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The Russell Brunson Show
My Conversation With The Friendly Giant (Part 1 of 2)
00:47:19
A special conversation I had on stage at the Traffic Secrets event with a friend and a student Nic Fitzgerald.
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- [00:00]
A
Hey, everyone, this is Russell Brunson.
- [00:01]
B
I want to welcome you to the Marketing Secrets podcast. Next two episodes are a really special one. So we, for our two comma Club X members and our inner circle members, I did an event recently. Some of you guys heard me talk about it, and it was a Traffic Secrets event where I'm getting all the material ready for the book, I start teaching the stuff. And anyway, it was really fun. And as I was doing the presentations the night before, I was doing all the prep work, I had this thought. I was like, I want to bring up somebody on stage. And it's somebody who was a friend I grew up with in elementary school and junior high and high school, and someone who was down on the luck who was really, really struggling. And about a year ago, I saw him post something on Facebook, and I reached out, and this interview is happening about a year later. And during the process, he tells his story about what happened in the transformation and the change that's happened by being involved inside of our ClickFunnels funnel hacker community. And so I wanted to share that with you as part of the event.
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A
And so this first half is going.
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B
To be Nick kind of telling his story, and it's going to be the story from, you know, from the. From the bottom of the barrel where they were. They literally made $25,000 a year for three years in a row. And then the transformation to this year did well over six figures. And that's going to be the first podcast. And the second podcast episode is I'm actually going to be doing. I did a live coaching session with him on stage, and I want to share it with you as well, because I think there's a lot of things for you specifically that you could get from this episode, too. So the next few episodes are going to be sharing this really fun conversation that happened late night at the Traffic Seekers event with my friend Nick Fitzgerald. And if you think that name sounds familiar, I have talked about him before on his podcast. In fact, a little over a year ago, I did a podcast episode called Being a Rainmaker. That was a personalized podcast that I sent to Nick specifically to help him with what he was struggling with at the time. So, anyway, I wanted to share this with you because it'll take you full circle to show you kind of the progress and the momentum and things that are happening in his life. And I think that it'll be encouraging for you to hear the story, because no matter where you are in your journey right now, if you are struggling, if you're doing well if you're, you know. And somewhere in between, there are parts of this story that resonate with you. And then the second episode where I coach Nick, I think will help everybody as well. So that said, let's jump right in, have some fun. I want to introduce you to my friend, Mr. Nick Fitzgerald.
- [02:23]
A
So the big question is, how are entrepreneurs like us, who didn't cheat and take on venture capital, were spending money from our own pockets? How do we market in a way that lets us get our products and our services and the things that we believe in out to the world and yet still remain profitable? That is the question, and this podcast.
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B
Will give you the answers.
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A
My name is Russell Brunson, and welcome the Marketing Secrets. All right, so I want to set the tone for the next hour or so of what the game plan is. So I have a first initial question that I'm curious about with everyone here. I'm curious who, since they joined the two Common Club X program, has had some kind of experience with Mr. Nick Fitzgerald. Okay, that's powerful.
- [03:17]
B
I'm going to talk about why in.
- [03:18]
A
A little bit, but very, very cool. So some of the backstory behind this, and then we're going to introduce him up. When he comes up, I want you guys to go crazy and scream and cheer and clap because it'll be good. And then I want him to sit down so we'll be the same height, which will be good. It'll be really fun. So some of the backstory. So I actually met Nick the very first time in elementary school. And even in elementary school, he was like a foot and a half taller than me, which is amazing. He was like 6 foot 2 in, like, third grade. It was amazing. But we knew each other, and we were dorky little kids. And going up through elementary school, we were just both doing our things and we didn't have a care in the world. And everything's happening. And then as we got older, he kept getting taller. I stopped growing. And then we got into high school, and he kept growing, and he joined the basketball team, and I didn't keep growing. So I went downstairs in the basement. And literally, our high school in the basement, they call it the rubber room. And it's this room that smells like, I don't even know, but it's under the gym. And so he would go upstairs and they'd have fans would show up. People would cheer for them and scream at their games. All the girls would come to the games. We'd go down in the rubber room by ourselves. And we'd cut weight, and we'd put on our sweats, and we'd lose weight, and we'd jump rope, and we'd sweat like crazy. And we sit there. I remember one day, after working out for two hours, pouring in sweat. I had my plastic ears on and my sweats on top of that, my hoodie and my hoods, and we got the wrestling mats, and we literally. We rolled ourselves up in the wrestling mats to keep the heat in. And we laid there, and we were so hot. And I could hear the basketball players in the gym up above having so much fun and people cheering for them. And all the girls were there, and I was like, why are we not playing basketball? It doesn't make any sense. But during that time, obviously, we were in two different kind of worlds, and we didn't really connect that much. And then we left our separate ways, and I didn't hear from him for years and years and years. And then, you guys remember when Facebook first came out? The first time you got it, and you log in, you're like, oh, my gosh, I connect with people. And you start searching in the friends, you know, and then they find their friends. You spend, like, a day and a half connecting with every person you've ever remembered seeing in your entire life. Do you guys remember that? And so I did that one night. I connected everybody, like, everyone in high school, everyone in junior high, elementary, everyone in every stage of my life, as many as I could think of. And I was like, I think it's everybody. Okay, I've connected with everybody. And one of those people that night was Nick. But I didn't say hi. Just, like, friend requested me. Requested back. I'm like, cool, we're connected. And then after that, I got kind of bored of Facebook for, like, a year or so. And then a little while later, I found out you can buy ads on it. And I was like, what? This is amazing. So we started buying ads, and everything's happening, and it's crazy. And then what happened next? I actually want Nick on stage to tell you this story, because I want to hear it from both his perspective and my perspective.
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B
I think it'd be kind of interesting.
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A
So, Yeah, I want him to come up first. So let's do this real quick. As you guys know, Nick has been a super valuable part of this community since he came in. I'm gonna tell a story about how he got here and some of the craziness about how he signed up when he probably shouldn't have, and what's been happening since then. Cause I know you guys have all been part of that journey. You guys have been supporting. How many of you guys are going to his event that's happening later this week? He just keeps giving and serving. He's doing all the right things. He's telling stories. He's doing some amazing stuff. And so my plan right now is I want to talk about the rest of the story. I want to tell you guys what I told him a year ago. And then I want to tell you guys my advice for him moving forward. Because I feel like it's almost like in proxy. I wish I could do that with every one of you guys to sit down here and just, like, coach you. But I feel like he's at a stage where some of you guys aren't to where he's at yet, and some of you guys are past that, and some of you guys are right where he's at. And I feel like the advice I really want to give him will help you guys at all different levels. That's kind of game plan. So with that said, let's stand and put our hands together for Mr. Nick Fitzgerald. All right. This has some good music.
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C
All right.
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A
That was like, music from high school. Look how tall I am, man. I feel like. Okay, so I had him find this post because I wanted to actually share a little piece of it. So this. I'm gonna share a piece of it. I wanna, like, step back to where you were at that time in your life. So this is July 7, 2017. So when was that? A year and a half ago. Ish. A year and a half ago. So July 7, 2017, there was a post that said, long post disclaimer. I hate posting this. Da, da, da. Right? So at the time, my family's going on family vacation. We're packing up the bags and everything. And like, you know, you do a bunch of work and you stop for a second and your wife and kids are gone. You're like, pull out the phone, just like, swap through the Dream 100 and see what's happening. And somehow this post pops up in my feed, and I see it. I see Nick, my buddy from, like, 20 plus years ago, and I'm reading this thing, and my heart, like, sinks for him. Some of the things he says. I hate posting things like this, but I felt like I need to for a while. Being poor stinks, he says, for those friends of mine who are ultra conservative and look down consciously not on people like me, I can honestly tell you that I'm not a lazy Freeloader who wants something for nothing. I'm not a deadbeat who wants Obama or whoever to blame now to buy me a phone. I'm not a low life trying to get the government to pay for my liposuction. I'm not a druggie who eats steak and lobster for dinner with my food stamps. I'm a father of four, a husband, someone who lost everything financially, including our home. When the time came to have your health care in place or to get fined, I went through the process based on my family size and income. We referred to the state to apply for those programs. We couldn't get coverage for ourselves through the exchange. In other places we qualified for Medicaid. After the process was complete, the state workers suggested we try to get some other help. Some food stamps kind of goes on and on and on. He says, In 2016, I made $25,000, $25,000 plus our tax returns from the previous year. So our family of six living on $25,000 a year is being audited for receiving too much help, too much assistance. He kind of goes on and on and on with that. He says, I've never abused drugs or alcohol. I've never even tried them. I'm just a guy trying to live the American dream and provide for his family. It's. Unfortunately, we look down on those who are trying to better lives, even if it leads them from receiving help from the systems in place to help them. Look down on me if you want. I don't care. I know the truth. My family is healthy and sheltered and that's all that matters. I don't wish these trials on anyone else. It kind of goes on from there. So I want to take back to that moment and like what was. Talk about what you experienced and what you were going through during that time.
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C
I didn't expect this, but I'm a friendly giant. But I'm a big boob too.
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B
So.
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C
Back at that time, so I had started what I thought was I started my entrepreneurial journey. I was working in film full time, working 12, 14, 16 hour days, making 200 bucks a day, you know, just killing myself for my family and going through the process of, you know, I lost my job because I wasn't going to hit my sales. I was a financial advisor and I wasn't going to hit my sales number. So you know, my ticket was stamped right. So I said, okay, I'm going to do my own thing. And in the course of all of that, you know, it was time to get your health insurance and Those things. And I went through the proper channels like I felt like I should. And I was referred to the government for the programs because based on the numbers and for, as a provider, as a father and, you know, an athlete, competitor, I felt like a failure. Right? We've all, when you have to rely on somebody else or somebody else tells you, hey, like, we don't think you can do this on your own. Come over here and we'll take care of you. Right? That's basically what I was told. And so it was hard to accept that and to live with that reality. So we did. And I worked hard and it was a blessing, really, to not have to worry about how much healthcare costs or have some things to supplement to feed our family and stuff. So it was great and it was wonderful. But then I got the email from the state saying, like, hey, you're being audited. We're just looking at things and we're not sure if you've been getting too much help. And so at that point, I'm just sitting there frustrated because I'm working my butt off just trying to make things happen, become somebody involved in the film community in Utah. And I was. And everyone knew me and I had a reputation, but I still, you know, was a nobody in the eyes of the government, right? And so I went to Facebook to whine, looking for what I want. Looking for what I wanted, which was a pat on the back. And like, there, there, Nick, you're doing. We know you're a good dude and you're working hard and, you know, that kind of thing. And I did.
- [11:55]
A
I was reading the comments last night. I said, oh, you're doing a good job, man. Good luck, everyone. Like babying him about how tough life can be.
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C
Yeah. And so I got what I wanted, but it wasn't, you know, it still didn't change anything. I still had to submit my last two years of tax returns and all of the pay that I got and everything like that so they could look at our case number. Not Nick, Liesel, Chloe, you and Alec, William. So, yeah.
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A
Thanks.
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C
And so it was just one of those things. So I got what I wanted. Then comes Russell to give me what I needed, which was.
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A
So I saw that and I'm like packing the kids bags and everything. And I was like, ah, do I say something? I don't want to be that guy. Like, hey, 20 years ago. And I was like, I kept feeling this. And finally I was like, hey, man, I know we haven't talked like over 20 years. Just a Facebook message. We've been talking like 20 years. I saw your post today and it sucks. And I know what's wrong and I can help, but at the same time, I don't want to be that guy and I don't want to step on my toes. I know we haven't talked in 20 years. I have no idea if it's even appropriate, but I know what's wrong. I can help you. And no, this is not some cheesy MLM I'm trying to pitch you on, but if you're interested in some coaching, I know what's wrong. And that kind of waited and that's packing the bags and stuff like that. I'm curious, like, your thoughts initially as you saw that.
- [13:32]
C
Well, it's funny because my phone is kind of blowing up with the comments, right? So I would hear the little ding and I would check. And then I saw that it was a message from Russell. And we had like, we'd said, like, hey, what's up? And like had a few tiny little small talk conversations, but nothing in depth personal, right? And so I saw that he sent a message and so I'm like, sweet, you know, So I look at it and I was half expecting, because I knew that he was successful. I didn't know about click funnels, per se. Like, you know, I knew that he had something going on that was awesome, but I didn't know what it was. So I was wondering, I wonder what he's gonna say, what he has to say about things. But I read it and it was funny because when you said, like, I don't want to overstep my bounds, I don't want to, you know, it's been a long time, I don't want to step on toes kind of thing. I, you know, Russell, we all know his athletic accolades and stuff. I was a great basketball player too. I was in the top 200 players in the country my senior year and stuff like that. So I've been coachable and I've played at high levels and been coached by high level guys. And so when I read it and he said, I can. I know what's wrong and I can help you, I was like, yes. You know, that was my reaction. I just did the little, you know, the little fist pump. Let's do this right? And so I replied back and I thanked him for reaching out and stuff. And I just said, I think I even said I'm coachable, like, I will accept any guidance and things like that. Because up until that point in my life, especially with Sports. If a coach showed me something, I would do it with the way he did it. And I would, I would kick the other dude's butt. I didn't care. I've played against guys who made millions of dollars in the NBA. I dunked. I posterized on Sean Marion when he was at UNLV my freshman year of college. Like, I started as a freshman at a Division 1 school in college, so like I would take. I've always been that kind of. When I get that guidance and that direction, I can put it to work. So I was just like, dude, Mr. Miyagi, right? You're like, teach me. I'm eight days older than him, so I'm like, young grasshopper, yes, you can teach me that kind of thing. So I welcomed it and I was excited. I had no idea because again, I didn't know what he did. I just knew he had a level of success that I didn't have. And if he was willing to give me some ideas, I was gonna hear him out for sure.
- [16:02]
A
It was fun. So then I messaged it back because I'm like packing his cars and Clint's like, we gotta go, we gotta go. I was like, ah, so I get the thing out. I was like, alright, this is the deal. I'm driving to Bear Lakes, like a six hour drive right now. I'm gonna give you an assignment and if you do it, then I'll give you the next piece. But most people never do it, so if you don't, that's cool and I'll just know it's not worth time. But if it's really worth your time, do this thing. I need you to go back and listen to my podcast from episode one and listen to as many episodes as possible. And if you do that, I'll make you a customized episode just for you, telling you exactly what's wrong and how to fix it. But you have to do that first. And I'm not telling you it's cause it's some ego trip. And like, just. But just trust me. The problem is not your skill set. You have mad skill that you're good at everything. It's all a problem between your ears. If we can shift that, we can shift everything else. And I jumped in my car and took off and I started driving for six hours. And then like the next day or the day later, you're like, I'm 14 episodes in. He was still listening to the crappy ones. According to Steven Larsen in your car, the marketing car. He's probably like, this is the Worst thing I've ever heard. Ever. But he did it, right? I said, do it. He said, did it. And he kept doing it. Kept doing it. And so two or three days into my family vacation, I had Nora. You guys all know Nora, right? She's the coolest, but she won't go to bed at night. She's a nightmare. Don't let the cute face trick you. She's evil, right? And so I'm like, I can't go to sleep. So finally, I was like, I'm gonna plug her in the car and drive around the lake until she falls asleep. So I plug her in the car, strap it in, I start driving, and I'm like, this could be a long, long thing. She's just smiling back here. And I'm like, ah. And I was like, you know what? I'm going to do my episode for Nick. So I got my phone out, I clicked record, and for probably almost an hour, didn't I? It was an hour. I'm driving around the lake, and I'm explaining to him what I see. Does anyone here listen to that episode? I'm curious.
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C
Yeah.
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A
Okay, so I'm going to map out really quick the core concept, because some of you guys may be stuck in this. Because the goal of this, what I want to do is I want to map this out. And then what's funny is last year at Bear Lake, so a year later, we had this thing. I was like, we should do a second round where I do, like, a year later. This is what, like, the advice now. And I wrote a whole outline for it, and I totally never did it. And so I'm gonna go through the outline for now, kind of show them the next phase. So you cool if I show kind of what I talked about?
- [18:04]
C
For sure.
- [18:05]
A
All right. For those who missed the podcast episode, who haven't been binge listening, you've all failed the test. Now you must go back to episode number one, listen to cheesy jingle, and get to episode four. Whatever it was, Ken, I said this. I said, okay, if you look at any business, any organization, there's three core people, right? The first one is the person at the top who is the entrepreneur. The cool thing about the entrepreneur is the entrepreneur is the one that makes the most amount of money, right? Like, they're the head. They sell the most amount of money. The problem with the entrepreneur is they also have the most risk, so they're more likely to lose everything, right? Like, I've lost everything multiple times because I'm like, the guy risking Everything. But the nice thing is, like, entrepreneurs can write their own paycheck. There's no ceilings, right? So they can make as much as they want. They can make a million, 10 million, 100 million. They can do whatever they want because there's no ceiling, right? So that's the first personality type. So the second personality type over here is what we call the technicians, okay? The technicians are the people that actually do the work, right? What's funny, if you look at this, these are people go to college with the technicians, right? And what do they do? They look down on entrepreneurs, they look down on sales people, like, oh, you're in sales? Like, what are you, a doctor, for crying out loud, in the night. But they're like, they look down on. On people like us, right? Because, like, I'm a doctor. I went to 45 years of school. Now, what's interesting is that there's technicians in all sorts of different spots, right? I actually feel bad. I shouldn't say this out loud, but on the airport here, I saw one of my friends who's an amazing doctor, and him and his wife were leaving on a trip, and we were talking and he said, this is the first trip my wife and I have been on in 25 years together by ourselves. I was like, what? He's like, well, we had medical school and then we had kids, and then we had to pay off medical school and all these things. Now the kids are gone and now we finally have a chance to leave. I was like, wow. Our whole life we're fed that. Like, medical school, becoming a doctor. Anyway, that's a rant for another day. But I was like, there's technicians, right? And what's interesting about technicians is they don't have any risk, right? So there's no risk whatsoever. But they do have a. There's a price ceiling on every single person that's a technician, right? And depending on what job you have, your price ceiling is different, right? So, doctor, the price ceiling is. I have no idea. Doctors make 500 grand a year is like the price ceiling. That's amazing. But, like, that's. They can't go above that, right? And different tasks, different roles, different positions, all have different pricings. But there's like, this role as a technician makes about this much, and this one makes this much. And you're all kind of these things, right? I see the problem with you right now. You have these amazing skill sets, but you are stuck as a technician in a role where they're capping you out with the only thing you can make is 25k a year. And then, remember I asked you, I'm like, what have you been doing? You're like, oh, I've been networking. I've been learning. I've been getting my skills up. I'm getting amazing. I'm like, that's amazing. Your skills are awesome, but your ceiling is 25k a year. No matter how good you get, you are stuck because you're in a technician role right now. I said, so you got a couple options. Number one is go become an entrepreneur, which is scary, especially when you have four kids at home. You don't have money anyway, right? I'm so eternally grateful that when I started this game, my wife. I mean, first off, we didn't have kids yet. My wife was working. We didn't have any money, but I didn't have to have any money at that time. And I'm so grateful that I was able to lose the time because I was able to risk things that nowadays is hard for you to come jump out on your own initially and just be like, boom, I'm an entrepreneur. I'm selling this stuff. That's scary, right? Because you've got all this risk. And so I was like, that's the thing, but it's going to be really, really hard. I said, but the good news, there's one more spot in this ecosystem. And the cool thing about that spot is that it's just like the entrepreneur. There's no ceiling. Now, the third spot over here is what we call the rainmakers, right? Yeah. The rainmakers are the people that come into a business and they know how to make a rain. This is the people that know how to bring people into a company. Okay, Leads. They bring leads. And they know all this traffic stuff we're talking about. These people know how to sell the leads and actually get money out of people's wallets and put it into the hands of the entrepreneur. These people right here, the rainmakers don't have ceilings. In fact, companies who give the rainmakers the ceiling are the stupidest people in the world. Because the rainmaker will hit the ceiling and then they'll stop. Right. If you're smart and you have a company of rainmakers, people driving traffic, people doing sales, if you have a ceiling, they will hit it and then they will stop. But you get rid of the ceiling, and then all of a sudden they have as much as they want. They have less risk than the entrepreneur, but they have the ability to make unlimited amount of money. I said, your skill set over here as a technician is worth 25k a year. But did you take your skill set? You shift it over here. You say, I come into companies, I'm a rainmaker, I create videos, I create stories that will sell more products, more things. Suddenly you're not worth $25,000. Now you're worth $100,000, you're worth $500,000, you're worth whatever you're able to do because there's no ceiling in anymore. And that was the point of the podcast. I got done sending it and then I sent it to him and I sent it to my brother to edit. And I have no idea what you thought about it at that point because we didn't talk a little while after that. But I'm curious where you went from there.
- [22:38]
C
So the first thing you know, being told that I was really only worth 25,000 in the eyes of the people who were hiring me, that was a punch in the gut. That sucks to hear. Thanks, man. And you know, it was just like, because I literally was working 12, 14, 16 hour days lifting heavy stuff. I did a lot with lighting and camera work. Not necessarily the story writing stuff, but you know, I was. And it was for him to put it so perfectly that I was a technician, I thought, going in. So when I failed as an advisor and I started my own company or started doing videos for people and being so scared, scared to charge somebody 250 bucks for a video, being like, oh, they're gonna say no, you know, that kind of thing. And now I wouldn't blink my eyes for that. But you know, it's like one of those things for him to tell it to me that way and just straightforward. Being like you are, you're learning great skills, you're meeting amazing people. I worked with Oscar winners and Emmy winners and stuff in the movies and shows that I worked on. But again, I was only worth that much. They had a finite amount of money and I was a small part of it. So I got a small piece. And so listening to all of that and then hearing the entrepreneur like the risk and stuff, I'm really tall. I'm 6 9, if you didn't know. I'm a sink or swim guy. But because I'm tall, I can reach the bottom of the pool a lot easier. So when I jumped in, we had lost as a financial advisor, we lost our home and we lost all these things. So I was like, I have nothing else to lose. Like worst case scenario. And I had never heard that mindset before. We were renting A basement from a family member we had. Our cars were paid off. Worst case scenario is we stay there and get food stamps and that kind of thing. There was nowhere to go but up from there. So for me, I was just so excited. I'm like, I want to be a rainmaker. I want to be an entrepreneur. But I didn't know where to find the people that I could do that for. So I was in this thing where I was still getting lots of calls to work as a technician. But I didn't want to do that anymore. I didn't want to put myself, my body, my family, through me being gone. And then when I'm home, I'm just a bump on a log because I'm so wiped out, you know, all that kind of stuff. And so that was my biggest first thing. Action point for me as I started thinking is like, okay, how do I transition out of this? How do I get myself out and start meeting the right people, the right kinds of clients who do have budgets and things like that, and how do I make it rain for them? So that's when I made that shift from working as a technician. I told myself, I'm not going to do it anymore. The last time I technically worked as a technician was about nine months ago. It was for a friend, right? And so I made that shift and it was just amazing. Like Russell was talking about earlier, when you start to track it or when it's part of your mindset, things start to show up and happen. You meet the right people and stuff. And so those things just started just by listening to that one hour long thing. I started changing. And then the black box, I got expert secrets and dotcom secrets and started going through that as well. And it was just like, you see in the funnel hacker tv, like that moment where the guy goes, like, that's what happened with me. It was like a whole new world, you know, like Aladdin was singing. He was Aladdin and I was Jasmine, right? With. With the beard.
- [26:17]
A
I can show you the world.
- [26:18]
C
Exactly. So but that's what really, like literally happened with me.
- [26:24]
A
That's cool. All right. So this is like summertime. And so he's going through this process now, figuring things, changing, shifting things, like changing his mindset. We go through the summer, we go through Christmas, and then last year's Funnel Hacking Live, we in February, March last year. March, March. And so before Funnel Hacking Live, we kind of just touched base every once in a while. My seeing that things are going, oh, things are going good, and figure things out and Then Funnel Hack Live is coming. And I remember because we're sitting there and I think you messaged me or something. You're like, oh, Funnel Hack Live was awesome. I wish I could make it. I was like, why don't you come? And you're like, ah, I just can't make it yet. I was like, how about this, man? I guarantee you, if you show up, it'll change your life forever. I'm not gonna pay for your flights to your hotel, but if you can figure out how to get there, I'll give you a free ticket. And that's the last I said, and if you can come, let Melanie know. And that's it. And I didn't really know much. Cause you guys know, in the middle of Funnel Hacking Live, like, my life is chaos trying to figure out how to juggle them and all that stuff, right? And so next thing I know, at Funnel Hacking Live, we're sitting there and during the session looking out, and I see Nick standing there in the audience, and I was like, I have no idea how he got there, but he's there. Like, freaking good for him. Like, that's, that's. And I have no idea. How did you get there? That wasn't probably an easy process for you, is it?
- [27:28]
C
No credit cards, right? It was. I. It was one of those things. I looked. I looked at flights. As soon as we had that conversation, you know, I. It was funny because I was. I can't remember what was going on, but it was a day or two before I responded back to his invitation. And I was like, I'd be stupid to say no. You know, I have no idea how I'm going to get there. I'll hit. I think I would say, like, I'll hitchhike if I have to, to get there, right? Could you imagine this giant Sasquatch on the. On Route 66 trying to get to Florida, right? But I told my wife about it, and, you know, this is where Russell and I have this in common. Like, my wife is incredible and super supportive, and she let me. She let me go. And we didn't have the money in the bank, so I said, I'm gonna put this on the credit card. And as soon. Like as soon as I get back, I'm gonna go to work and I'll pay it off. You know, I'll get a couple clients and it'll be fine. And so I booked the hotel. Luckily, I was able to get somebody who wasn't gonna be able to go at the last minute. And I got Their hotel room. And I got the flight and I came in and I was in the tornado warnings, like, circling the airport for five hours like the rest of you were. But so I got there and I remember I was just so excited and like walking in the room the very first day, like, the doors open and, well, you all know what it's like. I don't have to relive the story, but, like, I remember I walked in and I had like the hair on my arms and it was just like. Right? It was just like incredible. Just the energy and the feeling. And I was like, this is so cool. And then the very first speech, like, I was like, that was worth every penny to get here. If I left right now, it would have all been worth it. Right? And you all know because you're sitting here, you felt that too. So that was my, like, getting there. It was like, honey, I know we don't have the money. We have space on the credit card. And when I get home, I swear I'll work hard and it'll be okay, right? And she's like, okay, go. And so I did.
- [29:28]
A
That's cool. All right, so now I want to talk about not day one or day two, but on day three of fun hiking live. How do you guys remember what happened on day three? Russell sneak attacked all you guys. I was like, if I start going secret one, secret two, secret three, all of you guys are like, oh, here it is. Sitting back. I was like, how do I do the perfect webinar without people knowing? It's the perfect webinar and I'm figuring this whole thing out. Trying to figure out. And we built a nice presentation and created an amazing offer for this program. You guys are all in. And as you know, all of you guys got excited.
- [29:57]
C
You're in the back.
- [29:58]
A
You signed up and now you're here. But you told me this. Personally, I hope you're willing to share this, but I thought it was amazing because you didn't sign up that night. And I'd love to hear what happened from then till the next day and kind of go through that process.
- [30:08]
C
Yeah. So this was my first click funnels. I was all new to this whole thing and I was so excited when the 12 month millionaire presentation came up and I was like, this is awesome. And then I seeing the stack and I'm like, I'm seeing the.
- [30:25]
A
The wizard has pulled.
- [30:26]
C
I can see the wizard doing his thing. Right. I was just so excited. And then the price and it was a punch in the gut to me because I Was so I'm like, listening to it. I'm like, this is what I need. This is what I want. This is what I need. Everything. And it's going to be amazing. And then the price came and like, seriously, it just like the rest of the night, I was just like the rest of the presentation and everything after that, I was just kind of like, zoned out. I just didn't know what to do because I knew I needed it so badly. But I was like, that's almost twice what we're paying in rent right now. It was just like, how am I going to justify this when I'm on food stamps and Medicaid, all this kind of stuff. Yes, I'm on that. But I drop this money, money on a coaching program, right?
- [31:20]
A
From his Internet coach, right?
- [31:25]
C
And so I'm having this mental battle and I get back home to my room that night and I didn't go hang out with people or I just was not feeling it. And I remember, like, texting my wife on the walk back to the room and I took the long way around the. The pond, just slowly, depressedly meandering back to my room, right? And I'm texting her and I'm telling her how amazing it was and what the program would do and all that kind of stuff. She's like, that sounds great. And I'm purposely not saying how much it's going to cost just to get her excited about it. So then I could maybe do a stack with her, right?
- [32:04]
A
And be like, well, for this and.
- [32:06]
C
This, see if I could try it. I didn't, but I failed when it came to, like, you know, doing that. And I told her the price and she's like, that's a lot of money. Like, how are you going to pay for it? I'm like, I don't know. And I'm like, the only thing I could do because I have to, like, sign up while I'm here and pay for it while I'm here. Like, I could put it on the credit card and then we will figure it out, right? But so we talked a lot and I talked to my dad and it was the same thing. He was just like. And that's a lot, you know, just like the scarcity mindset that a lot of us have with our family members and support system that aren't. Don't think we are. Who aren't the crazy ones. And so I went to bed and, you know, I got emotional and stuff like that. And I slept so, so bad. I just didn't Sleep very well that whole night. And again, I talked to my wife again in that next morning and I just. We just said it would be awesome, but I can't do it. So I'm just going to work hard and just figure something out. And then if it ever opens up again, then I'll be in a position to do it. So I left my room that morning with that in my mind. I made the mistake of keeping my wallet in my pocket though, right? Because I'm here. So I again made the long walk back and kind of gave myself a pep talk, like, don't worry about that kind of stuff. Just like, get more value out of it, meet more people, all that. So that's when I left my room the next morning. That was where my mind was then.
- [33:41]
A
What happened next?
- [33:42]
C
I walked into the room and Kevin Anson, who I had. It's funny, he does a lot of editing for clickfunnels and he and I had actually met, like independent of Clickfunnels before. Like, it was one of those things like, oh, you do. Oh my gosh. It was like two months after we'd met, right? So I was talking to him, just chit chatting. And I just had. Right then in my mind is like, walk over to the table and sign up. If you don't do it now, you're never going to do it. It was just one of those things because I'd given myself that speech, that whole five minute walk across the property. And so I finished up talking with him and I just said, I'll be right back. And I walked straight over to the table, got out the credit card, wrote it all down. And I'm like, I don't even know what my limit is. So I hope whenever they run this that it's. It goes through or, you know, I don't know what's gonna happen. So I did, and I got that little silver ribbon that we all got. And again, like, the chills, like, I was just like, holy crap, this is amazing. I put it on my little lanyard thing and I was just like. I couldn't believe it. It was just like the adrenaline and all that stuff that I'm doing it and my wife is going to kill me when I get back home. So, you know, so that's. Then I went and got my seat and I just was like floating, you know, I was just like so amped. Like I could have Steven Larsen it and just like screamed over the noise of everybody else and it would have been very. You would have heard it, right? So that's what I did that morning. I was like, nope, I'm not going to do it. Not going to do it, not going to do it. I walked in 60 seconds. Done. You have my money, right?
- [35:21]
A
So I'm curious, when did you tell your wife? It's like a marriage counseling session, huh?
- [35:26]
C
Yeah. Do you have a couch I can lay down on? No.
- [35:30]
A
Big couch.
- [35:30]
C
Yeah. Really? So I got home and I didn't tell her at all. I didn't, because I said, okay, the clock is ticking. I have 30 days till that hits again, or you know, 20 days till the credit card statement comes. And she's like, wait, why is there an extra 2,000 bucks on here, right? And so I just, I said, I've got some time because my wife is, she's five, three, she's dainty little petite lady and. But you know, she's not scary, I guess. But like I was like, oh, this is the first time I was really like scared to tell her something in our marriage. So I just said, I'm gonna, I'm just gonna hit the road hard and see what I can come up with to at least cover the 1800 and the hotel like for the what I racked up at Funnel Hacking Live. And then that will give me another 30 days to figure something out, right? So I went and I, I never told her until the credit card statement came and she saw it and she's like, what's this? But what happened before that? I don't know. Do you, do you have something after that or you want me to go to Zen Expired? Okay, so me going to work and like, I'm like, I gotta find it. And it was funny. Like that night at Funnel Hacking Live, I went on Facebook and I created like some like, you know, half thought through offer where I was like, hey, if I can get like five people locally where I'm at, to like do a monthly low number where I create a couple of videos for them, a month old retainer that'll cover it and I can figure it, but nobody nibbled on it, right? So I got home and I started just trying to figure stuff out. And I had met another lady who had a company and she uses Click Funnels for her course. It's funny, I talked to her before I went to Funnel Hacking Live and we were talking and she was like, do you know clickfunnels? I was like, that's so crazy. I do, because I'd never met anybody else that had. And so I got home and I shot a little video with her. It was a test to do some modules for her course and she loved it and it was great. And so we were talking about she had like 20 videos she wanted to do and we were talking about budget and I just said, you know what? For that much, for that many videos and all this kind of stuff, it's going to be $25,000. And she didn't even blink. She was like, perfect, that's great. Thank you.
- [38:09]
A
And.
- [38:16]
C
You guys, You're gonna make me cry. Thank.
- [38:32]
A
You.
- [38:34]
C
And that was like maybe two weeks after I got home that that happened. And I left her house and I tried my hardest not to do like a jump heel click going down her driveway out to my car. And I got around the corner and I messaged Russell and I was like, dude, you'll never guess. I just closed my first five figure deal and this is what it was. And. And he was like, that's so cool. But it was the whole plata o plomo thing. I would never had the guts to ask for something like that. I know that I should and that my skills and what I can do are worth that and more. And it's been proven to me again and again since then. But to ask, the first time, that first time you have a big ask and like, you're just throwing yourself out there. And if she would have said no, now what am I going to do? Because I actually done another pitch where I did like a webinar pitch where I had a stack and slides and stuff because it had to. It was for the chamber of commerce. I wanted to charge him like 2,500amonth to do like four videos for a year. And I did the whole thing. Like, if you do it, it's $2,500 a month. Or if you do it, all right now it's, you know, and they passed on it. You know, I was like, ah. So it was just one of those things where it. Being around y', all, right. Like, being. That was my first experience being around entrepreneurs, really. I have friends who had businesses. But, like, I felt weird for wanting to create my own thing or being selfish because I have four kids. Like, why don't you go get a real job? All those conversations that you hear and have with yourself, especially when things aren't going great. But it was like, okay, I have to get it done or I have to drop out. And I just, even in that short amount of time, I had received so much value from the people that I had been beginning to meet. And then as the content started coming out, I Was like, there's no way that I could live without this after having a taste of it. Right. So that was my. I just had to get it done, and. And it worked out amazing.
- [40:43]
A
Ah, I love that story. So cool. All right, so since then, how. Have you guys watched his. Are you daily or almost daily Facebook lives?
- [40:58]
C
Pretty much almost daily. Like, I'll miss something.
- [41:00]
A
Have you guys watched his daily Facebook lives? Ish. Okay. He's doing what we're saying, right? He's doing it. He's doing it. He's doing it. I see it every day. I see it. I see it coming through my feet. He pops my thing over and over. He's doing what we're talking about. He's attracting people. He's telling stories. All the stuff we're talking about, he's been doing it. But part of it was, like, he had to have that emotion, that plot tor plumo moment. And then he hit it, and then it's just like he's been running and running and running. It's been so insanely fun to watch the progress and the growth. I mean, some of you guys know he put out an event that's coming up this weekend and sold out in, like, five seconds. He's like, I sold out. Should I, like, make it bigger? I'm like, no, people should respond to you faster. It's their fault. Like, sell it out. Cause next time it'll be easier to sell out again. Easier to sell out again. We did it by. Instead, by doing tons of value, telling stories, Telling stories, telling stories. Providing more value to you guys, to other entrepreneurs, other people in the community. And people are noticing. Right. All this stuff we talked about today. He's doing it consistently. Consistently and consistently doing it. That was so cool. I didn't know where to go from here. All right, I know where to go from here, Ken, before I move into this, was it scary?
- [42:10]
C
All of it, scary? Oh, yeah. Yeah. Well, this is. Well, back to my competitive days. I didn't care who. I've played against, the best players in the country at high levels, and I didn't care if you were going to the NBA being recruited by Duke. And once we got in the lines, I didn't care who you were. I was going to make you look silly. I would hold. I was. You wouldn't score a point on me, or I would just, like, outwork you. And if you wanted to get anywhere, I was in your face the whole time. Right. And so this was a whole different game for me. I remember Myron talking about in his speech at Funnel hacking Live. Like, you have to stay in the game long enough to learn the game. And I was new to this game, like, brand new. Like, less than 12 months when I went to funnel Hacking.
- [42:59]
A
Life, right?
- [43:00]
C
And it was. It was terrifying because not necessarily because I didn't think I could do it. I was just worried when. How long it would take, really. Like, am I gonna go and I'm just gonna spin my wheels and it's gonna be 15 years, like 2099. And I'm wheeling up across to get my reward from him in his wheelchair. We're just like, hey, buddy, you know, that kind of thing. Or like, I just didn't know how to make it happen quick and that kind of stuff. So I was definitely scared. Not necessarily failing because I had failed before, but I was just scared how long it was gonna take.
- [43:41]
A
One of the best moments for me was this summer, him and his family were driving home from. I can't remember where. They're driving through Boise, like, can you swing by and say, hi? My kids want to meet. My wife wants to meet you? And obviously, always a scary thing. You haven't met someone's wife or kids. What if they hate me? And I remember then I started thinking, like, oh, my gosh, he spent all his money coming out here and then he bought the thing. She might legitimately want to kill me. I have no idea. I was a little bit nervous, and I came and met them, met the kids. Super cool. I just remember the coolest thing. Your wife just looked at me, she said, thank you. I was like, how cool is that? Just the coolest thing. Thank you for convincing persuade whatever the things are to do this thing. I think sometimes as entrepreneurs, we feel the guilt or. And the nervousness of, like, ah, should I sell somebody something? Like, is it right?
- [44:22]
B
Is it wrong?
- [44:22]
A
It's like, you have to understand that when you're doing it, like, it's not a selfish thing for you. It's like, how do I get this person to take the action they need to do? Because most people don't do it until they make an investment. It's just the human nature. They keep dinking around and dinking around. They do whatever it is, but until, like, they have a commitment, until they make that covenant, like Myron talked about earlier, people don't change, right? And so in any aspect of life, he wants to make a change. Like, there's gotta be. There's gotta be something that caused enough pain to cause the change, which is why we had the program we could have priced the program really cheap. I was like, no. We legitimately wanted to make a plot to a moment for everybody. You notice when the program signed up, not everybody who signed up is here today. Some people fell away, some left things happened. Right. I totally understand. But I wanted to make it painful enough that we get people to move. And there are people in this room I've joked about, like, Nick probably shouldn't have bought that if you'd asked him, like, no, dude, don't. What are you thinking? Why would you do that as a friend? Like, this is weird, but I'm so grateful. Are you grateful you did?
- [45:15]
C
Absolutely, I think.
- [45:16]
A
Where's Marie Larson? Is she still in here? I talked about this in a podcast. Yes. She was in the same situation. She should not have signed up for it. It's insane. I think I saw this text she sent Steven. She's like, how much did you have in your bank account when you signed up for it? $70 in the bank account. $1,800 a month bill she signed up for. Right. And then she started happening and she was freaking out. It was going. And if you guys haven't listened to the podcast Lean in yet, I told this whole story story. But it got nervous, right? Month one hit, month two happened. She's like, oh my gosh, I need to leave, I can't afford this. And she's talking to Steven and Steven's like, well, you could leave him walk away or you could lean in. And so she said, ah, okay, I'm lean in. And she leaned in. And I've watched as her business over the last three, four, five, six months is growing. And it's growing and it's growing because she leaned in. Tough times will come every single time it comes. But like, those who lean in are the ones who make it through that and then who grow and who build huge businesses. Want more marketing secrets? If so, then go get your copies of my two best selling books. Book number one is called Expert Secrets and you can get a free copy@expertsecrets.com and book number two is called Dotcom Secrets and you can get your free copy@dotcomsecrets.com Inside these two books, you'll find my top 35 secrets that we've used to become the fastest growing non VC backed SaaS startup company in the world.