Hey everybody, Colin Morgan here and welcome back to another episode of the daily grind today. We are going to be revisiting the episode I did with Neil Patel almost two years ago now I'm sure all of you know who Neil is if you don't wait for the intro of this podcast Neil is an absolute genius You're gonna love this episode Be sure as always you have a pen piece of paper sit back and dive deep in today's episode with Neil Patel enjoy Today's episode is brought to you by eBay Canada eBay Canada continues to help retailers bring their businesses online quickly through the up and running program When you sell on eBay as a retailer you can continue to serve your existing customers while gaining access to more than a hundred and eighty million buyers in a hundred and ninety countries Allowing you to stay local yet sell global this up and running program is incredible and as a Canadian business seller You gain access to no listing fees on up to two hundred listings per month where you only pay fees when you sell Access to the eBay community group where you can get real-time advice and inspiration from experienced sellers and eBay team members Powerful selling tools and insights and access to eBay's hundred and eighty million plus buyers around the world eBay Canada is here to help you They've been supporting Canadian small business retailers for 25 years and launched this up and running program to meet an urgent need today So if you're a Canadian small business retailer, or you know someone who is visit ebay.ca forward slash up and running and get started with this today Again, that is eBay dot CA forward slash up and running Welcome back everyone as I mentioned We're sitting down with Neil Patel who is a New York Times best-selling author the Wall Street Journal calls him a top influencer on the web Forbes says he's one of the top 10 marketers in the world and entrepreneur magazine said he created one of the Hundred most brilliant companies in the world He was recognized as a top hundred entrepreneur under the age of 30 by President Obama and top 100 entrepreneur under the age of 35 by the United Nations He's helped Amazon Microsoft Airbnb Google Thomas routers by a calm NBC into it Zapos American Greetings General Motors and Salesforce grow through marketing As I mentioned I did this interview about two years ago So you're gonna hear a slightly different style, but I loved just kind of revisiting these episodes, but without further ado Let's meet Neil now Neil welcome to the Daily Grime. What's happening? How are you?
Good? How are you? I am fantastic. Thank you so much.
Neil. What's new and exciting in your world today? Yeah, not much. Just the same old stuff love educating helping people learn marketing online and just growing my own businesses Absolutely now everyone knows you as a master marketer I mean they're familiar with what you do, but maybe some of us are unfamiliar with kind of how you got your start So if you don't mind kind of walk us through your entrepreneurial journey, like how'd you get started in this?
What was the story? What led you there? Yeah, so I started the age of 16. I was trying to find a job online Couldn't find one so I created a job board It was the most logical thing for me at that time Created it and I thought I would make a ton of money But I realized that just because you pop up a website.
It doesn't mean people are gonna come to it Yeah, eventually I say it's a money pays a marketing firms got ripped off Learned it myself got good results on my own site, but then I still aren't making money Right? I didn't realize how to make money or convert visitors more someone to customers But I got good at the quote-unquote traffic part and that's when I focused industry helping other people with their traffic acquisition Awesome. It kind of walk us through that sort of learning experience you had right like you popped open a website You weren't making money you hired people you still weren't making money you learned it yourself You still weren't making money like what were some of the things that you did to help you make money in the marketing world? Yeah, some of the things I ended up doing to help me make money in the marketing world was um Just getting people more traffic So if they're spending a lot of money on paper clickheads like Google AdWords I would end up generating rankings for the same keywords because if they're spending less a $50,000 a month on paper click You could assume the business was making some sort of money right because people just weren't burning money for no reason And it would just help reduce their cost and produce a better ROI That's fantastic and kind of like early days like when you're starting this like with what you're 16 years old That's when you kind of knew you wanted an entrepreneur you've always had that spirit Like what kind of support was around you at that time when you told your parents friends that Probably not gonna go to school.
Like this is what I wanted you full-time Well, they wanted me. I didn't want to go to school, but they forced me to go to college and initial degree But yeah, you know, they thought it was crazy, but they accepted it over time Absolutely And you know during those processes of becoming an entrepreneur and a profitable entrepreneur I'm sure there were certain behaviors which you had which you incorporated into your life I like to call them winning behaviors then there was probably some losing behaviors Which you had to get rid of so I wonder if you could share some of those with us Yeah, so some of the wing behaviors was like when I was starting off I realized that you need to end up taking risks to get big rewards So for example, I was willing to roll the dice and bet everything just to try to get progress The other thing that I ended up learning was hey knowledge is, you know, awesome and amazing But just because you know something now doesn't mean other people won't catch up So I believe that you got to execute fast and perfection is overrated And that's what got really well for me The some of the losing behaviors that I had was you know, I felt that oh if you just make a mistake It's okay. Just keep pushing on me to keep going and that's correct to some extent But why didn't realize is you're gonna make mistakes But you need to learn from them and avoid making the same ones over and over again Because that'll help you succeed because you'll know what not to do Another lesson that I ended up learning was people aren't everything And yes without people you won't have a business But I seem oh just because you hire smart people, you're gonna end up making money There was a lot of smart people that are hired that just executed so poorly That nothing really ended up happening and the revenue wasn't growing Yeah, it makes a lot of sense And what do you focus on when you hire people within your company? It's like what does that mean attribute that you like to look at?
They have to be better than me or better than whoever else we have within that specific job task Okay In addition to that that to be faster executing They also have to be a self learner And they have to be able to figure out how to solve problems on them Absolutely love all that Now I know a lot of people listening here today are say in startup mode or want to start a business Like you've started to super successful, co-founded two super successful companies What would you say to those people like what are some of the mistakes people are making? What did you do right? Which led you to where you are? I just kept going at it The biggest thing that I just never quit and eventually learned from my mistakes and then you went not to do Yeah, love it Now as an entrepreneur, I mean there's ups, downs, lows, you make mistakes, you learn from them What's been saying like the biggest obstacle that you've had to personally overcome to get where you are?
Yeah, the biggest obstacle that I had to overcome to get to where I am today is I just had to Figure out how to be scrappy without money So I always assume that you need money to succeed And that's a big misconception You can do things in a very scrappy way and just figure out how to end up growing But I always believe you need money and that would stop me from things Like I wouldn't even try certain things such as like competing with other companies I'm like, oh they're too big, it's Google or it's Microsoft like I'm not going to eat them Instead of being like, oh I can get creative, they move slow I can really stuff faster and you know, they have to worry about scale when they release something I don't I can just start getting stuff out there and getting feedback, right? So I realize that speed and execution is really huge and important factor As well as just overall being creative, right? And when you're creative, you don't have to necessarily rely on money Absolutely, and I think a lot of people do struggle with that, right? They think they look at another company, they're trying to get into space And they're like, I'm never going to be able to reach where they are I can't compete with them yet Yet if you can be scrappy with your money And just realize that if I just do this and execute on it And that's a big thing because I think a lot of people go through And you can correct me if I'm wrong here Neil They go through this period of self-discover You know, they're trying to discover who they are They're learning from a whole bunch of things But they forget that those books they read, the videos that they watch, this podcast that they listen to They now actually have to go and take that information and start implementing it That's correct And you know, everyone's like, oh, I learned so much I'm like, yeah, but did you use it?
And they're like, no, I'm like, okay, what's the kind of learning if you're not gonna actually use what you've learned? Absolutely, yeah I mean, just based on that, I have some people I know who are, you know, big into reading And they're reading, you know, 10 books a week and I'm like, that's great and all It's always good to learn, it's always good to read But like you said, what are you doing with that information? What are you actually implementing in your life? And once they kind of figure that out, I've seen a lot of people go from reading, you know, 100 books a year to 10 books a year But now they're taking that information and start implementing it in a good way And start seeing those massive results that they want to see Exactly And you know, and that's the thing, it's like you got to execute, you got to push And you got to end up just getting the results, right?
And if you don't ever do anything, you're not going to see anything And it's okay to fail Just learn from them and then just keep pushing forward Absolutely, and I think that's the power of, you know, you obviously sound like you had a vision At the early stages, like you knew kind of where you wanted to get to And it wasn't probably necessary, like, oh, I want to make a million dollars I need to change the way that people are marketing their companies, is that correct? That's correct, yes And having that vision in place makes it super simple for you to do those daily tasks And be consistent with those which will lead you Because it's really the journey, the process is really what's important It can't be necessarily results-driven, you got to be process-driven I think, like Neil said, you have to have that vision in place Having that vision in place makes that process, period, really easy Yeah, and most people don't have that vision, right? Or they're not trying to think clear of it In addition to the vision, it's like a lot of people are thinking really small with their vision Yeah, it's like It's almost as much effort to hit a double or triple as it is to hit a single So might as well swing for the fences Absolutely, right? You might as well, I mean, set your vision high for where you want to be If you're setting it small, I mean, like I said, it's just as difficult to just hit a single and hit a home run, say, right?
Yeah, it sounds great And it sounds like, you know, education has played a massive part in what you're doing I mean, you're consistently evolving, changing, you're creating new companies, which is amazing to see I'm interested to know, has there been, say, a mentor or one or two mentors that have had a big profound impact on where you are? Yeah, there's a guy named Andy Liu, he taught me how to do deals Okay, so I've learned quite a bit from him And then there's another person named Edwardium, who taught me that PR and notoriety isn't everything It's like, just go execute, stay behind scenes, make money, and who cares if no knows who you are Absolutely, and kind of touching on what Andy had taught you there about making deals I think a lot of people struggle with that, right? They don't want to sound salesy, like, what were some of the things that he taught you? Yeah, he was saying like, there's always unique ways that he deals, such as You can't afford to pay people all upfront, break out the payments, or, you know, it's not about creating the best deal for you It's about, like, the good deal is both people leaving when they're smiling, right?
And walking away, even if it's amazing deal for you, you can still structure it with other persons happy as well, right? So it's just a win-win situation Or, like, he would tell me, like, hey, you're talking about a business, like, everything from making sure there's no liens on banks Because if there's liens, then whatever you end up spending money on, you can end up losing it Or he taught me, you know, basic things on how to appeal to businesses, such as, like, if they're very ROI-based, then How do you end up presenting the numbers in a way that makes sense for them? Because it's not going to say about how much they spend, it's more so, what do they think that returns going to be? Absolutely, love that.
Now, one thing I was like to ask Neil is, you've been through a lot in your entrepreneurial journey, you start a lot of companies I wonder if, like, you can go back in time, and you can choose the H-E-R, you have free reign Go back in time and offer yourself one piece of advice, what would that be and why? Yeah, it would be focused. I tried doing too many things, and I still do some Accept, but I'm getting better and better every year, just focusing on one thing. Absolutely.
And say kind of hitting on focus, I think, because I do feel like that's important. A lot of people, they have a bunch of things going on, and they struggle to really focus, and I think one thing Is having routines, habits, or a plan. Like, I'm wondering for you, what keeps you focused? I just love what I'm doing.
So, I just focus on my work, because it's what I love more than anything else, right? Like, when it comes to any of the opportunities out there. In addition to that, I use a software called Rescue Time, and it helps analyze my time, where I'm wasting it, so that way I can focus on the stuff that's producing a high salary. Neil, what motivates you to keep on grinding?
It gets you out of bed every day and just fires you up to do what you do. I just love what I'm doing. If there's even a 1% in you that you're not happy with whatever you're doing, then it's like, then don't do it. Focus on 100% of your energy on anything you love.
It's not always about money, it's about passion and what you love, because that's what you're going to put in the most effort in. And if you put in the most effort, you're probably going to be the best at it, and eventually it'll convert, you know, that time into running. Absolutely. Now, what is your favorite podcast to listen to, say right now?
I don't listen to Timmy Parkas right now, I just don't have the time. I spend a lot more of my time reading. Okay, so now, yeah, and right now I'm reading Principles by Ray Dalia. Oh, you know what, coincidence?
I have it right here on my desk. Are you through it yet, or are you kind of... I'm not through it yet, I'm midway. You know what, I love that book, because I think one of the key messages that he says there is, you have to develop your own set of principles, and it goes back to what we have been talking about about inputting, like when you read a book, how to take that information and implement it into what your principles really are.
So I think that's really important to anyone listening today. Grab, you might as well learn from the greatest investor of all time, right? There you go. He's in really well.
Like, what's his fun size at 150, something like that? It's ridiculous. And he's just more of an advisory level now. He's working with countries and top CEOs.
Like, he's amazing. Yeah, he's an extremely well. Absolutely. Now, I know this is a difficult question, because you know, people perceive work as different things, but how many hours a day do you typically work on average?
Like 10 on the low end, 12, 13 on the high end. You got that grind on. Yeah, I don't really see it as work, right? It goes back to loving what you do.
Absolutely. That's the same thing, right? You got to love what you're doing to put in the work. Now, what is your most successful form of marketing?
Like, you're a marketing expert. What's the most successful form of marketing? Say for a small business out there. Yeah.
The most successful form of marketing for a small business is inbound. So that's like SEO, social media, marketing, content marketing, anything that isn't paid and it works extremely well for SMBs. Awesome. Now, Neil, how do you define success?
Like, what is that definition for you? It's happiness. If you're happy in what you're doing, to me, you're successful. Love it.
Now, we've heard a lot from you today, Neil. You've shared a ton of great content. We've covered a lot of topics. Say my audience, they listened to it, they remembered nothing, but they can take one thing home with them today.
What do you want that one thing to be, Neil? You're going to make mistakes. That's okay. Learn from them and when making the same ones over and over again.
You do that, you're going to increase your odds of succeeding. Eventually, you'll know what not to do. Amazing. Now, what is the best way for audience to connect with you and just learn more about what you're doing?
Neil Patel.com. Fantastic. Go to Neil Patel.com. I can tell you, I've seen countless videos of him.
He is absolutely amazing at what he does. You might as well learn from someone that is at the top of their game. And as you can see, again, everyone's success is driven by passion, hunger. And today, doing what you love, everyone has to overcome obstacles, everyone has a story, start building yours today.
We had the chance to speak with Neil Patel today. Neil, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule and visiting us today. Yeah, thanks for having me. Absolutely.
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