Independence

How fair is the game you’re playing?

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“No one is more convinced of the fairness of a game than the man who won.”

Let that thought sit in your mind. Let it simmer. Let it marinate. Take it all in. Truly think about what it means to you and how it may (or may not) affect your life.

Now, I haven’t given you any context to work with.

I just gave you a quote. I didn’t even mention who the quote is from just to give as little context as possible (you receiving this email from me already has context included based on your perception of me and what I write about, so no context is, quite literally, impossible).

Just to give praise where praise is due, I found the above quote in an old blog post from historian Bret Devereaux, talking about the Spartan agoge, their infamous training regime which is oddly similar (in some, or sadly many, cases exactly alike) to indoctrination regimes terrorist organizations use for the creation of child soldiers—except these organizations have the decency to only abduct young boys from the age of 15 and up, compared to Sparta who takes boys aged 7 and up.

Anyway, I’m getting off track.

See, even though I didn’t give you any context, I’m quite certain you immediately thought of something when reading the above quote. It’s a perfect example of survivorship bias, after all, and can be applied to many, many different cases.

For one, the seemingly overabundance of people who preach about the magic powers of social media marketing (or any other marketing trend for that matter), preaching how everyone should become a creator and if you’re not creating dancing videos on TikTok (or whatever the current trend is), you’re just not serious enough.

And, while they’re not totally wrong about the power of social media, they’re not entirely correct either.

For one, not how I italicized the word “seemingly” in the previous paragraph.

That’s precisely because of this survivorship bias, the phenomenon where, in our case, only the most successful people who just so happened to succeed at social media have the ability to make noise, get the algorithm’s attention, and appear on everyone’s timeline. Everyone else, including people who might have done the exact same things as the “successful” people, showing how it might not be entirely black and white in the talent vs luck department, aren’t able to be heard and thus have no way to warn people about the dangers, obstacles, risk, or any other important reasons explaining why the grass in social media marketing land maybe isn’t as green as it first might appear.

And sure, I love talking down on people’s overreliance on social media, and how they don’t own their audience, are relying on the whims of the algorithm gods, or even the U.S. government as we’ve now clearly seen with the TikTok ban, and could randomly lose their entire business one day; and there’s nothing they can do about it.

Except there is:

It’s called taking accountability for your business, being prepared, not relying on anything you can’t control, and making sure you build your email list—one you own completely and back-up regularly so even if your current Email Service Provider decides to lock you out for any reason whatsoever, you still have your list and didn’t lose a single thing (except perhaphs a few hours of frustration moving over to another ESP).

And sure, the rule of survivorship bias works for people who preach about email, taking accountability, and self-reliance as well.

But I’m guessing, if you just think about it for a moment, even though there might be some survivorship bias happening around here, the arguments still stand, the reasoning is solid, and the suggestions only ever improve and secure your situation, without putting you at any risk whatsoever.

With that said, check out Email Valhalla here to learn more about how to build yourself an email-centered business, including how to write entertaining emails that get you paid and keep your readers reading day after day: https://alexvandromme.com/valhalla


Algorithm this, algorithm that

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Wherever you look on the internet, whenever people talk about marketing, they just can’t stop bitching about algorithms.

And here’s the problem.

These people are all thinking too short-term. They forget to think about the bigger picture.

You’re on a platform. A platform that’s not yours. Anything can happen. You knew this when you signed up. So it’s your job to be prepared for the worst. To do the best you can, no matter what.

In the grand scheme of things, you should be building your own world—a place filled with people who want to be with you, hear from you, and buy from you. People who’ll go to the end of the world to find you.

These people ultimately don’t care about the platform, they care about being where you are.

So why are you keeping them ON the platform to begin with.

In that case, if the algorithm fucks you over (which it will), then that’s your fault.

As with any world you’re creating, you should have a place where people can gather. That place shouldn’t be a social media platform you don’t have any control over.

It’s on you to secure your own safety.

What does that mean for your online business?

You either create your own platform, which for many of us won’t be possible (yet), or you simply create an email list. Nobody can take it from you, no matter who decides what on some social media platform.

There are many other tips and practices that you can follow to not be affected by changes such as these. But this should undoubtedly be your first step.

If you don’t have your own email list, then create yours now. Like right now. This second.

And not knowing how to do so isn’t an excuse. Because I’ve got just the thing for you.

It’s called Email Valhalla and it’s a course I created to teach you everything you need about creating, growing, and even monetizing your email list.

Get it here to secure your future: https://alexvandromme.com/valhalla


I freed myself from using social media to grow my business

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Here’s how I did it:

The first thing I did was create and host my very own WordPress site on which I could publish all of my emails online.

Combine this with learning some SEO basics (a whole lot less than you might think) to get visitors to my page and teasing Email Valhalla course on sign-up… and you’ve already got a semi-passively (I still have to write the emails after all) functioning business right there.

Not only that, but I’ll keep earning based on past emails I’ve written—emails that will only grow in numbers and get better in quality the more I write.

To me there’s truly no better business model out there.

Find me another business where you can earn a living by writing whenever you want, from wherever you want, all the while helping people accomplish their own dreams, getting thank-you emails on the regular, and, last but not least, doing all of this without an income ceiling limited by any one resource such as time, distribution, money, or costs.

I’m not saying other business are bad (they’re not), or people doing things differently are stupid (they aren’t).

Just saying that’s not the way I like to run things.

I like to keep it simple, efficient, and with a freedom-first aspect.

Anyway.

If you’re only using social media to grow your business, you’re seriously missing out.

Go get your online real estate up and running.

And if you’re not even building your own email list yet, what are you waiting for?

Check out Email Valhalla today and get started right away: https://alexvandromme.com/valhalla


Numbers? Never heard of her

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I know many people who live and die by their numbers.

Every offer they make, every email they write, every decision they make is all backed up by market research, customer surveys, focus groups, testing groups, and everything else you can think of.

I’m not saying it doesn’t work.

It does. In fact, it might even be the best thing to do. It might even be the most profitable (especially in the short run).

But it’s not how I roll.

For one thing, you become a slave of the market, always chasing where the demand goes—always testing, always iterating, always dependent on the whims of your customers.

You’re essentially choosing to be the one who chases instead of the one who is being chased.

You’ll never truly lead your market (which is a whole discussion on its own).

But more.

You’ll never truly have the freedom to do exactly what you want, when you want, and for how long you want it.

You don’t build a business that survives—even thrives—for years, decades, even generations, by being the one who chases.

Still more.

I doubt anyone who does business this way can ever feel truly fulfilled—which is one of the main reasons I don’t do data.

Everything I do, everything I create, everything I sell is stuff I think is cool (and helps my customers, important not to overlook this part). It’s stuff I’d do regardless of whether I get paid for it or not (the only difference is that I can do a lot more of it when I do get paid).

So here’s something important for you to consider.

If you’re a data person. And you’d like to optimize everything you do for maximum profitability. And you’re prone to chasing whatever the market wants (i.e., you saw AI is “the next new thing” and jumped on the bandwagon, until the hype dies down and you’ll jump to something like VR when it’s “the next new thing”).

Then it’s probably not doing you any good to listen to anything I have to say. Let alone try to implement what I do for your own.

Our businesses (and business philosophies) function differently.

Which isn’t a bad thing. But it’s something to consider.

That said.

If you do share the same philosophy to business. If you aim to build something that’s truly yours, do the leading instead of the chasing, think long term, and stick to whatever you think is cool regardless of what others say.

Then you should check out Product Creation Made Easy.

It’s my entire product creation framework where I show you how to create products you think are cool and stuff you want to create—while still making sure it’s something people would want—all the way from ideation to having a profitable launch and beyond (i.e., to keep getting sales months and even years after the initial launch).

Here’s the link for more information: https://alexvandromme.com/product


It pays to be scared

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One of the leading causes of death for professional skydivers, ironically, is the diver becoming too comfortable falling.

They become so comfortable they pull too late—or forget to pull their chute at all.

Another case.

One of the leading causes of death for professional freedivers is also becoming too comfortable (in the water). More specifically, too comfortable holding their breath.

Due to frequent practice of holding their breath, they become ‘immune’ to the negative feelings paired with a lack of oxygen.

They become so used to it in fact that it’s entirely possible for a diver to keep swimming, holding their breath comfortably and without any issues until suddenly, without any warning whatsoever, their brain shuts off and they lose consciousness altogether.

Both of these facts sound surreal and almost fake to the non-professional.

Yet we experience it everyday with everything we do.

I don’t fear falling when riding a bike anymore—while I used to be extremely scared to do so when I was younger.

Most people aren’t anxious 24/7 while driving. Hell, most experience drivers repeatedly doze off while driving, not even thinking about what they’re doing. Yet people who just started learning will tell you how scared they are—they couldn’t imagine NOT paying attention.

I once saw a documentary about snake venom.

And there are these people whose job it is to breed snakes and drain their venom to help with medicine and antidotes and whatnot. Extremely venomous snakes as well. It’s a dangerous job. One bite can kill you for good if you’re not paying attention.

There was this one guy working there we said, and I still remember this well, “The day I stop being scared is the day I resign”.

And it even happens in his profession where people stop being scared, only to doze off and accidentally get bitten.

My point is this.

The more used to get to something and the more experienced you become, the less you’re aware of the risks involved in what you’re doing.

This is also true for social media.

I used to post on Twitter religiously ever single day. During that time I’d often see people getting blocked, restricted, or outright banned indefinitely.

Yet for some reason I thought “this will never happen to me, I’m not doing anything wrong.”

What a young an naive person I was.

Just a while later I unexpectedly woke up to a notification telling me my account had been suspended. It can happen just like that—without you even knowing why.

In fact, the longer you stay, the more likely you’ll get banned, hacked, or something equally terrible happens to your profile.

Moral of the story: It pays to be scared.

So build your email list.

And if you want to know how I built mine, how I write my emails, and more importantly, how I get paid for doing so.

Then check out Email Valhalla here to learn more: https://alexvandromme.com/valhalla


The case against working with a publisher

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People love to talk about publishers like they’re the second coming of Jesus—regardless of market or industry.

But if I were you I’d think twice about getting into the sea with a publisher.

After all, it’s a big decision, and more often than not, working with a publisher isn’t worth it.

For one, on average, across all industries, whether we’re talking books, video games, or music… publishers will take anywhere from 30% to 70% of your total profits.

Sure, the good ones (which are becoming harder to find day after day) will pay you upfront for your deliverable. But that’s not never where people make the majority of their income (if they know what they’re doing that is).

So there’s immediately a huge trade-off here.

Then the question you need to ask yourself becomes, “Will I make more profit, on top of the publisher’s cut, with the publisher than without them?”.

If the answer to your question is either “no” or “I don’t know” then don’t work with a publisher.

They need to be able to show you an entire game plan backed up by reliable figures of previous (and hopefully similar) projects they took on to convince you of their worth.

Even more.

Self-publishing has never been an easier, efficient, and especially lucrative practice than it is today. And it’ll continue to improve and be the better option for 90% or more of creatives out there.

The downside?

You’re on your own and you’ll need to do your own marketing.

Luckily for you, that too is becoming easier and easier by the day, especially when you apply what I teach in Email Valhalla about building a list and writing daily emails that get you paid and keep your readers reading day after day regardless of what market or industry you’re in.

Click here for more information about Email Valhalla: https://alexvandromme.com/valhalla


This has been way too long overdue

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But I finally did it.

I’m talking about something so crucial, so important, so absolutely vital to my business (and more than likely yours as well), yet so overlooked by almost everyone out there it’s not even funny how overlooked this is.

Entire businesses can go from thriving one day to having lost everything and going completely broke the next if they don’t do this one simple thing.

And it really isn’t that hard.

In fact, it took me all about an hour or two to do this thing and I’m not set up for life. I never have to spend any time on this, never even have to click on anything, hell I don’t even have to ever think about it ever again.

All it took (and all it ever will take) is one to two hours.

And it could probably take you a whole lot less (maybe a bit more) depending on how much experience you have with stuff like this. But then again, it’s something anyone could easily figure out by reading a guide or watching a free 10-minute video explaining EXACTLY (and I mean to the letter) what to do.

The reason why it took me (and many others) so long to do (remind yourself, some people never do this and lose everything because of it) this, yet it’s so incredibly important is simple.

It doesn’t do anything unless it’s too late.

See, what I’m talking about (which I’ll reveal in just a minute) is more of an insurance. Not an actual business benefit. Yet it’s the most important insurance you can have for your business.

But that’s just how insurances go. Nobody ever wants one…

Until it’s too late.

Ok enough teasing for now.

The insurance I’m talking about, and what I finally did today that was long overdue was to set up an automation that backs up my email list in real-time (for those interested in the technical side: I do this by adding the emails to a Google Sheet whenever someone subscribes to Beehiiv, using Make dot com—as well as adding unsubscribes to another spreadsheet (and removing them from the original one)).

This way I’m making sure I’ll never lose my email list no matter what.

Yes building your own list is great since that’s something you “own”. But that owning part only goes so far if you never take it off the platform you’re using. Every single day is another chance for you to get de-platformed (it happens a lot more than you think, especially in today’s age of cancel culture), let alone if the platform suddenly shuts down (no business lasts forever).

So the final layer of protection is to back up your email list.

Anyway, enough of that.

Speaking of email lists and protecting your business. Another vital step of this equation is to master the art of daily email writing and list building to get yourself a valuable list you’re afraid of losing enough to get the motivation to back it up in the first place.

And for that, let my biased ass tell you this, there’s simply no better place to start than by checking out Email Valhalla here: https://alexvandromme.com/valhalla


In what business are you?

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George Lucas decided to do the next Star Wars his way after the initial success of Episode IV: A New Hope (then simply titled “Star Wars”) in 1977.

This meant being in control of as much as possible: filming, editing, merchandizing, sequel rights, and even the funding itself—which he could now do with the profits from the first movie.

He wanted to control pretty much everything except for the distribution.

For that he still had to work together with a bigger studio—something he always despised.

Standard studio negotiations would almost always be in favor of the studio. Giving them as much as 50% to 80% of the profits.

But not this time.

The fact that 1) George Lucas already secured his own funding with his prior profits as collateral for a loan and 2) pretty much every big studio wanted to get their hands on the next Star Wars release meant that the negotiation would look a lot different than studios were used to.

Ultimately Lucas decided to work together with 20th Century Fox, giving them only a 22.5% share of the profits in return for handling the distribution (and putting the Fox logo before the opening credits).

In a later quote, Steven Spielberg said:

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“If you’re an executive, suddenly you realize that if you’re going into business with George Lucas, you are no longer in the 20th Century-Fox business, you are in the George Lucas business.”

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Read that quote again.

Take it in. Then pause and think about it.

Try to truly understand the implications.

Because if you understand what’s going on here. Which forces are at play. And if you do everything in your power to build your business in a similar manner—to create your own business universe in a way.

Then I can guarantee this will be one of the most profitable lessons you’ll ever learn.

Don’t think of yourself as being in the “personal-branding”, “copywriting”, “life-coaching”, “web-design”, or even the “marketing” business.

You’re in the you-business.

Just as I and everyone who works with me is in the Alex Van Dromme business.

This is why there was no competing with Star Wars back in the day.

They weren’t in the movie business, nor were they in the fantasy or science-fiction business.

They were in the George Lucas business.

And one of the fastest and easiest ways I know to start building your own business universe is to build your own unique, world-driven, and valuable (and profitable) collection of (digital) products and services that you and you alone could offer.

I urge you to try this—I even dare you to try and not be successful after thinking this through and building your own business universe step by step.

Anyway.

If you want to learn how to get started building your collection of products.

Then click the link here: https://alexvandromme.com/pcme/