Category: Freedom

How To Spot Opportunity (or Quit Complaining and Make Money)

I make money online when people complain about the high cost of anything. Here’s how…

I get this question a lot: “How do you support yourself?”

My answer of “marketing” I guess is a little vague. :)

Today will be the first in a series of how to make money articles. My goal with this blog isn’t to be a “make money online” blogger, but it’s an integral part of Ridiculously Extraordinary Freedom, don’t you think?

That said, I have no intention of doing these types of articles too often, unless it’s what you want. This Web site is about you, after all.

The following info, which I actually sold about a year ago to my very small private e-mail list, I’m going to share with you freely. (I haven’t accepted new subscribers into my private list since 2008.)

I sold about 100 copies (like I said, it’s a very small e-mail list), so understand this information has real value and other people besides me have used it to make money.

What I’m trying to say is, don’t just read it, act on it.

In December of 2008 a friend of mine was telling me how expensive tickets were to an upcoming NHL hockey game called the Winter Classic. I don’t watch hockey and know nothing about it. Yet I still profited from this info.

Let me repeat that.

I knew almost nothing about the market yet I still made money.

Do you see what just happened?

Somebody complained about something costing too much money and Karol profited. wooohooo

The most important lesson in this whole article:

If somebody is complaining about the high cost of something you can make a lot of money online with that information.

Can you guess how I did it in this situation?

Scalping?

No.

But close.

I promoted NHL Winter Classic tickets through the StubHub.com affiliate program using Google Adwords. I sold thousands of dollars worth of tickets in just a few weeks.

StubHub is basically an outlet for scalpers and they pay 4-9% commission through their affiliate program.

For NHL tickets they pay 7%. That means if the people I send to StubHub buy $1,000 worth of hockey tickets I get $70. Pretty sweet deal, huh?

It’s essentially a form of arbitrage. Like trading oil or other commodities, but on a much smaller scale.

I don’t have to fulfill any products and I don’t have to deal with any customers. I just send potential customers to the StubHub Web site through my affiliate link and if they buy I get paid.

That’s all well and good, but you’re probably wondering how I sent those customers to StubHub.

That’s where Google Adwords comes in.

Adwords (and its “sibling” Adsense) is how Google makes their billions.

How it works is you bid on a keyword, for example “Winter Classic hockey tickets,” and if a Google user clicks on your ad you pay for the click.

My cost per click (CPC) for the Winter Classic Tickets campaign was $0.48.

That means for every visitor I sent to StubHub I had to pay 48 cents USD.

There’s a lot of info on Adwords out there, and there isn’t enough room in one article to get into the specifics. If you want to learn more, check out the free Google Adwords Learning Center. Please don’t ask questions about Adwords until you have gone through the whole training. It’s there for a reason. :)

Keywords I bid on:

“nhl winter classic”
“nhl winter classic 09”
“nhl winter classic 2008”
“nhl winter classic 2009”
“nhl winter classic at”
“nhl winter classic chicago”
“nhl winter classic in”
“nhl winter classic ticket”
“nhl winter classic ticket prices”
“nhl winter classic wrigley”
“the 2009 nhl winter classic”
“the nhl winter classic”

Where did I find these keywords? Google’s own Keyword Tool. It’s free.

Google allows you to write a multiple number of ad variations. I only wrote 3 ads for this campaign because I was in a rush to get it up. Here is the ad that made the most money:

Winter Classic Tickets?
BlackHawks vs RedWings
Get Them Here
WinterClassic.StubHub.com

I did something known as direct linking here which I don’t do anymore. Direct linking means I linked directly from my Google Adwords ad to StubHub.

Your best bet is to use a Landing Page (i.e. Web site, which can be a blog) that you control. Again, I don’t have enough room in this article to cover landing pages, but you can find a lot of info about them online.

How you should run this type of offer today:

1) Bid on keywords.

2) Send visitors to a landing page.

3) Offer a free report about getting great deals on tickets if the visitor subscribes to your e-mail list. I use Aweber, the best in the biz as far as ease of use, tutorials, and most importantly e-mail deliverability (yes, it’s an affiliate link).

4) Send the visitor to StubHub to get their tickets immediately after they subscribe. (Also include an affiliate link to StubHub on your landing page for the visitors who will not want to subscribe to your e-mail list, but just want their tickets.)

5) Send them their free report.

6) Regularly send them e-mails with related offers.

There are a lot of steps involved, but when you break it down it’s easy.

Now take a few minutes and think about where else you can use this information.

Superbowl tickets? Check. March Madness tickets? Check. NBA Finals tickets? Check.

Focus in on any high cost tickets that are either sold out or difficult to obtain.

OK, now fire away with questions below. ;) (If it’s an Adwords question, please go through their free Learning Center first.)

I will answer all questions in a separate article or via video/audio.

Why Do We Strive For Things We Don’t Truly Want?

Striving for something you don’t want is as useful as burning money…

I recorded the following video last month in LA at TreePeople and somehow never posted it!

It’s about striving for meaningless goals.

Specifically, I tell the story about a man I met in the movie industry who is 69 years old, and still waiting for the “big score” so he can do what he really wants in life. He was good at his job (he owned the company), but he didn’t enjoy the work.

That could have been me one day as I was on that same track.

How about you?

Watch the video here:

Now, ask yourself, is it all worth it? Are you Enjoying The Process?

How To Change The World

Here’s a hint: Community.

Story time…

Last Wednesday after I finished editing Best Of 2009 article I scheduled it to post on Friday, Jan 1, 2010.

I wanted to get back into my “regular” schedule of Friday Updates and I thought a recap of 2009 would make a good post to kick off 2010.

Then I got to thinking:

“What can I do that I would consider Ridiculously Extraordinary instead of just Ordinary?”

I had a lot of fun working on the Best Of post, but I’ll be the first to admit it’s not “special.”

So then I thought…

“What can I do to help kickstart 2010 for you?”

“Even more than that, what can I do instead of a ‘How To Keep Resolutions’ type of post?”

I didn’t have the answer yet. What I did first was reschedule the Best Of post to Thursday, Dec 31.

That gave me the mental shift…

“Oh shit! OK, now I really do need to come up with something good for Jan 1. I can’t wait until my regular posting day of Tuesday…that’s January 5! Too long to wait.”

Yes, that is exactly how my brain worked. I asked it to repeat to me what I thought last week. Huh? Moving along… ;) (Seriously, do not reread that sentence, it’s confusing even me.)

Then, I did what I always do: I started free writing. Because, if I can be honest, I had no idea what I was going to post on Jan 1 yet.

I just knew it would come out, somehow, some way.

And then!

I checked my Google Reader.

I’m not sure why. Usually if I’m in the middle of a fit of writing I don’t stop to do something else.

The first article in my reader was called “What If You Never Graduate?” by Scott H Young. (You can see I commented on Scott’s article at 10:31PM Dec 30 by clicking here.)

And that cemented it. I basically stole his concept, changed the questions, and wrote the article “What If You’re Running Out Of Time?“.

In the comments section of that article Mike Long provided you with a detailed process that can change your life if you follow it.

I want to thank Mike for posting that.

That is what the Ridiculously Extraordinary Community is about. I don’t have all the answers. I don’t even have a lot of the answers. But all of us together? We can make anything happen.

What I’ve learned:

– Pushing ourselves to achieve perfection produces extraordinary results even though perfection is unattainable.

– Sometimes interruption can be inspiration. Sometimes.

– The Community is where real change takes place.

The Community is why I started this site. With your help, I’m building a Ridiculously Extraordinary Community, one step at a time.

Together, we will not only change our own worlds, we will change the whole world.

Thank you for that.

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Speaking of Community: I’m in Washington DC as of this afternoon until Friday afternoon. Lunch on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday? Let me know… (352) 577-0173 (leave a message if no answer) or KarolGajda AT Gmail.com or @KarolGajda.

Tick Tock Tick Tock (or What If You’re Running Out Of Time?)

You have the power to make real change in your life starting right now…

It’s January 1, 2010. Congrats, you made it. ;)

Let’s get it started right. What follows is better than any “resolution.”

Time (no pun intended) for a thought experiment. To make it successful whip out a pen/paper or fire up a text editor. There will be a reward if you take action. :)

In 12 months you won’t be able to work more than 1 hour per day on income producing tasks. You will have come down with an illness that renders you incapable of even attempting to work more than 1 hour per day.

Starting today, what do you do to plan for that?

How do you start reorganizing your life?

What action steps do you have to take today in anticipation of the future?

Even if you’ve never run a business of any sort before, act as if. What kind of business do you think you could start? What steps do you need to take to make it work?

12 months is a long time to get yourself set up.

Invest 15 minutes (preferably more) thinking about this.

.

.

.

Now, same questions, but you only have 6 months. In 6 months you will not have the ability to work more than 1 hour per day.

What do you do?

Now, 3 months. What changes? You’ve actually got real time constraints now. It’s difficult to think 6 or 12 months out because it’s such a long time from now, but 3 months?

3 months out is April 1. That’s really soon!

With 12 months to make it work you could still probably watch TV and play video games every day. But 3 months? I’m not so sure.

With 3 months you will probably have to cut out all extraneous activities from your life while you set yourself up for your new 1 hour/day handicap.

The Reward

Post your answers, and they should be somewhat detailed, in the comments.

I’ll e-mail you with my own answers which, as with a lot of my work,will be free from copyright.

I won’t post my answers here, but you’ll be free to post them on your own blog or wherever you please.

Update (2:25PM EST Jan 1, 2010):

1) Esoteric answers don’t count. Be specific.

2) I’ll only send the e-mail with my answers for comments made until Jan 7, 2010. You have 7 days to think hard and submit your answers.

Thanks for participating!

Last Name “Of” First Name “Best” – 2009 Edition

Not a normal “best of” post. But not an abnormal one either…

Before I begin: thank you. Thank you for reading what I write. Thank you for sharing articles with your friends. Thank you for commenting. Thanking you for e-mailing me.

There are a lot of blogs out there and the fact that you take the time to make mine one of your worthwhile reads means a lot to me. I hold myself to a high standard and I don’t take it lightly that you and I have connected.

Here’s the deal with blogs: the archives are where you can find some of the greatest hits. More than likely, you’ve just arrived at this blog within the past 2 months.

Due to the nature of blogging, with a constant stream of new content coming in, those older articles don’t always get the attention they deserve.

If you’re anything like me, when you discover a new blog that you connect with, you go back and read through every article on the site.

Quite a few of you have e-mailed me about doing just that on this blog and that thrills me to no end! :)

But, being that we’re all busy people, it’s not always possible to wade through the archives. So I’ve done it for you in a slightly atypical fashion.

What I mean by that is there is a lot of commentary and a bit of info about the future (such as a possible product launch) below. Specific traffic stats, most popular and least popular articles, and other fun stuff like that is also included.

This is, by far, the longest article I have posted. Over 2,600 words. I obviously decided not to edit for brevity as I usually do.

Oh, if you have your own blog and have done a Best Of post please comment with a link to it.

(Note: all links open in a new window/tab.)

Top Post Of The Year

That award goes to…you ready?

How To Wash Your Clothes While Traveling aka 15 Minutes – Clean Clothes – Anywhere In The World

That’s in terms of visitors: 9,371. And there’s a very good reason that particular article had more visitors than any other.

It’s linked to on my ZenHabits article: The Beginner’s Guide To Minimalist Travel

In terms of activity though, the top post goes to:

Travel Light, Travel Anywhere: The Ultimate Light Packing List

It has almost 100 comments (granted, about half are mine) and, with 6,972, just a couple thousand visitors shy of the How To Wash Your Clothes article.

I fully expected my light packing list to be my most popular article. I’m a big fan of reading packing lists and I know other travelers love reading packing lists too. Light packers are a passionate bunch. :)

This Article Can Change Your Life

The first article on Ridiculously Extraordinary that got any traction (i.e. links, comments, and e-mails) was:

How To Stop Having Problems or “The Eighty-Fourth Problem”

It’s one of my favorite articles and also in the top 5 (in terms of visitors) on this site.

Most Likely To Help With Your New Year’s Resolution

If that Resolution has anything to do with weight loss or exercise that is. :)

Get Fit In 1 Minute or “Am I Gonna Die From Heat Exhaustion?”

After I wrote this article I felt like “Wow, this is gonna be huge.”

I was dead wrong. It’s one of the least popular articles I’ve written. 503 visitors, 7 comments, and 0 links. wonk wonk

That’s OK though. Maybe this mention will give it new life. ;)

While we’re on the subject of unpopular articles. How is just 194 visitors (the least of any article on this site) and 0 comments?

I had an idea about doing Field Reports while traveling, but after Australia Field Report: Sandboarding The Stockton Sand Dunes bombed I decided against it.

Eventually I did something similar with my Friday Updates, which have been a little bit more successful, although I’ve only written a few thus far. :)

Most Search Engine Traffic

Based on comments and e-mails I’ve received on this article, it seems like I could also call this one Most Helpful.

How I Cured My Dandruff and Itchy Scalp

I think the reason it has helped so many people is because, as far as action steps, it’s the easiest to accomplish. There are no costs or barriers to entry.

My Favorite Article

Similar to the Get Fit In 1 Minute article, after I wrote this one, I thought it was going to be huge. It’s still my favorite article, if only because it helped me personally clear things up in my own head.

“Go into my head and come back out and tell me I’m wrong.” – Mitch Hedberg

Whoa, tangent!

Part of the reason it’s not popular may be because I posted it, oh, 3 days ago. :)

That article is, of course, How To Achieve Perfection.

I Almost Didn’t Post This One

Being that my goal here is radical honesty, and as much as possible, transparency, I’m glad I posted this:

How A 19 Year Old Made $5,000 In 30 days While Simultaneously Breaking Every Copyright Law In The Books, Getting Kicked Off Of eBay, and Going To College Full Time

Being young and dumb is no excuse, but it’s my excuse.

I left that article off with a cliffhanger:

I did procure another eBay account so I could continue selling strictly legal items, but I was out of the copyright violations business for good. That is, until 4 years later when I became a search engine spammer…

Nobody has asked about that and I haven’t posted it, but the story starts off with a death threat.

Sometimes my life has been like what you’d read about in a novel or watch in a movie. Usually it’s not, but sometimes …

I’ll Post This One Soon

In keeping with the novel/movie theme: I caught on fire once.

If you’ve never felt the pain of melting flesh you’re in good company. Just not my company. :)

The reason I haven’t posted it is because there aren’t really any lessons to be learned and it’s a fairly long story.

But sometimes a blog can be pure entertainment. So I’m posting it on January 20, 2010 which will be the 2 year anniversary of my first real brush with death.

But I digress, this is about the archives, not the soon-to-be archives. :)

How To Get Started With The Freedom Mindset

Get rid of stuff. Plain and simple.

Give it away. Sell it.

7 Tips: How To Declutter Your Life Using Craiglist

While we’re too attached to material possessions we can never be free.

But I’m no monk. I do own “things.”

Ridiculously Extraordinary Freedom means I can lose everything and still come out on top. I mean that. I can lose every. Single. Material. Possession. Including money.

None of it matters.

The only possession that matters is what is in our heads.

I’ve invested countless hours and tens of thousands of dollars (not University, that was free) into acquiring knowledge and that’s more important than anything else.

You will never regret getting rid of stuff and investing that extra time and money into knowledge acquisition. I promise.

This Article Needs A New Headline

How I Cured Years Of Excruciating Stomach Pains Without Doctors Or Medicines

This article should be more successful. But I think since the title talks only about stomach pain it keeps people from reading it. The article will actually teach you how to figure out how to deal with almost anything that ails you.

If I had to change the title today I might call it “How To Use The Elimination Diet To Cure Virtually Any Health Problem” or something along those lines.

The Rest of the Bunch

If you haven’t read through my archives, following are links to every article on this site with commentary, and in order of popularity (in terms of visitors).

About Karol Gajda and RidiculouslyExtraordinary.com – This is actually the 3rd most popular page on this site. At first that surprised me, but after analyzing my own blog surfing habits, it makes complete sense.

On Achieving Goals (or “Just Fucking Write”) – I’m a little bit surprised that an article with the word “Fucking” in the headline is the 4th most popular on this site, but you can’t fight with facts.

The Iron Mind – If somebody were to ask me “What is your life’s philosophy?” I’d point them to this article. I see The Iron Mind shine through in a lot of my writing. It has enveloped every fiber of my being.

How I Cured My Seasonal Allergies Forever – After the How To Stop Dandruff article I linked to earlier I think this one, based on e-mails/comments, has been most helpful. Much like the dandruff article, I believe it’s because the action steps are easy. And the barrier to entry is ~$15.

The Persistent Shower Companion (or Early Mornings At The Munich Airport) – Your guess is as good as mine as to why this is one of the most popular articles on this site.

Refine Your Signal (or Fuck The Fluff) – 2 of my top 10 articles have the word “Fuck” in the title. I’m not stupid though, it’s not a formula that will consistently work. The reason it does work is for the very fact that it’s inconsistent.

How To Travel Anywhere In The World, Live With Locals, and Enjoy Outstanding Experiences By CouchSurfing! – My first Black Book. I spent more time on this than anything else on this site. In terms of traffic, links, and other quantitative measures it wasn’t worth it. In terms of exposing CouchSurfing to just one more passionate person (which I know I accomplished!) it was a tremendous success. I owe a lot to CouchSurfing and will never stop extolling the benefits of being a CSer.

Accountability Statement #1 – The effects of this article is probably why you’re reading this site right now. Thank you for reading. :)

How To Be Socially Unacceptable (or Why I Quit Drinking) – Still going strong. I hope this article will help people for years to come.

Mind Control For Fun and Profit! (or How To Brainwash Yourself) – The day I posted this article I purchased MindControlMethod.org. I’m considering making it my first “big” product. I don’t know that I will, because I haven’t asked you yet to find out what you really want. But you can see where my head is at. I believe a fully fleshed out Mind Control Method course will help a lot of people get into a Ridiculously Extraordinary Freedom state of mind.

Needs vs. Wants or My Mom Thinks I’m Crazy or How To Be Congruent – I don’t have much commentary about this, but I think, if you haven’t read it yet, you should. :) I’m proud of this article. Biggest takeaway: Wants are dictated by outside influences. Needs are dictated by biology.

F!&k “Doing It While You Can” (or How To Make Things Happen) – It’s OK to be a follower (sometimes).

Steal This Blog! – Not an actual article, but an important part of this site. Feel free to steal whatever you want from it. :)

Permission To Do Nothing – Sometimes the best course of action is no action.

Enjoy The Process – Is it all worth it? Are you on the right path in your life? Here’s how to know if you are.

Why I Quit Traveling – I had a feeling this one would get a bunch of comments after I posted it. And it did. Sometimes my gut is correct. :)

How To Procrastinate Like A Bad Ass (or How To Overcome Writer’s Block) – I’ve used this writer’s block cure at least once since I posted this. It works so well.

Announcing Ridiculously Extraordinary Black Book #001! – OK, I shouldn’t even post this here because it’s really just a post linking to Black Book #001. But it’s here and it’s more popular than a lot of other articles! WTF! :)

Why We Do What We Do (or How To Be Present) – A recent article that had good comments, even if the visitor count may not be high. I’m proud of this one. The original version of this article was written in June ’09 prior to the launch of this site. By the time I posted this version it was a completely new article and about 1,000 words shorter. Tangent: I spent the 30 days before launching RidiculouslyExtraordinary.com writing over 30,000 words of content. About half of that content has seen the light of day. I don’t know how much of the rest will ever make it.

Powder Is For Babies (or How I Keep My Only Pair Of Shoes From Smelling Like Boiled Rat Piss On Extended Trips) – I use Gold Bond instead of Baby Powder now. Maybe I should update this article?

Zero The Hero or How To Pay 0% Credit Card Transaction Fees When Traveling Outside The US – Must read if you live in the US and are planning on spending time anywhere else. It includes info on banks in addition to credit cards.

An Unlikely First Post: Notes From How To Build A High-TrafficBlog Without Killing Yourself – Useful notes from Tim Ferriss’s presentation.

I Love My Mom So There Is No Cursing In This Article (or Why Cursing Is Good) – Lively comments, even if the visitor count isn’t exceptionally high. Censorship gets people talking. :)

I Spent A Night In Jail + L.A. meetup soon! – A Friday Update with video from the Jailhouse hostel in Christchurch, NZ.

90 Second Smoothie To Kickstart Your Day – Mmmmm…the tastiest article I’ve written. :)

What It’s Like To Tour With A Rock Band – The Swellers Record Release Edition – If you’ve ever wanted to know what it’s like to spend 24 hours/day for 3 weeks in a van with 4 other guys this one’s for you.

How To Pay $82/month For Health Insurance (For The Self-Employed or Uninsured) – I thought this one would get a lot more traffic. I guess people don’t want to pay a penny for health insurance. That’s cool and maybe it’ll happen some day soon. Moving on…

How To Quickly and Easily Clean A Blender – I had one of those “aha” moments when I figured this out.

Friday Update: Thank You Edition #1 + RE Black Book #001 – Yes, thank you!

9 Essential Books For Bloggers and Freedom Seekers (or How To Save $50,000 On An MBA) – Considering this was posted on Christmas Eve I think it has been fairly successful in terms of traffic.

Jumping Into Canyons + Go Go Goa, India – A Friday Update with some awesome videos. :)

How To Drive 1,802 Kilometers With A Cat In Tow (or How To Pull Kitty From A Thorn Bush) – I still have daymares (nightmare while awake) about this. I can deal with Jessie dying in the natural course of life (which I hope won’t be for a while!). But losing her like this would have devastated me. None of these comments make sense unless you read the story.

The Do Shit You Love Show Bonus Footage – Good times with Baker from ManVsDebt.com.

I Make You Wanna Jump, Jump + Being Vulgar – Oh wow, do not watch this karaoke video. :)

How To Get Lost In Notoriously Dangerous South Central LA (or How To Get A Free Ride From The Police) – Good times in Watts almost 10 years ago.

End of the Road + Extreme Ziplining – A Friday Update with video from the free public zip line in Auckland, NZ!

The End

There we go. Every article from 2009.

Tonight I’m going to party it up (sans alcohol) at my friend’s 3rd annual NYE party. Lots of my favorite people will be there along with a few guitars. That means there may very well be video of me singing Creedence Clearwater Revival songs in the near future. ha!

In that regard…

When it’s time to party we will party hard. – Andrew W.K.

But more importantly…

We do what we like, and we like what we do. – Andrew W.K.

9 Essential Books For Bloggers and Freedom Seekers (or How To Save $50,000 On An MBA)

If you don’t read these 9 books you probably don’t really want Ridiculously Extraordinary Freedom…

It feels kind of odd doing a list post. It’s not usually my bag, but it’s refreshing. A few days ago, as I unpacked a box of books I mailed to my Parents, I came across my marketing library. I ran to my computer and immediately pumped out this article. It’s that important.

Learning about marketing is essential no matter what you want to do in life. Whether marketing yourself to prospective employers, marketing a product to the public, or marketing your blog online, you can learn a lot from old school marketers like the ones in this list.

Marketing isn’t about being sleezy. It’s about understand people. It’s about understanding yourself. It’s about doing a great job at giving people what they want. Which, in turn, will get you what you want.

As always, all of the links are Amazon affiliate links. Click on them or don’t. No worries.

1) Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
 by Robert B. Cialdini, Phd

I’ve read this book and listened to the audio so many times I can’t even count. (OK, that’s a lie, I’m sure I can count to 1 million!) If you haven’t read it yet go buy it, borrow it, or steal it now.

2) Breakthrough Advertising
 by Eugene M. Schwartz

First published in 1966 and if you ask anybody who knows anything about copy writing they’ve read this book.

Fortunately, it’s $95, so that keeps it out of too many hands. :)

Yes, these books are listed in order of how I think you should read them. Get The Psychology of Persuasion first, then get Breakthrough Advertising.

When your world view has been sufficiently rocked move on to…

3) My Life in Advertising and Scientific Advertising
 by Claude C. Hopkins

This one’s from the 1920s.

The quote on the cover is from David Ogilvy (I didn’t include his book in this list, but it’s also a must-read): “Nobody should be allowed to have anything to do with advertising until he has read this book (Scientific Advertising) seven times. It changed the course of my life.”

Enough said.

4) Method Marketing
 by Denny Hatch

This book dissects how 8 successful multi-million dollar businesses were built. Companies you’ve heard of and companies you haven’t.

Getting into an abundance mindset is critical if you want to have Ridiculously Extraordinary Freedom. Not much else puts you in that frame of mind like reading how other people built successful companies.

5) The Boron Letters
by Gary Halbert

I paid $100 for my copy. (It’s the big book with no cover in the picture above.) You can have it free at the late Gary Halbert’s Web site: http://www.thegaryhalbertletter.com/newsletter-archives.htm

The actual letters are linked in the middle of the page there. Scroll down or do a search. 25 chapters of gold. Enjoy. (Then read every other letter at Gary Halbert’s Web site.)

6) Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got: 21 Ways You Can Out-Think, Out-Perform, and Out-Earn the Competition
 by Jay Abraham

I love this book and I will review it in only 2 words: “host beneficiary.” Learn about it. Use it.

Host beneficiary helped me pocket 5 figure days a couple of times. I’m using it on a top secret Freedom project at this very moment. I’ll probably write about that project some time in the future.

7) The Robert Collier Letter Book
 by…uhh…Robert Collier! :)

Written in 1937, another old time classic. ~500 pages. Read every word.

8) The Ultimate Sales Letter
 by Dan S. Kennedy

I hate to list this book here. Why? About 5 years ago Dan ran a seminar that was promoted as an “absolutely no pitch all content” event. That meant the speakers would be providing massive value and not just standing up and selling us their garbage.

The cost was over $2,000. Add in a flight to Cleveland, a hotel for a few nights, and food and the total was over $3,000.

And guess what? It was a non-stop pitch fest with almost no content. There were a lot of big name marketers there (I won’t name names) who all agree with this statement, but not one of them would state it in public for fear of retribution. Me? I’m proud to commit commercial suicide.

So it’s bittersweet that I’m listing The Ultimate Sales Letter here. It’s an absolutely phenomenal book about copy writing and you should read it. But don’t pay the $3,000 idiot tax that I paid. ;)

9) Tested Advertising Methods
 by John Caples

Proven headlines. Proven ads. Proven techniques. Tested Advertising Methods.

There you have it. Want to save $50,000 on an MBA? Read those books and go fail in a business or two. ;)

If you follow my Twitter you may have already read this but:

“Success can be built upon repeated failures when failures aren’t taken personally.” – Brendan Moynihan in What I Learned Losing a Million Dollars
(read that one too)

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Did you participate in Ridiculously Extraordinary Challenge #1: Quit Drinking Alcohol For 30 Days? If you made it until today, congrats! You can drink again if you so desire. If you didn’t make it, are you going to start over? As we just learned, don’t take failures personally. I know you can do it.

The Do Shit You Love Show Bonus Footage

Check out Baker from ManVsDebt.com interviewing me for his Do Shit You Love Show…

One of my last days in Auckland, NZ I hung out with Baker from ManVsDebt.com to record Episode 1 of his new Do Shit You Love Show.

Before you watch the bonus footage below check out the full show here (link opens in a new tab/window):

The Do Shit You Love Show Episode 1

We discuss traveling, following your passions, and doing what you love, among other things.

Make sure to watch until the end to hear the question I ask you. Then answer it in the ManVsDebt comments. :)

When you’re done, come back here and watch the bonus footage of me asking Baker a few questions:

It was getting dark in Auckland and by the end of my video you can barely even see us. I did boost the brightness in Windows Movie Maker even though that makes the video very grainy. What can you do, it is bonus footage. ;)

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Last Friday I mentioned that my posting schedule this week will be changed up a bit. There will be no article tomorrow, and I’m posting this Thursday instead of Friday.

There will be no Friday Update and the article I post won’t be about the Holidays. It’s actually an article I shouldn’t post at a time when a lot less people will read it. If you know me by now, you know I don’t do what’s expected. ;)

Why I Quit Traveling

After an exhausting time in New Zealand I decided to quit traveling…

That’s an odd statement from a blog about, among other things, travel.

But I alluded to this in the past.

Traveling the way I’ve been traveling is tiring. Being on the constant move is tiring.

Just when I get to know (and maybe love) a city, I move on.

It takes about a week before I get comfortable with a new place. If I leave before that week is up there’s an underlying sense of stress.

In New Zealand, because I decided to do a bus tour, I saw 16 cities in 30 days. That is just too much. I went to more cities in NZ in 30 days than I did in the 70 days I was in Australia.

Guess where I had a more enjoyable time?

New Zealand was amazing, but incredibly stressful.

I hate stress.

I’ll go out on a limb and assume you hate stress too.

Today I’m flying to Detroit after 5 days in LA. I’ll be in the Detroit area (where I grew up) until I leave for India on Jan 28.

Although I can’t stand cold weather, I’m looking forward to having a home base for more than a few days.

What I Did Wrong In Australia/New Zealand

Squeezing 2 vast countries like Australia and New Zealand into 100 days is not possible.

When I booked my flights to Australia/New Zealand (all the way back in March) I planned on coming back to the US and laying down roots again.

A couple of months after I booked said flights I decided to sell all my stuff, live out of a backpack, and see more of the world.

Because I bought a return instead of one way ticket I was already pretty well handcuffed to the 100 day Oz/NZ trip. Yes, I could have paid flight change fees and extended the trip so I could stay in my favorite places longer, but there’s a reason I didn’t do that.

I already made December plans with my family and friends in Michigan. When I say I’m going to do something, barring unforeseen circumstances, I do it. With my upcoming plans I won’t see any of them for a long time so it all worked out perfectly and I’m looking forward to spending time with them.

How To Quit Traveling and Still See The World

When I say I’m quitting traveling, I specifically mean I’m not going to be on the move constantly anymore.

I booked a one way award flight from Detroit to Mumbai. I will probably stay in Mumbai for just a few days before heading to Goa and staying there for a month or two.

My new rule is, unless I don’t like a place, I’m staying there for at least a month.

This will give me time to acclimate to each place I visit. I’ll also be able to rent an apartment or a single guest house room.

I still fully plan on making 2-3 day side trips, but having a home base to go back to will be wonderful.

The beauty of travel…scratch that…the beauty of anything in life is that you can do it however it works for you.

For some people, not knowing where they’ll be from one second to the next is exactly what they need.

Personally, I like knowing at least a few hours (OK, days!) in advance where I’ll lay my head. :)

What is your style of travel?

Mind Control For Fun and Profit! (or How To Brainwash Yourself)

I have a secret to share with you. Click here to find out what it is…

How would you like to be able to condition someone to do anything?

I have a secret to share and I want to apologize for not telling you sooner.

I’m a long time student of mind control.

I’ve been using it selfishly for far too long and I think it’s about time I shared my top secret technique with you and the rest of the world.

Before you get any ideas…

The mind I control is my own. You too can control your mind to magically force yourself to accomplish things you previously thought impossible.

The problem with a lot of people not reaching their goals is they haven’t properly brainwashed themselves.

This isn’t just about positive thoughts and affirmations or writing down your goals.

While that stuff is all well and good it doesn’t produce results like my Mind Control Method. (Patent Pending or something.)

You should know, in advance of learning Mind Control, that failing is normal.

That said, if done right (it will take you a few tries), this has a 100% success rate.

Since a very young age I’ve had the incredible ability to achieve, acquire, or do virtually anything I’ve ever wanted. And the reason is I use the Mind Control Method.

When I was in 6th grade I used Mind Control to get a full University scholarship. (I don’t know how it is where you live, but in the U.S. Uni is very expensive.) It materialized 6 years later and I never had to pay for the Computer Science degree I didn’t use. :)

In 8th grade I used Mind Control to pay for a class trip to Chicago, Illinois.

While in University I used Mind Control to keep from ever having to get a job and to build a $100,000+ per year business at age 23.

I have many more examples, but you know I hate fluff so that’s enough of that…

How To Perform Mind Control (On Yourself!)

1) Write down what you want to happen in letter form. That is, write a letter (not a sentence; a detailed letter) to your future self explaining what already happened (even though it hasn’t happened yet). Date the letter and specify the date your goal was reached.

If you don’t know how to begin let me help start you off:

“Hey [your name],

You already know all of this by now, but some amazing things have happened in the last 6 months…”

And then start explaining what you did and how you did it even though it hasn’t been done yet. Sounds complicated. It’s not. Just do it. It’s essential to the brainwashing aspect of Mind Control Method.

“Karol, WTF, you just said writing down goals doesn’t work!”

That’s not exactly true, so please bear with me here.

2) Read the letter aloud. Seemingly insignificant, but auditory stimulation is important in Mind Control.

3) Believe. Do you believe what you just read aloud? If not, start over with Step 1. That means throw away your letter. Don’t use it as a “draft” for your new letter. Start over. Clean slate.

If you write something like “Man, it’s so cool that I won the lottery. Life is so good now.” the Mind Control Method won’t work. Why? Because there is absolutely no way you will ever truly believe you won the lottery.

Keep repeating Steps 1-3 until you have the wording so vividly clear that it feels like what is in the letter has already happened.

4) Take action. This step is where I feel like you might get caught up. But it doesn’t have to be difficult.

Begin the process of doing what your future self already knows has been done. Take it step by step as you’ve already described in the letter.

You might think this doesn’t work, but you’ve seen one of my letters already. My last Mind Control Method Letter is where Accountability Statement #1 came from. Obviously I changed it around and turned it into a blog post, but within 2 weeks of writing that I increased the readership to this blog 14-fold. And the readership keeps increasing beautifully.

The whole Mind Control Method process should take hours, not minutes. It’s not a fast process whatsoever. If you find yourself not enjoying the process it may be because what you’re writing about in your letter isn’t something you truly want.

I’ve never taught or talked about my Mind Control Method before. I always had a feeling people might think it’s dumb and wouldn’t use it. Which would be a waste of time all around.

I know you’ll use it, because you’re a Ridiculously Extraordinary Person. We don’t try. We do. We use The Iron Mind and we take action.

Go, go, go!

I Love My Mom So There Is No Cursing In This Article (or Why Cursing Is Good)

I curse, you curse, we all curse. This is why it’s OK to curse in a public forum (like a blog)…

In 7th grade my friend Dave told me about a rap group that swore a lot and didn’t have a Parental Advisory sticker on their album covers. That meant you didn’t have to be 16 to buy the records (cassettes/CDs as it were). Perfect for a 12 year old. :)

(For those of you outside of the States please read about the waste of tax payer money that is the Parents Music Resource Center and the Parental Advisory sticker by clicking the blue links.)

The day Dave told me about this group, I.C.P. (Insane Clown Posse), I went out and bought their albums Carnival of Carnage and Beverly Kills 50187. :)

I was hooked for years. It felt like I joined a secret club. A club where nobody cared what you looked like, what you wore, how you spoke, or where you were from. All that mattered was that you liked Faygo and hated “the man.” This was important to angst ridden youth.

Then I.C.P. signed to a major record label and gave up on their convictions for millions of dollars. Since they were no longer independent they had no choice in the matter: every single record they released would have a Parental Advisory sticker on it. CENSORED

It didn’t make sense to me how they could rap about doing whatever they wanted and not conforming to “the man” and yet give in to “the man.”

I stopped listening to them, but their initial indie spirit lived on in my heart. (Now that I’m older I completely understand 2 high school drop outs going after mad cash instead of indie cred.)

“Hey Karol, keep it up. Make sure nobody understands or cares what you’re talking about so they don’t connect with this article.”

Why is my blog talking to me?

Whatever…

Here’s the deal: I know cursing can make a person sound uncultured and uncouth.

That said, I curse. I say For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge and Ship High In Transit and the other words often.

I never claimed to be cultured. ;)

Wait, Ship High In Transit isn’t the real origin of “that word.” I (we?) just learned something. Culture points for Karol? At least 1.

For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge is a really bad Van Halen album, but it’s a sweet phrase. Culture points for Karol? 1, but subtract .5 because it’s Sammy Hagar.

“Karol, you’re doing it again.”

Right. Moving on…

I don’t use cursing as a crutch. As is demonstrated by 90% of the articles on this site, I don’t need to curse to get my point across.

Sometimes cursing grabs attention.

And in that way, cursing can be good.

Cursing can cut through a person’s “online reading haze” and get them to focus on what you have to say.

If overused, just like any other literary device, it loses its effectiveness.

Everybody curses

Every creed and every kind, everybody curses. Or they think about cursing  but censor themselves.

It’s liberating to let it happen.

Recently, I used the F-word 2 times in a row for blog titles. That wasn’t on purpose, it just happened that way.

A couple weeks ago I posted F!&k “Doing It While You Can” (or How To Make Things Happen) and I was upset with myself for days.

Censorship isn’t congruent with my personality and I censored my own self out of fear.

“My blog isn’t popular yet. Will the few people who do read, leave if I curse?”

I let that get to me. That is not the Ridiculously Extraordinary Way. I’m not “signed to a major label” like I.C.P.

I can do what I want. :)

So when it came to the articles where I did use the F-word I laid the cards on the table.

I thought to myself:

“I can live with losing every single reader I worked hard to acquire if they don’t like the real me. What I can’t deal with is pretending to be something I’m not.”

That’s all it boils down to.

I know I’m being redundant (last week’s article was about being your true self, being congruent), but I’m interested:

Are you the same person in public and in private? That is, do you censor yourself when others are paying attention?

Why or why not?