3 Simple Changes that Took me from Broke... to Finally Making Real Money Online

15 replies
I started online in 2001 as a broke personal trainer.

That first year, I made about $500.

I kept thinking to myself "How the hell do I make money online... I know I can do it."

"How can I make money.... How can I make money"

That was my mantra and thought all the time. And it didn't help at all.

Change #1. I went from thinking "How can I make money online... to "How can I help people get what they want? How can I be a problem solver.


I did this because I remember what I used to do at the gym. While most personal trainers stood around and looked foolish... I'd go over and help people who were doing their exercises wrong.

I'd show them how to do it right, tell them why it was better this way, and then I'd walk away...not even mentioning my personal training services.

As a result of doing this, I started getting 4 to 5 new training clients a week, just by helping them do the machines.

Making the change from "how do I make money" to "how can I solve people's problems" has and continues to be the biggest money maker for me.

Change 2. I went from buying... to selling. From consumer, to producer

In 2001, I bought over 14 courses on how to make money.

I made $500 or so that entire first year.

In 2002, instead of buying courses, I started writing programs on how people could get in shape.

Instead of consuming every new shiny toy that came along... I started writing and selling my fitness programs.

In 2002... I hit six figures, when the year before, I made $500 online, if that.

Every year since, I've never gone below high six figures... and I owe it all to producing stuff instead of buying stuff. Sure, I buy ads and media... but I'm talking course after course.

All the time your consuming courses takes away time you could be producing stuff that helps other people solve problems.

Be a producer and problem solver... and you're almost there.

Change 3: I went from working "in the business" to "on the business"

For a long time in the early 2000's, I had built myself a glorified job. Sure, I had my own biz... but I was tied to it almost all day. I had to answer emails, do customer service, write all the blog post, etc...

I had no systems and no leverage.... I had a friggin job.

What's more, that took away the time that I needed to scale the business and use leverage to grow.

without leverage and scale, you'll never make much money online, unless you do consulting and coaching... where some coaches earn $500 to $1,000 per hour.

But if you're selling products online... in order to make REAL money... you gotta scale so you can REACH more people, solve more problems, and get your stuff in more hands.

Also, by using leverage, outsourcing, and systems... you can start to work outside the business, on growing it to those levels of scale you need... instead of working inside the biz... doing it all yourself.

I quickly learned I was my own bottleneck and was getting in my own way of growth.

So, those 3 changes, for me, took me from broke... to a million dollar fitness biz in a few years.

And if you notice... all 3 changes work together, they're intertwined.

I went from "how can I make money" to "how can I solve more problems"

Then, I went from consuming course after course, spending money... to producing programs and making money.

Then, to scale it where the real money's made... I had to remove myself from the biz and use systems instead, so that I didn't have to be there doing it all myself.

Hope this helps... I promise, follow these 3 steps and I promise you will make a lot more online....

Shawn
#broke #finally #making #money #online #simple
  • Profile picture of the author jakeymallins
    Thanks - great advice for newbies like me!
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    • Profile picture of the author Frank Donovan
      Excellent post, Shawn. Should be required reading for anyone looking to start a business.

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  • Profile picture of the author CurtisSWN
    1. Find what people want.
    2. Give it to them.
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    Simple Two Step Formula
    Earns Me Over $146.72 in 12 Hours. This is Weird, But it Works!
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    • Profile picture of the author Steve B
      Thank you Shawn,

      What a breath of fresh air post this is . . .

      It's about as close to the "magic button" as anything I've read lately. If people would only read it over and over again, then do what you suggest, they could save themselves a lot of money, time, and grief and actually make some serious money in their business.

      Steve
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  • Profile picture of the author Marked09
    Nice tips! You inspired me more to grow my business!
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  • Profile picture of the author nickgregz
    It's always was and will be about supply and demand, but reading the basics put in a personal story always helps.
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    • Profile picture of the author Kay King
      Only thing wrong with this thread is it's not in the Main Forum!

      This 1,2,3 could be used as an answer to 60% or so of the "how to do this" questions asked on this forum.
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      • Profile picture of the author shawnlebrun
        Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

        Only thing wrong with this thread is it's not in the Main Forum!

        This 1,2,3 could be used as an answer to 60% or so of the "how to do this" questions asked on this forum.
        Thanks Kay... it was for a short time, but got moved here.

        Not sure what even classifies to go into the main forum these days... I guess it has to be "what is a domain"?

        I thought it would be helpful, since a lot of questions on the main forum seem to be from newbies. But oh well, it is what it is... but thank you for the kind words!
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  • Profile picture of the author tactix
    "Then, I went from consuming course after course, spending money... to producing programs and making money."

    That was one of the most important steps i made to!
    Great post Shawn!
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    • Thanks for sharing! Success usually comes when the main goal is to serve other people and not ourselves. Of course, we aim to earn money from the endeavor, but we can only earn money by being of value to others.
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  • Profile picture of the author ryanbiddulph
    Hi Shawn,

    Smart tips!

    For me, the shift from broke joke to prospering happened with a shift in intent.

    I went from trying to make money online to freeing me and my audience. That freeing intent made me more creative, more attractive and hell, I just became my authentic self in all I did.

    I also found myself connecting with more top level pros in my niche which is the way to prosper online.

    Nothing to add Shawn. Well done!

    Tweeting from Bali.

    Ryan
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    Ryan Biddulph helps you to be a successful blogger with his courses, manuals and blog at Blogging From Paradise
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  • Profile picture of the author shawnlebrun
    Yeah, it took me a while to realize that "chasing money" didn't exactly help me create a long lasting, sustainable business.

    I remember talking to Bill Phillips of EAS/Body for Life fame back in 1995 or so. I was working as a police officer at the time, and wrote him a letter asking his advice for getting rich in the fitness industry.

    He wrote back and basically said "Ink and paper will help you reach more people and help more people"

    Unfortunately, that didn't stick with me until I actually started working as a trainer and tried putting my stuff online.

    Even today, I'll try to look at everything I do as "how can I reach the most people and help the most people"

    This alone helps condition my mind for trying to reach the most people possible. You just can't make a lot of money unless you add a lot of value to a lot of lives.

    That's why traffic is so important... you can't add value or solve problems unless you get your stuff in front of a LOT of people.

    So, everything you do online, it is all entwined with the "help a lot of people get what they want" mantra that Zig Ziglar used to say.

    And the funny thing is... this will never, ever change. Sure, the technology will change, but not the basis of trying to help as many people as possible.

    Back when I started, it was GoTo.com, or Overture and Findwhat.com

    Today, it's Google and Facebook.

    Back then it was long sales letters... today it's video.

    Again, different technology... but you're still, in a nutshell, trying to help as many people as possible.

    Being broke is simply a matter of failing to add a lot of value to people... and failing to solve problems for others.

    Once you condition your mind to be a problem solver... you start to see opportunities everywhere.
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  • Profile picture of the author nurz
    Thanks Shawn, your story is very inspiring. I’m no newbie to online marketing but I got inspired to pursue more and reach higher goals just by reading your story. It’s so enlightening to read success stories like what you've shared. This gives people, who are new to internet marketing, some hope that they too will find their silver lining.
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  • Profile picture of the author Teo Torriatte
    Originally Posted by shawnlebrun View Post


    So, those 3 changes, for me, took me from broke... to a million dollar fitness biz in a few years.

    And if you notice... all 3 changes work together, they're intertwined.

    I went from "how can I make money" to "how can I solve more problems"

    Then, I went from consuming course after course, spending money... to producing programs and making money.

    Then, to scale it where the real money's made... I had to remove myself from the biz and use systems instead, so that I didn't have to be there doing it all myself.

    Hope this helps... I promise, follow these 3 steps and I promise you will make a lot more online....

    Shawn
    This is so awesome I read it twice and will re-read it over and over again! Thank you very, very much for the sharing, Shawn!
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    Be victorious!

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