Successful Bloggers Do What Others are Not Willing To (Affiliate Summit West Keynote)

As you guys knew that I was going to be attending Affiliate Summit West 2012. One of my favorite session was the closing keynote given by my friend Jeremy Schoemaker aka Shoemoney. Jeremy shared his story of how he went from being in debt of thousands of dollars to making an 8-figure online income through his blog and other internet ventures. He gave me a shout out in his keynote for our Free WordPress Setup idea

This was Jeremy’s 50th time speaking and according to him it would be the last. I was in Jeremy’s first keynote that he gave at Izeafest in 2008. This presentation was very insightful and I definitely learned few very important lessons. Some of them are already implemented in my business modal which I am glad for.

Lesson #1: If you want to be successful, you have to do what others (your competitors) are not willing to.

Often people are afraid of adapting new things. They don’t know whether it will be good for their business. Whether this be a new social media technology or a new business strategy. It is the one who takes the risk that gets the maximum reward. Sure there is a risk of some damage or loss, but you can calculate that. As some say: If you are not first, then you are last.

Lesson #2: Don’t underestimate anyone!

Jeremy used to be pretty fat close to 400 pounds. He liked a girl in high school who rejected him after she manipulated Jeremy into giving her presents and such. Well years later, now Jeremy is not as fat and super rich. She sent him an email asking him for tips and ideas to make money online. What reason is there for Jeremy to help her? I don’t think I would! Bottom line: Don’t judge the book by their cover. Never underestimate anyone. So what if someone is new in the industry. They can very well end up being at the top. Always respect them.

Lesson #3: Payback is a B**ch

The girlfriend of his ended up being broke and a single mother. Now she wants Jeremy to help her when she screwed him out of money in High School. Well think again. The bottom line is treat others the way you want to be treated.

These three lessons can really shift your business model if you do them right. I was lucky to be invited by the good people at @Po_st to a dinner with Jeremy Schoemaker, and John Chow. I got to learn a lot more from him about the depth of these three lessons.