[Transcript starts at 0:40]
Hello, hello, hello. My podcast people and thank you for joining me for your day. Another episode of My favorite podcast. If you're listening, tuning, watching this and Day that it Drops, it is Monday, March 31st. Welcome to the very end of March. We got this on ourselves, right? We, we, I'm, I am we. January took forever and we were like, wow, this is the longest month ever.
And now look at us. We're in April. Jokes on us, right? Today we are talking about, I'm talking about is success still possible in the online space? I wanna provide some nuance around this as per always, and also just some like personal feelings and anecdotes and experience that I have regarding the online space.
But first, y'all know life updates. First of all, it is very bright in here, but it's not sunny looks, we all know like a gray sky is actually one of the best that I shoot pictures with. Uh, but it's. Very, it's very gray. The marine layer came in and now it's like super bright, right? I'm kind of, in my eyes, I'm kind of squinting.
If you're watching it, you see this. I'm old now and I literally only wanna listen to podcasts. If I can watch them, like, I'm like, oh, you don't have it on? Why is that? I don't know. I wanna watch it. So hopefully you're watching it and you see how bright it is. Um, but life update wise. No man's land programming.
I spoke about this last episode. Um, that's Aaron Stryker's, uh, DIY programming that he has. Um, I am about to start week number three. Uh, by the time that this drops, it'll be week number four, but as the time they did, I'm recording it. I'm starting week number three and it's going super, super well. I'm really, really fucking enjoying it.
We'll link, uh, we'll link that in the show notes. Thank you, Courtney. But I'm bringing this up. I bring up this programming because I believe it's important to have personal pursuits and, and anchor action. Well, anchor items or anchor actions, um, that just ground you right? For me, that has always been like my own physicality, um, my physical wellbeing and be able to work on that and be able to lean on that.
Um, and sometimes it's literally working on that in, in terms of like rehabbing my shit. 'cause you know, like my knees be. Doing knee things. Um, and so even if it's that like I have come, I, I have matured enough and just literally, I've dealt with knee stuff basically since I was 15 years old. Um, so I don't like view it as like, oh, this is the worst thing ever.
It's still like something I, that I can like, work on and be doing and looking to get better with it. And even when they're doing well, they're doing, they're doing well. Um. This is something that grounds me and I know that I can like control. It's like I want, I, I'm avoiding using the word control because like injuries happen, but like my own physicality and how much effort I'm putting into it is something that I can control, right?
And so I always, like, no matter what's going on in the world or what's going on in life, I know that I can come back to that. So it's been really nice to, to be diving into that. Um, and, uh, this was, it was so much of a big jump, somewhat of a jump, I should say. Not, not a big jump, but somewhat of a jump from my previous program.
So I said, like I said, I programmed for myself. I was doing three days a week. Rupert is here. I was doing three days a week, um, full body, and I was just like, I wanna go. Largely inspired by, by Betsy. Uh. Shout out to you, Betsy. I was like, I think I'm gonna go back to having, you know, upper lower splits and I wanted to have some new intensity techniques that I didn't know how to program.
Um, I've been following Aaron and, and Brian for a bit, and so I, I bought Aaron's program. Um, but there was a jump from going to three days a week, full body to now five days a week. And it's upper body, it's like an upper lower push pull kind of split. Um, but each of these workouts are 90 minutes long. One of them kind of only takes me about 60 minutes.
Um, so the math is actually pretty close. 'cause before it would take me over two hours. Sometimes it'd be two and a half hours. And I don't mind, I, I really like being in the gym and I would be dicking around, you know, sometimes as well. Now I, I definitely have, I have timed rest periods and like, it is a solid 90 minutes.
Um. But if you do the math on that, it ends up being about the same amount of time, which just split. Uh, the, the frequency is split up. Um, so it's been good. And now the balancing that I have to do is fitting in with volleyball. It was a little bit easier to fit in with volleyball 'cause there's fewer days, but now there's some days that have to be, you know, double sessions.
Um. But I love it. And I actually got to test it this past weekend. So I did full games on Friday. I did class and games on Saturday and I lifted legs on Friday. And then I did my fifth session of the week. I moved it to Sunday. 'cause I was like, on Saturday, I was just, I'm fucking dead. Um, but it worked out.
And today I am a little sore on my knees, but like, I took a bath last night at 11:30 PM and I did red light afterwards. And you know, honestly, I'm super grateful to have the ability to take care of myself like that, you know? Both from like having that tub and the red light panel and Lex turned his bath on while I was walking moose.
Um, and they, I have the time to do it. I don't have kids. I, I did it after I walked moose. It was 1130 at night, then I stayed up and I did red light afterwards. So it means that means I went to bed later. But that's fine 'cause I, I don't wake up till seven 30 or eight. Like, I, I don't wake up super early. Um, and I, I absolutely take full advantage of all these things.
Um, and I'm grateful still, still very, very grateful. So. All to say it's going really well. I'm really happy with it, and that anchor item will always be there for me. Uh, next update. I ordered this thing called SunSpec, or a SunSpec, I dunno. Um, to see how much sun. We have a five by five ish bed, like a, a, a little bit of a raised bed in our backyard that the, the owners had put their, I don't know, they trying to go tomatoes or something.
I don't really know. It's had a bunch of flowers in it. Um, Lex pulled all this stuff out. And we're kind of talking about getting Asana. And I was like, I am not gonna use that fucking thing. Like I would if I go, if we got Asana, I want a traditional one. Traditional ones are heavy and big, so they have to go like downstairs.
And I was like, I'm not gonna go the way downstairs. I know myself, and I don't care if you judge me for saying like, I'm not trying to go all the way down. It's like, we have three, three stories here. It's a tall house. Um, you know, get vertical living here. And I'm like, three stories, including like the, the ground, the like basement level, and then two above it.
And I'm almost like, I'm not going all the way down there. There's no, there's no way. Right. Um, so we left the bed there and then Lex had taken all the stuff out of it. And so I have been reading, uh, breeding Sweetgrass. I got recommended that book. I don't know who recommended it. It might've been my brother.
It might've been Laura Jean, might've been Stephanie Hy, might've been somebody else. But years ago, someone recommended it. I bought it. I never started reading it or listening to it. And now I'm listening to it. 'cause the universe knows when you need shit. Uh, and it's just so good. I'm not gonna lie, the first chapter I was like very sad.
But, um. It has largely inspired me to improve my connection with the land, to be completely honest. Um, so I bought this sun spec thing and you put it in the dirt and it tells you how much direct sunlight you have because we have, we live in Southern California, but I actually don't have sunlight all the time because of where, like, that plot is kind of like, it's on the west side of the house, so like.
The sun gets blocked. We have a really big tree in the backyard as well, so like there's not direct sunlight all the time, so that's gonna dictate what we can grow. So I was like, well let me see how much sun sunlight we get. Um, and there's a little thing that you can put in the ground that tells you, so I ordered that not from Amazon.
It is, I have not ordered anything from Amazon since I told y'all I'm not using Amazon. Um, and it hasn't been hard, but it's like, it is a little bit frustrating 'cause you're like. I can't get shit anywhere else like this. This thing is like only what? Owning on Amazon. So I had to like look around in like some small stores and things like that, but like able to find it.
Um, but like paper towels, we have a specific, like a specific van brand that we like. It's escaping my head right now, Viva. But like the, not their, I guess it's like their original ones, the ones that like, feel like, kind of like cloth. They're make it fucking impossible to find. And I'm like, I'm not fucking gonna target.
Even before they were shitty, I didn't go there. I've never liked Target. I'm not ordering from Amazon. I guess I'm gonna have shitty paper towels. Uh, but all that to say, uh, and, and also tying in with the braiding sweetgrass. Is that so much of, of what I've been talking about recently is that like we can start doing the things that we want right now, right?
We can start building and living the lives that we want, you know, in the world that we want right now. And so that's, that's what I'm doing in the backyard. Uh, but the segue that will serve as a segue and, and living in the building the world we want right now. It'll segue into, uh, the last little update, which is.
Answers from last week's episode. So, uh, last week's episode was episode 6 57. That was two things you can do right now. And in the episode I referenced that my friend Pam hosted a me a meetup for like five of us. Um, and we'll drop that, that episode by the way. Thank you, Courtney. Um. She to meet up, it's five of us.
And it was largely aimed at, you know, just getting together and talking about what was going on in the US right now, how we feel about it and, and what we could possibly do. Um, and two of the questions that she asked, or the two questions that she asked was, number one, what are your three biggest fears about right now and what's going on?
And number two, what are three people or places or, or resources, you know, where you go to find comfort intel information? So I said that I would share my answers this week, so it's not to skew yours, and I'm more than happy to discuss this if you wanna, you know, hit me up and then chat. Um, but my three biggest fears, number one, I.
Nothing changes. I am very afraid that we kind of just get a Band-Aid solution for things and people are like, oh, see, it isn't that bad. And we just keep going. And honestly, things are that bad and things need to fucking change. Uh, second biggest fear is financial crisis and largely involving my family.
Uh, we're all spread out and like, you know, that to me money is safety. Uh, money is options. And, uh, I worry about this, I worry about financial collapse in, in, in. Financial, I don't, it's not gonna be collapse. Um, but just financial crisis where things get bad. And then the third thing that I, that I worry about, and I'm gonna sound a little like Tin Hatty right now, that's techno feudalism.
Um, and the development of a creation of a network state, I. Translation, the Billionaire Tech Bros takeover. Um, I read a lot of stuff. I watch a lot of stuff. I don't share all the stuff that I read and watch, uh, not on here anyway, or like I, I have it with, you know, my, my people. Um, but that is definitely something that I am ultimately, I.
Worried about, right? I, I don't wanna live in a world like that. So happy to chat about those things. Uh, the resources that give me comfort, I actually had a bunch, I had more than three, and I share a bunch of 'em all. Like, I share the same ones often on here. Um, so I'm gonna share them again. Um. The people that bring me comfort and they're also resources.
My girl, Dr. J-Pop, definite, Dr. Jennifer Hutton. Uh, we'll link that episode we just did with her. Thank you Courtney. Uh, my girl, Rachel Strickland. I've had her on the podcast before. I've had Jennifer on a few times. Um, but most recently, you know, just a few episodes ago, um, Laura Jean, y'all know I love me some Laura, Jean James, Olivia, inquisitive Human.
I talk about them all the time. Um, Chen o, well, Dr. Chen Oai. Wow. I had like, so many words for me out Dr. Ano Oai, um, uc. She's uc, logic. Um, and Stephanie Hein, I have actually brought her on the podcast many moons ago. Um, but she has runs a farm, uh, called Hein Farms. That's the account. We'll link all of those things.
Thank you Gurney. Um. And she does give me a lot of hope. And, uh, just from like the regenerative agriculture and what we can learn from the land, uh, I really, really take a lot of comfort from all those people. Additional accounts that I wanna share with you that I love, uh, black Liturgies, Sharon says, so y'all know I love Sharon.
Uh, NNE Vanee, one of my favorite accounts. If you not, if you don't know who she is. We're linking it. Check her out. Yeah, some of her posters a bit longer, two minutes, three minutes, heaven forbid. Um, shit is. Fucking good as it says in her bio. Somebody give that woman a show already, please. Uh, a new find that I've recently started, uh, following is Katherine Ann Edwards.
She's a labor economist. She is K'S economist. Um, and it's just nice to know, have to hear from someone like that. Like knows this shit and this is their specialty and they're in it, and, but they're also logical and just like unassuming about things. It's just. I really feel comforted by what she shares.
Um, and I found her through. This is the last resource money with Katie. Um, I think I've spoken about her before. She has a podcast I really like as well. Um, but those are the resources. So those are my answers. If you wanna chat again, would love to chat about it. Shoot me a, shoot me a dm, but. Let's hop on into today's topic, which is, is success still possible in the online space?
So the direct tie in to this last part of just like, you know, what's going on in the world and our fears and and resources around that is that, come on, fucking look. And everything that's going on around us. Right. My guess is that if you've been here for a minute, you've been listening to me for a minute, or even if you haven't, if you're choosing to listen to me now and you're this far into the episode, some part of you, and it could be a big part of you, is looking around at all of this, right?
In the United States, what is happening and, and, and globally. What's, what's happening? And you're wondering how has online business contributed to this? How has online business perpetuated this? How has online business been shaped by this? Is success still possible in the online space? Not just because maybe it's, you know, the space is saturated, but because is it, is it even worth it?
What does success mean and look like? Will success continue to make things worse and contribute to more of this? If perhaps you weren't thinking any of these things, well, welcome to. My brain, right? So part of the reason that I chose this for today's topic is because I do coach online business. And two things here.
Number one, I have, I. Been asking myself what's worth it, right? I haven't run my Instagram intensive yet. Usually I would've run it once, I run it twice a year. But I have a, usually a February or March cohort, and we're about to be in April, and I haven't done anything with it. I sent an email out to everyone on the wait list and I was like, I'm not running it, it doesn't feel, it doesn't feel good right now.
Um, and I'm trying to, still trying to figure out what I wanna do with that. Right? It's, it's, it's, there's a dissonance there to be like, fuck the establishment and this is not good. But also like, pay me so that I can teach you how to go and use this, you know, meta. To like sell things. Like, it's just a weird weirdness there.
So not running it yet. I, um, but I am still coaching my people, my bi, my business coaching clients. And, uh, to that end, this is point number two. I am privy to their launches right now. I'm privy, privy to their financial success, uh, right now with financial happenings right now. And I have quite a few more data points than the average person as it relates to what's.
You know, the numbers and what's going on in, in the online business space and, and traditional financial success surrounding that. So right off the bat, right as it relates to, is successfully possible in the online space. Your niche, your niche, it matters, right? But I'm just gonna talk about what's kind of going on right now.
Your niche, the niche absolutely matters, but people. In general are definitely not being super loose with their money right now. Right. We're not like in a panic by any means, but, uh, and I'm not even sure if we've gone into like scared territory yet, but things are uncertain. People don't know what tariffs and like, it's, it's gonna change and like what's gonna happen, the stock market's down and just like what is gonna happen with things.
That uncertainty makes people nervous and that makes them aware and cautious and they hold onto their money. Right? So translation people are not as willing to part with their money right now, right? And they're really thinking about whether something is a necessity or an accessory, right? Whether it's a need to have or nice to have regarding niche in an area where you help people make money.
You're not gonna be first in the chopping block. 'cause people are like, yeah, I want more money. Right. So you're going B2B. Right. Whether you're like a business owner that's teaching other pe, you know, other PTs about how to do PT techniques or whatever, or movement pros teaching other movement pros, right?
I'm not seeing those industries hit being hit super hard just yet, but I am seeing it and, and things starting to be tightened in the B2C, uh, you know, business to consumer or direct to consumer niches, right? So. Examples would be like if you help moms with their pelvic floor, right? You're going direct to the consumer, not, you're not teaching other providers how to help moms with their pelvic floor.
You're going right to them, to the moms. Moms are a tough group in general, right? 'cause moms with themselves last, um, and they're always fucking busy. So it's very easy for this demographic to be like, Ugh, treatment of my pelvic floor is nice to have, not need to have right now. So I'm gonna not buy this program.
So B2C I am absolutely starting to see the reigns. You know, the, the, I don't even know what the colloquial phrase is around it, but like. Things are being tightened as it relates to the financial side of things, right? My prediction, I said this with some of my, my clients, I'm sharing with you my prediction for 2025, what it's been and will continue to be.
And my suggestion therefore for 2025 is to go deep with your current people because there is uncertainty. And not only is there uncertainty, there is like unrest and there's like intentional. You know, divisiveness and bullshit happening. Like, let's look at what, look at all the bad stuff that's happening.
It's not a really great time to be like, I'm gonna go buy from someone I've never heard of and I didn't like. I already don't trust anything that's going on. Right? So if you are a business owner, this is time to double down on your current people, deep in relationships, connections with them, help those people.
I do not think the 2025 is a year to be like, I'm gonna have massive growth in all these new customers. Like. No, it's, it's not even, you know, especially I use Instagram, social media for my business, like people are, are not on social media as much 'cause they're trying to protect your mental health. 'cause it's just like every day it's some, some new bad thing.
So like, people aren't even gonna see your shit. So this is the time to be deepening relationships with your people, you know, using email marketing, things like that in general, uh, as it relates to online business coaching, you know, which is what I do. Online business can be a bit of like MLM pyramid scheme, where it's really just the folks at the top who make a shit ton of money and then everyone else like doesn't really make hardly any money, which is largely why I do not coach coaches on how to be coaches.
Right. Immediately. Fucking no. Like I need to, I will not be more than one like level removed from the end user. I consult with people on how to launch, run, and sometimes grow their business. Like that's like my main thing is not like how to grow your shit. It's usually how to launch it and how to run it and like how to build it.
Those initial years. Um, but I need them to be delivering to the consumer, right? Which can be B2B teaching, but it can't be like, and now I'm gonna teach coaches how to coach coaches about coaching, but how to coach the coaches on the coaches on how to do the business of the business of the business. I don't, I don't do that.
All right. And I don't, I don't like doing that
online. Bi wow. Online business mimics that of in-person business, in that financial quote unquote success. Is difficult and not everyone who tries will succeed, right? These are just things I need people to understand about online business and is it worth it and can you still succeed? Right? Like one if the online business coaching space, it is MLM, the people at the top of the ones that they get the money.
Two online business in general is difficult. Business. Business in general. Running a business in, in general is difficult. I tried to look up some stats for this and there's just like not enough like consensus with things and I was just like, okay, like I'm gonna like try and just like. Make a synopsis of, of this, and what I took away from it is that a lot of what's discussed is failure after one year, after five years, after 10 years, which to me, more than anything, highlights how long this thing can take and that you can be trying and trying and trying and like some people are just like, after one year, they're like, no way other people can still be in it.
And then after five years it eventually overtakes them. Then eventually after 10 years, it overtakes them right. So the main takeaway for me there is that, that I want you to take away as well, is that online business is not a guarantee and it, it takes a long time, right? The HSP in me, the, the highly sensitive person part of me, like I have clients that I'm like, I just want their success, their financial success, whatever it looks like for them.
I want it so fucking badly. I, but I have this front row seat that not everyone who plays the game. Wins. Right? Nobody wins quickly, I'll tell you that. Um, and perhaps one of the most difficult thing is that your passion for something doesn't dictate the market's willingness to pay for it, right? It's, it's just facts things.
So to answer the question, is success still possible in the online space or is success in the online space still possible? I think so. But it depends on two things, your niche and your version of success, right? So there will always be a market for done for you services. People will, and people will always be willing to pay to learn how to make more money.
Always. That's, that's a given. If you do anything outside of that, right? Largely and given I know who my demographic is, listen to this, right? Largely if you're anything outside of that, you know, you're helping people achieve their goals, right? Get outta pain, get stronger, complete something. So like run a race, I.
The expectation management around that should be that it will be difficult to succeed and it will take time. I didn't say that it's impossible. I really just don't want people burning the ships and being like quitting their job and being like, I'm gonna go all in on this. I'm gonna make a zillion dollars.
'cause like you're not, and it's not gonna happen fast. Can can it work? Yes. Do I have a timeline? I have, no, not at all. I have no fucking clue. Right. I just know that it's going, if it's gonna work, it's gonna take a lot of time. Right. And so you need to be able to give yourself that time. And that's by having this other job, right.
And having the safety net. I. I actually have a podcast episode coming out I did with Lex, um, and Kris, she brought us, uh, Krista brought both of us onto her podcast to talk about discussing in-person business versus online business and, you know, the differences and, and how to move from the in-person space of the online space.
Um, but this is something that, it's the same for in person, right? Don't burn the fucking ships, have that safety net because success, if it's gonna happen, it takes time. Um, so the second part here, you know, is, is success still possible in the online space? Is that it depends on your version of success. So what I largely mean here is that are, are you going into it to try and extract money out of the capitalism machine?
Are you trying to change things? Are you willing to do different things differently? What does success mean to you? Do you need a zillion dollars? Do you need $5? Like, what does, what does it mean to you? Check out. Episode 652. We'll link that. Thank you, Courtney. That is your business as an opportunity, right?
You, you start this thing. You have the opportunity to change things, to do things differently. Don't forget that. Don't replace one shitty boss with another shitty boss yourself. I'm.
If, where I'm going with this is that, uh, maybe your business doesn't have to have tremendous or typical financial success that is often celebrated, right? But it feels good for you. It helps people. It diverges from the traditional system and it makes enough money. To, to be, to be able to provide in the way that you need.
That's fucking awesome. That is absolutely a form of success. Maybe it's those beginning things, but it doesn't have the financial success part, but this other parts. And so like, that's enough as a, as a start, everyone's business is gonna be different when things Lord Jean talks about is that your business should serve you.
Um, and for some people that business serves them financially and other people it doesn't. It serves them as a connection. It serves 'em as a, a way that they get to connect with people the way that they get to have an impact, right? You get to choose. Yes. The financial piece absolutely matters though as it relates to a business, right?
Like besides from the difference between it being a business and a hobby. But the two parts here when we're talking about the financial perspective is, number one, don't burn the ships. Give yourself long enough to have that financial success going with that expectation management that if it happens, it's going to take a very, very long time.
Uh, and number two, know you are enough. If you don't know you are enough, it will take forever and you will never get there. You'll pass what actually is enough and you'll just be going back. It's not enough. It's not enough. It's not enough, and you'll forever be chasing something that you will never, ever catch.
Um, if you are asking yourself if online business is worth it from a, you know, so for this, just summarize here. If you're asking yourself if online business is worth it from a purely financial perspective, and I have no judgment around that, again, go in managing your expectations and know that the space is crowded.
It does take a long ass time. Not everyone who plays the game wins. No one wins quickly and done for you services and B2B services will always be the easiest and easier respectively. Um, if you are asking yourself if online business is worth it, you know, you think about trying it or continuing with it, and you're asking yourself from a.
I don't wanna contribute to the bullshit stance. Well, number one, I love you. Uh, number two, we need more of you. And number three, remember that you get to choose how to run your business, whether that's in person or online. So is it worth it? Only if it's worth it to you. And you get to choose. You don't have to contribute to the bullshit.
This does require that you take a moment and you be intentional with it. This does take a moment. Uh, does this, does require that you take a moment and understand that. By doing things differently, maybe you don't get the same number of sales as, as if you did things, you know, in a different way. Um, I will always be of the school that, you know, when you lead with, with kindness, when you lead with benevolence, when you lead with your, your expertise and you give autonomy to your customers.
Like, that's actually the, the foundation of a successful business. That's a foundation of a business that, you know, has longevity built into it and then, then can lead to that financial success. But that at the end of the day is. Up to you. You get to choose how you run it. Alright, I'm looking at the time, a little bit longer this episode.
Um, but I'm glad I did it and I'm always, always glad that you choose to give me your time, your energy, your attention. I know you could have been doing anything and you choose to listen to me, so thank you. That's all I got for you. As always, endlessly, endlessly, endlessly appreciative for every single one of you.
Until next time, friends Maestro. Ow.
Connect with Aaron Straker: @aaron_straker
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MOTM #657: Something You Can Do Right Now
MOTM #653: Pressing Pause with Dr. JPop
MOTM #652: Your Business is An Opportunity
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