana’s life? 47:40
  • What are three books that she tells others about? 49:13
  • What’s something Milana has been good to saying no to? 51:37
  • What is her least favorite social custom? 52:43
  • How can someone find their own personal freedom? 54:26

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

 

ITEMS and PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SHOW NOTE EXTRAS:

Virtual Summits & Telesummits

Fastest Path to Go To Expert

Future of Video Marketing with Michelle Kopper

Jeremy and Milana on Sales in Coaching

Thanks for Listening!

Thanks so much for joining us again this week. Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below!

If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the top of the post.

Also, please leave an honest review for The AoL Podcast on iTunes! Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show, and we read each and every one of them.

If you have any questions feel free to email them over via the email mentioned in the show or by our contact form.

And finally, don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and/or Google Play Music. It’s absolutely free to do so.

A huge thank-you to you guys for joining us!

Cheers!

professional etiquette

15 Professional Etiquette Tips to Help Your Business Blossom

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You know that feeling. When someone doesn’t quite live up to your standards. It’s hard to describe that particular feeling though.

Do you feel let down? Sure.

Maybe a little bit of shame because you feel you might have dropped the ball somehow? Quite possibly.

Maybe, it’s neither. Maybe you just brush it off and place a label on that person as “not up to par”.

Well, having grown up in a old patriarchal family that was HUGE on manners, I can tell you a thing or two about how it’s helped me throughout the years.

I remember one particular instance where I reached for food in a wrong manner, and was stabbed with a fork.

It taught me a lesson in being polite at the table. Reaching for things across other people – not a polite thing to do.

Today, however, stabbing someone with a fork (or most discipline for that matter) is not acceptable in our PC liberal leading world. In fact, I’m sure it would be considered child abuse.

Unfortunately, there’s a lot of people out there practicing business that might not have been taught how to be polite growing up themselves.

Quite regularly, for example, I hear the question “does profanity bother me in business?” Well, that’s kinda like asking “Does nudity bug you in public?”.

I mean, of course they’re not the same thing. But the same principles of self control are used in both.  

Personally, it’s hard for me to trust people who don’t show self control up front. It makes me wonder if they’ll show self control in the rest of their life and business.

 

Manners Matter!

That being the case, what are some ways of making sure that people don’t get the wrong impression of you when you first meet?

Of course the answer is being mindful with your manners.

Manners are a great way to illustrate that you practice self control. And self control is one of the keys in building long lasting trust.

You want a good working relationship, that first impression (as well as your 2nd, 3rd, and etc.) is huge when it comes to self-selecting yourself when it comes to opportunities.

Likes attract likes. If you want to attract Gary Vaynerchuk type folks in your life, work it like Gary. But I’m not saying just be crass – I’m saying have people skills and know how to get the job done. Otherwise you might end up like looking like a try hard Jesse Pinkman type of character.

So here’s a few things that I think many of us online business folk should probably get a little better at:

 

First Impressions

First impression is the best way to start building good moral right away. Besides not swearing as if you’re beer buddies, it’s also good to present yourself in the manner you want to known. Sure, you can dress like Elliot Alderson if you want or you can suit up. Personally, I’m somewhere in the middle.

 

Few more pointers include:

  1. When meeting someone, always shake hands firmly while making eye contact. No wimpy hand grabs. And make sure that if you’re sitting, that you get up to shake their hand when you first meet them. Note: It’s ok to sit while shaking hands when you’re agreeing on something!
  2. Pay attention to their name and use it as frequently as makes sense. Up to a point, the more you use it, the more they feel important. (Just don’t use it in negative examples.)
  3. Besides learning their name, give other cues that you’re paying attention to what they’re saying. Repeat what they say sometimes.
  4. Use your inside voice. Sometimes people are obnoxiously loud when meeting new people. Might be because they’re over-excited. Might be because they’re not aware that their voice carries as well as it does.
  5. Put away any digital devices when meeting someone. Better yet, put it on silent or turn it off completely so that you can have a good uninterrupted conversation.

 

Communication

Speaking of turning off digital devices, there’s some things that you should probably think about with communication etiquette:

 

  1. When it comes to a phone in particular, maintain your usual speaking volume. Also, if you’re speaking with someone on the speakerphone – let them know. This might actually keep them from looking like a tool… or both of you if they drop something on the line that might not be the best thing for people near you to hear.
  2. When it comes to email and other online messages, you can never be too cautious. Generally speaking, in person, we all have an easier understanding of what others are trying to say. But if you use too many exclamation marks, reply in all caps, or use too many emoticons.
  3. Also, when it comes to emails – use professional email addresses. At one point, this meant just not using names like “sweetie@…”, “coolsugarman@…” or other cute or fun names. That still is good rule, but we live in a time where if you have a business, you should have a business email. You can get up to 10 of them for free at zoho.com.
  4. When it comes to messaging people, whether it’s on Facebook or through texts, try to keep the conversation short. Also, don’t be a negative through messages. Important conversations need to be had on the phone or in person.
  5. If you miss someone’s call, get a text, or an email try to respond to them promptly. In a world where ghosting is a thing, you don’t want people to get the idea that you’re avoiding them on purpose.

 

Other Stuff

A few things that don’t necessarily fit above include:

 

  1. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. A good rule of thumb is to not disrupt the ways of the locals. Whether that means keeping your space tidy or labeling food in a refrigerator  in a coworking space or knowing a bit about the language.
  2. Be timely. Be on time as much as possible. End meetings on time and never use more words when you could use less.
  3. Unless someone is volunteering information or you have their permission, don’t brain-pick! Always ask permission to get someone’s advice or when you want to be direct with them.
  4. Be strategic when choosing meals. You don’t want to order anything that splatters with new people. If you can, only do meals with people you feel comfortable with.
  5. Might be a little old fashioned, but handwritten thank you cards go a long way. Pat Flynn has a wall where his fans’ notes end up! Also, when not handwriting, make sure you always use spell check!! 🙂

 

Action Steps

That’s a good list to get you started. I’m sure there’s plenty of pointers I’m missing, though. What are some things you’ve noticed people have done that left a sour taste in your mouth? Let us know in the comments below!!

places of interest

10 Ways to Find Places of Interest In Your Own Backyard

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When I was growing up, I lived in a small town in the middle of flyover country. (I wouldn’t be until later that I even knew that the Midwest was called that.) One of my biggest goals in high school was to go out and see the world. This interest, I’m pretty sure stemmed from watching way too much Discovery Channel over the years.

That, and well, mom was an art teacher. And she loved teaching art from around the world.

It just seemed like something I was always going to do.

Then college hit and I ended up telling myself that if I wanted to graduate on time, I need to book it. Traveling abroad, for the foreseeable future, was not in my cards.

Even though that was the case, I did do a fair share of domestic traveling during the long college summers. When I wasn’t taking a summer class, you could find me making road trips to all kinds of places east of the Mississippi.

Sure, that might not sound like a lot compared to other online entrepreneurs, but here’s the thing. I feel like I appreciate more of what we have in our own backyards a little more than others might.

I don’t feel like I need to leave the country to get the same benefits they do.

Heck, there are still places here in the Midwest that are on my list to check out!

That being the case and it being a new year, I thought I’d share with you guys some of my favorite ways to engage more with your own hometown or places that aren’t so far away.

That way you still get some of the benefits of traveling, but don’t have to go out of the country!

 

1. Pick up Travel Guides and Local Magazines for Nearby Destinations 

This is probably one of my go to cheats in finding interesting things to do when I’m traveling around Indiana. When I was working at AMS daily back in 2014, we found ourselves going to various towns around Indiana as part of our whirlwind tour of events. When I was at those towns, I made sure that I got travel brochures while I was there to find out more about them.

Now some of my favorite towns in Indiana are those that might not seem too special if you’re just traveling through. Towns like Richmond, New Castle, and Noblesville are much higher on my list today.

Another thought, if you’re into museum exhibits, check to see what’s coming up in your city and cities that are within a day trip. Some of the best exhibits I’ve seen have been in Chicago, Dayton, and Columbus, Ohio.

2. Seek out Free Activities: Festivals, Art Shows, etc.

One of my favorite activities to take part in during mid summer to early fall is to attend festivals throughout Michigan and Indiana.

For example, in Traverse City, MI they have the National Cherry Festival. Many people who tell you that they’ve been to Traverse City is because of this festival. While I’ve never been, I know it’s a great time.

That said, there are tons of other festivals that are going on around the area at this time due to the harvest period. One of these festivals is called the Venetian Festival which takes place in the town that I’d visit my great aunt in yearly – Charlevoix.

If you like fireworks and being up close to them when they’re going off, their Friday night display could possibly be one of the best shows you’ve ever seen!

After that, I always make it a point to go to Indiana festivals including the Johnny Appleseed Festival, James Dean Festival, and any others that might be happening in Indy. Many these festivals have tons of artisans selling their wares – so festivals make great places to find one of a kind gifts.

Not in the Michiana area? Check and see what kind of festivals are in your area!

3. Let your Phone Guide You

Some of my favorite apps help me discover towns (and cheap gas) I’m traveling through. If you haven’t added them to your phone yet, check out these out:

 

Gas Buddy

One of the first apps I downloaded when I got my first Android back in 2010. It’s changed a bit since then, but still pretty useful if you like shaving a few bucks off your fillup.

During my quick detours off the interstate, I might find myself traveling a few miles to get to where I’m going. During that time, the area might catch my eye for future exploration. This is especially true in Indy when a quick drop off of i-465 might lead me to discover a new store.

 

Yelp

Tired of the same ol’ cuisine? Maybe want to see if there’s any new stores in your area? This is a classic app that I’ve been a fan of over the years. Those that take the time to review on here are usually very transparent, so what you see in the reviews of a place is probably right. You can’t say that all the time for Google Reviews.

 

FieldTrip

Perhaps you’re the type that while you’re driving down the road, you don’t mind a notification that suggests you might like a certain landmark that’s a mile or two off this upcoming exit. Or maybe you’re staying with some extended relatives and want to make yourself your own tour guide of the area?

If either of these seem plausible, you’ll love this app.

Side note: If you live near or in Virginia and you haven’t witnessed the Natural Bridge – you have to go check it out and many of the caves in the area.

 

4. Wander until Your Curiosity Piques!

When I was in high school, there was a popular activity called “Cruisin’” that many of us took part in. If you’re not familiar with the term, It’s basically when you’d aimlessly cruise up and down a certain main stretch on a given evening and eventually bump into friends from school. Then, depending on who was out, you might continue on the same route or perhaps you and a convoy of friends would go on a short excursion somewhere in a nearby town or country.

People had been doing this for decades, so it was ingrained pretty heavily as “something to do” in my hometown.

When I was in college, I took this method to explore Lafayette and the surrounding counties so that I felt like I actually knew where I was. I’d go drive to the Purdue airport and watch planes take off and land while I was doing some homework. Heck, I’d even find some legendary backwoods restaurants that only the higher-ups in the community knew about and socialized at.

If you live in a small to mid sized college town and you don’t really know the surrounding area that well, I challenge you to just drive and find out what’s out there without using your phone. Just make sure that you have enough gas so that if you get lost, you can get back to where you started!

5. Switch up your Transportation: Walk, Bike, or Take Public Transportation

When I was at Purdue, I was definitely a different person than I am today. I feel I was certainly more introverted… but I think that’s just the nature of the beast when you’re studying engineering!

When I went to grad school, I felt like I had the opportunity to make changes in my life and one of those changes was, when it was cold, take the bus. Up through this point I had always ridden my bike, but one too many slips made me change my ways.

When I started riding, no one told me that I wasn’t aloud to talk to people on the bus. So I started striking up conversations with whomever I was sitting next to. Interestingly enough, sometimes those conversations were interesting enough that a bus stop might be missed!

Eventually those people I had engaged with before, started shouting back at me. Whether it was on the bus or on campus, there seemed to be people coming out of the woodwork to say hi!

 

6. Check out Nearby Sporting Events

If you’re not into sports, I understand. This might not work for you. But if you’re into one sport, there’s a good chance you might like to dabble in others from time to time.

Or maybe, while visiting other towns, you might want to get a taste for their fandom.

When I’ve visited Pittsburgh, for example, you can’t help but realize that you’re in a sports happy town. Having all their teams’ colors the same really makes it all part of a unified group of fans. Even though the Steelers have been a rival to the Colts over the years, if I was given the opportunity to go to one of their games, I’d consider it to just take in the atmosphere of one of their games.

7. Be a Visiting Friend’s Tour Guide

You know your town better than someone who’s visiting. So what better way to explore than by seeing it from the perspective of a visitor?

When Maria and I were first married, there were a couple of things she hadn’t visited yet in Indy. One was the zoo, believe it or not. Having been there a number of times growing up, I had the chance to show her some of the old exhibits as well as learn about the new ones that they had put in there in recent years.

 

8. Try New Restaurants in your Town or your Friend’s Favorites in Theirs

If you’re in a medium sized town to the size of a city, there’s no reason why you should run out of places to go try out on a week to week basis.

When I was at Purdue, we had a selection of all kinds of international cuisine. Plus, some restaurants would change from year to year while others, like XXX, have been staples for years.

Make it a point to try as many places as you can so you really have a taste of the town your in. And likewise, when you’re visiting friends in other towns, have them take you to their favorite places as well as experimental ones. You might help them find a new favorite!

 

9. Make a Bucket List and Commit to Achieving It

I remember a few years ago a friend of mine randomly went skydiving with a group of her friends. They didn’t stop talking about that event for the entire year.

Is there something that you’d want to do in your area? Maybe it doesn’t have to be skydiving. Maybe you could just learn how to fly a plane? Or perhaps take pictures?

Maybe 2018 is the year that you stop talking about something and finally actually do it?

 

10. Create a Mini-Adventure!

If you’re finding it hard to find something to do, then maybe you can make a circuit of activities. Having been part of AMS for awhile, I know that there’s some adventure races out there. And if there’s nothing like that near where you’re at, maybe there’s a scavenger hunt company, or a murder mystery company you could utilize to help you and some friends have a good time together?

 

Action Steps

So hopefully these give you a little spark in coming up with places to go to in your immediate area. The big thing about travel is that it gives you new perspectives. You can find new perspectives in your backyard by simply seeing how others work on their own crafts.

If you have any other ideas in how someone might be able to explore their own backyard, let me know below!

side business

Rachel Pedersen – From College Dropout to International Influencer: How a Former Hairdresser made her Side Business a 6 Figure Recurring Revenue Machine (AoL 112)

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When we’re building a side business, it’s easy to get the mindset that because we have some sort of disadvantage compared to someone else that we won’t be able to do what they’ve done.

Truth is, though, that’s usually an excuse more than anything else. It’s a victim mentality.

If you truly want to do something with your life and your work, then having that mentality isn’t going to get you anywhere.

For me, when I was growing up in my hometown, I knew I was going to go to grad school. Both of my parents had their master’s degrees, so it was an automatic that I would at least have that. It didn’t matter how long it took or what I had to do to achieve that goal. It was going to happen.

However, a lot of my peers didn’t have that perspective and/or support that I did. So their goals weren’t as “big”. While they might have dreamed about leaving our hometown and doing great things, many fell short. They just didn’t have the missing ingredient to get to that point.

I’d argue that this particular missing ingredient, for most, is unfortunately hitting rock bottom. Where things are so unbearable that we are forced to dream of a better life.

For this session’s guest, this was definitely the case. Rachel Pedersen has lead a life peppered with all kinds of ups and downs. Growing up in Minnesota as a pastor’s daughter, she had great expectations. But somewhere along the line, life took a turn and she found herself a college dropout with kids AND on welfare. But her story doesn’t stop there. It got much better.

In fact, today she finds herself working on her own 7 figure marketing business. What happened in the middle there? That’s what we’re going to be finding out in today’s session.

Enjoy!

SPECIFICALLY, YOU’LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT:

  • Did she ever see herself being as successful as she’s become? 7:50
  • While growing up, did she live her life based on what others expected of her or did she do her own thing from get go? 9:49
  • What was the first mental click Rachel had where she realized she needed to start building a side business? 12:38
  • Did she start working with her clients for free like Russell Brunson suggests in his book or did she charge right away? 19:03
  • What are some tips for someone to become as successful as Rachel even if they live in a “small town” or don’t have the best support in getting there? 23:34
  • What are 5 steps that someone should take if they want to start their own side business? 29:44
  • How does Rachel build a real human connection with people through social media? 39:14
  • Who does she pay attention to when it comes to watching FB Live videos? 42:42
  • How do you build a following and how does one define that? 44:52
  • What’s Rachel looking forward to in 2018? 46:57
  • One gift she likes giving others? 53:11
  • What’s something that’s going to affect entrepreneurship in the future she’s excited about? 53:37
  • What’s an issue that’s not being talked about enough? 54:42
  • How can someone be a difference maker in their community? 55:04

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

ITEMS and PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SHOW NOTE EXTRAS:

3 Ways of Finding Social Media Clients

Why Small Businesses Fear Social Media

3 Secrets of Facebook Ads and Funnels

How to Become a Fully Booked Social Media Manager

Thanks for Listening!

Thanks so much for joining us again this week. Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below!

If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the top of the post.

Also, please leave an honest review for The AoL Podcast on iTunes! Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show, and we read each and every one of them.

If you have any questions feel free to email them over via the email mentioned in the show or by our contact form.

And finally, don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and/or Google Play Music. It’s absolutely free to do so.

A huge thank-you to you guys for joining us!

Cheers!

online income

Building an Online Business: An 11 Step Blueprint to An Online Income Generator

/by

The below is a post that I recently posted in the Junto. It helped quite a bit of folks over there, so I thought I’d go ahead and post it on the official blog just to make sure I had it around when I needed it.

I think it’s a great representation of the online business world we live in and… in fact, it might even be something had I known a couple of years ago, I would have done things a bit differently!

So, without further adieu – here’s 11 steps to generate growing online income

Money Making Myths

I hear it all the time from people here in Indiana.

“There is no money in small town business – why should I stay?” or “Only people in big cities make the big income.”

There might have been a time I agreed with this. In fact, most would have at some point. It’s why Indiana and many states in the middle of the country have been suffering from brain drain.

However, today I’d say that both are myths – especially in 2017.

Why? It’s simple. The internet.

The Rise of Internet Commerce

Just like the introduction of interstates killed the local economies of so many small towns, the internet has essentially done the same thing to those metropolitan areas. We’re starting to see less and less of particular retail stores because it’s just simply easier to buy certain products offline.

And the great thing? ANYONE can be a seller online just as much as they can be a consumer.

Not only can you buy new releases of entertainment online, but we can also sell it and other goods and services on the internet ourselves as well.

If you’re someone who would like to make a larger impact in the world with your work, but you’re unclear where to start, here’s somewhat of a blueprint to get you started.

1. Find Clarity in how you want to help people.

Make sure you have clarity. What do you want to help people with? Do you want to help people with woodcarving? Fly fishing? Photography? Maybe even football. The first step is figuring out what you love to discuss and naturally help other people do if they’re interested.

2. Start building a following online.

Whether that’s a Facebook Group like the Junto, a YouTube channel, or a real Instagram account. (Actually you can do all 3 – this is what Laila Rahmatian is doing!)

3. Provide value by Teaching what you know.

If you’re just learning your craft, that’s fine. Get interviews with people who know the craft equally or better than you. Or if you’re funny – just be entertaining. There’s been a lot of channels which have boomed because the person is simply hilarious.

4. Hustle if you need to make income right away.

If you’re just starting out and in need of some income, there’s a few things you can do. You can do retail arbitrage like Tyler Philbrook, or learn some digital marketing skills. Whether you are creating content, working on SEO, or helping with sales funnels – these are all things that people have made thousands (even millions) online with. Check out JR Rivas’s group for help with that.

If neither of those are for you, perhaps you can sell your skill online. For example, a photographer can take stock photos for companies. Or if you’re a musician, write jingles for podcasts. Check out fiverr to see what’s available out there for quick cash.

Make sure you’re getting testimonials as you do things at the beginning for free or for the cheap. Having these testimonials along with case study videos of what you’ve done can be useful when going after bigger fish with larger budgets to pay you.

Also – start working on making contracts so you can cover your rear properly for work you’ve done!

5. Don’t Quit on Your Other Endeavours.

As you’re building income as a freelancer, you need to continue to build your following. Eventually you don’t want to sell your time for $. To stop doing that, you need products online. The most cost effective products are those that are called infoproducts. And since you’re probably already doing something successful in your life already, You can start building products that your following is going to potentially buy. I’d employ the teachings of Dane and the Foundation as much as possible. You can hear about that method in last week’s post.

6. As you’re learning more about your craft, share with your following.

How many times have we seem someone jump from one building to another or from one cliff to another after seeing the person they’re with do it first?

Same thing applies in business. If your followers see you succeed, they’ll more than likely have the right frame of mind to accomplish the same thing. Help them do what you’re doing and learning about. If you’re learning about ways to create passive income, teach what you’ve learned about that topic. That’s exactly what Pat Flynn did with his blog – and people are STILL replicating his success! (Just goes to show you don’t have to worry about originality!)

7. As you provide more and more value, find out what what your group members or followers really want.

Learn how to perform idea extraction, verify, and do presales of MVPs (Most Viable Products). Having a process for these 3 steps will help you craft anything your tribe wants!

8. Capitalize on your Testimonials!

If so, it’s time to go after those bigger fish! Heck, even better, just create a website showing what you can do, then send out emails to prospects redirecting them to the website. There’s all kinds of ways to find potential clients – it doesn’t have to be manual (Use Facebook ads if you’ve worked on that skill – that’s what JR did to find his chiropractor clients.)

9. Don’t forget to Grow the size of your Team

By this point, you’re probably making a decent income. Congratulations!! But we’re just getting started and there’s some things for you to start thinking about.

For example, I’m sure at this point you might feel that you’re overstretching yourself. Maybe it’s time to hire a VA or start mentoring someone to help you with stuff you suck at? A good place to start is Airtasker.

Also, if you haven’t already (which I know you have!) it might be a good time to invest in yourself. Start going to conventions and meeting people. Start thinking about buying those big name courses you always wanted.

10. Repeat the Process.

Build more products – hire more people to help! This is how you start scaling. As you grow your services and company, keep bringing on more people to help you with various things so you can spend more time doing what the founder should be doing.

11. Do what the Founder (or President) should be doing.

It’s totally up to you what that means. This might involve you working in your local community more and/or helping to start an incubator where you can mentor younger creatives. Perhaps it means going out and becoming a speaker? Or heck, maybe you could get into politics if that’s your thing.

Actions Steps

I hope this helps you guys a bit. I think the biggest thing that I didn’t do on purpose was focus on getting results for someone. That needs to be the first thing you focus on. Then, from there, get 3 to 5 testimonials that you can use on your first landing page for a course, eBook, etc.

Feel free to let me know if you have any questions or thought I left something out in this post. I might actually make it into a more detailed opt-in sometime.

music education

Edwin Culver – Finding Meaning in Music – How Music Education Goes Beyond the Classroom (AoL 107)

/by

Lots of people want to change the world – but, unfortunately, they think that only government can do that.

So how do you help them change that belief? To one where they think anything is possible?

I personally believe that anyone can make change – it’s just a matter of finding your own personal Truth and then applying that knowledge to the world around you. Helping people in a way that is uniquely you.

Today’s guest is a great example of that.

Having been trained as a classical musician, Edwin Culver first started his career as a teacher. However, he soon realized that this wasn’t his calling. His students were not nearly as fascinated about the arts as much as he first hoped they’d be.

He wanted to change this – but he wasn’t going to do so from the inside.

Today, he has transitioned to performing more regularly and training those that want to actually learn. But, like any good educator knows, it’s important to know the background of what you’re teaching so that you can give your students can understand the full context of what they’re learning.

In today’s chat, you’ll find out how he ended up with this perspective and also what he’s done to further his own education. We also discuss how someone can become a musician like him AND how he applies some of the things that he learned during a short internship with Wallbuilders and Mercury One.

Enjoy!

 

SPECIFICALLY, YOU’LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT:

  • How did Edwin go from being a music teacher to becoming an actual performing musician? 14:16
  • Is playing other people’s music as fulfilling as playing his own? 29:15
  • Why did Edwin apply for the Wallbuilders’ leadership internship this past summer at TheBlaze studios? 42:05
  • What kind of specific experiences did he have during his internship that were memorable? 51:59
  • Were there any lessons he had that he now applies directly to his work as a musician? 58:14
  • How can someone pursue a career in music? 1:07:37
  • What is he currently working on that he’s excited about? 1:11:30
  • 3 Influencers or teachers which helped him to where he’s at today? 1:14:57
  • What’s a gift Edwin likes giving others? 1:18:39
  • What was the smallest decision he’s made that had the largest impact on his life? 1:20:18
  • What’s a skill that he’s often surprised people lack today? 1:22:06
  • What is the secret to achieving personal freedom? 1:25:33
  • … and MUCH more!

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

ITEMS and PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

 

SHOW NOTE EXTRAS:

Choros No. 1 by Heitor Villa-Lobosh:

Beginning of Edwin Culver’s performance (8/2/17):

Edwin Discussing Dissonance (pt1):

Edwin Discussing Dissonance (pt2):

Edwin’s intern group at the Leadership Training Program:

Thanks for Listening!

Thanks so much for joining us again this week. Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below!

If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the top of the post.

Also, please leave an honest review for The AoL Podcast on iTunes! Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show, and we read each and every one of them.

If you have any questions feel free to email them over via the email mentioned in the show or by our contact form.

And finally, don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and/or Google Play Music. It’s absolutely free to do so.

A huge thank-you to you guys for joining us!

Cheers!

sales skills

Mark Boersma – Developing your Sales Skills: Why Business Systems are Huge in Making Predictable Revenue (AoL 106)

/by

You always hear about people “systematizing” their work. However, so many of us, especially us solopreneurs, don’t take the time to do that. Sure, we might write an SOP if we hire a virtual assistant (if we’re smart), but when it comes down to our creative work we never take the time to think about what might be easier if we actually detail out what gets results.

As you’ll find out in the interview of Mark Boersma, he started systemizing early on. Having an analytical mind, he out thought his problem and now teaches others how to turn sales, which can seem like an intangible skill, into something that’s very step by step.

In today’s chat, Mark discusses with me why he had to figure this system out, what the results of it gave him, and how knowing personalities plays into the success of this system.

Enjoy!

SPECIFICALLY, YOU’LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT:

  • Why did Mark get three bachelor degrees? 10:41
  • Did he feel that going to college was a detour of what he should be doing in his career? 13:22
  • When he got out of school, why did he immediately go for a 100% commission paid position? 15:02
  • What was the first tool that he made which systematized his sales? 20:35
  • How does knowing about personalities useful in making sales? 23:44
  • What’s the accuracy percentage of the personality assessment he uses with people? 30:54
  • What are some of the things Mark is looking forward to in the future with Synergy Solutions? 35:51
  • Who are 3 influencers who have helped him get to where he is today? 41:38
  • What is a scientific fact that he knows his true but still blows him away? 42:49
  • What’s an unwritten rule that should actually be written today? 43:55
  • What’s something that he belives all high school students must know? 45:18
  • What does it mean to live a life of abundance? 46:39
  • … and MUCH more!

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

 

ITEMS and PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SHOW NOTE EXTRAS:

Mark and Tom interviewed by the Milwaukee’s Morning Blend:

Mark on Thinkers vs Doers:

ClickFunnels Viral Ad 2017:

Thanks for Listening!

Thanks so much for joining us again this week. Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below!

If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the top of the post.

Also, please leave an honest review for The AoL Podcast on iTunes! Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show, and we read each and every one of them.

If you have any questions feel free to email them over via the email mentioned in the show or by our contact form.

And finally, don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and/or Google Play Music. It’s absolutely free to do so.

A huge thank-you to you guys for joining us!

Cheers!