Information Overload Quick-Fix

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Jonathan: Welcome back to another edition of The List-Building Lifestyle. With me your host, your guide, your mentor, the solo ads guy, Mr. Igor Kheifets. What is up, my man?

Igor: Welcome, Jonathan. Today is a great day for anyone who listens to this show, because we’re going to solve one of the biggest issues in internet marketing, and that is the good old-fashioned information overload.

Jonathan: Oh…! Information overload. Now, I want to congratulate you before we jump into that. Today is one month on the air. How are you feeling, brother?

Igor: Oh, man! I can’t believe it’s been a month and if I want us to be here but I’m supper psyched. I mean, I’m loving, I’m loving the show and I…I can honestly say that I found, you know, another one of my passion, you know, just preaching, you know, I’m a preacher it turns out.

Jonathan: Preaching, and today you’re going to preach against information overload.

Igor: That’s right.

Jonathan: Looking forward to it.

Igor: Were going to drive a stake right through its heart. So I want to…I want to start by describing one of the most common experiences my clients tell me and share with me.
They tell me they spend a lot of time learning a lot. You know, they watch lots of videos. They read books. They read e-books. They go on webinars. They purchase courses. And so they’ve got all this information, right? They consume all this information like crazy like some information-consuming machine, but they don’t feel like they do much, right, they don’t feel like they’re creating much progress in their business.
And I believe that is one of the first stages of success – not the actual doing of the thing, but the realization that you’re doing it.
Doesn’t that make sense, Jonathan?

Jonathan: Yeah, absolutely. Self-awareness is how you move forward.

Igor: Exactly. So the moment you realize that that’s you, that you’re buying and then going through all this information, but you’re not doing much with it, welcome, my friend, you’re not ready to advance forward.
So the next stage is going to be doing, but, you know, the problem with that stage is that you don’t know where to start, because now you have all this information you learned and studied and it’s like there’s so many things you can do, because the internet is so huge and there’s so many opportunities, so you don’t know where to start.
Well, the way I solved this for myself and the way I’ve recommended throughout the years my students solve it for themselves was to stop consuming information and start instead, you know, observing what the gurus were doing.
So in other words, stop buying all the guru courses and instead observe the way they sell them and the mechanics of the systems that they [03.00] set up to sell these courses.
Now this is really profound, because the moment I started looking for that and when I started paying attention to how they were doing it and looking into the mechanics of why they were saying certain things and why they were positioning themselves in a certain way, it all started making sense to me and I almost…I almost magically – because we don’t have any magic buttons over here – but I started making money almost overnight.
You know, I tweaked just a few things in my business. They were fundamentally wrong, by the way, and it’s always the basics too and – bam! – I was making money. And so what I did was instead of buying stuff and going through the information that I was given, I would always try to look at what the guru was doing to sell.
For example, if the guru was trying to sell me a Facebook ads course, you know, but at the same time the course was being sold through affiliate marketing, through someone else promoting the course to me and me being on their list, I was like ‘Aha! So they wanna sell me the Facebook ads course, but, hey, they’re actually making their money selling this course by having someone else mail the list. So guess what? List-building is more effective than Facebook ads.’
So that’s the kind of, you know, observations that I started making, Jonathan, and they completely transformed the way I approached my business and very quickly they transformed my income.

Jonathan: You know what? It reminds me of Russell Brunson talks a lot about funnel-hacking and I think that’s kind of what you’re talking about here – rather than being a prospect and being taken along for the ride, going in and deconstructing what they’re doing to sell.

Igor: Oh, yeah, Russell is amazing when it comes to funnel-hacking. What we does and he shared this with me, he would actually put up a ScreenFlow or a Camtasia and he would go on buying stuff, like he would actually go into your funnel with Camtasia on and he would go through it and buy the stuff, and then he would either, you know, himself watch the recording and try to like deconstruct it or have an assistant or a person he trained to do it for him.
Now this is I think way more effective than going to a $5,000-seminar in San Diego to learn about the latest Facebook, Facebook marketing trick, you know?

Jonathan: No kidding.

Igor: So, yeah, so something we’ve talked about before during the show, you said stop consuming, right, and can you talk a little bit more about that, because it’s your theory? I don’t want to like steal your thunder.

Jonathan: Oh, well, thank you. I was going to let you have full credit for it, but that’s quite a gentleman you are, sir.
But one of the best things that I ever did and it’s actually right now when we’re recording this last quarter that I really focused on this when I was working with Jamie Tardy from Eventual Millionaire, and she put me on this no-consumption diet, and I said, ‘No, I know.’
So I wasn’t allowed to consume anything and this was hard for me, because I am a person who loves to learn just like you are and just like many other listeners here are, but it was very tough for me to say ‘What? I can’t consume? I can’t read my newsletters? I can’t do any of that!’
So she said – and I listen to people, [06.00.1] because when I pay them a lot of money, I tend to listen to them – and so what happens in nature is when there is a void, something must fill that void, and my void was the consumption void, so I was no longer consuming and what I filled that void with was creation. And I’ve created a coaching course. I created an information product, whitepapers, all kinds of stuff, because I’m not longer consuming.
And so I think it’s necessary in life that you take a break from consuming so that you have time to create.

Igor: Absolutely, and if you’re really good at that stuff, if you really stick to this regime, what’s going to happen is you’re going to get so busy creating that you will simply not have the time to consume.
And that is why, Jonathan, as I shared on one of the previous shows that I wanted to learn how to speedread, because I literally do not have the physical time between my business and my family – which, you know, believe it or not, I have to schedule my family time into my calendar, because otherwise I just get back into the creation mode and you can’t pull me back.
So in between life and business I just don’t have the time to consume anymore. I mean, reading Ben Settle’s newsletter sometimes takes me a month. I mean, I have two issues of the newsletter sitting on my desk and I’m not proud of that. I mean, I should be able to read that thing more often.

Jonathan: Blast it off and…

Igor: Yeah, I’ve paid $97 for it for crying out loud, but, you know, I’m just…I’m just so busy creating that I just don’t have the time to consume, and I have to make the time to do it, and that’s really and truly the secret to success.
And we all tend to fall into that pitfall of consumption, right? We get so excited about learning new things that we tend to forget to implement what we learn.
And, you know, that’s why the gurus are getting away with so much crap that they’re putting out, because they’re busy creating crap and we’re busy consuming it. And what happens is…

Jonathan: Eating crap.

Igor: Yeah, we just…we just buy a lot of crap and we just consume a lot of crap, and that’s why – I mean, who said that whatever you consume, whatever knowledge you consume makes you or makes your income? I mean, something like that, whatever.
I’m just probably ruining the whole thing, but I guess what I’m saying is this: you will make as much money only to, like you will only make as much money as to the extent as to which you like consume the correct information, but also how you, you know, when you aggressively implement it.

Jonathan: May I share something with you, Igor?

Igor: Yeah, absolutely. Go ahead.

Jonathan: So I think this will benefit our listeners and it’s something that I leaned from Darin Persinger who I do The Making Agents Rich Show with, and he talks about this idea of ‘The 72 Hours Rule.’
And so if you subscribe to the 72 hours rule, what’s going to happen is you are going to do a whole lot more. You’re going to find a whole lot more things that work for you and you’re also going to have less stress. Because let’s face it, people who are consumption junkies they will just keep buying, keep buying, keep buying and they don’t necessarily go through the content or use the content.
But the 72 hours rule works like this: whatever you learn whatever you pick up, if you don’t implement it within the [09.00] next 72 hours, throw it away, because you’re never going to do it.

Igor: Yeah, I know exactly what you’re talking about. I try to tell myself that it’s not the case and ‘But, you know, with me, but that’s not true,’ it truly is the case.
But, man, this is just human nature, isn’t it, Jonathan? I mean, I find that oftentimes, you know, success is all about fighting the human nature, the laziness and the procrastinating, which is so easy. I mean, it’s just over, you know, consumes everything. It just overtakes us sometimes, but Dan Kennedy said that success is 70% discipline and only 30% skill and all the other stuff, and I…you know, I agree. I truly agree.
And that’s why if you’ve got a routine, if you ain’t got a routine, get in a routine, like wake up early in the morning.

Jonathan: Yeah.

Igor: Eat healthy. Get some discipline with yourself first, and then you’ll develop a routine for execution as well. I really dig this 72 hours rule. I wrote it down, and I’m actually going to embrace it, because it’s going to make my life much simpler this way.

Jonathan: No. I use it, like when I buy an information course or anything I do two things. First of all, before I buy it I say ‘Will I be able to consume and use this within the next 7 hours?’ and second I say ‘How does this fit into what I’m working on right now where I will get a ROI on my money?’

Igor: Oh, yeah, exactly. So you want to only invest in something that you can execute right away and that kind of fits into your existing enterprise, because it’s just much easier and faster to get return on investment. I absolutely agree with you.
And that’s why to this day after 8 years of, you know, making great money and serving lots of client every day in this marketplace and automating a big chunk of my business, I am still here. I’m still the solo [ad] guy, because I don’t want to go into something else. I don’t want to start something new.
I mean, people have told me. I’ve had offers to get into the forex market and into the weight loss market. I had one guy invite me to fly out to Ukraine and manage a forex company where they, you know, sell on the phone. But I personally think that forex market is not ethical, because the only people who are making the money is the borers who…

Jonathan: Yeah.

Igor: …You know, charge a commission, so I didn’t go for it. but besides that it’s just, you know, I too stick to what I know and if I am going to pick up a new technique, skill or whatever it’s only because I believe it’s going to further develop my existing enterprise, because I’m going to see a really fast return on my investment.

Jonathan: That’s one of the things that I really like about working with you, Igor, it was I have never seen anybody get to the point where we are recording so quickly. I think it was less than a week and we already started recording our first shows. You already had all your stuff together.
I mean, execution is what’s going to separate you from the broke, fat, lazy people sitting on the couch wondering why they’re not making money.

Igor: Oh, yeah, for sure, and, you know, I’ll take that compliment with pride. Basically what you’re saying is I believe some sort of like a football coach said that [12.00] – I don’t remember his name. Man, I really need to gather up my names right, because it looks like I’m just stealing people’s quotes!
And he said success is not doing great things. It’s doing simple things in a great way, or something like that.
Like you really don’t need to be extraordinary in the way you execute. You just need to be fast and do it on an okay level. I mean, I’ve had sales pages that were written in less than a day make me more money than sales pages that took me like 3 weeks to write or something because I kept on trying to perfect it.
I mean, just, you know, money loves speed. That’s what it all comes down to.
So if you have an idea that you like and then you have a business idea that, you know, you’re just starting or something like that, just implement it, just get down to putting it all together. If you don’t know where to start, remember this. My coach loves to say this.
I’m like ‘Hey, Tom!’ – his name is Tom Beal, very famous marketer.
And he’s like ‘Hey, what’s up with you? You know, what’s going on, Igor?’
And I’m like ‘Oh, I’ve got this problem, that problem and da, da, da. Everything sucks. Blah, blah, blah. I have this huge thing coming up. I just signed up to do the podcast. I don’t know where I’m going to fit it into my schedule, da, da, da…’
And he’s like ‘Well, Igor, how you eat an elephant? How? One bit at a time, my friend.’
And so, anything that I’ll come in and I’ll complain to him about something, you know, he’s always going to be reminding me ‘Hey, how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.’
So look, if you’ve got an elephant you’ve got to eat, just take it one bite at a time.

Jonathan: Yeah, small, consistent, imperfect actions. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It doesn’t have to be a giant leap. You just have to do it every day and hit it.

Igor: Yeah, exactly. And just by doing something, you’re going to be ahead of 90% of the people in this industry, because they’re just consuming, consuming, consuming, and sadly enough they never really get out of the consumption mode.

Jonathan: Yeah, it reminds me of those people who will go to school and get their undergraduate and then go for more schooling and more schooling and more schooling as if it’s going to make their life any better and they still end up getting out of school and still being unemployed.

Igor: Amazing example. I mean, I just have that sort of person literally who’s going on his third degree now, I fired him from my enterprise because I realized that’s what I was dealing with. It’s just as if collecting degrees is going to add zeros to his paycheck. I don’t get it. I really don’t get it.

Jonathan: Yeah, they’re adding zeros to the wrong side. Oh, man!
So any more tips on consumption versus creation? I mean, it’s clear that we’re both passionate creators.

Igor: Oh, yeah absolutely. I mean, a lot of people are, in fact. I know more people who have amazing ideas that are not implemented, they just go to waste because they haven’t been implemented, that I know of people who are able to pick up on an idea that they haven’t come up with and execute and bring it to life, you know.
And I just believe that there is no secret. Like you should stop looking for the secrets. I mean, there’s techniques to improve yourself, but there’s really no secrets as to what, you know, separates myself or Jonathan or Ben or Dan [15.00.2] or even, you know, I don’t know, Obama or whatever, from you guys listening to this. There’s really no secret.
We’re flesh and blood. We sweat. We wake up. We go to the bathroom. We eat. It’s, I mean, we’re just human beings. And the only difference is we execute like crazy, like crazy.

Jonathan: So one of the things that I think is worth mentioning in this conversation that we’re having here is that idea, and I think it’s a Dan Kennedy idea, money is attracted to speed.
When you’re implementing and when you’re creating fast, you’re also going to fail fast, and isn’t that okay? Because it’s not…we’re not all going to be winners. We know that.

Igor: Oh, yeah, and here’s the beautiful part about internet marketing. You’ll make millions with a 99% failure rate. That’s something I learned from Doberman Dan. It’s just a really nice way of putting it, but you know, you want to fail.
And I’m sure, guys….I mean, honestly, Jonathan, how many podcasts and training products have we all bought that told us ‘Look, failing is okay.’ And failing is okay. And failing is inevitable.
And the way I see it is, and that’s something I learned a long time ago and thank God that I did, because it just made myself so much easier, failures are just opportunities. It’s something that first read in Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich – great book.
If you haven’t read it yet, go ahead and do it right now. Just stop the recording, stop the podcast, whatever if you’re listening in your car, I don’t care, just get the book, Think and Grow Rich.
And, you know, challenges, all challenges, all failures hold an equal seed of opportunity. In fact, some of my biggest challenges, for example, getting my extremely large and extremely profitable autoresponder account shut down that I had with AWeber turned out to be my greatest breakthrough. The month when I had my AWeber shut down with almost 200,000 leads that was making me anywhere between $3,000-7,000 a day…

Jonathan: Oh my gosh!

Igor: I doubled my business.

Jonathan: Really?

Igor: Yes, I kid you not, all because I had, you know, Tom Beal on my side, to keep reminding me ‘Hey, every challenge holds an equal seed of opportunity,’ and he told me that like a hundred times.
You know, it was an extremely, extremely large challenge for me. It was like the thing I was afraid of the most to be honest, but that resulted in me doubling my income. Like not my income as far as, you know, revenues. My income as far as profit to take away – take home profit, if you will.

Jonathan: Wow, that’s amazing. Yeah, I liked…I think was when I was working with Ryan where I was doing some stuff and it dint work out the way that I wanted it to work and he helped me understand that those failures and those shortcomings are just data. Don’t get emotionally attached to it. It’s data. Read the data, see what it’s telling you and make the adjustments.

Igor: Yeah, exactly. So, you know, you can also look at it as a stairway, like, of success as a place up there high in heaven. Then you can look at your journey [18.00.1] as a stairway.
And so, you don’t know what you’re supposed to do a year from now, but your failures will guide you on the next steps. You know, it’s almost like road signs telling you ‘Hey! Just turn over here, right here. Okay, good. Keep going that way!’
And so your failures will steer you in the right direction, and if you’ve read – you’ve probably read this, Psycho?Cybernetics,
Jonathan?

Jonathan: That sounds familiar. Who wrote that?

Igor: Dr. Maxwell Maltz, and the Kennedy later created another edition.

Jonathan: That’s where I saw it! Dan Kennedy version.

Igor: Yes, so they talk about how, you know, to achieve success you need to be like a guided missile, and a guided missile, the way it gets to the target is literally by failing.
So it points the missile in just a certain direction and realizes that it’s failing to get to the end location where the target is and then it directs the course, and then in fails again, directs the course again, and through a series of micro-failures that it’s doing really, really quickly almost seamlessly, you can see the missile hit the target this way.

Jonathan: That’s awesome. I think that’s a great place to end this one if you’re cool with that.

Igor: Yeah, absolutely.

Jonathan: Awesome. So that is a wrap for the list-building lifestyle, episode 4. You got the secret to success in business and I think we shared a ton on this episode.

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