This video is all about one of the biggest mistakes that I see online entrepreneurs make, a mistake that’s responsible for more epic fails than anything else…

Make sure to go over and like my Facebook page, it’s one of the best ways to interact with me (and ask me questions.)

And please leave a comment for me down below… have you made this mistake? Or have you successfully avoided it?

Have you heard about the “Internet Lifestyle”… how you can live where you want and work when you want? The only problem is that, for most people, the Internet Lifestyle turns into a trap more than anything else – and that’s what this video is all about…

This question came in on my Facebook page… go over there and like that page, it’s one of the best ways to interact with me (and ask me questions.)

And please leave a comment down below. This is a big question, and it ends up holding a lot of people back. I want to hear your opinion and wisdom on this…

How do I deal with haters? This is a really big question, and it can really hold people back. Here’s my answer:

This question came in on my Facebook page… go over there and like that page, it’s one of the best ways to interact with me (and ask me questions.)

And please leave a comment down below. This is a big question, and it ends up holding a lot of people back. I want to hear your opinion and wisdom on this…

How do you move from learning to doing? How do you actually get started? When is it time to stop planning and researching… and start building your business? This is how I did it…

This question came in on my Facebook page… go over there and like that page, it’s one of the best ways to interact with me.

And please leave a comment down below. I want to hear about the big pivot points in your life – what they were and what they’re going to be…

What one critical decision made all the difference for me? I’ve had an amazing journey since I started my business… and it began with some crazy humble beginnings. This video is about the one decision that started it all…

This question came in on my Facebook page… go over there and like that page, it’s one of the best ways to interact with me.

And please leave a comment down below. I want to hear about the big pivot points in your life – what they were and what they’re going to be…

So last November I got a chance to sit down with Paulo Coelho for dinner. I’ve written about Paulo before… and the impact that his book “The Alchemist” made on my life.

(If you’re not familiar with Paulo, he’s sold 150 million books, he has 7 million Twitter followers and 10 million Facebook followers, and “The Alchemist” is the fifth most read book of all time, ever, in the entire world.)

With Paulo Coelho

As you could imagine, with that cast of characters, the conversation was extraordinary – and it leapt from topic to topic. Writing, publishing, books, war, spirituality… and that was just the first 10 minutes.

We were in Geneva, Switzerland, at one of Paulo’s favorite restaurants. After a leisurely dinner, we decided to walk to a nearby bar to have a drink.

And, for me, this next part was simply amazing – the path we walked to get to the bar was literally on the Road To Santiago – the ancient and holy path that is the subject of Paulo’s book “The Pilgrimage”. I had no idea, but it turns out, a portion of that road is in Geneva. Who knew?

It was there, as I walked on the Road To Santiago with Paulo, that I got to tell him the story of the impact that “The Alchemist” had on my life… and consequently, the lives of thousands of others. The whole thing seemed magical (or at least mystical)…

So what was Paulo like? He was charming, engaged, curious… and most of all he was passionate. You might think that an author who has sold 150 million books might sit back and rest on his laurels. Not Paulo… he is all about his next book. He is all about engaging with his millions of fans. He is all about making an impact.

What a group to have dinner with! Brendon Burchard, Janet Attwood, Paulo Coelho, David Bach, myself, Paulo's agent Monica (Chris Attwood is not pictured.)

Each of them have had a true Heroe’s Journey, where they heard the call to adventure… and they struggled with that call. Some of them refused the call, some of them couldn’t answer the call. Some of them tried to answer and failed… the first time. Or the first twenty times.

But you know what happens next. Each of them faced many challenges along the way, and each of them eventually persevered. And that’s the path we all face if we’re going to lead our biggest and best lives.

It never comes easy… even for the people that make it look easy. But there is no dress rehearsal. We only get one shot at this world. Make it count.

One more thing, and this came directly out of that dinner with Paulo in Geneva – Brendon Burchard lucked out and snagged the worldwide exclusive video interview with Paulo Coelho for his new book, “Manuscript Found in Accra.” The video interview is only available for a limited time, and you can see it at this link:

CLICK HERE: Worldwide Exclusive Video Interview With Paulo Coelho

Go check it out now. Paulo is amazing, and it’s a great interview.

So it’s a risky thing to meet one of your heroes. In fact, it can been pretty scary.

Lots of weighty expectations hang in the air. What will they be like? Will they live up to your expectations? Or will you walk away disappointed? Will you lose one of your heroes?

So last November I was sitting in the airport in Geneva, Switzerland. I was about to get on a plane and fly home to Colorado. I had just gotten a chance to spend several hours with Paulo Coelho. Now Paulo is another hero of mine, and one day I will write about having dinner with him… but he’s not who this post is about.

In any case, meeting Paulo was really cool, and it inspired me. And as I sat there on the runway in Geneva, I thought to myself “OK, that was awesome – now it’s time to meet Pressfield”…

You see, Steven Pressfield is another author who has made a big impact on my life. Many entrepreneurs are familiar with his incredible book “The War of Art”… and I love love love that book, but it just barely scratches the surface of his work. His fiction is equally amazing, and a personal favorite of mine is “The Legend of Bagger Vance” (I know it’s cliche, but you should skip the movie and read the book).

So after meeting Paulo Coehlo, I decided it was time to figure out some way to have dinner with Steven. I didn’t know how it would happen, but I knew there would be a way… I learned long ago that I’m pretty good at “manifesting” things. So I figured I had a good chance of meeting him, but I had no idea it would happen so fast…

You see, just a few weeks later I got a surprise package from my friend Victoria Labalme. In it was a personally signed copy of “The War of Art” and a note to me from Steven Pressfield!

With Steven Pressfield in his home...

It turns out Victoria had heard me mention “The War of Art” when I was speaking on stage, and she just happened to be a close personal friend of Steven. And to make a long story short, it was only a matter of a few weeks before I was on a plane to Los Angeles to got to dinner with Steven, Victoria, and Victoria’s husband.

And there we are – back to me nervously wondering what it would be like to meet one of my heroes… and whether it would live up to my expectations.

Well, I don’t know if I just have great taste when it comes to “hero selection”, but I haven’t been disappointed yet. It was a wonderful meeting. Steve was gracious, kind, engaged, and funny. In fact, dinner was too short, so we quickly made plans for breakfast… and then breakfast evolved into spending the entire morning together.

The thing that stuck out the most for me was how wonderfully curious Steve was, and what great questions he asked… he kept asking me about me and my life. And his insightful questions kept pushing me to make distinctions I had never thought about before.

In Steve's office, looking at a diagram for his next book

I’ve long felt that asking great questions (and then having the good sense to shut up and really listen to the answers) is one of the most powerful skills that anyone can have… and Steve truly is a master at it. There is incredible knowledge and wisdom that is bottled up in the people surrounding us, and for the most part we walk around oblivious to it. Our lives are hugely enriched when we wake up and tap into that innate wisdom in the people surrounding us. It was inspirational to mentally step outside myself and “watch” Steve ask great question after great question.

Another thing I’ve noticed about people who lead inspired lives – they’re always looking to grow. They’re always striving to make their “art” better (no matter if their art is writing, building a business, or making a better cheesecake). And they’re always trying to “level up” and play a bigger game.

In other words, as my coach Dan Sullivan says, their future is always bigger than their past. And, of course, Steven Pressfield fit that description perfectly… he really wasn’t interested in talking about his past work. He was far more interested in talking about his current and future projects. And truth be told, he was most interested in talking about the people around him.

(Funny story… during our conversation, I mentioned something that one of the principle characters in Steve’s amazing “Gates of Fire” did. But I couldn’t recall the character’s name – even though I’ve read the book at least two or three times. As I was making my point, I said “sorry, but I can’t remember the character’s name”… and Steve quickly interrupted me and said with a smile “Either can I”.)

Steve graciously signed my copy of "The War of Art"

Our time together flew by all too quickly, and soon I had to head out to catch my flight home. But I left inspired. I left happy to have met an inspired, driven, and gentle soul. And best of all, I left with a new friendship.

P.S. I’m on a roll now… anyone want to introduce me to Bruce Springsteen, Keith Richards, or the Dalai Lama?  :-)

P.P.S. Who would you love to have dinner with? And why?

Tonight I’m going to dinner with someone who has made a big impact on my life. One of my heros, if you will. It took me two flights and most of a day to travel to California for this meeting.

We’ve never met before – and since I’m an introvert, I’ll naturally be a little nervous. But I’m really excited… in fact I couldn’t really sleep last night.

The thing is, I don’t think anyone ever gets sick of hearing about the impact they’ve made on someone else’s life (at least I never get sick of hearing that!)

And that’s why I flew half-way across the country – to tell my hero about the impact he made on my life. To say thanks… thanks for showing up in your life, thanks for doing the work, thanks for putting yourself out there, thanks for playing big, thanks for staying inspired, thanks for playing hurt, thanks for fighting your doubts and fears, thanks for battling resistance in your life every day.

We live in a world where the word “hero” almost sounds quaint. It seems like it comes from a different time. And everywhere we look, we see “fallen” heroes. Every time we open a newspaper or turn on the TV, there’s another scandal about another “hero” who has fallen from grace…

But I don’t think the idea of heroes is old-fashioned. And as far as those “falIen heroes”, well that’s another discussion… but I think we need to forget about the idea of “perfect” heroes. I don’t think you’ll ever find one of those perfect heroes… but I still see heroes everywhere I look. I seem to be surrounded by them.

I don’t care if they’re starting a business, writing a screenplay, raising a child as a stay-at-home parent, building homes with Habitat for Humanity, creating a meditation practice, or taking care of an aging parent… I see people doing heroic stuff all the time.

So how do you become a true hero? Well, I’ve got a recipe for you. There are two things you have to do. One of them alone isn’t enough – you have to do both of them. The good news is that they’re both very simple to do. And, unfortunately, the bad news is that they’re also very difficult.

First, you have to do the work. There ain’t no way around this… you have to show up and do the work. Whatever “your” work is… however, you’re going to make your impact… you gotta do the work. And then you have to keep doing it. You keep showing up day after day, and year after year… and you keep getting better. That means you have to turn off the TV, close down Facebook, forget your email, stop checking ESPN.com, shut down YouTube… and you have to do the work.

It’s never easy, and there are no short cuts. If you see someone who makes it look easy, it’s because they were doing a lot of hard work before you were watching them.

And then the second thing you have to do is even harder… you have to keep growing. You have to keep stepping up into a bigger vision of yourself. You have to keep stepping into a bigger future. You have to be willing to step outside your comfort zone. This is the deal – all of us are full of doubts and fears… we all have a little voice in the back of our head that wants us to retreat into our “safe zone”. That is the voice that holds us back. That is the voice that stops us from being great.

Make no mistake, that voice will be there with you… everyone’s got that voice. And it’s up to you to decide whether you will let it rob you of your power. Whether it will rob you of your greatness. You need to ignore that voice. All growth happens at the edge of your comfort zone.You can’t have your biggest life if you stay in that comfort zone. You can’t be a hero if you stay in that comfort zone.

And that’s your recipe for your Hero’s Journey. You need to show up. You need to do the work. And you need to keep playing a bigger game. And you need to keep doing it. If you do that day after day, year after year… then I’ll tell you how to find a hero…

Go look in the mirror and you’ll see a hero looking back at you.

Today is a big anniversary for me – 16 years ago today, on August 30th, 1996, I started my first Internet business.

Yes… I actually started all the way back in the summer of 1996.

I’ve come a long way since then – from incredibly humble beginnings in a corner of the baby’s room to selling tens of millions of dollars of my products. (And, of course, that baby is in college now.) More importantly, my students and clients have sold hundreds of millions of dollars of THEIR products.

In any case, since this is my 16th anniversary, I thought I would share my 16 Rules of Internet Success.

These rules came to me at different times over the years. I was lucky to stumble onto the first two of these laws right at the very beginning. The rest were hard-won lessons I learned over the years. So without further ado, here they are:

1. Always Be Building Your List AND Your Relationship With Your List: I wrote about this one at this link – this is one of those laws that I somehow instinctively understood from day one. This is critical, and people still screw this up. For most digital businesses, this is the one true asset that you can truly own. And don’t forget that second part – your relationship with your list is just as important as the size of your list.

2. Only Sell What The Market Wants: I learned this one in the first few months of starting my business, when I was looking at which pages on my site were getting the most traffic. I realized that was an easy way to tell what people were interested in… and I also realized that it wasn’t what I would have expected them to be interested in. Hmmm… big surprise – and I learned to look at the data instead of trusting my instincts. You need to do the same… sell what the market wants, not what you want to sell them… or what you think they should want. There is so much data and feedback available in our online businesses, there’s no reason to mess this one up.

3. Take The Long View – Win With Strategy: So many people continually screw up their positioning, their brand, and their reputation by chasing after the latest tactic or the last dollar that… well, it’s just downright sad. The good news is that if you take the long view (and in this business, the long view seems to be anything past the next three months), then you’ll instantly stand apart. With your marketplace being so connected (and getting more connected every day), you have to deliver quality, and you have to be congruent. Chasing today’s dollar too hard can have long term collateral damage. Giving away last month’s flagship product as a bonus to spur sales this month is horrible for your positioning, and it WILL negatively impact your business in the long run.

4. Don’t Depend On Any Single Source of Traffic: If you’re dependent on your search rankings, you don’t have a business. You’ve temporarily won the lottery… and the gravy train will NOT last. Same with other sources of traffic… none of them are permanent. Diversify your traffic sources. If you only have one primary way of getting your message in front of people, then you’re living on borrowed time.

5. Sell Your Own Stuff (and Other People’s Stuff): If you’re going to have any control over your business, you need to be selling your own products. So get over it, and create those products.

AND you should also sell other people’s products – either as an affiliate or by getting paid to run ads. This is smart because it helps diversify your revenue, and because you’re not going to be able to create all the products that your clients need. More about this here.

6. The Purpose Of The Sale Is To Generate A Raving Fan: When you make the sale, your job has just started. You need to deliver a great product and a great experience. Your raving fans will return to buy from you over and over (which is where the real money is made), and they’ll become your evangelist in this uber-connected world.

7. It’s All About Relationships In Your Industry: I don’t use the word “competitor” in my business. I only think in terms of “partners” and “future partners”. I suggest you try that out for a while… because your net worth is equal to your network.

8. Get To Dollar One: I always want to get to my first dollar of revenue with any new product or business. I’ve heard so many grandiose plans that never got off the ground… often because the plan was just too big, or because there was no real plan for revenue. The danger in any new business grows exponentially for every day that goes by without revenue. Force yourself to figure out how to get at least some revenue flowing as quickly as possible.

9. Opportunity Cost Is The Most Important Thing (And It Becomes More Important As Your Business Grows): I wrote about this here… bottom line is there are always more opportunities than there is time. You can only do so much. Every time you choose a project, it comes at the cost of another project.  Choose wisely.

10. Get Out Of The House And Go To Live Events: My business changed radically after I started going to live events – that is where the connections are made, it’s where the deals are done. I met nearly every one of my top Joint Venture partners at a live event, long before any of them ever promoted for me.

11. The Power Of The Mastermind Is Enormous: I wouldn’t be where I’m at today if I wasn’t actively engaged in various mastermind groups over the last 13 years. Get in a mastermind group now. More here.

12. It’s A Lot Easier To Sell With The Human Touch – The “Corporate Voice”  Is Death: I’ve always been happy just being me, and not pretending to be some big corporation. I didn’t refer to myself as “we” in my emails… and that set me apart from the very beginning. Back in the early days, everyone was trying to sound big and important – I was just writing my emails like I write to my best friend. It worked. People want to connect with people, not corporations… that corporate voice will kill you.

13. Live Below Your Means… Don’t Buy That Ferrari Yet: When the money starts rolling, it’s easy to let your lifestyle grow very quickly. Fight that urge. Remember Rule #3 – the long view. It’s a lot easier to do the right things and make the right decisions when you aren’t chasing the next dollar… when you aren’t worried about making the payment on that Ferrari.

14. Baby Steps: I have a video about this here… your first site will suck, that’s OK. Your first sales letter will suck, that’s OK. Your first email will suck, that’s OK. The important thing is to have a rock-solid plan, and keep moving forward. You’ll get there… just get started. Be gentle with yourself, forgive yourself for mistakes, don’t expect to be perfect – just get moving, and keep putting one foot in front of the other.

15. It’s All About Creating Value: In the short run, you can use tricks and tactics to create some level of success. But if you’re doing that stuff without delivering real value, then you’re just spinning the karma wheel… and that doesn’t usually work out so well in the long run. The path to long term success is by creating massive value for your clients… and your clients are the ones that will be measuring that value.

16. Invest In Yourself… No One Can Take Your Skills From You: I spend a lot of time, energy, and money on my skills and knowledge. I’ve been doing that from the start, and I’m not ever going to stop… no one can take that away from me. I’ve been fortunate enough to have long term success… but I’ve also had set backs. I’ve had significant revenue streams disappear overnight – but it never slowed me down. In fact, it really wasn’t even very troubling, because I knew I had the skills to bounce right back. Once you’ve developed your chops, you have the ultimate control over your destiny.

So there’s my 16 Rules of Internet Success… I’m not claiming they are all-inclusive, or that they’re a fit for everyone. After all, I only had 16 to work with. But they’ve been working really well for me…

So let me know – what’s your #1 law? What was the one you learned first? Which one was the most painful to learn? What did I forget? Leave a comment below and let me know… I read all of the comments.

I just shot a quick video for you about what I consider one of the most critical things you need to master if you plan on having any lasting success…

Let me know what you think – please leave a comment down below…