How to Make a Million Dollars

It was the closest I’ll ever come to being in a rock’n’roll band, I suppose.

On Saturday night at 9pm, in front of about 250 fitness experts, I gave the presentation of my life.

I joke about the rock band thing, because really, when else will I be on stage in front of that many people, at 9pm,on a weekend?

Heck, I’m usually trying to sleep at 9pm on a Saturday night.

That said, I had a blast doing this presentation, and it convinced a LOT of audience members to TAKE ACTION towards their goals of building an online business.

In one section of my presentation I shared a never-seen-before list of different business models that the audience could use to get started. I’ll talk about those another day…

…but for right now, I want give you the 5 biggest lessons I learned on my way to making my first million.

What follows are the last 5 slides of my presentation, and possibly the most important part of my ‘rock show’.

(BTW, if I was in a band, or if I was a DJ, I’d be called,”Bally Jr.”. It just sounds right.)

Back to the list…here are the 5 most important things I did – and that you MUST do – to create over $1 million in online income.

#5. Build Relationships

Get to know as many people as possible.

Contact at least one potential business partner/affiliate each day and help them first.

Interview them for your email list, your Facebook page,your podcast, whatever you have going.

That’s what I did starting all the way back in 1999. When I found someone with great content, I made an effort to share their info with my list, while expecting nothing in return.

So become known as a value adder. A helper. Someone who gives – and loves to give – more than they receive.

As the legendary Zig Ziglar once said, “You will get all you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want.”

4. Use the Diet-Book Method of Product Creation

Promise me one thing…that you will not let the creation of your product hold you back.

I know so many folks who take 6 months or even years to get their product done…but it shouldn’t take you more than two weeks.

I learned quickly that people want information fast. Most folks are buying a product at 4pm to use at 4:30pm.

They don’t want hundreds of pages (or hours of video) dedicated to theory.

They want ‘how-to’ info delivered RIGHT NOW.

So use my diet book method of product creation. Write a little intro article on the theory of what you are selling, and then give them the ‘recipes’. (Just like a diet book does.)

3. Identify the MAGIC TIME to Get More Done

Everyone has a time in their day when they are THREE times as productive as any other time of day.

You have to recognize that, free up that time, and then ruthlessly protect it from time vampires.

I discovered back in 2004 that my MAGIC TIME was early in the morning.

As a result, I sacrificed income by cutting back on my morning personal training hours so that I could write content, programs, and emails for my online business.

It hurt me at first, but paid off handsomely in the long run.

Identify your magic time. Work it. And guard it like Bally the Dog guards his dinner dish. Don’t let anyone else get their greedy lil’ paws on it.

2. Start with a Big Idea

You cannot pass go, cannot collect $200, and cannot build an online business without it all starting with a BIG IDEA.

Now don’t worry, it’s not as tough as it sounds to have a great big idea. Or at least an idea that allows you to stand out and carve out a significant portion of the marketplace. You CAN do it. And we can help.

Matt Smith and I have been doing this for over 12 years each. We’ve created several multi-million dollar big ideas of our own, and have coached others to do the same.

If you’re stuck, don’t worry. We can help you build a list of raving fans and clients in a crowded, yet proven market.

That’s what we do.

1. Work with a Mentor

I truly believe, “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear”.

This has happened for me many times in the last 7 years, starting with my first business coach in 2006.

By following what I call the P2P principle (Pay-to-Play), I hired that coach who helped me set up my website for more sales. He then followed that up by promoting my product.

I invested $3000 in coaching and it returned $17,000 during the 3-day promotion we created. Now I’m not great with math, but even I know that’s a great result.

Paying-to-Play literally changed my business over the course of those 3 nights in July of 2006.

It helped me LEAPFROG my competitors.

If you compare my success to that of other folks who were starting their own online fitness sites back in 2006, I can guarantee you that I’m literally 10x’s further ahead of them.

Why?

Because I invested in a mentor, while they didn’t.

The #1 tip I can give you, or anybody trying to start a business, online or offline, is to invest in coaching from someone who has already “been there and done that”, so that you don’t have to go through the painful lessons they did…

…and more importantly, so that you can leapfrog the competition and achieve your goals so much faster.

As my friend Bedros Keuilian says:

“The fastest, easiest and most direct way to success is to model it. Don’t try to recreate the wheel. Instead, surround yourself with people who are already achieving what you want. Get coaching, buy into mastermind groups, and model success.”

Getting personal coaching from experts in a Mastermind setting full of like-minded, positive people is one of the best things you can do. And now is your chance to experience this.

You can meet with myself, and my business partner, Matt Smith, where we’ll personally coach you, and give you a life-changing Mastermind experience later this month. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to leapfrog your competition.

Reserve Your Spot with Matt and I at our 2-day Mastermind

See you there,

Craig Ballantyne

“Mastermind and collaborate with other smart entrepreneurs if they have futures that are bigger than their present.” – Yanik Silver, Maverick Business Rule #29