My Impressions: Content Machine

This book was recommended by an entrepreneur friend…  Since he also an entrepreneur, his advice holds slightly more weight when I ask for advice.  Thus, bumped other books back a bit…  Plus, I’m really thinking of putting more content anyway. 

Forward by Neil Patel…  This dude been spamming my fb feed with his online course.  Seems like the world is only so big. 

Content Machine: Use Content Marketing to Build a 7-figure Business With Zero Advertising

There is funny (or emotional or witty) marketing copy, and there is marketing that sells.  Here, if you are content marketing, there should be an end game of some sort.  The difference between a blogger and a content marketer here is one just assumes the job is to create content while the other knows the job is really to market a business.  

Sadly based on the “10 Characteristics of a High-Growth Business” evaluation…  I run a shitty business… 

The book provides a few metrics to measure against and targets to strive for.  There are also a few ways to brainstorm how to find/create your content and the different personality approaches you could try to find a fit.  

All in all though, seems like the main points are:

          1. This is a very long exercise…  You have to just take that leap of faith

          2. Be part of the 5% that actually get things done

          3. Give give give

So in a way…  My next steps will be working on content and AdWords.  There are things I did when I lost 40 pounds and I think would be beneficial to others if I shared it.  A few weeks ago when my friend Sophia asked me if I spent all the money we made at a trade show on dinner to thank everybody for helping out…  Yes…  I told her profitability means nothing right now.  Of course everybody hopes to make money.  But this project was more about learning, experiencing, giving, finding a creative outlet, and “owning” responsibility.  

I think everybody should start a business.  Experience all the high’s and low’s.  Mostly the low’s.  Understand what it’s like on the other side.  It makes you a lot more humble and appreciate life a lot more…  And if you’re successful, then you can pay it forward and help the next person that wants to be help.  I can’t help people in running a business yet…  But I can help with losing weight and living a healthier life style!

My Impressions: Triggers

This is a self-improvement book.  I originally thought it was a sales book, like how to write marketing ad copy to trigger consumers to buy.  Completely off.  This is a book about how our surroundings triggers us to make certain calls and behave certain way.  We are less aware of how much we really are “ourselves” and not our “environment.”  

Triggers: Creating Behavior That Lasts--Becoming the Person You Want to Be

This book.  Is awesome.  At least I think so.  

One reason I believe I like this book so much because it is a self-improvement book with tools aimed specifically with my personality type.  I don’t see this working for everybody because of different levels of discipline and how turned on people get from playing with spreadsheets.  

Right off top, I love how the book started:

“It’s common sense.  I didn’t read anything here that I don’t already know.”

“True, but I’ll bet that you read plenty here that you don’t already do.”

This is a core philosophy I live by: You don’t know it if you don’t live it.  

Few main points I loveeee:

1. Ego depletion

This is a term coined by social psychologist Roy F. Baumeister.  Basically, how small, daily decisions throughout the day distract and wear us out.  We end up not being able to make solid/accurate decisions.  

This is the same reason why Albert Einstein, Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, and even Obama wear the same thing all the time: Not to waste brainpower, saving that power for important decisions.  The article could be found here:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2012/10/05/steve-jobs-always-dressed-exactly-the-same-heres-who-else-does/

This is also the same reason I pre-plan my week by using Habitica.com.  I wake up in the morning, and I go to war with my To Do List.  I don’t think about what I’m going to do, or debate if I should do it.  I just do it.  It saves a lot of energy.  Prior to habitica, I would spend 3-4 hours debating a task.  Now I’m done with most of the list in 3-4 hours.  

When we have structure, we don’t have to make as many choices; we just follow the plan.

2. Tracking Tool

Basically list important questions to you (be very truthful).  Ask yourself each day starting with, “Did I do my best to…” and rate yourself.  For example,

Did I do my best to say something nice to mom today?

Did I do my best to control my alcohol consumption today?

Rate yourself every day, track this every week.  The constant reminder and the qualitative reflection “Did I do my best to” will either push you to change, or give up the goal.  I think either outcome is better than constant depletion of energy and wishing the change away.  

This makes us take a hard look at ourselves, quoting the book: “When the questions begin with “Did I do my best to…” the feeling is even worse.  We have to admit that we didn’t even try to do what we know we should have done.” 

3. Professional at Work / Amateur at Home

More often than not, we are more professional at work than at home.  Or least I am.  My parents are.  My wife is.  We “let loose” when we go home.  We hold ourselves to a lower standard when interacting with our loved ones.  We think they understand.  We think we should show them “our real and true” selves.

This was a constant struggle I had for years.  Mostly because I have a horrible temper.  

There was a specific case regarding this in the book that struck a chord with me: So you think your family deserves you being an amateur at home?

I really like this book.  It identified many problems and struggles I had, many of which I wanted to change but didn’t really know how to…  Besides “try harder.”  It introduced a simple tool to use…  I spent the last week pondering and making the tool tracker for my use.  

I aim to better.  Be the person I want to be.  I’m taking on smoking, drinking, exercising, anger management…  Let’s see if I consciously give up or I can make some change!

I’m still edumacating on the Google AdWords space.  This is one of the other books I bought to read for the flight back in March.  Didn’t read it until 10 days ago…  I guess I was very optimistic on how much and how fast I would read.

Ultimate Guide to Google Ad Words, 2nd Edition: How To Access 100 Million People in 10 Minutes 

So, Google is basically just a super huge advertising company with a lot of expensive hobbies.  To be a pro at AdWords probably requires being good at advertisement and marketing in general.  That’s one of the downsides and my main complaint of this book.   I’m being sold throughout reading the book. 

          ·        In the pre-face, I’m being directed to another website for “bonus” material worth “$85” dollars, in exchange for my e-mail and address

          ·        Chapter 1, selling me on his other book 80/20 Sales and Marketing

          ·        Chapter 2, selling me on their facebook ad book…

          ·        Chapter 3 provides another link to a tool to check if google display or google adwords is better for my business.  Right below that, asks for my name and e-mail again for a “free analysis”…

Now, after the grueling first 5 chapter or so, maybe I got numbed enough to the constant bombardment of marketing material – and I could finally start to see the value of the content.  Half way through the book, I started really enjoying the book.  There are both strategic and tactical aspects for anybody to start implementing AdWords.  There are guidelines on what to measure and how to measure them. 

The last quarter of the book, I would even say the tone became very motivational and inspiring.  Giving small online business owners another push to try, some success stories to look up to… 

Marketing and advertisement is a bit like investment.  Feels like I’m constantly throwing money in the ocean, not knowing if there’s ever a return.  So far, there isn’t.  So far, I’m discouraged.  But I do plan to implement strategies in this book and give AdWords another shot.  It’d be nice to eventually figure out a money-making-campaign…  At that point you will “know” how to make money instead of guessing and speculating what might make money.  However, also at that point, it would be crossing a line where you won’t be able to enjoy the pain and depression from facing the unknown anymore.  

This is a very yuge book that took me 13 months to read (I read the 2nd Edition).  Of course, I probably could’ve finished it in 1 month if I really tried.  The book is written like a textbook, very instructional and very comprehensive on the topic of Google AdWords.  The tough part is, because there is so much information, I had already forgotten what I read in the beginning when I reached the end.  

If anybody else wants to read this book, I would recommend to skim/scan the whole book first.  Get a pulse of what the book is about.  Since this is not a storybook – and even less “entertaining” than most business books, treat it like how it’s meant to be used.  There is no reason to want to be able to understand and master everything the book teaches.  Pick the chapters you can work on right away, and get working on it.  Start tweaking your campaign bit by bit.

Advanced Google AdWords

 

AdWords is not rocket science.  But this book showed a lot of key themes to focus on, and the task is probably not suited for winging.  Unless you’re winging really hard really long. 

I personally wished I’d at least scan over this book before I started my AdWord campaign, at least now I know what to do.  So when it comes to investment, it’s really hard to “know” if something will pay off or not.  Will the stock go up or down?  Will my AdWord investment bring in new customers?  A lot “ads” in the modern world or funny-driven, or heart-touching-driven.  Not necessarily money-driven.  I am in the mindset that an ad should drive sales.  If you have other objectives over that, go screen write…

With that said, writing profitable ads require constant testing, and you’ll know if you can ever reach there until you do…  I’m still reaching…  Before that, every “investment” is just tuition to learn…

Oh, I got $50 coupon to spend on your AdWords account when I bought the book, not sure if they still have that promotion for new editions!  I think you had to spend $100 or whatever…  But…  Although $50 pays for this book…  Money comes and goes so fast with AdWords………… Usually just goes…  So fast…