Synopsis
This book is about the process of creating an online business, specifically dealing with the consolidation of work. It deals with whether the work should be minimized or maximized, or whether it should be done by oneself or by a team.
James Schramko
He originally started his career as a car salesman, such as Mercedes-Benz. Upon realizing that there might be a recession, he took the opportunity to bring his ethos to the online world, by specializing in digital marketing.
Themes
There are different ways of making money through an online business. There are the freelance works, but also affiliate marketing through sites like ClickBank. There are also subscriptions and coaching seminars, which require more community involvement. Schramko also writes about the importance of forums, since they ultimately provide insight into the help that readers and potential buyers need.
Time is a critical component to making money through an online business, since that prioritization is needed in order to not sacrifice important tasks. This is why hiring a team of around 3 is important, since they can easily alternate roles. There are also important parts of preserving time for oneself, such as getting proper sleep and recharging; since going at a continuous pace would lead to disillusionment and burn-out. Of course, time productivity also requires the abdication of distractions and shiny objects. It would involve writing the shiny objects on a paper, and then shredding it.
Another component of time is the reality that every goal must have incremental accomplishments in order to continue doing the tasks until the goal is reached. This is encapsulated by Schramko\’s 12-week rule, which involves dividing a goal into 12-week intervals. This can be applied to both the owner and the rest of the team. It also saves time with small batches, since you don\’t have to worry about completing a task, only to end up costing additional weeks to redo.
A component of assembling a team is knowing how to read people. You don\’t want to be too invasive nor do you want to be negligible towards the freelancers. Of course, Schramko does not specifically call them freelancers, since he prefers not calling them employees, because then they have to be dependent upon a wage for every output. Another people-reading technique would come during the hiring process, since you would not want someone who is dependent on the business.
As for customers, they are obviously the most important factor in any business, since the way that they are treated by the team or by you determines how loyal they will become. The most important types of customers are the ones that are recurring buyers, since they ultimately drive the sales. Schramko also stressed the importance of annual payments, since those who can afford them can provide the long-term customer relationship if they can have long-term financial savvy.
Historical Context
At around the same time as the sub-prime crisis was affecting the automobile industry in Australia, Schramko was already becoming concerned that it was a bubble bound to pop. In order to preserve his income, he transitioned towards an online business, in which he learned from trial and error how to build a productive website.
Schramko also talked about how his grandfather took advantage of geographical arbitrage, by buying cheap mines in Russia and America, and selling them at higher prices. He recommends doing the same, by hiring from the Phillippines.
Intertextuality
One of the bloggers, Gina Horkey, in the previous book recommended this book, so I decided to connect the two books together. I can definitely see how this book can apply to the bloggers\’ experiences, particularly with prioritizing time. When he noted how hiring can only become difficult when you have a slow cash flow, it makes me think about one of the bloggers who mentioned that the only times when you should hire a virtual assistant is when you are really need to.
Another important point that this book makes that can be related to the book about the bloggers by Sally Miller, which is the issue of personal health. Schramko himself struggled with weight gain throughout his career. It was only after being able to lose weight that he could focus intently on his work.
Connecting To The Previous Book
As for how Musashi Miyamoto would apply to this installment, it would involve his more abstract parts of his writing. Specifically, it would involve the part where he describes strategy as building a 100-foot-tall statue of the Buddha from a foot-tall model. It was clear that Schramko thought ahead and was rewarded for it. He was able to do the same with his automotive marketing skills.
Writing Style
I do have an issue with how he refers to members of the team. If they aren\’t employees, are they freelancers working in the short-term?
He employs math at the beginning, when discussing the consolidation of hours in relation to work. It turns out, he noted, that less hours are needed for an online business.
Real-World Application
What Schramko also talks about is that despite the luxury that affiliate marketing and subscriptions can provide, there are always sacrifices that the owner might take. Even in the allure of the online business, there are always risks that could be avoided with a few trajectory adjustments. This is true of every other aspect of online business, as well as in maintaining real-world relationships or getting overwhelmed by freelance work. This part, at the end, was insightful enough for the reader, since Schramko lets the reader know what they are getting themselves into.
Inspiration To Myself
I hope that I can understand more of what is in store in terms of learning more about this type of passive income. It would be difficult to attain, though it is possible nonetheless.
Ultimately…
This would be the book to turn to in order to learn more about passive income.
Recommend This To…
- Anyone already familiar with affiliate marketing, since Schramko gets in-depth about it.
Sources
- Miller, Sally. “The Essential Habits Of 6-Figure Bloggers: Secrets of 17 Successful Bloggers You Can Use to Build a Six-Figure Online Business.” Sally Miller. 2018.
- Miyamoto, Musashi. “Book of the Five Rings.” 1643. Yellowed Paper Books. 2020.
- Schramko, James. \”Work Less, Make More: The counter-intuitive approach to building a profitable business, and a life you actually love.\” SuperFastBusiness. 2017.
- Ynkawen, Robert-Scott. \”Book Of Five Rings, By Musashi Miyamoto | 17 | 2022 Centobibliennial Reading.\” Onushoxu. 2022.