CO-HOST | Make Money by Building a Brand Without Losing Yourself

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Make Money by Building a Brand Without Losing Yourself"

Podcast: Travis Makes Money
Host: Travis Chappell
Guest/Co-Host: Eric (Producer)
Date: June 13, 2026
Episode Theme: The risks and realities of building a personal brand, why staying in your lane matters, and how chasing trending topics can ultimately hurt your reputation and authenticity.

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Episode Overview

Travis and his producer Eric dive into the nuances of personal brand building, focusing on how creators and business personalities can inadvertently sabotage themselves by straying too far from their core expertise. Using a clip from personal branding expert Caleb Ralston as a springboard, they discuss why being authentic and mindful about the topics you address is crucial. The conversation critiques the trend of business personalities drifting into politics or other sensitive topics for views, often to their own detriment. The discussion is peppered with humorous moments and real-world examples that make the message both accessible and practical.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Magnifying Glass Effect: When You Own a Topic, You're Scrutinized For It

[02:04 - 03:18]

• Caleb Ralston argues that whatever you highlight in your content will be closely examined by your audience.
  • “What you end up talking about in content… your audience is going to pay way more attention to that thing and is going to grade you and critique you against that thing. And I'm down to be graded and critiqued when it comes to personal branding. I'm not down to be graded and critiqued when it comes to the other areas of my life because I'm not an expert in it.” — Caleb Ralston [02:04]
• The risk: Talking about topics outside your expertise—like relationships or parenting—means inviting scrutiny on areas you're not prepared for.
• Recommendation: Choose content topics wisely and consider the long-term consequences of expanding your “lane.”

Confusing Expertise with Universal Brilliance

[06:18 - 07:07]

• Discussion about how audiences often assume expertise in one field translates to others.
  • “People conflate genius in one area with other areas… Just because you're really good over here doesn't mean you know this thing over here.” — Travis [06:25]
• Travis shares he avoids debates and controversial discussions unless he truly has the background and skills required.

Attention ≠ Value

[12:46 - 13:18]

• Eric likens chasing viral attention by shifting topics to running through a mall naked—it gets views, but not the kind of impact you want.
  • “If I ran into a shopping mall but naked, everyone's going to look at me, but it doesn't help me.” — Eric [12:46]
• They discuss how views spurred by controversy or jumping topics don't necessarily translate to lasting positive impact.

The Trap of Audience Expectations and Public Stances

[14:28 - 17:48]

• Young, fast-rising influencers often harden their public positions before gaining real-world perspective.
  • “Just because somebody has 3 million followers does not mean they are worthy of being listened to.” — Travis [14:43]
  • Publicly taking a stance makes it harder to publicly change your mind without backlash from your base.
• Audiences look for certainty; brands built on absolute claims or rigid worldviews risk crumbling if personal beliefs evolve.

The Dilemma: Building a Flexible Personal Brand

[18:29 - 20:54]

• Some creators, like “Cosmic Skeptic” Alex O’Connor, intentionally leave room to change opinions, making their brand adaptable and authentic.
  • “His brand is the Cosmic Skeptic. It allows him the fluidity to be able to change his opinion based on new evidence.” — Travis [18:38]
• Brands that don’t allow for intellectual evolution risk falling into rigidity for the sake of consistency.

The Dark Side: Risk, Virality, and Reputational Harm

[22:39 - 24:59]

• Travis shares an anecdote about a peer who pivoted from a successful business figure to political commentary, chasing views but losing credibility and eventually damaging his reputation—even among supporters.
  • “In the video you appear to be the asshole. Even if you're correct in the stance, you're being a total asshole about it because you know that's going to get more views.” — Travis [24:17]

True to Self Over Chasing Clout

[25:26 - End]

• Travis concludes with advice: focus on what’s authentic to you and your real expertise, rather than seeking short-term attention by following trends.
  • “Eventually the true you is going to come out. And when that day happens, you don't want there to be a massive gap between the version of you that people thought you were and the version of you that you actually are.” — Travis [25:36]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “If you're going to put shit out on the Internet, you will get scrutinized. No way around it, dude.” — Caleb Ralston [03:16]
• “The last thing you want under a microscope, right? … Eyeballs at what cost?” — Eric & Travis [12:56]
• “Just because somebody has 3 million followers does not mean they are worthy of being listened to.” — Travis [14:43]
• “His brand is the Cosmic Skeptic… it allows him the fluidity to be able to change his opinion based on new evidence.” — Travis [18:38]
• “You can streak across a football field and, yeah, you'll get eyeballs, but to what end? Your end? Your back end?” — Eric [24:59]

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Important Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment | |-----------|---------| | 00:42 | Introduction of Eric as co-host and teaser for Ralston clip | | 02:04 | Caleb Ralston’s insight on the scrutiny of creators | | 06:18 | Travis discusses the misconception of expertise “spillover” | | 12:46 | Eric and Travis riff on the cost of chasing attention | | 14:28 | Travis on young influencers and hardened positions | | 18:29 | Praise for adaptable branding: “Cosmic Skeptic” example | | 22:39 | Travis shares a story of a failed brand pivot | | 25:26 | Travis’s closing advice: Be yourself, stay in your lane |

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Takeaways for Listeners

• Stay Authentic: Define your brand around what you know, what you want to be scrutinized for, and resist the temptation to expand content scope for views alone.
• Beware Public Certainty: When you build a following on loud, certain proclamations, you make it harder (emotionally and economically) to change course.
• Attention Isn’t Always Positive: Chasing attention outside your expertise can lead to backlash, reputational harm, and discomfort—sometimes from the very audience you attract.
• Allow Room for Growth: Brands that foster open-mindedness and healthy skepticism fare better in the long run, as they can evolve with new information without public undoing.

---

This episode is a candid, relatable discussion that mixes humor, real-life media wisdom, and the message that a sustainable brand is built on authentic expertise—never just attention for its own sake.

Transcript

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[Travis]

You're listening to the Travis Makes Money podcast presented by GoHighLevel.com for a free 30 day trial of the best all in one digital marketing software tool on the planet. Just go to gohighlevel.com travis. What is going on, everybody? Welcome back to the episode of the Travis Makes Money podcast where it's a mission to help you make more money on this episode of the show. My producer Eric is in studio. What's up, Eric?

[Eric]

Hey, Travis.

[Travis]

Hey. How's it going?

[Eric]

Pretty good.

[Travis]

Good. What about you? I'm doing a. Okay.

[Eric]

Are you familiar with Caleb Ralston?

[Travis]

Yes. The branding guy?

[Eric]

Yep. Yeah, then yes, that tells you he has a good brand. He's the branding guy.

[Additional Guest]

Yeah.

[Eric]

He's a Las Vegas based personal brand strategist to be specific.

[Travis]

I don't know. He's based in Las Vegas.

[Eric]

He spent over 15, 17 years building and scaling creator and founder brands both behind the scenes and now as a founder himself. Didn't you know that?

[Travis]

I did.

[Eric]

Did you know that he was Gary Vaynerchuk's videographer and TikTok lead for about two and a half years?

[Travis]

I did.

[Eric]

Did you know that he helped grow Gary Vee's TikTok from roughly 300,000 to 3.5 million followers in about three months? Did you know that he edited the trash talk series that spotlighted reselling and garage sale flipping? Did you know that he went on to work with Acqu and built a 18 person media team from scratch that helped them scale from 1 million to 11 million? Did you know he publishes a free multi hour personal branding course and content on platforms like YouTube and Instagram now?

[Additional Guest]

I do.

[Eric]

Did you know outside of work he's into Harley Davidson, motorcycles and metal shows?

[Travis]

That is something I did not know.

[Eric]

Well, I have a clip from Caleb Ralston and I wanted to get your thoughts on it because I thought he was cooking.

[Travis]

Let's see it.

[Eric]

I'm just going to play the sound.

[Travis]

Okay. Well, let's hear it.

[Eric]

I'll show you too. All right, here we go. Here we go. Caleb Ralston. Here he goes.

[Additional Guest]

You end up talking about in content, you put a microscope on, your audience is going to pay way more attention to that thing and is going to grade you and critique you against that thing. And I'm down to be graded and critiqued when it comes to personal branding. I'm not down to be graded and critiqued when it comes to the other areas of my life because I'm not an expert in it. So, like, what value am I actually providing to anybody on that? There's plenty of people that can talk about that shit. I think people are way too quick to add a topic into their content rotation without thinking through the consequences long term. Like, if you are known for business and you start talking about relationship advice, guess what? People are going to start paying really close attention to your relationship. And what kind of impact will that have on your relationship? If you start talking about parenting, suddenly the way that you parent your kids is going to go under a microscope. You're going to get more questions about that. And not that there's anything wrong with that inherently. It's just knowing yourself and knowing what you want to talk about, what you have credentials to talk about and what you want to be scrutinized. Because the unfortunate reality is if you're going to put shit out on the Internet, you will get scrutinized. No way around it, dude.

[Eric]

So, Travis, what's your take on this upcoming election? I'm curious to know.

[Travis]

This is what we're about to say. That is why we don't get into politics.

[Eric]

On the what do you think about this advice, Travis?

[Travis]

Yeah, it's spot on. And I like that he gave the caveat to say that it's not necessarily a bad thing. You can do that if you want to do that. But also it's going to come with this new level of scrutiny around this other thing that you are not the expert at. So it's just. It's sort of just weird to open yourself up to be in the line of fire about things that you don't really know that much about.

[Eric]

That's why you never get into your sex life. Really, huh?

[Travis]

Yeah.

[Eric]

Last thing you want under a microscope, right? You probably need it to be under a microscope. You know what I'm saying? No, I was thinking about. I was like, this is a great way to explain it because I see a lot of guys in business. The honestly, the number one thing I thought about was politics. The amount of business guys that I

[Travis]

saw one today, Business guy who say more has a massive show and then all of a sudden has like a debate with like two political people and was like, what? This is strange. Like, the arc is so fascinating to me. I think it's probably just because it's a viewership thing. Like, it's just A larger, total, addressable market to speak about politics than business. But I don't know. I'm not a fan of the Ark. It's just like, I.

[Eric]

You sound like people in Noah's time. I don't know. I'm not a fan of the Ark. I don't think it's going to work out for you, Noah. Well, look who's laughing now.

[Additional Guest]

Who?

[Eric]

Noah. Because he believed in it, man.

[Travis]

Good stuff.

[Eric]

Anyway.

[Travis]

Good stuff.

[Eric]

Yeah. Well, you know what I saw the other day? I saw Jillian Michaels. She was doing a debate with Sam Cedar, who's a political commentator. He's been doing it for, like, the last two decades. And it was very. Not to get into politics, but it was very. It was one of those things where I felt embarrassed for her because she was literally, like, chatgpting openly. Like, wait a minute, wait a minute. Let's see. And then she, like, type it, and he's like, I gotta go soon. And she's like, type. I just want to see what it says. And so she was, like, literally AI ing her way through the conversation. I'm like, post about fitness.

[Travis]

Exactly.

[Eric]

You know what I mean? I get too. Some people do want to make the pivot, and there's a rocky road to get to the point where they can be great. You know what I mean? Like, Sam Cedar was an actor before he became a political commentator, but it's like, you can't just die. At least don't be doing debates and

[Travis]

things where people can be like, you do it to your own detriment.

[Eric]

Because all the comments were like, just go back to the gym. Yeah, go back to the gym. And like, I. You. I felt like, secondhand embarrassment. I was like, just don't do this, you know? And I see this all the time. I see business guys do this, where they pivot into politics.

[Additional Guest]

Yeah.

[Eric]

And then they talk about it. It's like, I don't know enough to have a politic. A politics show. I don't have to have a political show. But, like, I know that they don't know what they're talking about.

[Additional Guest]

Exactly.

[Eric]

You know?

[Travis]

Exactly. But I think that a lot of people don't realize, like, you just have

[Eric]

to pay more than your listener.

[Travis]

Exactly, exactly. It truly is that way. And people conflate genius in one area with other areas. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, they'll see somebody. It's like, well, I mean, he's worth $200 million, so maybe he knows a little bit more than you do. It's like, yeah. About building businesses. That just because you're, you have really good domain expertise over here does not mean that you also know this thing over here, they exist as two different silos. Like, you can't. That, that'. Why, that's why I would not do any of these debate type things. Because I'm just like, I, I know that first of all, I have never done structured debate before in my life. I wasn't on the debate team in high school, you know.

[Eric]

You've never done a debate? No. Really?

[Travis]

Have you never done. Have you done a debate?

[Eric]

No.

[Travis]

Why are you so shocked that I have not done a debate? I'm just surprised we didn't have debate teams in.

[Eric]

I'm surprised that, well, I don't know, you had a bit. You were bigger than me.

[Travis]

Yeah, well, we didn't have your school. We did not have muscles. Well, two things can be true. We didn't have, we didn't have debate. So, yeah, like, it's like I, I've never done a structured debate and then I don't care to.

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[Travis]

my ideologies on an audience of people in that type of a context. And then I know that it's not necessarily about, especially in debates. It's not even necessarily about who has the best information or who is more truthful or honest or who is more accurate. A lot of the times it is who is the more skilled debater.

[Eric]

Yeah, it's not the masters, if you will.

[Travis]

Yes, correct. Correct. But yeah, you know, like, just because, just because you know about a topic does not mean that you will be good at debating that topic.

[Eric]

Right.

[Travis]

And somebody else who's a really good debater might even know less about that topic than you do. But they know how to debate, therefore it makes you look dumb. Or it's like pulls people to that other person.

[Eric]

They might just be good at memorization. You know, that's the thing that I always get stressed about.

[Travis]

Some people are really good at debate and that's. That is a skill. It is absolutely a skill set.

[Eric]

Yeah. Because I've always thought about like, if I did a debate, but like, I love being able to go, I know that's not right. Let me go find the thing and be like, here's the study that shows that's not right. I hate being on the fly. Like, well, actually guys, it's not that, you know, and they're like, well, prove it. What's the study? I don't remember.

[Travis]

Yeah, and a lot of them just have those studies memorized. You know, they'll. They, they know how to, they know how to debunk the study that you just referenced. And that was the entire point of your whole argument. And you didn't know that that study had been debunked. So now you just look silly. Like, it just.

[Eric]

That's why I always stay focused on feelings rather than facts.

[Travis]

Well, it's also the, you know, the stay in your lane thing feels bad, but also still applies in a lot of contexts. And it's like, if you are not. Like, that's my thing about it is like, you're allowed to share whatever you want. And I personally, it personally does not affect my, like, you know, I've catch a lot of flack with people because I'm a big LeBron fan. And he is always talking about politics. Well, not like always, but he has been one to speak up about that thing. And people are like, oh, stay in your lane, you know, don't talk about it, whatever. And it's like, it doesn't bother me that he talks about it. Like, would I prefer if he didn't? Sure. Because it takes away the emotional charge of a sport that I enjoy. But, like, it doesn't affect my viewership of him as a basketball player, but it does for a lot of. Of other people. So it's just sort of like, if you're going to do that, just know you are also opening yourself up to all of this other stuff and decide whether or not that is something that you want to deal with. And for me personally, it's never been worth dealing with it, even for excess views. Because even like the, the few times where we've brought up politics and it's not even in a political discussion, it's sort of like I'm talking to a health expert or like an author or something like that. And we'll just, we'll mention the name of somebody who's in politics. And those videos always get more views than all the videos. And every time it happens, me and you both are like, maybe we should start a politic, a political show. Because, like, that would be better. And it's just like, of course it's going to get more views, but it doesn't mean that it's going to be good and it isn't. And then it's only going to further draw me into a world of politics that I don't want to be involved in. Like, there's, there's so many lagging effects and you lose track of that when you're just like going for the most volume of views that you can get.

[Eric]

Well, it's like if I ran into a shopping mall, but naked, everyone's going to look at me, but it doesn't help me.

[Travis]

That's true.

[Eric]

You know what I mean?

[Travis]

That's true.

[Eric]

Eyeballs at what cost?

[Travis]

We should try that.

[Eric]

A B test. Running through them all naked and then running through them all spouting political opinions. Yeah, no, I'm saying. But it's the same thing. It's like you can get attention, getting eyeballs on your stuff, quite literally in the scenario I just mentioned. Quite easy. But what do those eyeballs mean for you? And that's a whole different conversation.

[Travis]

Yeah, exactly. Yeah. I just don't find much value in it. And then it's like, I don't know, views change, opinions change, and it's like, especially about those types of things. It's like, I don't want to have said something that lives on the Internet forever. And then in 10 years from now, my kids are like, you know what I mean? Trying to defend their dad from something that he used to think that. No, like, I don't know, just like, I don't want to open that can of worms. It seems, seems superfluous to me.

[Eric]

Yeah. Wow, that's a good word.

[Travis]

Thank you.

[Eric]

That's a lot of syllables.

[Travis]

You know the first time I ever heard that word, Pirates of the Caribbean.

[Eric]

Oh, I'm just gonna.

[Travis]

You weren't gonna guess that.

[Eric]

I was gonna guess.

[Additional Guest]

No, you weren't.

[Travis]

Oh, you were going to get. You were not gonna guess that though.

[Eric]

I was gonna guess something.

[Travis]

Yeah. Pirates of the Caribbean.

[Eric]

Anyway, parley.

[Travis]

That's another one. Acquiesce.

[Eric]

Ships.

[Travis]

That's from Pirates of the Caribbean.

[Eric]

Sword.

[Travis]

I actually knew those words before I watched parts.

[Eric]

Beach, sand, water. What's the biggest, if you can give one, what's the biggest example you've seen where somebody has torpedoed themselves by doing a pivot like this, where they start talking about something that they're ill equipped to talk about and why is it Bryce Crawford talking? I'm just kidding. Just kidding.

[Travis]

Yeah. That sort of is a blanket statement for all super young people. It's sort of the fame does not equal intelligence. It's like you, like, just because I

[Eric]

know my follower count's been going up and my brain is not.

[Travis]

Just because somebody has 3 million followers does not mean that they are worthy of being listened to. And I find that to be the case for especially anybody that's like got famous on TikTok at 19 talking about like really deep issues that affect multiple. Like you're still a kid. Like you're still coming out of living in your parents house. Like you haven't even had the opportunity to form real opinions or beliefs or live any version of life. You know what I mean? Like you're, you're, you're stuck in this silo and then you're going to preach this as if it is the only truth. And it's just like, okay, well now that you're doing it publicly, it's going to be that much more difficult to allow other evidence to surface that's potentially going to change your opinion about it, you know, because you're. You have public evidence of your position. So you by nature are going to deep. Are going to dry. Like, deepen those roots in that position.

[Eric]

And your audience captures a little bit where it's like, I'll use Bryce Crawford as an example because I'm a big fan. But it's like you have a kid, 19 or whatever when he started, which I think this is also a fault of the people around him not being like, hey, bro, maybe take some time to read a little bit before you jump into this. But you have a Bryce Crawford who's suddenly boosted into this massive platform he's on. Sean Ryan recently, all this sort of stuff. And which I watched a lot of the clips from that. It's like one of those things where it's like, how much can you wrestle with your worldview when like your whole brand is like, exactly.

[Travis]

I want to. Being sure in your worldview.

[Eric]

You know, I went to the Satanic temple and it was just demonic. And child's like, what is that? You know, and you're like having to walk through this.

[Travis]

I went to Burning man and it was even more demonic than the Satanic temple.

[Eric]

Does he have the freedom to go on a show and be like, you know, actually, I was thinking about this. Maybe I just felt weird vibes because I was conditioned to feel that way.

[Additional Guest]

Exactly.

[Eric]

Or maybe I changed my perspective. Not even on big stuff. Like, he was talking on the show about, like, how he views communion. It's like, I know he's going to get a ton of flack just even weighing out because he's built an audience of people that are like, exactly. The Bible's true. And that means what I believe is

[Travis]

he said something about that with like, Catholics versus Protestants or something like that.

[Eric]

Are we closeted Bryce Crawford? We watch the same thing.

[Travis]

Yeah, you're putting a. You're put in a position now where you have to placate to the broadness of the audience. Even though your personal belief is in conflict with a segment of or unknown,

[Eric]

you don't have a hard stance. But like, I know this is the

[Travis]

default because people are following people like that for certainty and clarity. So if they have any chink in the armor, it's going to cause this, like, you know, almost panic within the audience base where it's like, whoa, wait a second. I thought, I thought we were on the same page.

[Eric]

I thought you were biblical.

[Travis]

Exactly.

[Eric]

You know? Yeah. And I feel that same way with, like. I mean, it's even the same thing with relationships. Like, it's very weird. I forget who it was I followed that was like a relationship person, but they got, like, they got divorced.

[Travis]

Oh, yeah. Yeah. That'll do it.

[Eric]

I feel like we don't have to give a name, I guess, but there was somebody in that space and I was like, yeah, that feels weird.

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[Travis]

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[Eric]

This is incredible.

[Travis]

Wow. I am clearing the rest of the day.

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[Eric]

Feels odd.

[Additional Guest]

Yeah.

[Eric]

The other.

[Travis]

I mean, but I will say that the. The other side of it, which is.

[Eric]

But also I feel like.

[Travis]

What's his name? Alex o'. Connor. The cosmic skeptic.

[Eric]

Yeah.

[Travis]

That's what I like about his stuff is that, like, he leads with being a skeptic. Even, like, he would. I don't. I honestly don't know if this is how he would identify himself anymore. But he previously identified himself as sort of like part of the new atheists type crowd that, like, Richard Dawkins popularized. And now I feel that he's changing his tune to some degree. But his brand is the Cosmic Skeptic. Like, it's. It allows him the fluidity to be able to change his opinion based on new evidence. But even that said that several times now where it's been like, I used to think this, now I think this because I've had these interactions with these types of people and it's like, sort of allowed me. But if you don't take a position of, like, my mind can be changed, then it becomes really, really easy to just dig yourself further into that stance and not be willing to change it at all. Because you already have, like, the audience. The audience gives you permission to have the arrogance that you've already figured everything out because they are on the same page that you're on. So in your mind you're like, well, but the army of people that follow my stuff also all agree with this thing.

[Eric]

Yeah.

[Travis]

And so if I disagree with it, not only does it change everything from, like, my personal value perspective, but it also has the ability to wreck my career. You know, that's your Obvious, like, your confirmation bias is going to be so much more. It's going to be on such a higher level because there's multiple layers of things that can affect you in a negative way should you decide to voice an opinion that would be different than what the audience already accepts as truth.

[Eric]

But even then, though, isn't even labeling yourself a skeptic to play devil's advocate, isn't that prohibiting you from ever landing

[Travis]

somewhere taking a hard stance? But I don't think from my personal anecdotal experience of consuming his content, I don't see that that has prevented him from taking hard stances. And he is a talented debater and excellent communicator. And I've watched several of his things where he has taken really hard stances. But he's also allowed himself the freedom to be able to move within that worldview and say, like, I used to think this, but now I think this. And I think the audience is cool with that. Like, the audience goes like, okay, I could still disagree with you on that. But also, I value that perspective change. You know what I mean?

[Eric]

What I love is, if he ever wants a huge payday, he just needs to convert.

[Travis]

Oh, dude.

[Eric]

Dude, he would crush.

[Travis]

But what's funny about the whole, forget Lee Strabel.

[Eric]

What's funny about the Christian atheist thing, though, is that it goes both ways, where, like, if he was a really. Like, if you're a really successful megachurch pastor and you deconvert, there's a huge audience for you out there to go tour with, like, Alex o' Connor and do all this stuff. And if you're like a hardcore atheist and you convert, like, basically both sides are like, I will fund whoever leaves their thing first a hundred percent.

[Whatnot Sponsor]

Well, those are always.

[Travis]

The examples that we always heard in church were the people, like, those are the people they put up on stage.

[Eric]

Oh, yeah, it was Lee Strobel. And then there was one other guy that did. It was one of the worst books I ever read. But he was a forensic. He was a forensic. I won't even name him if I can remember it, but I read the book while a Christian, and I was like, this is the worst book. This makes me believe less. It was probably my first step out, actually. Shout out, no, he was a opposite of the. He was like a forensic crime scene investigator. And he basically, like, let me look for the evidence. Yeah, it was at least trouble. He's kind of reheated those nachos a little bit. And he was like. But he basically, like, the whole book was here's the damage that this would have done physically to Jesus. And I was like, this is all assuming that what it says in this text is what happened. I feel like we're skipping a step here. But that, I don't know why I said that, but it was. Yeah, there's a huge market of people that are wanting you to take that hard lined this is that. And there's also a huge audience, people that want you to like take the opposite approach and be like, oh, I used to do this but now I'm doing exercise.

[Travis]

I do have an example actually. Again, I won't name him. He was a friend of mine some time ago.

[Eric]

Was?

[Travis]

Yeah, well, like I say friend lightly. More like an acquaintance. Like we were in the similar like Mastermind circles and we, you know, hung out a couple times.

[Eric]

Do I know who you're talking about?

[Travis]

I don't think so. I don't think so. Okay, but he's a business guy who's in the construction space and he did really well, built like a lot of custom homes and stuff. He was doing really well for himself in that world. And then he joined an mlm which was sort of like weird, like, and then brought it into the Mastermind community and then ended up I think getting kicked out because he was trying to, you know, convert people to his mlm. But then he went on this political tangent and, and then started getting more views on his stuff because his business stuff wasn't getting any views. So he started going hard line on the political stuff. There was this like, I can't remember the entire scenario, but it ended up going crazy viral and a bunch of news outlets picked it up because he was throwing a fit on a, on a flight during like the COVID time. And but like I, when I watched the video and in like from my perspective, it was just like, you're not doing this to like, you know, stand for your values. You're doing this because this is the new arc that you've chosen and you think this is going to get views. But in the video you appear to be the asshole. Even if you're correct in this, in the stance, you're being a total asshole about it because you know that's going to get more views. And so like that completely derailed his like political pursuits. Because the rhetoric, even from the people who agreed with him was like, hey man, calm down. Like this is not that big of a deal. Like you're, you're way, you know, you're blowing this out of proportion. Out of proportion. Like, you were the asshole in the situation. And so he got called out from that perspective, even from the people who, like, were following some of his stuff. And then, yeah, it didn't. It did not end up working out well for him.

[Eric]

I asked perplexity the context clues you gave, and it said, this sounds like conservative commentator Candace Owens. You were in a mastermind with Candace Owens, who was a known real estate guru.

[Travis]

No, it was not Candace Owens.

[Eric]

Okay, we'll talk about that.

[Travis]

But I've seen that happen now more times than I would like to see. And again, it's always in pursuit of. Of building an audience and getting people

[Eric]

to follow your stuff. You can streak across a football field and, yeah, you'll get eyeballs, but to what end? Your end? Your back end? Anyway, well, stay tuned because in the next episode, we're going to do a tier list of war crimes in the Middle east. And just. I think we'll get a lot of views on that content there. So stay there. I mean, the bombing of children's hospitals is S tier, right, bro? Anyway, let's go ahead and close out the episode right there.

[Travis]

Yeah, no, that's it for this episode of the show. Just look at your content, look at the stuff that you're doing, and ask yourself, like, am I truly adding something to this conversation, or am I trying to, like, ride this wave of content? Because I believe it's going to potentially outperform some of the other stuff that I'm doing, Like, do stuff that's true to you, because eventually the true you is going to come out. And when that day happens, you don't want there to be a massive gap between the people, between the version of you that people thought you were and the version of you that you actually are. So it's always better just to lean to the side of this is. This is who I am. This is what I talk about. This is what I know, rather than just jumping into other lanes just for the fun of it. So, anyway, that's it for this episode of the show. Remember, money only solves your money problems, but it's easier to solve the rest of your problems. You got money in the bank. So let's solve that one first here on the Travis Makes Money podcast. Thanks for tuning in. Catch you guys next time. Peace.

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