10 years here. Curious what had the most impact on you

[Andy Black]

In 6 days I'll have been in the forum exactly 10 years (yikes... where did the time go?).

I've posted nearly 19,000 times and created over 400 threads. That's a ridiculous amount of content and time spent, often saying the same things over and over it feels.

I'd love to know which threads, one-liners, or tips had the most impact on you (and why).

(@heavy_industry highlighted a few threads being linked to or a few one-liners being repeated today, which got me wondering.)

 

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[Jon822]

I wouldn't say that there's a single one-liner or tip really. For me, it's your "build someone up or say nothing" philosophy. I am way too blunt and argumentative to ever approach your level of zen but I have taken some value from your approach -- namely, choosing to say nothing rather than argue with idiots.

Positivity only is a valuable approach and this forum would be worse without you.

 

[The-J]

In 6 days time I'll have been in the forum exactly 10 years (yikes... where did the time go?).

I've posted nearly 19,000 times and created over 400 threads. That's a ridiculous amount of content and time spent, often saying the same thing over and over it feels.

I'd love to know which threads, one-liners, or tips had the most impact on you (and why).

(@heavy_industry highlighted today a few threads being linked to or a few one-liners being repeated, which got me wondering.)

It would be very hard to name one thing, I've been following you for a long time and have used what you say to help others, which in turn makes me money.

Overall I think I learned to think about ads differently. To think about every visitor as a human being looking for something in particular. Like a person coming into your store. They're there for a reason, they're looking for something, and if they leave, it's because they didn't get what they want.

I think I was 21 when I read your first introductory posts on the forum. I didn't know how to do much of anything back then. You and other paid traffic guys like @eliquid gave me foundational knowledge about buying ads & making money with them.

So thank you, you've helped me shake out a living & in turn helped other business owners make millions, business owners you'll never know or meet!

 

[Roli]

In 6 days time I'll have been in the forum exactly 10 years (yikes... where did the time go?).

I've posted nearly 19,000 times and created over 400 threads. That's a ridiculous amount of content and time spent, often saying the same thing over and over it feels.

I'd love to know which threads, one-liners, or tips had the most impact on you (and why).

(@heavy_industry highlighted today a few threads being linked to or a few one-liners being repeated, which got me wondering.)

For me, it was the way you explained the difference between a browser on Facebook and Google. You really clarified how someone is either sitting there with a cup of tea/coffee whilst browsing, or their credit card.

Also, your general positivity has always been a shining light for me, often when I'm feeling down I'll look for one of your pep posts.

 

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[heavy_industry]

I'm paraphrasing here:

1. Stop learning and start doing.​

• You won't be able to invoice anyone because of how smart you are.
• Business is not a school homework assignment.
• Doing is the ultimate act of learning - you can read 100 books on swimming. You won't learn to swim unless you get in that pool.

2. What if you already know enough?​

• Perfect is the enemy of good. A good plan executed TODAY is better than a hypothetical "perfect" plan that never gets executed.
• Don't use your "I don't know" or "I've never done this before" one-liners as pathetic excuses for moving forward in life. This is not the virtue of humility - it's your attempt to hide from the fear of the unknown.
• You most likely already know enough - at least to get f started with your business. You don't know everything, and that's fine because you will learn as you go.
• Counterargument: Depending on the complexity of your operation, you will have to go back to the books and master some of the theoretical aspects of your business. More info here.

3. Who are you helping today?​

• A kind reminder that business is not about good ideas or innovative hypothetical cutting-edge bullshit. Business is about helping people and getting paid for it.
• This is not only a virtuous philosophy of life - that will lead to fulfillment and inner peace - it's an accurate description of how free market capitalism works: if I value your product or service more than I value my dollar, we have a deal - a transaction will happen.
• Help the world and the world will help you back. Provide value to the world, and the world will throw money at you.
• You will also feel proud and fulfilled. You will get meaning and purpose - a treasure few get to experience. A treasure that is - at least in my view - more valuable than the economic perks of being an entrepreneur.

---

In 6 days time I'll have been in the forum exactly 10 years (yikes... where did the time go?).

Thank you for being here @Andy Black

This place would not be the same without you.

In my view, you're one of the core pillars of this community - the voice of reason and kindness.

 

[Robdavis]

Help people. Get paid. Help more people.

This is useful to me because it frames everything I am doing. It also help to filter out "opportunities" that aren't. So if I think, maybe I should create a product and try to sell that, or maybe I should do that because it is cool or maybe I should do that because it is the next big thing, then I know that these are wrong and I need to go back to the basics. ie. the statement above.

 

[BlackLands]

@Andy Black your videos in your YouTube channel on how to easily and quickly test a business idea help me the most. I got 75 emails and now I've 4 beta testers willing to test my SaaS. I'd say that thanks to you, I've discovered Google ADS and how powerful it is.

 

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[eliquid]

In 6 days I'll have been in the forum exactly 10 years (yikes... where did the time go?).

I've posted nearly 19,000 times and created over 400 threads. That's a ridiculous amount of content and time spent, often saying the same thing over and over it feels.

I'd love to know which threads, one-liners, or tips had the most impact on you (and why).

(@heavy_industry highlighted a few threads being linked to or a few one-liners being repeated today, which got me wondering.)

I believe one of yours was:

Putting it on the long finger

I still think about it to this day.

I have no clue what it means, but it stuck with me and I try to use it in a weekly convo still to this day in some way or form with strangers to see if anyone says anything to me about "what I just said"

Thank you for some fun times.

 

[piano]

There is a BIG amount of lessons and things I learned from you and I can't really choose between them all.

Though there is one thing you once said to me which I've been thinking regularly about ever since.
In my window cleaning I thread I once reported an incredibly foul encounter I had while d2d.

Basically I was trying to sell to a grandpa and another older woman (his daughther I assume) was very clearly signalling that she thought I was some kind of scammer.
I was heavily distraught by this and you explained to me that their reality isn't mine.

Just because she thought I was trying to scam him doesn't mean I was.
And I think the reason why this has still stuck with me and might even until the end is that it's something that I genuinely apply every day.
It's kinda sad but that's just how it is.

Regardless, thank you Andy (for being on this forum)! Without you it'd be a bit less lovely

 

[S.Y.]

Why not take off your coat and stay a while?

That's is the one that stuck to me the most. You talked about members joining and not willing to stay. I took it to mean to take time to get to know people. I use that one regularly.

Be open to receive .

I take that one to heart. Understanding that receiving is a gift to the giver has changed my life a lot. I used to suck big time at doing it and preventing the loop to close. There is power in giving and I was robbing people of that power. Now I am much better at just saying thank you.

 

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[Andy Black]

I wouldn't say that there's a single one-liner or tip really. For me, it's your "build someone up or say nothing" philosophy. I am way too blunt and argumentative to ever approach your level of zen but I have taken some value from your approach -- namely, choosing to say nothing rather than argue with idiots.

Positivity only is a valuable approach and this forum would be worse without you.

Thanks for replying @Jon822

When it comes to non family and friends then I have my dad's words ringing in my ears: "If you've nothing nice to say, say nothing." Obviously there's a time and place to say something that's not considered nice, but even then there's ways to say things.

I think too many spend too much time arguing instead of getting on with their work.

And I think we can often get a better effect by asking a question that gets someone to think.

"Hey dumbass. That's never going to work. Why the f*ck don't you go make a sale?"

vs

"What do you need to do to make a sale?"


Also... not getting embroiled in flame wars or even dragged into long running back-and-forth conversations means I can pop in and out of the forum.

 

[Andy Black]

It would be very hard to name one thing, I've been following you for a long time and have used what you say to help others, which in turn makes me money.

Overall I think I learned to think about ads differently. To think about every visitor as a human being looking for something in particular. Like a person coming into your store. They're there for a reason, they're looking for something, and if they leave, it's because they didn't get what they want.

I think I was 21 when I read your first introductory posts on the forum. I didn't know how to do much of anything back then. You and other paid traffic guys like @eliquid gave me foundational knowledge about buying ads & making money with them.

So thank you, you've helped me shake out a living & in turn helped other business owners make millions, business owners you'll never know or meet!

Wow. I never thought of it like that. I've helped people help other people. That's pretty cool.

And yes, thinking of traffic and clicks as people and visitors is one of the biggest changes people can make to understand business and marketing.

 

[Andy Black]

For me, it was the way you explained the difference between a browser on Facebook and Google. You really clarified how someone is either sitting there with a cup of tea/coffee whilst browsing, or their credit card.

Also, your general positivity has always been a shining light for me, often when I'm feeling down I'll look for one of your pep posts.

Cup of tea vs credit card. That little visual / micro-script really helps people understand the difference between info-seekers/tire-kickers and buers.

So that's a +1 on general positivity? That wasn't what I was expecting people to feedback.

Hmmm... can you give me an example of one of my pep posts?

 

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[Andy Black]

I'm paraphrasing here:

1. Stop learning and start doing.​

• You won't be able to invoice anyone because of how smart you are.
• Business is not a school homework assignment.
• Doing is the ultimate act of learning - you can read 100 books on swimming. You won't learn to swim unless you get in that pool.

2. What if you already know enough?​

• Perfect is the enemy of good. A good plan executed TODAY is better than a hypothetical "perfect" plan that never gets executed.
• Don't use your "I don't know" or "I've never done this before" one-liners as pathetic excuses for moving forward in life. This is not the virtue of humility - it's your attempt to hide from the fear of the unknown.
• You most likely already know enough - at least to get f started with your business. You don't know everything, and that's fine because you will learn as you go.
• Counterargument: Depending on the complexity of your operation, you will have to go back to the books and master some of the theoretical aspects of your business. More info here.

3. Who are you helping today?​

• A kind reminder that business is not about good ideas or innovative hypothetical cutting-edge bullshit. Business is about helping people and getting paid for it.
• This is not only a virtuous philosophy of life - that will lead to fulfillment and inner peace - it's an accurate description of how free market capitalism works: if I value your product or service more than I value my dollar, we have a deal - a transaction will happen.
• Help the world and the world will help you back. Provide value to the world, and the world will throw money at you.
• You will also feel proud and fulfilled. You will get meaning and purpose - a treasure few get to experience. A treasure that is - at least in my view - more valuable than the economic perks of being an entrepreneur.

---

Thank you for being here @Andy Black

This place would not be the same without you.

In my view, you're one of the core pillars of this community - the voice of reason and kindness.

Thanks @heavy_industry. Those three main takeaways seem to help people get unstuck and get going. Until people figure those out they seem forever trapped in the script.

And thanks... reason and kindness are high praise indeed.

 

[Andy Black]

Help people. Get paid. Help more people.

This is useful to me because it frames everything I am doing. It also help to filter out "opportunities" that aren't. So if I think, maybe I should create a product and try to sell that, or maybe I should do that because it is cool or maybe I should do that because it is the next big thing, then I know that these are wrong and I need to go back to the basics. ie. the statement above.

Yes! If I had to summarise business then it's "Help people. Get paid. Help more people. (Start. Sell. Scale)". I'm glad it keeps you on the straight and narrow!

 

[Andy Black]

@Andy Black your videos in your YouTube channel on how to easily and quickly test a business idea help me the most. I got 75 emails and now I've 4 beta testers willing to test my SaaS. I'd say that thanks to you, I've discovered Google ADS and how powerful it is.

Boom! Love it!! Well done taking action, and getting results. How much time did it take you do to that, and how much did it cost?

Oh, and which video in particular?

 

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[Andy Black]

I believe one of yours was:

Putting it on the long finger

I still think about it to this day.

I have no clue what it means, but it stuck with me and I try to use it in a weekly convo still to this day in some way or form with strangers to see if anyone says anything to me about "what I just said"

Thank you for some fun times.

Lol. That's so funny.

Putting something on "the long finger" is an Irish phrase. It means you pushed that task the furthest from you, and you'll get round to it some, undefined day. It kind of makes sense.

How many people pick up on it and ask about it?

 

[Andy Black]

There is a BIG amount of lessons and things I learned from you and I can't really choose between them all.

Though there is one thing you once said to me which I've been thinking regularly about ever since.
In my window cleaning I thread I once reported an incredibly foul encounter I had while d2d.

Basically I was trying to sell to a grandpa and another older woman (his daughther I assume) was very clearly signalling that she thought I was some kind of scammer.
I was heavily distraught by this and you explained to me that their reality isn't mine.

Just because she thought I was trying to scam him doesn't mean I was.
And I think the reason why this has still stuck with me and might even until the end is that it's something that I genuinely apply every day.
It's kinda sad but that's just how it is.

Regardless, thank you Andy (for being on this forum)! Without you it'd be a bit less lovely

Ah yes, I remember that. Glad it helped you keep getting out there helping people. Some people will doubt our motives. Sometimes we might have given the wrong signal. Sometimes it's purely them seeing things that aren't there.

What is it psychiatrists say? "If you spot it, you got it".

 

[Andy Black]

Why not take off your coat and stay a while?

That's is the one that stuck to me the most. You talked about members joining and not willing to stay. I took it to mean to take time to get to know people. I use that one regularly.

Be open to receive .

I take that one to heart. Understanding that receiving is a gift to the giver has changed my life a lot. I used to suck big time at doing it and preventing the loop to close. There is power in giving and I was robbing people of that power. Now I am much better at just saying thank you.

Both great lines/thoughts. Thanks for reminding me of those, and I'm glad they've helped you.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

Andy Black is the founder of the Andy Black Test.

There are probably 1000 posts here over the years I never posted. They died in the cache and later were buried in the void.

Why?

A lot of times I comment on threads and then ask before pressing POST, "Would Andy Black approve of this terse, tough love response? Would this be something Andy would say?"

More than not, the answer is NO.

In fact, most of my posts here fail the Andy Black Test which is to default to a welcoming, correcting tone.

You all never see the worse ones.

I tend to BAN first and not ask questions. Other times I just get terribly irritated as I have zero patience for the cultural bleed that seeps in here.

Andy is the ZEN I need to do better at.

 

[Andy Black]

Andy Black is the founder of the Andy Black Test.

There are probably 1000 posts here over the years I never posted. They died in the cache and later were buried in the void.

Why?

A lot of times I comment on threads and then ask before pressing POST, "Would Andy Black approve of this terse, tough love response? Would this be something Andy would say?"

More than not, the answer is NO.

In fact, most of my posts here fail the Andy Black Test which is to default to a welcoming, correcting tone.

You all never see the worse ones.

I tend to BAN first and not ask questions. Other times I just get terribly irritated as I have zero patience for the cultural bleed that seeps in here.

Andy is the ZEN I need to do better at.

Blimey. Didn't know I'd had an impact on your good self too @MJ DeMarco. That's quite a test I invented. Thanks for your kind words.

 

[Ing]

Diesel and coffee, who have you helped, and allways a helping word. Thanks Andy!

Well no, I haven t succeeded, but I learned lot.

 

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[Bekit]

The first thing that came to my mind was how you scheduled a call with me right when I was brand-new to the forum. It really blew my mind that you'd spend time on a stranger like me. That call was really encouraging to me at a time when I was really insecure about taking steps forward into getting my first client, and I often think back to the fact that you not only met me on Zoom, you brought me business more than once. You're not just talk, you've got action behind it, and I've never seen you treat anyone with anything less than kindness.

The second thing that came to my mind was some of the one-liners that I've heard you say to people again and again. I know some of these have already been mentioned above, but the ones that came to my mind were...

- Diesel and coffee
- Who have you helped?
- What if you already know enough?

The third thing that came to my mind was some of the patterns of behavior that you exhibit that have been a really good example for me to follow (and I think this is probably a huge factor playing into why this forum is an awesome, wholesome place to be). Here are some of my observations of how you conduct yourself.

• You drop hints - you point the way and let people figure it out for themselves rather than hand-holding or spelling it all out. This gives people agency and a role, which is awesome.
• Short posts - you don't pour endless amounts of time and energy into verbose posts. I'm sure this helps keep you from getting burnt out.
• Positive tone - you keep pointing the focus back to opportunity and possibility rather than negativity or doubt.
• Impartial - It doesn't seem like you have "favorites" or a "clique."
• Peacemaker - I've seen you drop in on a thread and drop a gentle reminder where things were getting heated, and it works!
• Figuring things out - your threads have a ton of value as we watch your thought process in trying things, whether it's paid newsletters or twitter or Google Ads.
• Wicked smart, but not boastful - I remember thinking multiple times (e.g. watching you whiz through a custom-coded spreadsheet, or hearing your observations, such as the one about the person shopping with their tea vs their credit card) that you were absolutely brilliant - and yet you don't flaunt it at all.
• Unflappable - I've never seen a time when you were provoked into any kind of display of impatience, and I know that wasn't for lack of opportunities!

Thank you.​

Andy Black, thanks for being such an amazing human being and for all the MANY ways you've benefited and touched the lives of those who have come across your path (including mine).

Here's to the next decade of your story being amazing, fulfilling, and full of rewards. You've planted countless good seeds along the way, and I can only think it's natural that there's a huge harvest of good things coming your way - and my hope is that that harvest will be abundant in all the ways that would matter the most to you.

 

[BlueMonday]

In 6 days I'll have been in the forum exactly 10 years (yikes... where did the time go?).

I've posted nearly 19,000 times and created over 400 threads. That's a ridiculous amount of content and time spent, often saying the same thing over and over it feels.

I'd love to know which threads, one-liners, or tips had the most impact on you (and why).

(@heavy_industry highlighted a few threads being linked to or a few one-liners being repeated today, which got me wondering.)

I remember lurking the forum ~10 years ago when you were starting to get traction here. So much so that I remembered your name when I got curious and scoped the site out again a couple months ago, and I wasn't at all surprised to see your name popping up left and right.

I think that's what did it for me. Seeing the folks who stuck with it and actually did something monumental. You, Johnny Boy, Fox, SinisterLex and wayyyy too many others to name.

That's what stands out to me - the people who just stayed in the game.

Thanks to those threads I'm finally pot committed to the game and I'm not looking back. Much respect and admiration to all of you who shared your progress and stuck with it all the way through.

 

[Roli]

Cup of tea vs credit card. That little visual / micro-script really helps people understand the difference between info-seekers/tire-kickers and buers.

So that's a +1 on general positivity? That wasn't what I was expecting people to feedback.

Hmmm... can you give me an example of one of my pep posts?

The three examples from @heavy_industry are perfect. I class one of your pep posts as a short informative post which reminds me of simple fastlane aspects like, "Don't focus on profit, focus on helping".

Also, I like reading some of your replies to new users, these often pep me up!

 

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[Panos Daras]

You make magnificent content but why do you ask this question? If I were you I would ask this: Why do I ask this question to a forum of strangers? It sounds as strange as asking, "Do you love me?". You don't have to answer publicly. Just..think about it. I see the poop emoji coming my way. Don't care. My question does come from a place of carrying. Don't want to bring anyone down.

 

[Andy Black]

You make magnificent content but why do you ask this question? If I were you I would ask this: Why do I ask this question to a forum of strangers? It sounds as strange as asking, "Do you love me?". You don't have to answer publicly. Just..think about it. I see the poop emoji coming my way. Don't care. My question does come from a place of carrying. Don't want to bring anyone down.

Thanks, but I don't "make content". I help people, find where I repeat myself, and then create threads/content to point people to in future.

I created this thread and asked the question because someone pointed out others using some phrases I repeat all the time.

I also ask because I've over 400 threads and repeat myself in the comments a lot. I'd like to know what helped people the most, and why.

Maybe I can string a few of threads together (or summarise them) for people at different stages in their business, or who have specific problems?

Maybe people getting started like certain threads and concepts?

Maybe people trying to get into marketing liked different threads and concepts?

Maybe people scared of sales like different threads and concepts?

If there's common feedback on what posts or concepts help people the most then maybe I create a newsletter or PDF or social media posts so I help more people, outside the forum? Maybe I direct people from outside the forum to those threads in the forum?

I make money providing a Google Ads service. Most of my threads and replies aren't about Google Ads though. If non Google Ads content helps people then am I doing a disservice by not helping more people outside the forum with that content?

But which non Google Ads content should I post on LinkedIn for instance? It doesn't seem right for me to talk about getting out of your own way when my clients are business owners who are already in motion. It doesn't seem right to talk about how to signup Google Ads clients on LinkedIn where potential clients can see it.

Seems to me I could do more with what I've already written. But I'm not sure who I'm helping and what I'm helping them with.

I could have asked "Hey guys. What's your biggest struggle, and why?" ... but those threads typically get feck all feedback, and I've *already* helped lots of people with lots of different problems so I'm wondering which ones they are.

I could have made a poll, but I don't want to pre-empt what people say, and I don't want to put words in people's mouths.

I could have said all the above in the opening post, but I didn't want to pre-empt any solution, or influence how or what people replied with.

I have a wife, kids, a dog, and a mum who loves me. Likes, engagement, and good feedback is nice, but doesn't validate me. I see that feedback as a measure of how well I'm helping people. Market feedback so to speak.

Hence the question.

I'm curious if the above makes sense.


EDIT: Oh, and by allowing people to write what they want I've been surprised that a theme seems to be the way I engage with people and just general "positivity". I'm not sure what to make of that at the moment. I don't think I've written much *about* that.

Suffice to say it's always surprising and humbling to ask what people think of how you're helping them.


EDIT 2: I posted this to LinkedIn a couple of days ago. Not sure it's the right place for it, and it's come from a thread in the forum that's come from repeatedly trying to help people "get" communities:

I've spent years helping people in forums, noticing where I repeat myself, then creating threads to point people to who have the same problem.

In case you didn't spot the parallel to starting a business:

1) I find and engage the market - where they *already* are.

2) I respond to questions and problems people *already* have.

3) I help people immediately instead of hiding in my bat-cave "building stuff".

4) Before I create a thread (solution) I already *know* it will help lots of people - because it's a need many people already had.

5) The content (solution) was created out of solving real-world problems, rather than solving problems I think people have.


Added benefits:

1) I immediately start getting known as "The XYZ Guy" - because I help people with XYZ.

2) People already start reaching out to me about XYZ problem.

3) People already start referring me to others who have XYZ problem.


Why create a blog and try to find out what content helps and/or resonates with people when you can go help people immediately in a busy forum or Facebook group?

Why stare at a blank page struggling to create a new blog post when you can help people immediately in a forum or Facebook group?

Why try to get your blog ranked when a forum already has a much better SEO juice than you'll likely ever get?

Finally... if your goal is to help people and build relationships (hint: do this and get paid then you're in business), then why the feck don't you do that immediately instead of "building stuff"?

 

[Panos Daras]

Thanks, but I don't "make content". I help people, find where I repeat myself, and then create threads/conten to point people to in future.

I created this thread and asked the question because someone pointed out others using some phrases I repeat all the time.

I also ask because I've over 400 threads and repeat myself in the comments a lot. I'd like to know what helped people the most, and why.

Maybe I can string a few of threads together (or summarise them) for people at different stages in their business, or who have specific problems?

Maybe people getting started like certain threads and concepts?

Maybe people trying to get into marketing liked different threads and concepts?

Maybe people scared of sales like different threads and concepts?

If there's common feedback on what posts or concepts help people the most then maybe I create a newsletter or PDF or social media posts so I help more people, outside the forum? Maybe I direct people from outside the forum to those threads in the forum?

I make money providing a Google Ads service. Most of my threads and replies aren't about Google Ads though. If non Google Ads content helps people then am I doing a disservice by not helping more people outside the forum with that content?

But which non Google Ads content should I post on LinkedIn for instance? It doesn't seem to make sense for me to talk about getting out of your own way when my clients are business owners who are already in motion. It doesn't make sense to talk about how to signup Google Ads clients on LinkedIn where potential clients can see it.

Seems to me I could do more with what I've already written. But I'm not sure who I'm helping and what I'm helping them with.

I could have asked "Hey guys. What's your biggest struggle, and why?" ... but those threads typically get feck all feedback, and I've *already* helped lots of people with lots of different problems so I'm wondering which ones they are.

I could have made a poll, but I don't want to pre-empt what people say, and I don't want to put words in people's mouths.

I could have said all the above in the opening post, but I didn't want to pre-empt any solution, or influence how or what people replied with.

I have kids, a dog, and a mum who loves me. Likes, engagement, and good feedback is nice, but doesn't validate me. I see that feedback as a measure of how well I'm helping people. Market feedback so to speak.

Hence the question.

I'm curious if the above makes sense.


EDIT: Oh, and by allowing people to write what they want I've been surprised that a theme seems to be the way I engage with people and just general "positivity". I'm not sure what to make of that at the moment. I don't think I've written much *about* that.

Suffice to say it's always surprising and humbling to ask what people think of how you're helping them.


EDIT 2: I posted this to LinkedIn a couple of days ago. Not sure it's the right place for it, and it's come from a thread in the forum that's come from repeatedly trying to help people "get" communities:

I've spent years helping people in forums, noticing where I repeat myself, then creating threads to point people to who have the same problem.

In case you didn't spot the parallel to starting a business:

1) I find and engage the market - where they *already* are.

2) I respond to questions and problems people *already* have.

3) I help people immediately instead of hiding in my bat-cave "building stuff".

4) Before I create a thread (solution) I already *know* it will help lots of people - because it's a need many people already had.

5) The content (solution) was created out of solving real-world problems, rather than solving problems I think people have.


Added benefits:

1) I immediately start getting known as "The XYZ Guy" - because I help people with XYZ.

2) People already start reaching out to me about XYZ problem.

3) People already start referring me to others who have XYZ problem.


Why create a blog and try to find out what content helps and/or resonates with people when you can go help people immediately in a busy forum or Facebook group?

Why stare at a blank page struggling to create a new blog post when you can help people immediately in a forum or Facebook group?

Why try to get your blog ranked when a forum already has a much better SEO juice than you'll likely ever get?

Finally... if your goal is to help people and build relationships (hint: do this and get paid then you're in business), then why the feck don't you do that immediately instead of "building stuff"?

That's fine. I think the time is not right for this question. My favorite quote that might help most people in this forum, who are usually just taking their first steps is "Stop building stuff".

 

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[The-J]

You make magnificent content but why do you ask this question? If I were you I would ask this: Why do I ask this question to a forum of strangers? It sounds as strange as asking, "Do you love me?". You don't have to answer publicly. Just..think about it. I see the poop emoji coming my way. Don't care. My question does come from a place of carrying. Don't want to bring anyone down.

WRONG. Every business needs to be doing this all the time and if you're not, you're falling behind

 

[harumi]

You help people grow free of charge and improve yourself along the way. What a beautiful philosophy! What makes you most VALUABLE is the fact that you are still here with us. A live teacher we can interact with!

Not just you Andy, but YOU too! The reader and all the other legendary contributors of this community!

Which of the said quotes would you want engraved on your stone @Andy Black ?