What The Gurus Don't Tell You About Success

I'm going to share 7 things that "Gurus" don't share about success...

When I left the Army at age 25, I had no degree and no contacts to fall back on. I knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur, there was no second option.

My first business attempt failed miserably. Without going into the details, I'll just say that I tried and failed for 2 years, and it left me absolutely broke.

I didn't have a job, I was negative in my bank account, I was behind on rent, my cell phone got shut off, and every debt collector on the planet was looking for me...

That was at age 27. I'm 30 now, running an online business from a beautiful 3800 square foot home in Florida that did over $500K in online sales in the last 2 years.

Here's what I learned in that 3 years. The stuff that "Gurus" aren't telling people...

1. Just because someone is successful does not mean you need to do it their way.

For years I struggled because I kept focusing on other people's success and wanting what they had, thinking they must have the answer to my problems. Listening to them tell me I should buy this and that because it would help.

Don't get me wrong, you need to invest in your education. But don't do it because someone tells you to, and don't believe that there's only one path.

My success is a culmination of many different strategies, ideas, and advice from many different sources. I took what made sense, applied it to my business and my goals, and made it work the way I wanted to.

"Gurus" will have you believe that their way is right. Not true- their way is just one way, and it may not be the way for you. You need to find what makes sense to you.

I wouldn't be here today had I not decided to stop listening to certain successful people and find a path that made more sense for me.

2. You do not need to rush opportunity.

There's so much emphasis nowadays on buy now, and do this now before you miss out on your opportunity forever...

Not true, there's no such thing as a lack of opportunity or an end to your chances. There will always be opportunity around every corner.

Now that's not an excuse to be lazy or put off your dreams, but it does mean you can work at your own pace. Don't compare yourself to others, there's no point. If they did it in one month, congratulations for them. You don't know the full backstory to that one month.

All that matters is you and your progress. I had lots of people tell me that I had to "Take massive action" on what they were saying to be successful.. sometimes I did, sometimes I didn't. I still made it, despite the people I didn't.

Work at a pace that makes sense to you, the opportunity is not going anywhere. As long as you are staying focused, working hard and consistently, your day will come.

3. Success is often a lonely and frustrating road.

Some of you know this already, but many of you don't. You haven't walked it long enough to know the road.

Everyone on social media wants you to feel their life is so amazing through quick snapshots of their highest points.. and it makes you feel like your life must be less or missing something. Not true.

The path to success is made when no one else is looking. It's in the hours of beating on your craft over and over again while your friends are out partying, while your girlfriend or boyfriend is getting mad for not spending time with them, while your family tells you that you don't call enough anymore, while people start to resent you for chasing your dreams.

I wish I could tell you it's easier, but it's not. When you chase your dreams, you'll turn many people against you. Because if they know you came from the same place as them and are trying to get out and do better, it makes them insecure.

You'll find others who support you, but there will be a gap. When you start to have results, people will find you and want to listen. But in that in between time, you'll be walking alone.

Of course you can reach out and follow others, but it's one-sided. Forums like this are great for support, but anyone who's been in it knows it doesn't take away the loneliness of walking that path. Because you want to be the one who shares the results, not always listen to the others sharing them with you.

It can take months or years, the journey is up to you. But you have to know that part of the journey is what makes you worthy of the success you'll one day enjoy.

4. You don't get in life what you want.

"Gurus" like to make it seem like all you need to do is want something bad enough and buy their system and it will happen.

But as many of you probably know from wasting money on failed systems, it's not that simple. There's no such thing as something for nothing.

Everybody wants a better life. Many people "try" internet marketing or "try" being an entrepreneur, but very few succeed to create their own full time income.

Why is that?

The reason 90% of people fail is because they think it's simply about getting what they want. But that's not true, and don't let any "guru" make you think their system is going to just hand you riches.

All successful people get to be successful because they became the person worthy of that success. That a certain system worked for them is just because it was the right fit for their work ethic. Sure, some systems make it easier and more fail-proof than others, but it's not the system.. it's the person.

You shouldn't judge an opportunity based on someone else's success. You should judge it based on the potential to you and how much you're willing to give in pursuit of it. Because you're not going to get what you want, you're going to get what you become.

5. Marketing is mostly recycled information.

Now as a marketer myself, I understand this may sound counter intuitive. However, our job as marketers is simply to present the benefits of something in a way that makes a certain person or group of people want to buy.

Marketing is really about creating interaction.

When you understand that, you understand that you don't need all the newest and latest software and plugins and gadgets.

Do some of them make life easier? Yes, of course. But they are not a prerequisite of success in any business. People were successful before they came along, and people will be successful afterwards.

Now this doesn't include necessary technology to achieve in any specific industry, just to say that you don't need to buy endless product after product, even if your coach is telling you that's how they made it.

There are countless stories (myself included) of people who made it on the bare basics with a $0 budget starting out.

Once you reach a certain point, you realize that everyone out there (except for a few new strategies aside) is mostly retelling the same information in a different way.

I fully believe you should educate yourself to the fullest, but just understand that you don't need it all to be an effective marketer. You just need to know how to communicate effectively, and then find ways to spread your communication online. Set up your offer and give people a chance to buy, and that's it.

That's all online marketing is. Effective communication through internet media, with the intent of selling something.

You can make it as complicated as you want, but that's all you really need to get started. That's the information I started with and if I can do it with that, anyone can.

6. You need to become a seller, not a buyer.

This is a mindset most "Gurus" won't tell you because they want you to keep buying from them. But if you want to become successful, you need to make the transition.

That's not to say you won't ever buy products again, but that you put yourself in a place where you are no longer actively scanning for products as a solution to your problem.

All success in business is based on selling. You need to sell something, and you need to learn how to sell it well.

I struggled with this for a long time without even realizing it. I was constantly buying and letting people fill my head with what they said I needed.

But at a certain point you have enough. Then it's just about selling and selling and selling.

Your business can be about whatever you want, but if you don't make sales you don't have a business.

Once you get good at selling through a certain process (your sales funnel), you put in steps to automate and scale the process.

7. You do NOT need a social following to be successful.

This one really irritates me. It's become the new thing "Gurus" love to sell to unsuspecting people who lack strategy- build a social following and make money.

Now do I know people making lots of money this way? Yes, I do. But they are all very good salespeople (meaning they know how to manipulate).

I started with 400 high school friends on Facebook, none of which I ever pitched an idea to or tried to sell anything. Everyone told me to use Facebook, network and build a following, create interactions, blah blah blah...

Then it was Twitter, then it was Instagram, and Pinterest, and LinkedIn.. and any other social site out there.

Yes, they are all good tools for effective branding and building a business. Yes, you can make sales through them. But they are not prerequisites.

Remember this.. Mark Zuckerberg is a billionaire because he built Facebook, not because he used it.

You do not need to recruit or have a large following or build a large network to become successful. Those things will actually happen as a result of you becoming successful.

Building a business is about building a brand, which is about reaching your target market in an effective way. Social media is only one piece of a large pie.

If you want to be a comedian or public speaker, then yes, you probably need to push social media very heavily. But that's your choice, it does not mean it's the only way.

I'm speaking to online entrepreneurs. There are literally thousands of ways to build a business, get cash flow and credibility first, and then pursue the social media channels as an authority.



And above all, remember that you are capable of the same type of success as any "guru" you see out there. Every expert or self made millionaire you see out there once started as a beginner.

Hope this helps at least one person out there who reads it. Feel free to leave comments below or start a discussion, ask questions.

I'm not saying that methods mentioned above can't make you successful, rather I'm trying to open the minds of some people out there who may be stuck.

I'm sharing this because I'm simply tired of the nonsense I see out there everywhere. I want you to arm yourself with knowledge and realize you don't need a "gurus" help to be successful.

It's all inside you already