The “Why” Behind the “What” and “How”

The “Why” Behind the “What” and “How”

We post a lot of information about ‘how’ to make an online income you own and control.

But for the next few posts we’d like to talk about the ‘why’ behind all of it.

This photo was taken September 18, 2019 on our 7+ hour train ride from Prague, Czech Republic to Krakow, Poland.

Both of these are new cities for us and we’re very excited about seeing them. We spent over a week in Prague and Karlovy Vary and were stunned at the beauty of them both. (Photos in future posts.)

I’m Working

I’m writing this article as we ride toward Krakow. Before we get off the train it will be uploaded to our website.

The half-truth that gets told by online marketers is that there’s a way to set up a system online where you do virtually no work whatsoever and the money just floods into your bank 24/7 while you sit on the beach.

It’s a partial truth because there are tactics that can make the money part happen.

But to execute those tactics takes planning, effort, and a dedication to delivering something that makes your customers think (ideally) “Shut up and take my money!” because you’ve made them understand the value of what you are offering.

There is no WordPress ‘plugin’ that does all of that for you.

There are no ‘funnels’ or ‘blueprints’ or ‘hacks’ that do all of that for you.

Here’s How It Really Works

I’ll be writing an article about being a Digital Nomad in the Czech Republic. It will have some stunning photos I took because I enjoy photography and have a nice camera and lenses.

The article will NOT be for my website. It will be for another very busy website that attracts people who want to travel, want the nomadic lifestyle, or just want to live abroad. (These are often called ‘guest posts’ because they are not by the site owner.)

Those people have probably also figured out that to make that happen they’re going to need a source of income along the way.

So most of them are my target audience in that they want to have reliable cashflow without going to a conventional 9-to-5 job every day.

That article will be chocked full of useful, interesting, enticing information about being in the Czech Republic. (Which is easy, because it’s wonderful here.)

At the bottom of the article there will be a brief bio about Connie and me, and a link to our website, where – guess what? – we specialize in working 1-on-1 with people who want to build their own source of online income that they completely own and control.

The “Automatic” Part

My article will sit on that busy website for years. Google will track how popular it is and, if I did a good job, it will rank it high enough to ensure regular, predictable traffic and thousands of fresh eyes that read my article.

Some of the people who like that article will click on my bio link and visit the Safely Leave the Rat Race website and want to learn more about what we do.

And some of those people will gradually come to think, “This is exactly what I’m looking for and I kinda like these guys so I’m going to talk to them.”

Then Connie and I will earn income from helping those people by sharing our knowledge, experience, and expertise with them.

Honestly, that one article will eventually pay for our entire trip in both countries. Easily.

In a way, that’s the part that’s automatic.

Long after I’m off this train the article I write will be bringing exactly the right people to our website and some of those people will join our mailing list so they can learn more.

They will receive a huge amount of information via automated email messages and will (we hope) eventually come to the point of deciding to take action on their desired lifestyle.

So it is fair to say you can set up a system then go sit on the beach (or tour Poland) and money will arrive in your bank account while you’re off having fun and doing things you’ve always wanted to do.

The “But” Part

Here’s the bottom line most online marketing hype doesn’t want to mention: people won’t spend their money casually and without assurance of receiving real value.

In short, you have to offer them something they truly want and you have to be able to deliver it.

And here are some of the key elements behind the “automatic money” system.

(In no particular order)

• • you need to foster a relationship with that ‘busy website’ that will allow you to post your article
  • you need to actually provide useful (not self-serving) information in that article
  • you need to craft a bio that makes people want to learn more about you and what you offer
  • you need a website or other platform that relates to those new visitors
  • you need information and emails that gradually persuades those people that what you can offer them is worth their hard earned money
  • you need products and/or services that actually solve their problem and make them raving fans of your business

There’s not much that’s automatic about all of that. It requires honest work.

The “Why” Part

Connie and I have had lots of jobs. She’s worked as a hospital nurse, in medical insurance, and elsewhere. I’ve commuted to management office jobs in Toronto and in Los Angeles. I’ve spent years of two hours a day in traffic just to get to and from my job. I’ve worked in a cubicle, and I’ve had my own office and been responsible for over 100 employees.

None of those jobs comes close to the joy and satisfaction of writing an article while on a train across Europe while friendly people bring food and beverages and sharing our cookies with an interesting passenger from Japan.

Soon an Uber driver will take us to our nice hotel. We’ll have an unfamiliar but delicious meal, and we’ll stroll around a gorgeous city together.

I’m also looking forward to several phone consultations this week which I always enjoy immensely. (And hence why I engineered this business so I’m always doing the things I’m good at and like the most.)

We’ll stay two weeks or so in Krakow, probably move on to Budapest, Hungary, and then spend most of October in the Transylvania region of Romania. (We’ve spent time in Romania before and love it. This year we’ll see and photograph the fall color. That’ll be another article on some busy website.)

In a few months we’ll go back to Ireland, but in the meantime we have a clean sheet of paper to fill in with any adventure we want. Anywhere we want.

And this is not an extravagant lifestyle. Our first class train tickets were $75 each. Hotels costs less than in the US. Restaurants costs less. You can fly around Europe for less than the cost of going by train.

We live in an EU country so we have full medical coverage with virtually no deductibles or co-pays.

The key that unlocks all of this freedom and independence is having your own source of online income.

I’ve had a six-figure job in Los Angeles and I’ve made the same (and more) online and the difference is night and day.

With a job you’re one merger, downsize, recession, or pink slip away from tragedy. And one difficult boss or coworker away from sky high cortisol and elevated blood pressure.

With online income you have hundreds of individual sources of small dollar amounts that add up to more than your old job paid. Plus you have full control over increasing your income next year.

The work you do makes YOU money, not someone else. And it keeps making you money month after month, year after year.

And best of all, you have the ability to engineer the whole operation from Day One to make sure it involves work you enjoy doing, has meaning to you, makes your customers appreciate you, and gives you the flexibility to spend time do what you want with whom you want.

That’s the “why” behind the “what” and “how.”