What Can You Learn From This Kid???

Wow, that's certainly a story you don't hear everyday! In response to the question, "What can you learn from this kid?" I thought you brought up some good points. Being as bold, as confident, and as driven as him could help any internet marketer or product owner to reach out a grab hold of success, instead of shrinking away from it. A lot of people lack that courage, even if they have a really great product to share.

However, as I read through the article, I also thought it brings up some good points about how you SHOULDN'T do business, whether online or offline. The reason why this kid failed, ultimately, was because he was dishonest and unethical in his methods.

Look at how much his story parallels some of the scammers of today's marketing world:

1. He had no actual product to offer. None. It wasn't even that he had a bad product or a rehashed product- he was literally claiming to have created something that, in reality, only existed in his own imagination.

2. He used multiple names and fake identities to create a false illusion of a support team. Many marketers also do this, whether to create fake testimonials, to pretend to have a help desk, to write reviews of their own products pretending to be fans, etc.

3. He used technical jargon and impressive sounding speech to trick others into believing he knew more than he did. Fortunately, his lie was eventually uncovered. Unfortunately, this is not always the case when many IM newbies stumble upon landing pages that promise them results, and seduce them with claims that sound both reasonable and possible. They buy into the dream because it sounds good, and they don't know any better.

4. He showed a complete disregard for the lost time and money of the people he deceived. During the time that he spent pretending to be operating a regional airline, real airline workers lost valuable time by reading and responding to his emails, taking his phone calls, and meeting with him in person, while under the impression that he worked for a legitimate business.

5. He disrespected everyone he met and networked with by betraying their trust. This is perhaps one of the worst bits, because betraying someone's trust a is low blow, and it's hard to ever regain their respect. Both this kid, and the marketers who lack respect for the people who trust and believe in them, can end up tarnishing their reputations forever.

6. Even when caught in a lie, he denied any wrongdoing. If you've been found out, there's no point trying to convince people of your innocence; it's best to admit that you were wrong and to make a since apology.


Of course, the article goes on to explain how this particular kid suffers from a form of autism, how he's not malicious or cruel, and how he, like many other autistic people, has huge potential and remarkable skill that often surpasses that of an ordinary person. He's also only 17 years old, and can't be held accountable for the same actions that an adult can. The fact that he was able to do so much and be so convincing is impressive, and his passion for airplanes wasn't fake; he really does aspire to form his own airline one day.

I think it's interesting how this article can be both inspirational and cautionary at the same time. His ability to attract the attention of big businesses at such a young age is amazing, but since in the end he had nothing behind his claims, it was inevitable that he was going to get caught eventually. Either way, it's a quite a story, to be sure! Maybe it will be made into a movie one day.

You did a great job of explaining, I was just being grumpy

I see what you're saying. Things are possible if you really go for it.