B (3:41)

I love that. And then was able to go take it from there. Then also then to Boise State, which is not easy to do, to take it from the high school wrestling, which is very competitive, and then the Boise State. When you went into college wrestling, did you feel the difference? Did you feel the change?

A (4:00)

Oh, it was huge. And like put in perspective. So in high school I was a state champ, and then I also, I took second place in the nation. So I was an all American in high school. And so I went from being like second place in the nation to. I went. My first. My freshman year is actually byu. I went to byu. And I remember coming in the wrestling room thinking I was the stuff, you know, three months earlier, I'd taken second place. In the nation. And I started wrestling these college kids and, you know, like, the third and fourth string guys were like, you know, they hadn't even want to stay titled. They were maybe, you know, whatever. They walk ons. And these guys were walk ons and beginners. They thumped me. And it was like the most humbling experience of my life. Going from thinking I was here to, like, realizing I was down here. I remember getting thumped on every day from, like September, October, November, and then December, I went home for Christmas break and we're back to my high school and I was just, like, depressed. I'm like, I'm not good at wrestling anymore. I can't beat anybody. And I went and worked out with my team and I wrestled some of my buddies who had been wrestling the year prior with them, and I just destroyed him. And in fact, my coach, I never meet my coach before, and we wrestled the first time I was able to do really good against him. And everyone's like, well, you've improved so much. I was like, really? Because I have not won a match in three months, you know, And. And so that level jump between high school and college, again, I was. I was top tier in high school. That jump to college was. Was a lot more than I expected. It took me. It took me most of that first year before I finally got spot where I was like, making the starting team, started winning. I ended up placing third in the whack that year and just like getting back into it. But yeah, it was. It was a big jump from. From high school to college, for sure.

B (5:27)

No, no, I love that. And so I know we've had some great USA wrestlers, like, who was one from the Olympics, you know, years ago that you, like, connected to his style.

A (5:40)

Oh, yeah. I mean, tons. Like, Dan Gable was my first hero.

B (5:44)

That's where I thought you were gonna go. I thought you're gonna go again. But. But what? But why? Why him? Because I know that the media really always used to play up his story and his background, that kind of thing. But what about his style and technique? Because I actually know this sport a little bit because of the fact that I just love sports and I have coached wrestlers before. But why? Why someone like Dan? Why about his technique or his style or his mindset or what?

A (6:12)

A little bit of all of that. Like, it was so Dan Gable, he was. He was like the Michael Jordan of wrestling. And he. He went through, all through high school, never lost a match all through college. He lost his last match his senior year. Then he went on to the Olympics. And during the Olympics, while he was training for Olympics, he was so stressed out because he knew that, like, he'd work out all day long, and then he. He'd want to go to bed at night. But he knew the Russians on the other side of the world were still training, and so he'd get up at night and he'd run, and, like, that was his mindset. And my dad, actually, my dad wrestled about the same time Gable did. My dad, like, would always tell stories about Gable. Like, he'd see him wrestle at tournaments and, like, win these things. And so my dad, growing up, would always tell us these Dan Gable stories. And so when I was in high school, like, like, the dream, because Dan ended up becoming the head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes, as you know, and became, like, the most winningest coach, I think, of almost any sport at that time. Like, and. And so I remember, for us, like, like, all my buddies, everything we always talk about Dan, Gabe, we wanted to be like him. And so actually, we all saved up our money. So my junior year, after we graduated my junior high school, we all, my. Me and three or four, my buddies saved our money. We went to Iowa. And I remember thinking, like, if we could just shake his hand, like, I'll never. Like, it'll change everything. And so went to Iowa wrestling camp. We wrestled. And then. And then Dan came once or twice and spoke. And then one night, there's kind of like a get together, and everyone was down there. And I remember standing in line for, like, 10 minutes, and I stood in line. I got shake Dan Gable's hand. And afterwards, I was like. Like, I never want to wash this head again. Like, I've touched the greatest wrestler of all time, you know? But it was all those things. It was just like that mindset of. Of. Of knowing that. Like. Like, for me, it's like, I wrestle in high school. Like, I'd be wrestling, and then I remember we don't practice. I knew, Like, I knew, like, I was in Hillcrest High School, so I knew, like, Brighton High School. I knew Orem, these other schools. Like, I knew the guys were. I'm like, what if they're staying after practice? Like, I gotta stay after practice. Like, what do they do on Saturday? What do they do on Sunday? Like, what do they. And like, that. That. That mindset I got from Dan Gable of him stressing out about the. The Russians, like, I would use all the time, and my coaches used that with me because they knew, like, they knew who I was gunning for, knew who I was trying to beat. It's like even in practices, they'd be like, you know, like, they'd be calling that out, like, oh, you think so? And so is doing that. I think so. And so's on his back right now, you know, like, and that would just fire me up. And then his style, just, like pure, like, relentless pressure, pressure, pressure, pressure or something. We always tried to emulate just because we all wanted to be Dan Gable.

B (8:25)

So, Russell, one of the things that I think is interesting about life is that, like, the way you wanted to shake Dan Gable's hand is now the way you have been thrust into this thing of really being so phenomenal at mastering this whole thing of marketing click funnels. So I think I've spoken at seven of the 10x conferences. Okay. I think maybe the first time you did it, was it the second or third 10x conference, you remember?

A (8:59)

It was the third one in Vegas. I think it was the third. Right.

B (9:01)

Okay. Yeah. So I, I watched you and I, I watched, I watched a lot of things. And I just want you to know I study because I work with entertainers. So I, I, I know when I see different talent, like, maybe they're hired to do one thing, but I saw a lot of other things in you. And, you know, you broke records as far as, like, it's sales, and then everybody was just like, all over you. It was like this breakthrough moment because you're a spiritual guy. There's a Bible verse that says, it says, unrelenting disappointment can leave you heart sick, but a sudden good break can turn your life around. And I promise you, I sat there and I watched you, and you had already had breaks and you were already known, but I thought, man, this, this young guy, something just like broke open. And I get to see that, like, in other things. I got to see Robert Downey by being on the set with him as he's working on Iron Man. I knew that Iron man was going to take off. He wasn't so sure. Even the people that were directing it just thought, you know, it's a Marvel movie. Let's see what happens. But what's it like to almost, like, be the guy that was waiting in line for a Dan Gable and now for people to wait in line to hear secrets from you, insights from you, to get to know you really think this through? What, what, what's it like?

A (10:33)

Yeah, I think it's, it's one of those weird feelings because, like, it, it's interesting is what. I coach entrepreneurs. This is one of the hardest Roadblocks for them to understand is like the thing that is your superpower is usually common sense to you. So no one values it. I think for me, it's always weird like that. Like, it's still like such an honor to meet. People run up to me at the airports or we're on a vacation. My kids and my kids, they always laugh like, dad got spotted. But if you run up and it's like they're so excited to tell you their story, how they, how they, they found you the first time, what the impact you had and stuff. And it's just like the, I don't know, it's a really, it's a really cool feeling, but also doesn't make sense. You know what I mean? It's like, it's like I was just this nerdy guy in a room reading a bunch of old business books and testing things forever. No one seemed to care. And then, and then eventually everyone seemed to care. But it's. Yeah, it's.

B (11:22)

But I think that because I know that you have the spiritual side of your life and the connection you have to your wife and your five kids. But I personally believe like when God's hand is on you, sometimes it is a little bit weird because it's like me coming from Compton, California, seven people in a two bedroom apartment. I never saw myself as being this guy that I became. But I think it was a plan of God. So I think that in what you're doing is the plan of God for your life and this is what you're supposed to do. So give me something that you enjoy about your systems, your ideas, your behind the scenes, your coding that you love because it's changing lives, like, what's exciting about the life changing side of it.

A (12:19)

So I, I remember if I go back in time, like when I first started learning this stuff, right? I remember I was in college, I was studying, I was learning it. And the first time you discover something new, it's like the most exciting thing. Like every day I was like learning something, I'm like, this is insane. Like, I couldn't go to bed at night. Like, woke up early in the morning. When I was at school, I was trying figure out how to like focus on, you know, like. And I just become obsessed with this. And I remember every single time I learned something new, it's like, this is the most exciting thing in the world. But over time, after doing this for a year, five years, 10 years, like, it's, it's harder and harder to find those new insights. The new like aha. Shiny objects, you know. And so for me it was like after like 10 years of being in business, it was just kind of like, like I knew the process, it worked, we made money. It was like that thing. And it wasn't until I started the transition to like, we're going to start coaching other people and training them. And there's something magical about like when I would share this insight, like this thing I discovered and then you see in the audience or in the room you're at, and also you see them, like they get that aha and it clicks in their eyes. They see in their eyes or in their mind. I was like, they get it. Like, it's even a better feeling when you see that person have the aha than when you did initially. And I remember I shared a story one time about this because it was, it was probably the best explanation of this for myself personally. Like, as you mentioned earlier, growing up I was a wrestler and for me, like the best feeling I ever felt in my life was like, I win a wrestling match, like I'm hand raised. Like I love that feeling. I was addicted to it. There's nothing better. Like I, like a decade of my life was just chasing that, the high of like getting my hand raised at the end of a match. And I always thought like there'd be nothing better than that. In fact, I remember getting to business, I'm like, there's nothing that, that is. I've never felt the feeling I felt winning a wrestling match. I've never been able to match it in business, but however I tried, met her, you know, it's just, it's just not the same thing. And I remember I've got five kids, as you mentioned earlier. I have twins that are man now 19 years old. But when my kids started middle school, we joined the wrestling team and, and the twins did. And one of my sons named Bowen, he's the coolest kid, but he just, he just couldn't figure out wrestling. And he went out there and he just wasn't strong. He couldn't hold people. Like, he couldn't figure out positioning and he lost match after match after match. And like, and every time he come off like in tears and we would work on the stuff and work on the stuff and he kept losing and losing and he get a little better, a little better. But it was a four month long season and we keep tweaking and tweaking and he lost every single match. And finally down to the very last tournament of the very last thing of his year he's lost every match. He's kind of embarrassed. He's kind of whatever, you know, and we go out there in this match and he starts. He goes out and wrestles, and he does the move right. He's in the right position, and he ends up winning this match. He jumps. He gets up afterwards, jumps up and, like, does this little skip thing and runs over, gets his hand raised, runs over, gives me a hug. I remember thinking I was like. Like, that felt infinity times better than me ever getting my own hand raised, you know? And I feel like with entrepreneurship, it's been the same thing. It's like me making a million dollars or 10 million or whatever that number is, is. It feels great, but, like, when you coach someone else and you see them have that success, it's infinitely better. And so it's interesting. You look at, like, our journey, like, the first 10 years of my business was me making money and, like, celebrating me getting my own hand raised. And then 10 years ago, we launched ClickFunnels. The last decade, we shifted the focus. I was like, I don't want this to be about me. I want to be about our customers. We built a community and a tribe and, like, we give away awards and, like, you know, I think so far we've given away 3,000 of our two comm award. So 3,000 people who made a million dollars inside of a funnel. And like, that is, like, so much cooler than any of, like, my own accomplishments. And, like, that's. That's where we celebrate at now because just that's why I'm addicted to this game. I keep playing it because there's something about that, that it's. It's magical.

B (15:45)

You know, I. I love that because I think that even like your father, the story that you tell when you lost to a guy in high school and your father watched the tape over and over and over and over to try to figure out, like, what you could do. Then you go and wrestle the guy again later on and then defeat him. Right? So there's something almost that was passed down from the father to the son to really get things right. But the thing that I really feel about you, Russell, because I've seen you in a lot of settings, is that you care about people. And I think that when people are caught up with a cause and their motives are right, they last for a long time. And this is the thing that I'm seeing with you, because at first you were like the new kid on the street, and it's like, look at this guy. And then Because I go way back with you when you were working with Tony Robbins, which goes, like, way, way, way, way back, Right. As long as young as you are. But yet I watch you. You just keep escalating. You just keep. You just keep going up where you become like the mar. The Michael Jordan in. In this particular space that you're in. Okay. What is something that helps you to stay in alignment to your assignment? Because when you start getting popular and well known, which I do know a little bit about, it's very easy to get distracted or go on detours. What's helping you to be in alignment to your assignment?

A (17:24)

I love that phrase, alignment to your assignment. That's powerful.

B (17:27)

That's a Tim Story phrase. If you ever quote me.

A (17:30)

Yeah, I definitely will now. It's so good. You know, I think it's a lot of things. I was lucky enough that out of high school, I went on. I wrestled one year, byu, then went on a mission for my church. I spent two years, like, knocking on doors teaching people about Jesus. And, like. And like, that just, like, trend. There's, like, a really pivotal shift for me to happen then, where most people during their early 20s are partying, they're drinking, they're, you know, like, they're living that life. And. And I. I got put in the spot where I had. The only thing I could do for two years was to serve other people. And it was like. It was. It was a powerful reframe for me that got me outside of my. My own ego. I think that was number one. Number two, I married. I married an amazing woman who is not enchanted by any of this. She has no dis. She doesn't want fame. She doesn't want money. She doesn't want. It's like, so none of the things here, like, impress her. The things that impress her are, like, me with the kids, me with her, me with helping other people. Other people having success. Like, she. It's funny because, like, she's never read my book. She doesn't watch my podcast. She watch my YouTube videos. But she comes to Funnel Hacking Live our event because she likes seeing the stories of all the people we helped. And, like, that's the thing. Like, we help them. We help them. Like, that's, like, the thing that fires her up. And. And so it's like, I get no value from my. From my significant other by, like, making a bunch of money. She, like, doesn't care. But if we help someone, like, she's on fire. Like, that gets her so excited. And so I think it was Just like my reward system was based on, on that as well, where it's just like, I don't, you know, like one, one of my friends told me it was made. Chad Woolner told me one time, he so funny. He's like, if it wasn't for your wife, you would have the biggest head in the world. He's like, you are so lucky that you actually found her. That find somebody who's like, not enchanted by any of this. And I was like, it' actually a really, really good point. You know what I mean? Like, and then at the other time, like, I think I've had experiences in my business where my ego did get big or whatever. And like, and I've had times where I lost everything, where a business crashed, where I had to fire a hundred employees in the weekend. Like, I've had like those things. And I remember, I remember reading a scripture somewhere in that. It was, it was after I, I built a business and it crashed. I was like trying to build it again. And I remember reading a scripture, it said something like, it said that God will have a humble people. Either they will humble themselves or he will, or I will humble you or something. And I was like, I feel like I just got humbled and I do not want God to humble me again. Therefore, I'm going to try to be humble the best I can, even though it can be hard. And the ego's always like. And I'm not the best the world that. But like, I think back to that a lot of. Just like every time I start getting. I get proud of myself. It's like, okay, but be careful because like, you know, God will have a humble people. Either you can humble yourself or he'll humble people.

B (20:09)

That's very good advice. And I need to go back to the fact that you were a missionary for two years. Because I think that going around spreading the gospel, knocking on doors, talking to people in restaurants and getting no, no, no so often, no, no, no. And, and people mislabeling you not understanding what's going on, the fact that you are willing to do that and stick with it, I really think that that is truly part of the reason you have this longevity. This is just going to continue to go up because when you have a servant attitude, when you go into like Mark 10:45, that Jesus came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many. And when you have that kind of mindset and you have that kind of motive, it's amazing where God will put you. He'll put you in places that you could not have manipulated yourself into. And that's what I'm watching in your life. And I'm saying this as a guy older than you, I'm watching life take you and just, like, position you into these places that you could not have manipulated yourself into. And like so many other guys, there's, like, a lot of mini use I've had people approach me to do things with me, and they go like, I'm like, Russell Brunson. That's like a guy saying, like, I almost play like Michael Jordan. This is a true story, bud. Because whether it's me, Ed mylett, Grant, Patrick McDavid, they're approaching this probably on a monthly basis. I am like Russell Brunson, I promise you. Okay. Have you ever heard that before?

A (22:04)

No. I'm interested. I want to find out who's pitching themselves that way because these help with their positioning. You can position themselves so much better than that.

B (22:11)

No, but you're the best at what you do. But the thing is, I think that's so cool because you started off walking or on a bicycle helping people. Very similar to me, me being in seminary. So my doctorate's in world religion. My master's is in therapy counseling. Dude, I've been in 82 countries as a missionary, third world nations serving food to little kids and getting water for people, walking miles to help bring water to people. I mean, I enjoy the accoutrements of what life has brought me as being who I am, the money that it's brought. But I think when you get into that servant's attitude, it's a whole shift. Okay, so here's a question for you, though. How do you maintain that servant's attitude in the midst of people trying to lift us up into a place of glory? Yeah, no one's asked you that, Russell. Come on now.

A (23:14)

Yeah, it's a great question. It's tough. It's tough because you're right. People see the stuff you do online or post online, and they put you on a pedestal automatically, which is like, the. Not like, that's what's so hard about it is because that's people's default. They want to find someone to plug into. Right? Like, they're always looking for leadership. And it's like, it's coming back to, like, how do you. How do you steal that back into them? You know what I mean? Because that's like, there's no value in somebody idolizing or looking up to me or to you or anybody. Right. The value comes like, Maybe looking at you is like, wow, this is something that's possible as a role model, but it's like, but it's got to be, it's got to be turned back to that. Like, they, they've got to, to become the person, right? And so I think it's good when it's like an inspiration where it's like, valid. Like, because I inspire people all the time. Like, I have model. Your role models I look up to. I have people that I look at, but at the same time I, I also, I also realize they're all very human with human flaws. Like, you know, and, and a lot of times, like, I, maybe I've share a value of somebody like, like with the same value. So I look at them in the big pedestal, but they have something else they don't value the same as me. And then it's like, easy, like to not like that person, which isn't the right thing either, right? It's like we need to learn how to like. And so, yeah, it's, it's, it's, it's tough. I can tell you. My business partner, Todd Dickerson, who built ClickFunnels, and his wife, they're, they're amazing. But before every one of our big events, we always stand backstage or, sorry, on stage before we let everybody in. And Todd's wife Ashley would always give a prayer. And one of the prayers she always asks is specifically about that. Like, like, let us inspire people, but not have people put us up on a pedestal. Like, like helping people understand. Like, we're here to serve them and to help them, but we're not their saviors. Like, that's not what, we're not trying to save them. That's not our job. That's not our role. Like, our job is to, to try to help. And yeah, so, you know, I love your question.

B (25:08)

But, but here's the thing, Russell, if you look at even someone from your church, Stephen Covey, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is that if we get back into the attributes and the character side of things. So I like this because I've watched you in different interviews, like even going years back, where you talk about this work, life, balance. I like that you're at least trying to find it because a lot of our mutual friends that we will not name, they don't even want to try to find it. They think it, they think it's like all or nothing. I do not think it's all or nothing. I like that you say you might work till 3, 4 in the morning. But then you want to be there when your kids wake up or you want to eat breakfast or if they're homeschooling or taking school, whatever the situation is, right? Because I, I do know this, that. That working in Beverly Hills Since I was 28 years of age, I sat with some of the most powerful humans at the end of their life, and one of the most powerful humans in the area of finance, who everybody knows his name, he said to me, if I was to do it all over again, Tim, I wouldn't have worked so much. I pushed myself so much because it was hard to say no because so much money was coming in. I said, so what would you have done with the time? He said, I would have been more with my family, but I would have been in the moment and I also would have been more with myself. So when I say that about my friend who's now passed away, that said, man, it was hard to say no. And if I had it to do over again, I would have spent more time with my family and also with myself. Talk to me about work, life, balance of where you're at today. With that thought.

A (27:10)

It's interesting because, like, again, we're friends with a lot of the same people, so I see that as well. Where. And. And I, I want to be careful because, like, everyone's got their own choices, and I, And I respect that. But it is interesting to me that, like, how few people, especially in the business like that, that. That becomes all consuming and I just look at my life, like, I look at the portfolio of my life, right? And there's like, there's business, there's family, there's. There's my faith, there's my kids, there's my. And like, I look at the things that are the most rewarding and most fulfilling, and it's not the business one. And I've got. I built a business to a high skit, to a high level, right? And I love my business. I love my audience, love my, my, My. My team. Like, and so, like, I get a lot of happiness, fulfillment out of that, but not in comparison to the other ones. And I feel like, Like, I feel bad for them because I'm like, you understand these other pieces you're missing out on that actually will make your life even more colorful than adding an extra whatever to the bottom line. You know what I mean? And you can still push and like, and hopefully I'm proof that you can still push hard and do more than one. You can, you can do both of them, right? Because it's it's, there's, I don't know, it's tough. There's so many of my friends who, who don't. And, and anyway, and I just, I just, it's one of the things I, I, I always think about same thing at the end of the day, like, when, when I die or whatever, what's that going to look like? Like, you know, who's gonna be around your bed? It's like, probably your wife and your kids maybe, and hopefully. And most of the people that worked for you probably that the, you know, the fans on the Internet, like, most of them probably aren't going to be around. So it's like, man, like, where do you, where do you put the time? How do you make sure you have the time?

B (28:38)

And, but there's, so let's, let's go somewhere kind of interesting, Russell. I think you're gonna like this. So there's a scripture in the Bible that says, for God knows the end from the beginning and he knows what is yet to unfold. Okay. I personally believe that me and you are just unfolding. We're just unfolding. Like, it's easy to say, oh, Tim Story, life coach to the stars. But I, I know that I was more than that. And so I started doing other things that were more than that. So when we would hear Russell Brunson's name in the early days, it was always on the click funnel side, which is mega, because you really became a game changer. And because of my profession, I'm fortunate enough to be around a lot of pioneers and guys that change the game or women that change the game in their profession. But when we think about this thing about God unfolding new things in your life, can you give me one thing that you're starting to get interested in? Whether it is to help humanity or a new business, a new idea that's starting to unfold in your spirit and in your mind.

A (29:56)

It's interesting. We're in a weird chapter in life right now. We just took our third child up to college this week and dropped her off. And, you know, so, so my wife and I definitely, we're in a transition point in our, in our home and our, all kinds of stuff right now too. But the thing's been pulling me a lot for the last man, two years or so is obviously we've done so much work with entrepreneurs helping them to become better marketers, which is great, but like, I'm more interested in like, the development of entrepreneurs as people, as humans. Our new coaching company, we haven't really launched it huge the world yet. But the. It's called Prime Mover. The goal is like, how do we, how do we develop people and make them the prime movers of society? Who are the change makers? Who are the ones who are, who are moving things along? You know? And so that's, that's what's more fascinating to me in the last 18 months, I don't know how much you follow all the stuff. Like, I've been buying these old books and republishing and we have a membership site now, like, and like, I've been watching that.

B (30:48)

I've seen that. Yes.

A (30:49)

Yeah, that's where my passion's at, that side of it. Because it's like, man, like, I just love the entrepreneurial development because, like, if I develop an entrepreneur again, I can have a tool that helps them market something that's great, they make more money. But if I can develop them, like their mind, their body, their. And their wealth, like all those kind of things, like, the impact that can have on the world is. It's the, it's the biggest leverage point I can have. Right? I always look at like, like the ROI of my life. Like, why am I here? What am I trying to accomplish? And like, the biggest leverage point isn't just helping someone to make money. It's a great leverage point. Right? But I look at myself when I started my business online. Like, the first eight years, I got super unhealthy. I could barely, like, you know, I'd be tired by noon every day. I couldn't have my energy. And I didn't realize it until, like, I got back in shape. And then all of a sudden, like, my what I was able to produce like 10x, right? And then like, when I started learning from Tony Robbins about psychology and how your brain works and all that kind of stuff, like, it was another huge leverage transition point. And I was like, those are the things that. The biggest impact on me as an entrepreneur. My ability to produce and to, to serve and to change was like, was all those type of things. And so for me, that's, that's what I'm most excited by is like, the development of entrepreneurial entrepreneurs. And again, we call them prime movers. Like, like the prime movers of society and helping them and marketing and the business, the funnel stuff is like a piece of that. But it's not, that's not where I want to end. I want to end with, like, how do we develop these, these people and help them become the kind of person they can do A million times more than they're able to do with, with the, with the resources they have today.

B (32:13)

No, I, I, I see you moving more and more into that space of, of developing human beings and trying to get them to maximize who they are just as people, which I think a lot of it, again, comes from your core of your parents and your faith and like, who you are and your wife. Yeah. And now your kids. Right. Because now your kids will talk back to us and tell us like, dad, come on. So, Russell, let's talk about money for a minute. I remember the first time I got paid $50 to speak. I, I try to give it back. So I was 18 and I was already speaking and I went and I spoke at this event and they gave me $50. They said, Tim, this is $50. And I go, I can't take it. Because remember, I was like a seminary student.

A (33:11)

Yeah.

B (33:12)

And now did they pay us enough money to buy a car, to just speak? It's, it's kind of weird, but yet I like to use money as leverage because then if my mother's in trouble, I can do something. If my sister's in trouble, I can do something. If my kids need something, I could do something. I love to give to charity. I love to use finance to have leverage in life. When you started to get a lot of money, what did that feel like? Did it feel foreign? Or did it feel like I expected this? Or what did, what did it feel like?

A (33:55)

When I started my business originally, because I wanted to make money. Right. I think a lot of entre start that way. And I remember chasing it, chasing it. And then we started, I started actually making it. It was, it was different than I thought. Like, I was waiting for, like that moment, like. Yeah, I remember I hired this guy who did media buying for, for Agora Publishing, and he came out to Boise. I remember at dinner that night, he asked me, so when did you know that you made it? And I was like, what are you talking about? He's like, when did you, like, when did you feel that? I was like, I have no idea you're talking about. And I remember, like, I was in the cycle for almost 10 years. Probably where I was like, because that first 10 years where I was just selling stuff, making money, like, I was learning, it was fun, but, like, every time, like, the thing would get like. I remember we did this launch. We made a million, like my very first million dollar launch. I was like, this is so exciting. I went home and like, I felt, I remember sitting there, I was just like, huh. That was it. Like, that's. That was the thing that I worked on for the last, like, five years. You know what I mean? And it was weird because it was not fulfilling. Like, I thought it was going to be. And that's when, for me, it was. It was interesting. It's like, around the time we launched Clickfunnels, and it was like, we started shifting. We started shifting the focus from, like. Like, we first launched Clickfunnels was me telling my story. And then we started getting these really good success stories coming through. I was like, I'm gonna tell their stories. I stopped telling my story. I tell their stories. And, like, it was. It just shifted everything, right? And then the focus did become on, like, how do I make myself the next millions? Like, how do I help them do the next thing? And then, like, that's when the shift happened. And then. And that's where I was. Like, the fulfillment happened. And, like, then money became fun. And then it was. And then I don't know if, you know Stu McLaren, but Stu and his wife, they started this charity. And then they were, like, asked me if I'd help donate money. And first, like, I donated some money, and just because I was, you know, he's my friend, I didn't think much about it. And I remember that they. They invited my wife, and I like, you should come to Kenya. You can see what the money you're sending is going to be used for. I'm like, there's no way I'm going to go to Kenya. Like, no. And so they went to Kenya that year, and then they filmed this little video of in the classroom, like, these little kids. And the kids are like, thank you, Russell. Thank you, Colette. So he made this video, and he sends it to me. I'm sitting in church. I get a text message from Stu, and I go, and I. I push play on this video, and I'm just, like, bawling my eyes out. Like, what. Like, what just happened? And then it's. And so then I showed my wife. She's bawling her eyes out. And she's. And I. Anyway, she didn't know that I had told him no, that we're not going to Kenya. She's like, we should be there. I'm like, lee invited.

B (36:11)

It's like, what?

A (36:12)

And so she's like, next year we're going. So next year we went and went out there and was like, we started giving money. And, like, we saw. It was crazy because, like, I think it was $30 would feed a Kid for a year. Like, what? That's. That's all it took, you know? And, you know, that's, like, what we pay. We spend McDonald's right now for. For Big Mac, you know, or whatever. And. And, like, we. And Stu taught me. He's like. He's like, the more you earn, the more you can, like, give. The more people you can help, the more people you can serve. Like, I never looked at it that way before. And then it started getting fun. And then we launched ClickFunnels. We built it where every time somebody inside of Clickfunnels builds a funnel, we donate a dollar to Village Impact. And so every year, like, we give them a check, and it gets bigger and bigger. Now it's like $150,000 every single year. And I'm like. In my head, I'm like, I know how many kids that feeds or my schools it builds. It's like, you know, and so it's just. It. I don't know, like, when you start looking at money that it goes from, like, the unfulfilling version that you think you're gonna have, then you start learning, giving back. You're learning these other things, and all of a sudden it's like, this is. This is why we're actually doing this. This is why we're being blessed with these things. And it's a tragedy. A lot of people never. They never get that point. I think those are the people a lot of times who. Who. Who have money and they're miserable or they. They lose everything because they. They. I don't know that, like, they're. They missed the point of it, all, right? And it's like, when you understand it, and then all of a sudden you're like, oh, my gosh. This is the reason why I've been blessed with these gifts. It wasn't because of me. You know, God didn't want to bless me to have a bigger house or a faster car. He wanted me to, like, use these gifts in these talents and to help these other people. And that's when you get the. The fulfillment side of things when.

B (37:38)

When you start shifting the Bible. I love. I love that side. But I also, like, Russell, that you're. You're willing to take the blessings that life is giving you that God has given you. Because I think that a lot of times, people that have been raised in faith like us, that we almost want to push back the blessings. Like, I have. I have a lot of people that have always tried to give me a lot of things, and in my early days, I was like. Like pushing things back so much because I just thought, you know, I just want to make sure I keep my motives right. I want to keep. Sure. Make sure I keep my motives right. But I remember this older guy who's just a. Just a really nice Jewish guy. He said, you know, Tim, maybe. Maybe God is just giving you because he wants to. He wants to bless you. And I do think that that's what Russell Brunson has become, is that you are blessed to be a blessing with this amazing mindset that you have, with your ability to run businesses, with your ability to mentor people, to tutor people, to raise people up. Okay, so we're almost done with this interview. I'm going to ask you two more questions. Okay. One is the mindset of going back to wrestling. When I used to watch my buddy Johnny Sodermire in high school, when he was wrestling, I was a. I was a basketball player and a baseball player, but he wrestled. He was good. He was in the lower. Could you even be, like, 105 pounds as a freshman? Yeah, that's how he started. That's how he started. I remember watching this kid. He was so good. He would. He would just win all the time. But, like, like, in wrestling, as you know, more than all of us, when it looks like you're going to be pinned and then it's almost like he would trick a guy and then just flip him, and it was just, boom, it just shifted. How are you able to shift your mindset when there's times in life where you feel like, oh, man, I think this doggone thing might pin me. Okay. Whether that's like, physical challenges, challenges at home, challenges at the job. How do you flip your mindset?

A (40:07)

I was thinking about. As you're saying that, I was thinking about different wrestling moves, like, that happens where you're in something and then you come back on top. So for me, it's like, I'm big into personality profiling and my strengths finder. My number one strength is competition. So that's my number one thing. And it's funny because I noticed that, like, if something hits me, I go through the same motions everyone else says, like, you're sad or you're depressed or you're angry or scared or nervous, like, all the things, right? And sometimes that state that I'm in will last a day. Sometimes it's a week, a month. I've had times, it's been like a year where you're stuck in this weird state for a long time, and it's hard to break out of it, right? But for me, it's like, what I found is like, competition is my driver, and it's gonna be different for everyone. So, you know, I, I, if he has haven't taken a different personality profile, take him to figure out what your things are to actually drive you that motivate you. But for me, it's competition. So the faster I can get away out of the, like, the fear and anxiety, sadness, anger, like, whatever the, those feelings are to, like, how do I win? That's like, that's the, that's the transition. And so I've had times where I've been stuck in there. Like, I had a man two years ago. It was a really brutal year where I got hit over and over and over again for almost a year. I just, like, I was in this, this, like, cocoon, right? I couldn't break free. And, and finally it was like, me, like, like remembering who I was and coming back and like, no, like, I'm like, I'm Russell Brunson. I can win. I gotta figure, I can figure this out. It's gotta sit here and think with it, right? And then I was able to transition. I had the same thing just in the last couple weeks where it was. Something hit me hard again. It was like, for a day, I went through all the emotions of, like, anger, fear, fresh, everything. And he went to bed that night, like, just not in a good spot. Next morning, I woke up and the first thing I was just like, like, you know, fresh brain. I was like, how do I win? And then it shifted. I was like, oh, I. I know how to win. Like, what if I do this? And also, like, you know, all the ideas start coming, start streaming, and it changes everything. So I think for me, it's just like, it's, you know, and I learned in wrestling over and over and over again where you, you know, I lose a match and I want to be depressed. And my dad, like, no, like, being depressed isn't going to help you. Like, let's go figure out, let's reverse engineer what do they do, how they do it, how do we win? And we go drill it, drill it, drill and come back and beat the person. And like, that was my career. Like, I have a lot of friends who are really good wrestlers who, like, won almost every match. And then, you know, for me, it was like, I would lose matches and I figured I'd be the guys I'd beat. And I lose match, figure out, you know, like, so I would have my record wasn't as good. But I still win the big tournaments because I was like learning how to beat these people in between. And like the competition is what made it so much fun for me. And so for me, it's just getting back out of the, out of all the anxiety, fear, anger, stress, set, like whatever that, that motion that like we liked. It feels good to be in those emotions and like, you know, we feel justified in those emotions. It's like getting out of the bag. No, that's not who I am. How do I win? And then it, and then it's like your brain asks a better question. Then everything else starts coming to you really, really quickly.

B (42:48)

Russell, if you keep talking this well, I may not have a job because that was some great motivation because we're used to you like breaking down concepts of what you do. Right. That was phenomenal. I'm going to call Ed Mylett and say he's coming for us, buddy. All right. So Russell, how do we work with you? Because everybody wants to work with you. How do we work with you? Website. What can you do for us? How can, how can we work with you?

A (43:25)

Yeah, man, there's a lot of ways. We do a lot of stuff. If you go to russellbrunson.com there's links to all my stuff there. You can find our, you know, but I think for most people, the gift I give people that we spend most effort on right now is teach people how to sell online. And I have an event@sellingonline.com that teaches people how to sell and it's 100 bucks we take into three day experience and by the time it's done, we teach people how to do one to many presentation. Like you said you saw me in Grant's thing, we set a world record and doing a 90 minute presentation, getting people to run to the back and buy, like that's what we, we focus a lot of energy on. Teach people how to do that process so they can sell on webinars or challenges or you know, in seminars, event like whatever, however they want to do it. We teach them how to, how to speak, to sell. And, and inside that you can plug that presentation into a funnel or a million other different places. But yeah, that's probably the best places to plug into to me.

B (44:16)

Russell, thank you for spending this time with me. And you are the, you are the John Stockton of your field. I called you Michael Jordan first, but now that I know that you like the Jazz, I'll take it.

A (44:34)

John Stockton's the man. That'd be amazing.

B (44:36)

Yeah. So Russell, thank you for your time. I appreciate everything that you're about and I'm loving watching you unfold. And I appreciate you.

A (44:45)

It's great to get to know you a lot better, and hopefully we'll have a chance to hang out together at the events as opposed to different sections in the. In the room. So I look.

B (44:53)

I look forward to it. All right. Life is good. See you guys soon. Thank you for sharing space with me on this episode of Miracle Mentality with Tim Storey. If today sparked your courage or helped you understand why you're created for success, I invite you to carry that miracle mentality forward. Visit me@timstory.com that story with an ey on the end. Until next time, walk by faith, embrace possibility, and create your own comeback story.