Marshall Adoption Story #2 - Follow Us to China!

Mel,   My five kids are getting a new brother!   Once again, the thundering Marshall herd is heading to China.    Three years ago, we were off to get our daughter...now we're going to get our adopted son.   He's 9 and his name is Jay.    If you want our travel updates - pictures - stories, just click the link below and I'll add you to my email list.    You'll get an inside view of my family, pics of our tourist stops, and you might even hear a story or two from my 4-Man Intensive in Bangkok.    To get our updates, CLICK HERE.   Carpe Diem,   Perry Marshall     ***NOTE: Please do not reply directly to this email, instead go to http://support.perrymarshall.com     Free Video We manage our emails with Infusion. This Guide and Video explain my secret marketing sauce. If you no longer wish to receive our emails, click the link below:  Update subscriber options   Perry S. Marshall & Assoc 159 N. Marion Street #295 Oak Park, Illinois 60301 United States (312) 386-7459   Having trouble viewing this email? Click here

A bit of uncomfortable self-disclosure

Mel, They saw me coming a mile away. My very first entrepreneurial efforts were at age 13 when I started building speaker systems and selling them to friends and through classified ads in the newspaper. But that was just the beginning.  I was 21 when my true entrepreneurial ambitions began in earnest. I drank the Pink Koolaid, the whole pitcher in fact... and the next 6-7 years were lean and very frustrating.  Here's the story, and the story behind the story: http://perrymarshall.com/newsletter/Newsletter2004vol3no5.pdf This may be the most popular newsletter issue I ever published. One of my friends, an attorney named Bill Hammond, said, "Perry, you cut a vein and bled with that last newsletter, didn't you?" Yes I did. But sometimes a guy's just gotta tell the truth. I suspect you'll relate to parts of my story. I think it's worth the read. Perry Marshall **NOTE: Please do not reply directly to this email. Instead, visit http://perrymarshall.com/support with any questions or concerns.  Update subscriber options

Perry S. Marshall & Assoc
159 N. Marion Street #295
Oak Park, Illinois 60301
United States
(312) 386-7459

Dilbert Cube Escape and No Business Plan

Mel, On October 12, 2001, I saw the Dilbert Cube in my rear view mirror for the last time. I've now been doing my own thing on my own terms longer than I ever did anything else - and I would never dream of having it any other way. Looking back on that transition from Dilbert Cube Occupant to Liberated Man, it was a scary, exciting, exhilarating time. Remember, this was a month and a day after 9/11. The industry I worked in had imploded. The phones were silent. It seemed the safe thing to do was stay put. The company was scheduled to be sold on October 18, but the real adventure for me started when I informed them that I was not going to be accepting the job I had been offered. The president of the company grew very impatient with me and then ordered me to clean out my desk and exit the premises at once. A few handshakes and hugs and 25 minutes later, I left my job never to return. My business plan at that time consisted of a list of things I could possibly do, scribbled on the back of a business card. "How to leave your job and start a business - with no business plan" - the story of how I actually made that work, is here: http://perrymarshall.com/renaissance/nobusinessplan Enjoy the story. Perry Marshall **NOTE: Please do not reply directly to this email. Instead, visit http://perrymarshall.com/support with any questions or concerns.  Update subscriber options

Perry S. Marshall & Assoc
159 N. Marion Street #295
Oak Park, Illinois 60301
United States
(312) 386-7459

Time Suck or Gravitational Slingshot?

Mel,   At my most recent 4-Man Intensive, there was a guy who reminded me a lot of me...a go-getter entrepreneur with lots of hobbies, ministries, and side projects he's passionate about.    But, unlike me, he's in a family business and he doesn't have 100% final say about what he can do in the business...or even outside it.    He explained to me that if he pursues his outside passions too much, the other principals in his business, his family members, might see it as him shirking his responsibilities...they may even label it laziness.    So I told him a story about a space slingshot.     I told him how both Voyager 1 and 2 employed something physicists call a "gravitational assist" to increase the relative speed of a spacecraft.     It's a complicated formula, but the simplified version is that the space craft, by interrupting it's path to make a pass around a large planet, can greatly increase it's relative speed, thus conserving fuel and reaching its destination faster.    So, a little detour around something with a massive gravitational pull actually speeds up your ship.    I told him to think of his side projects like that.  To keep his brain, heart, eyes, and ears open for insights and ideas that will help him grow his business.    Because, if he's passionate enough about them, if the gravitational pull is deep enough, he will find those insights and ideas everywhere. Guaranteed.  I've noticed it again and again and again in my business.  My passion for biology, electrical engineering, music, spirituality and family have always provided with me breakthrough insights that have powered my business forward like a "gravitational slingshot".   On December 7th, I'm headed to China to adopt my son.  I'll come home with a child I get to cherish for the rest of my life...And I guarantee I'll slingshot back to the US brimming with new energy, new insights, and new ideas for my business.  It just always seems to work that way.     So, today I want to say " Blessings on your passions.  May they slingshot you to the stars!"   Carpe diem,   Perry Marshall   PS: Oh,  and after I gave him my space analogy, the 4-man guy told me he's an avid astronomer and even builds telescopes in his spare time. So, I'm guessing he really got the message!      ***NOTE: Please do not reply directly to this email, instead go to http://support.perrymarshall.com     Free Video We manage our emails with Infusion. This Guide and Video explain my secret marketing sauce. If you no longer wish to receive our emails, click the link below:  Update subscriber options   Perry S. Marshall & Assoc 159 N. Marion Street #295 Oak Park, Illinois 60301 United States (312) 386-7459   Having trouble viewing this email? Click here

Are You Creating Value...without Becoming Valuable?

Mel,   Most entrepreneurs are excellent at creating value for their customers.     You know how to craft a killer USP and then deliver the goods.    You know how to solve any marketing problem you throw at them.  You know how to drive costs down, assemble a crack team, and apply 80/20 to their business and life.  You deliver value, value, value.    But are you yourself becoming valuable? Is your company capturing  value in the process?  From what I've seen, the answer is "Very rarely".    Sharp and savvy Planet Perry member, Ed Harycki recently forwarded me this article, "Competition is for Losers", from the Wall Street Journal.    The author, Peter Thiel, nails it when he points out how companies that deliver tremendous value often do a very poor job of capturing that value, or become valuable themselves...   "For example, U.S. airline companies serve millions of passengers and create hundreds of billions of dollars of value each year. But in 2012, when the average airfare each way was $178, the airlines made only 37 cents per passenger trip. Compare them to Google, GOOGL -1.37%  which creates less value but captures far more. Google brought in $50 billion in 2012 (versus $160 billion for the airlines), but it kept 21% of those revenues as profits—more than 100 times the airline industry's profit margin that year."   Confession from the hamster wheel:  This really hits home with me.  I've spent the last 10 plus years delivering value to my customers...but not capturing much of that value.    It's my homework for 2015.  How can I capture more of the value I create?    What about you? Are you merely creating value, or are you capturing it as well?    Carpe diem, Perry Marshall             ***NOTE: Please do not reply directly to this email, instead go to http://support.perrymarshall.com     Free Video We manage our emails with Infusion. This Guide and Video explain my secret marketing sauce. If you no longer wish to receive our emails, click the link below:  Update subscriber options   Perry S. Marshall & Assoc 159 N. Marion Street #295 Oak Park, Illinois 60301 United States (312) 386-7459   Having trouble viewing this email? Click here

You're registered for the Wikipedia Webinar with Mrs. X

Mel,   Thanks, you're registered for Perry's Wikipedia Webinar with Mrs. X. You will receive an email confirmation from GoToWebinar shortly (please be sure to check your spam folder if you don't see it in your inbox). GoToWebinar will also send you reminders leading up to the session, including the link you'll click to join.   Here's a recap of the webinar info:   Webinar: How to Make Sure Your Entry Isn't Sabotaged by Passive-Aggressive Thugs (& How to Get an Entry if You Don't Have One!) Date: Thursday, November 6th Time: 11am US Eastern (10am US Central | 8am US Pacific | 4pm London GMT | Fri Nov 7th @ 3am Sydney AEDT). Webinar ID: 297-987-958   We've automatically registered you for the session. If you have any trouble with the email link to join the webinar, just go to JoinWebinar.com and enter the Webinar ID number (listed above). To your success, Customer Service Team Perry S. Marshall & Associates FAQ Question: How long will the session run? Answer: About 60-90 minutes. Question: Will there be a replay? Answer: This will be an audio-only webinar, so there will be an mp3 replay. The mp3 replay will only be available to Mastermind Club members and above.       ***NOTE: Please do not reply directly to this email, instead go to http://support.perrymarshall.com     Free Video We manage our emails with Infusion. This Guide and Video explain my secret marketing sauce. If you no longer wish to receive our emails, click the link below:  Update subscriber options   Perry S. Marshall & Assoc 159 N. Marion Street #295 Oak Park, Illinois 60301 United States (312) 386-7459   Having trouble viewing this email? Click here

Doesn't Matter How Many Pulitzers You Have...

The Dark Underbelly of Wikipedia With My Wikipedia Editor, Madame X Thursday, November 6, 11AM US Eastern CLICK HERE TO REGISTER   Mel,   Philip Roth is perhaps the most respected living American novelist. With a Pulitzer Prize, TWO National Book Awards, and THREE PEN/Faulkner Awards, Roth is a giant of the literary world. But when his biographer tried to make a change to the Wikipedia article on one of Roth's most celebrated books, Wikipedia editors said, not so fast. That's right. The biographer, working with Roth's explicit approval, tried to remove a paragraph from the entry about Roth's The Human Stain, and was asked, Can you verify that? Well, yeah, I work for Mr. Roth. I'm his official biographer.     Not good enough. It wasn't until Roth wrote an open letter to The New Yorker complaining about the process that the offending paragraph was finally removed.   The lesson?  Wikipedia is pretty darned strict about what it considers verifiable sources. When your own official biographer can't make changes to an entry about your own book...well, that's pretty strict. You can waste tons of time, money and effort on Wikipedia if you don't have a trusty guide to lead you over the rocky terrain. I know from experience. I had my own Prove you are Wikipedia-worthy incident myself a few years ago. But, since Wikipedia is now the 6th most visited site on the whole flipping internet...a site that shows up in 96% of noun searches on Google...a site that can be SEO gold for some entrepreneurs... I took action. I hired Madame X.  And she whipped my Wikipedia entry into shape, making it challenge-proof.   If you Google me now, you'll see my Wikipedia entry is the 2nd result. Great credibility. Thanks, Madame X. Are you Wikipedia worthy? Can Madame X do for you, what she did for me? Join us Thursday, November 6th at 11am US Eastern (10am US Central | 8am US Pacific | 4pm London GMT | Fri Nov 7th @ 3am Sydney AEDT) to find out. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER Carpe Diem, Perry Marshall     ***NOTE: Please do not reply directly to this email, instead go to http://support.perrymarshall.com     Free Video We manage our emails with Infusion. This Guide and Video explain my secret marketing sauce. If you no longer wish to receive our emails, click the link below:  Update subscriber options   Perry S. Marshall & Assoc 159 N. Marion Street #295 Oak Park, Illinois 60301 United States (312) 386-7459   Having trouble viewing this email? Click here