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The "Astonishing Secrets" Thread

robotunicr0n

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@IceCreamKid are you suggesting that a person should look for a pain point, develop a idea to service the people experiencing this pain and present them with a solution prior to having a physical concept in hand?

This goes against all conventional thinking of discover an idea, create product and present product.
Would you say your formula is closer to: discover a pain, create a solution, test the market for this solution through sales and marketing, raise awareness and generate interest, create product?

Aren't we here to learn and break free of convention? Why would you pour your money and resources into creating a product that you discovered would be helpful without any market validation that it would sell? This is one of the big reasons why businesses fail. They don't validate the need for their item and create it anyway. Then you're $40k in debt and make a total of 300 sales per year.

So yes, your proposed formula is correct. To have a better chance at a successful fastlane venture:
1. LISTEN and find pain points/issues that you can help solve.
2. Come up with a solution. Determine if your solution meets the CENTS principles.
3. Validate that there is a demand for your solution. Get feedback from prospective users as well as the person who had the issue in the first place
4. If there is a solid demand for your solution, develop a few prototypes and send them to interested parties/people who can publicly review
5. If the response is good, start PRESELLING.
6. Once you get enough presold to fund a production run, get going.

So many people have an issue with selling something that doesn't exist yet, but this is a smart thing to do. It puts you at no risk, and validates your idea before you spend thousands producing it.
 
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Formless

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+Rep Transferred for this. Powerful ICK!

The Newbie Thought Process:
1. Where can I make money? What can I sell?
The Dolphin Thought Process:
1. Where is the pile of traffic?
2. What do I need to do to get in front of that traffic?
3. What does it cost to get in front of that traffic?
4. Now that I know traffic costs, THEN I ask what product does the traffic want.
5. What is the cost for the product to get it to them?
6. After I got the product to them, what ELSE do they want? Then TEST and find out.
We're not here to make a quick buck off a quick sale. We're here to BUILD a BRAND to hopefully get to the liquidation event.
By golly, all of us can get the ice cream if only we learn to master the fork and spoon!
 

IceCreamKid

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My brother, hidden deep within the short stories of IceCreamKid there are lessons on pre-selling before spending your life savings on product. It's a neat read.

I have another short story coming up, but it's stuck within the recesses of my brain at the moment. It will take a while to put it into words.
 

yulthebull

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@IceCreamKid This may have been answered before but can I get a quick understanding of why you reference ice cream? Do you use ice cream as a symbolism to remove all context of money from the equation?

Cant wait to have some time to read this thread in its entirety, and your future short story.

continue to educate and enrich
 

robotunicr0n

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Ice cream is delicious and everyone wants it.

Money is delicious and everyone wants it.

I'd recommend making time to read the whole thread, as well as making time to read everything zen******* has ever posted!
 
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yulthebull

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@robotunicr0n makes sense. i guess I was thinking a bit deeper. I was thinking that by removing money out of the equation you remove all the emotion that comes with money as well. Fear of losing it, envy, greed. By replacing it with ice cream you remove its power over you because we all know everybody loves ice cream, kids especially. I know ICK goes into great detail of never losing the "inner kid" in you.

Ironically, wasn't MJ on the way to grab some ice cream when he had his lambo encounter? @MJ DeMarco
" Cream" is also often used to describe $$
 

IceCreamKid

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This may have been answered before but can I get a quick understanding of why you reference ice cream? Do you use ice cream as a symbolism to remove all context of money from the equation?

When you read between the lines, you'll find a hidden lesson behind the majority of my posts.

The references to ice cream were originally created as a salute to zen******* and JackEdwards, two of the most creative minds I have ever encountered. With business it is essential to be creative, otherwise you will receive the same mediocre results as everybody else. Who are the most creative people in the world? Children...and they love ice cream. Society somehow has a way of robbing us of our creativity as we age.

It is also essential to laugh at the world and not take things too seriously, much like how a child lives in the present and laughs at the world. Entrepreneurship is a rollercoaster of highs and lows so if you take things too seriously then you'll feel magnified pain when the obstacles come...and damn there are a lot of obstacles.

Be encouraged when there are obstacles. That's what keeps competition away.
 

yulthebull

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my 5 year old is an expert at this. She will question everything, ask anything, and laugh constantly. I think as parents we carry the greatest responsibility to guide our kids in the right direction-too many times we as parents look at children like our projects. We want them to be or do the things we were never able to do ourselves and when they want to experiment we tell them " NO" because we tried and failed. I hope to support her no matter what she tells me she hopes to accomplish and in return I hope I can view the world from her perspective.
 
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Steve Corcoran

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You're probably referring to me in the conversation we had the other day. I don't take offense to that, I was thinking about it the wrong way. Thinking about a LOT of things the wrong way actually... You suggested a book on copy, which I immediately bought and am about half way through reading right now...

It's amazing how literally everything looks completely different when you look at things from a giving point of view. Like someone flipped on a black light in a hotel room and all the love stains are opportunities you couldn't see before because your brain was clouded with dollar signs. I am the first to admit, this was (and still somewhat is) me. But I'm learning to get passed that.

The things MJ in his book (and a lot of people on this forum @zen******* @JackEdwards @ryanv408) make a lot more sense when you look at it this way, and I feel like they truly mean something deeper as compared to what most people probably see as business advice.
May I ask what book that is?
 

Ambitious_Drive

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The Newbie Thought Process:
1. Where can I make money? What can I sell?

The Dolphin Thought Process:
1. Where is the pile of traffic?
2. What do I need to do to get in front of that traffic?
3. What does it cost to get in front of that traffic?
4. Now that I know traffic costs, THEN I ask what product does the traffic want.
5. What is the cost for the product to get it to them?
6. After I got the product to them, what ELSE do they want? Then TEST and find out.

We're not here to make a quick buck off a quick sale. We're here to BUILD a BRAND to hopefully get to the liquidation event.

By golly, all of us can get the ice cream if only we learn to master the fork and spoon!




You didn't get to finish those points the other day Ryan... Glad I caught it here.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

IceCreamKid

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You didn't get to finish those points the other day Ryan... Glad I caught it here.

Are you referring to the list of action steps that I was supposed to make for IamTheJeff? The list above is not what I was going to give Jeff. I was going to give him actual specific steps. The list above, although useful as a road map, is still very vague.
 
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Ambitious_Drive

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Are you referring to the list of action steps that I was supposed to make for IamTheJeff? The list above is not what I was going to give Jeff. I was going to give him actual specific steps. The list above, although useful as a road map, is still very vague.

You started with the first 4 points in the Skype chat if I recall..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

RogueInnovation

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if only we learn to master the fork and spoon!

Da traffic and what they want xD

:asshat::asshat::asshat:

The biggest hidden message I've found is in your ice cream metaphor and in zendolphins crazy sock draw.
If you merge them into one its a zen******* secret.
Its the icecream attitude (fondness for its creaminess) that makes him wear rediculous socks, like he don't give a d#mn (relaxed and cheeky/creative) and when you put the two together you understand reasoning behind the zen******* approach.

Also, the socks are a secret weapon, that allows him to dash into the freezer and grab a scoop or three, when all other suckers go in bare feet and run back out (without icecream and only cold feet).

(good luck to anyone spotting the cryptic messages between the lines here, haha)
Its like the perfect mix of dopamine and seratonin, that makes him a silent assassin icecream warrior god leopard :p
Yet simultaneously severely inhibits his ability to give a d#mn about anything less than icecream quality opportunities (CENTS leveraged).

Vig was talking about leopards and spots, and it totally applies to this thread too.
Other leopards recognise another leopards spots, but to everyone else they just be like "???".
You don't need people to give you money, you need to see that the leopard spots are shaped like mini ice cream opportunities ;)

If you catch my meaning you might just have a moment of zen******* :p
And see the icecream opportunities all around us

Here is yodas view of da icecream that binds us, and lukes view of the taste of money, without having had the zen******* epiphany

Icecream size matters not :p

Leopards see the icecream (CENTS centered opportunity)
and size isn't always equal to the creamy goodness


And baby leopards need patience, as much as they need pushing. So they can see the opportunity rather than the big flashing neon of panic and easy stupidity (so so so hard for baby leopards to do!).

For baby leopards/housecats like me, this thread really helps get rid of that temper.
To start relaxing into the opportunity, and to freak out much less frequently.
I'll never forget my ice cream awakening, man was it tough to see it through the fog.
But it really is, right there.

The icecream focus
The dolphin epiphany
The leopard spots of CENTS centered opportunity in ratio to creaminess

The fork, and the spoon


:wtf::hungry:
Thanks mr creamy
 
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IceCreamKid

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Choosing A Business That Fits Your Temperament

It is far less painful when you are involved in a business whose model fits your temperament. There are 2 different philosophies as far as I can tell:

1. Sell ONE thing better and larger than anyone else.

2. Sell a series of goods and cast a wide net of smaller things selling over time.

Both work, but require different temperaments to implement. One requires you to promote it over and over again. Eventually you get most of the sales in that category and scale it. The other requires you to have ADHD and an eagerness to want to touch EVERYTHING...that means your capital will be tied up in a dozen different products.

Pick your poison that fits your temperament and run like a kid chasing the ice cream man on a hot summer day!
 
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hotshot

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Hey Ryan,

I figure this is a good place to post so others may see.

A few weeks ago, I was reading this thread and "liking" all the valuable posts by ICK. Then I got a PM asking if I was OK. ARE YOU OK? It was hilarious but also the nicest thing a stranger has done for me to date.

See, I wouldn't have reached out because I didn't realize I had a problem. I had been paralyzed by obstacles that seemed insurmountable at the time - Trying to move out of my parents house with no job, during a competitive time of year. Not knowing where to go, scared to end up homeless.

But explaining this to you through those PM's, even though the solution was simple, created the accountability I needed to get GOING.

I became relentless in my search for a new home. My feet are still sore. Instead of emailing people average guy questions, I actually used some sales copy techniques. I put myself in their shoes. The subject read "Tenant to the Rescue!" with some humour mixed into the message. Also emphasizing that I can pay cash for the whole summer. I started getting lots of responses and wound up in a nice place in a great location. And very cheap. Perfect.

In life and in business, you need to nurture momentum. Or at least I do. Just be fearless. Inertia is real.

Aside from the minor obstacles, you've helped redefined my mindset. My mom asked me for a large amount of money the day before I left. I gave it to her without the usual resentment deep down. And my own vision of the future has changed. I still want the nice car and shit, but I want to leave the world a better place than before I got here. If there's nobody to share the icecream with, what's the point. Ego gratification? The universe will forget you.

Things are going well.

Thanks buddy :)
 

Simon Ashari

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It's threads like this that separate the fast lane forum from all other forums.

It's the emphasis on alleviating the fears and frustrations of people before asking for the money.

Spent a few days getting through the entire thread.
 
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IceCreamKid

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It's threads like this that separate the fast lane forum from all other forums.
It's the emphasis on alleviating the fears and frustrations of people before asking for the money.
Spent a few days getting through the entire thread.

The world works in mysterious ways...sometimes we end up getting what we don't directly ask for.

Ghandi didn't ask for recognition, but got plenty of it.
Jesus didn't ask for power, but got plenty of it.
Bill Gates didn't ask for money, but got plenty of it.

I guess my point is that if you serve people first, the world will ultimately serve you. Most people live life with a sense of quiet desperation because they do not fully embrace this notion.
 

IceCreamKid

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If You Drop Out of College, Please Learn These Skills ASAP

1. How to deal with conflict (you only deal with people for the rest of your life, every day)

2. What money is, how it works, how to make it, (and not by selling it at wholesale wal-mart prices in a terrible job market)

3. The fundamentals of relationships and communication. Really, they need you to memorize 180 countries, but cant suggest a 4 day class, on basics in human interaction, relationships, managing expectations, and how to deal with disappointment?

4. Fundamental emotional interactions, control, and exposure.
 
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D

DeletedUser2

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If You Drop Out of College, Please Learn These Skills ASAP
1. How to deal with conflict (you only deal with people for the rest of your life, every day)
2. What money is, how it works, how to make it, (and not by selling it at wholesale wal-mart prices in a terrible job market)
3. The fundamentals of relationships and communication. Really, they need you to memorize 180 countries, but cant suggest a 4 day class, on basics in human interaction, relationships, managing expectations, and how to deal with disappointment?
4. Fundamental emotional interactions, control, and exposure

Love it

Z
 

Fred Siika

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What’s up guys. Some of you may remember me from my thread in which I thanked zen******* for dropping wisdom bombs all over the world. If you haven’t checked that thread out, please take a look at it and get moving with learning copywriting so you can learn how to print your own money(legally).

I’m starting this thread because Z told me to share the ice cream with others. I have mad respect for the guy so naturally it had to be done. By golly, all I used to have was a little pint of ice cream for myself and now I have an ice cream factory for everybody to eat from! There is a seat reserved for you at the table of abundance, but it’s up to you to work for it.

I will be explaining the secret Zen side of the Dolphin that he never speaks of, but has become glaringly obvious to those who study the WHY and HOW behind his posts.

But before I dive into giving you some ice cream, a little bit about myself…

27 years old. Was a wantrepreneur for a long time, but didn’t even know it. Yup, I ain’t the sharpest tool in the shed. Started a bunch of different businesses for all the wrong reasons so I ultimately failed at each one. A few years into it, I finally hit the bottom and got sick of the shit life I was living so I wrote into my journal and started reflecting. It went something like, “I’m tired of who I am. Tired of the life I’m living. Tired of seeing all my friends get ahead in their corporate job while I’m here trying to figure things out. Just sick of my life in general”. Bottom line, I was at my lowest point and the fire under my a$$ was burning so hot that I had no other choice but to take some dedicated immediate action to get real results…or risk being forever frustrated in the hamster wheel of the 9-5.

Studied zen*******’s posts very closely and began to read in between the lines of what he was saying. I wasn’t looking for business strategies. I wanted to know and understand the mindset behind the madman. Why was he doing X? How was he doing Y?

Started learning copy. I read some books and copied some sales letters by hand for a few months. My day looked something like this: Work the 9-5. Go home pissed as hell at my boss. Drink, write copy, drink, write copy, pass out drunk. Repeat for a long time until I got a good grasp of writing copy. I don’t recommend drinking to learn copy…ice cream seems to work pretty well too. Drinking is fun though…I’d rather burn as bright as a 1,000 watt bulb and burn out in 10-minutes than live life like a 10-watt bulb for the next 40 years.

Armed with my new knowledge of copy, I set forth to start a software business. While interviewing many different people in many different industries, I discovered a real need that couldn’t be solved online but could be taken care of offline…I prefer offline businesses anyway so I jumped into it head first. You can start an offline business faster because you don’t have to spend months on software development.

30 days later my sales were in the low 5-figure range. Let me tell you…when you go from making crap money and barely scraping to get by, to suddenly making 5-figures a month the feeling is sweeter than a gallon of ice cream.

That’s my story in a nutshell. I left out a lot of the details of the mental struggle: broken heart, angry parents, isolated friends, etc.

I will respectfully decline any requests to disclose what my business is. This forum was once a close knit group of homies, but with the success of MJ’s book there are now tons of new members and a few took the liberty of stealing from some of the greatest contributors here. The mindset is 80% of the game anyway and that’s what I’m trying to teach here.

On to the lessons…

Seriously @IceCreamKid ,

Thank you so much for your insight through your personal story. The mindset truly is the biggest hurdle to conquer especially when things are against your favor. I've had a lot of ups and downs in my current business venture these past couple of months as is associated with entrepreneurship and there are days when I absolutely wanted to quit and stop fighting. Controlling my mindset is something that I continue to battle and reading your post at this very moment has provided some positive reinforcement in my life.

Thank you again and I wish you continual success!
 

tafy

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1. Sell ONE thing better and larger than anyone else.
2. Sell a series of goods and cast a wide net of smaller things selling over time.

Can I add a third one?

3. Sell ONE thing better, smaller and more specialised than anyone else

I learned this from a software perspective but it can work in all industries, lots of things out there people try to add more features than the competitor, make things bigger and more complicated. You can do great by cutting features out also!
 
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Blue Lion

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Thanks ICK for a great thread. I've finally got to the end of it after reading every single post over the past few weeks.

The first thing I do, each day after I've meditated, is read a page of this thread and take detailed notes. It's put me in such a clear mindset to attack the day and get the ice cream.

With 13 pages of notes so far, perhaps I will turn them into a document and send it out to people if they want?

Keep up the good work ICK. You are changing people's lives here!
 

BlokeInProgress

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Can I add a third one?

Can I add another one?
You can bundle 2 or more better related products and now you have another product/service that can cater to a wider audience. :)
 

mosdef

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Thanks ICK for a great thread. I've finally got to the end of it after reading every single post over the past few weeks.

The first thing I do, each day after I've meditated, is read a page of this thread and take detailed notes. It's put me in such a clear mindset to attack the day and get the ice cream.

With 13 pages of notes so far, perhaps I will turn them into a document and send it out to people if they want?

Keep up the good work ICK. You are changing people's lives here!

i would love to have it, will read the whole thread anyway but its good se it from other perspective!
 

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