You only live once. As overused as this phrase is, it’s absolutely true. Too many people let the fear of failing or the unknown stop them from pursuing their dreams.
Today’s episode is to inspire you to stop caring about what others think and to take action now… the only fear you are allowed to have is the fear of having regrets when on your deathbed.
Go out and make your dreams reality TODAY!
“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” -Mae West
One of my biggest fears is looking back at my life when I’m at the end and having a feeling of regret:
Regret of not trying everything possible
Regret of not giving my all
Regret of not having visited certain countries or having certain experiences
YOLO, you only live once. While this phrase is thrown around a lot in rap songs and pretty overused, I really do love it.
Watch the video
Why? Because it’s literally true. You really do only live once. You have only ONE shot at this life.
So often, we get caught up in worrying about what others think and how we’ll look if we try something and fail. It’s so easy to be afraid of trying new things or stepping outside of our comfort zone.
But… when we step back and take a look at the fact that tomorrow is not promised, what is there really to be afraid of?
Why not take a risk? Why not try something new?
Why not tell your crush how you feel?
Why not try that new business idea out?
What’s the worst that can happen?
That is something that you should ask yourself all the time. You’ll be surprised to find that the answer typically isn’t as scary as you may initially expect.
You want to start a business. What’s the worst that can happen? You raise money from investors, the business fails, investors lose money, and you might take a loss. Sucks, but it happens quite often.
You learn from your mistakes, you try again, and you do better next time.
As you listen to more and more content and podcasts about successful CEOs of popular companies, you realize that there were tons of failures along the way.
Many CEOs have a graveyard of ideas that didn’t work out for one reason or another.
Don’t let the fear of failure stop you from taking action.
On the other side of the coin, you can also ask yourself: what’s the best that can happen?
Listen to the podcast
What’s the best that can happen?
Let’s use the same example. You start a business. You raise money from investors. You do so well that you grow quickly and hire a successful team.
You go public and get acquired, have a great exit and become financially set for the rest of your life. The investors get a huge return on their investment.
To be fair, it’s not usually going to be black and white. It’s not like you either feel miserably or succeed flawlessly.
Usually, we tend to end up somewhere between the extremes and work to improve incrementally as time goes on.
We’re not perfect, but we are capable of more than we often give ourselves credit for.
I can think of countless things I’ve tried or done that turned out to be easier than I expected.
For example, some of you may be deathly afraid of public speaking. I’ve had the opportunity to speak in front of people a lot lately, especially in real estate.
I sponsor lunch at several offices around town and tell real estate agents the types of deals I’m looking for. I’ve spoken in front of as many as 60-70 people here in the last few weeks.
I jumped in front of the crowd at a recent real estate meetup to talk about a deal I had as I was looking for buyers.
You’ll find that the more you do something, the less frightening it becomes. You know what to expect, you have your pitch rehearsed.
What’s the worst that can happen, right?
In the meetup example, the worst that could happen was that there might not be anybody who wanted the deal I was pitching.
How about the best case scenario? I would find a buyer and make my profit margin.
To be completely honest, it didn’t end up how I wanted. I did meet some buyers who wanted other deals, but nobody really wanted the one I was pitching. Oh well. Like the Wayne Gretzky quote goes, you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.
So that’s my message for today… what is there to be afraid of? Dominate your day. Face your fears and overcome them.
The only fear you should have is the fear of regret
Many people experience massive regret on their deathbeds. I’ve talked to older people who envy many of the things I’ve done: skydiving, scuba diving in Thailand, hiking in California, etc. They say “I’m too old to do that now.”
That is so terribly sad to hear… I can honestly say that if I die tomorrow, I would go knowing that I literally lived my life to the fullest possible extent.
I hope that’s not the case, because there’s still so much I want to accomplish, see, and do, but you get the point.
Let this inspire you to take action today. There will always be fear – do it anyway.
Don’t let fear stop you from taking action.
Facing fear is much better than looking back at your deathbed and having a list of regrets. Take action today. Dream big. Do big.
Face your fears today
Think about a few things you’ve been wanting to do for awhile but haven’t due to fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of failure, fear of what others think.
Create that Facebook page, or YouTube channel, or blog. Start putting out content. Stay consistent.
Others may laugh or make rude comments about your little traction at first… let them. Keep your head down, let that negative energy fuel you and make you want to succeed EVEN MORE.
Luckily, I’ve never really dealt with “haters.” At least nobody has talked bad about me to my face…. But even if they did when I started my podcast, now the laughing has likely stopped… people now ask how I grew the podcast to 19K+ monthly downloads.
The answer is surprisingly simple… I stayed consistent. I kept going despite all odds. And that’s how I did it. No paid marketing, no social media influencer connections, none of that. Just good, ‘ol fashioned discipline and consistency.
The same can be done with anything else. Pick your craft and then commit to doing the work. The only fear I will allow you to have is the fear of regret. Be very afraid of living a mediocre life. You are capable of far more!
Go get it.
You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough. – Mae West
This episode is for those who tend to have a tough time taking action… my guess is that there are many of you listening right now who like to listen to all the podcasts, read all the books, join all of the Facebook groups, but you struggle when it comes to pulling the trigger.
I want to challenge you to take massive, imperfect action. HUUUGE emphasis on the word IMPERFECT. Don’t worry about every little detail! Just get started and keep up the momentum.
Less Dreaming, More Doing. Contact me directly or check out my blog at chrisbello.com.
Hey friend! I’m super excited to share GoalTracker 2.0 with you. This is something that my accountability partner Samir and I have been using daily to hold ourselves accountable to goals we set. We started off with GoalTracker 1.0, and you can check out that blog post here.
To be honest, we kind of fell off and stopped using it for awhile. A few months later, we agreed to revamp the file and get back on it. We even do weekly Accountability Calls every Sunday night now to check in, see what we went well, what we can improve going forward, and catch up. I really recommend you find yourself an Accountability Partner to make sure you do the things you set out to do.
Before I dive into all the details, I wanted to invite you to subscribe to my mailing list if you’d like to be the first to receive any cool content I come across or major updates in my journey that I’d like to share with you.
I really hate spam and unsubscribe from nearly every email list myself, so I’ll be sure to only share a few nuggets of gold that are 100% value and no BS.
Alright, let’s get back to the GoalTracker tool!
How to use GoalTracker 2.0
Download the file
Access and download GoalTracker 2.0 here. It’s in a Google Sheet, so you can save one to your own account or download one to use on your computer directly. I recommend keeping it on Google Sheets so you can use it across platforms (I switch from my phone, to my iPad, and my computer throughout the day to make sure I keep it updated and stay on track with my goals).
Fill in the “Annual Goals” tab
Fill in your huge goals. It doesn’t necessarily have to be annual. Just be sure to fill in a target completion date so you know what you’re aiming for.
Fill in your weekly and daily goals in the first tab
The tab is currently named “Chris’ Goals,” but I encourage you to rename it in your version with your name and make it your own.
Select “win” or “loss” on the dropdowns next to each goal.
There are some formulas in there where points will automatically be calculated. If you win 3+ daily goals out of the 5, you “win the day.” If you win 4+ days of the week, you “win the week.” Obviously, the more days you win, the faster you’ll get to your goals. But I don’t expect you to be going 24/7/365.
You can chill every now and then, go on that vacation, and take a breather.The point is to be consistent and knock out your goals more days than you sit back and relax.
Consider getting an Accountability Partner to hold you accountable.
You’ll notice a tab called “Accountability Partner Goals.” I really recommend you find someone who is driven and motivated to succeed. Find someone who can hold you accountable and make sure you are knocking out your goals. At the same time, you can hold them accountable to their goals.
I have a weekly call every Sunday night with my buddy. We talk about what went well, what could have gone better, and we give each other advice and insight as we both have different backgrounds and experience. This allows us to level up so much more quickly and to get good ideas to try the following week.
Let me know what you think!
If you have feedback to improve this file or any comments, please let me know by posting below. Thanks for checking this out and remember to set huge goals that scare you! Take 30 minutes to complete this file, brainstorm big goals, and find an Accountability Partner. Then just spend a few minutes a day updating your daily goals and planning your day. Let’s get to work!
Expense– something expended to secure a benefit or bring about a result
Investment– the outlay of money usually for income or profit : capital outlay; also : the sum invested or the property purchased
Expenses are basically things we pay for to bring a benefit or result. We have expenses like car notes and groceries to help us move around and eat.
Investments tend to be things that we think about a little more and don’t necessarily need right now. The idea is that we pay something now for the chance of a greater return later.
What someone sees as an expense may be considered an investment to someone else
Believe it or not, one person might consider something an expense that another considers an investment. This all comes down to mindset. I’ll explain further.
Let’s take books, for example. Someone who isn’t interested in learning much might consider buying books “for fun” as a waste of money, an unnecessary expense. However, someone else who is passionate about learning new things or about a certain topic would consider that purchase to be an investment.
The thing is, investments don’t always have to bring monetary return. The return can be intangible as well. Learning more and spending money to educate yourself is an investment in yourself. Something interesting happens when you learn more and become an expert in your craft… the more you learn and improve, the more monetary return you can usually generate.
An example of shifting perspective: my self car wash story
I posted a status a few years ago about how I couldn’t believe people waste money on expensive car washes when they can do it themselves for just a couple of bucks. I’d spend 30 minutes or or so going to a self car wash or washing my car in the driveway. This involved scrubbing the car down, hosing the soap off, then using a chamois to dry it all off. Sometimes it was hot outside, other times it would be cold. But hey, I washed the whole car for maybe $2!
I considered getting car washes as an unnecessary expense at the time.
A few years later, I have perspective and a better understanding of the value of time. Yes, I had heard that time is money, but it really rings true today.
After you’ve had a little taste of generating a decent hourly income that far exceeds the cost to get something done, you don’t mind paying for the convenience. I now look at paying to have my car washed as an investment as it helps free up my own time.
My time is better spent finding a resell deal or closing a sales funnel client instead of hand washing my car for 30 minutes or an hour.
What changed? MINDSET.
The guy who last commented on this post is someone who had the right mindset… a mindset it took me a few more years to develop. His comment was: “what if you make enough money where $25 is viewed like the $2.50?” BOOM. If you’re generating decent money, it’s not worth spending time on a task that you can just offload.
This is similar to hiring virtual assistants or freelancers to do things you’re not good at so you can spend time and resources on those that you are.You see, I was looking at things with a small-minded perspective. I was probably earning $35/hour at my “good” oil & gas job. So comparing to an hour of work, $25 would mean giving up about 70% of what I got paid in an hour.
I’m sharing my previous salary and my small-minded mentality with you because I want to be completely open. I want you to learn what I know now instead having a small-minded mindset another few years.
Look, it’s all about where you are in life. At that time in life, washing my own car to save $25 was kind of a big deal. However, I’d rather just have someone else do it so I can spend my time working on other things or doing things that are more important to me.
Moral of the story: THINK BIGGER
The moral of this story is to think bigger. Some things like drinks at a bar may be a waste of money. Or maybe it could be an investment if you’re taking a client out to talk about a deal. Perspective and mindset play a huge role in whether you consider something to be an expense or an investment with a return of some sort.
The main takeaway is to value your time. Pay for things that are non-value add activities if possible and focus on those things that are. Don’t be afraid to spend money on courses or books that you know will help you get to the next level. Pay for flights and tickets to a conference where you’ll connect with like-minded individuals. Lastly, don’t just think of things as a waste of money. If it’s an experience, enjoy the experience.
Of course, be careful with this mindset. Don’t spend money you don’t have. But don’t be afraid to spend some money to enjoy life. Get a fancy, overpriced dinner with tiny sushi plates. Check out the experience. Learn how the rich operate and how they think. Focus on GROWING wealth, and you won’t have to worry about expenses. There’s a quote I remember hearing that I want to leave you with:
“Revenue solves all problems.” Remember to add value and the revenue will come. Better yet, “Profit solves all problems.” If you have high expenses, high revenue might not be enough.
You’ve invested in some equipment and it’s time to discuss software. If you want to reference my equipment recommendations again, you can check them out here. I’m assuming that you probably already have a basic laptop or desktop computer. If not, please consider making an investment in that as there are still many things that are difficult to do on tablets or mobile. I’m personally eyeing Macbooks, as I’ve always been intrigued, but I still haven’t managed to break up with PC yet.
Software is tricky because there are multiple options and various pros and cons all over the place. Paid is usually better, but there are many valuable services also available to you for free. I’ll highlight a bunch of software or online tools I personally use, what they do, and how they’ll benefit you no matter what it is that you are working on.
I’m not currently paying for a lot of software just yet, so my investment costs are very low. A lot of tools out there also have tier pricing where they offer free as well as paid versions with varying features depending on price.
TLDR Version: Build websites that are SEO optimized for free. There are also various paid versions with varying features.
Create a free website or easily build a blog on WordPress.com. WordPress offers hundreds of free, customizable, mobile-ready designs and themes. It also offers free hosting and support. This is what my websites Flexthetics.com and ChrisBello.com are built on.
There is a free version, but there are also other paid tiers where you can get more features depending on what you’re looking for such as extra storage.
There are other options as well such as Wix.com, Weebly.com, and Shopify.com , but WordPress is extremely easy to use and much more SEO (search engine optimization) friendly, so that your website can be found easily by others.
TLDR Version: Easily build great looking, converting sales funnels to drive traffic to via ads. Free 14-day trial, and then $97 a month after that for the Startup Package.
Use ClickFunnels to quickly create high-converting marketing & sales funnels. If you don’t know what a sales funnel is, don’t worry. I had no clue either. Russell Brunson, a ClickFunnels founder, has tons of great videos on the site and on an email sequence where you learn how easy it is. As people move through the funnel, they’re getting closer to becoming a paying customer.
Let’s say 600 people see your ad. Out of that, maybe 10% click the link to download your free PDF or eBook. So, 60 people now enter their email address to get your free gift. You then make the offer for your paid product or service. Out of the 60 people in your funnel, you may have 5% that ultimately convert (3 people). If your product sells for $197, that’s $591 in revenue. Obviously, the goal is to increase your conversion rates to get more people taking your free offer and ultimately your paid one, as well.
Still confused? This funny video from ClickFunnels does a great job explaining it.
ClickFunnels offers a free 14-day trial, and is then $97 monthly for the Startup Package. They offer an upgraded package with other tools called Actionetics and Backpack for $297 a month. I personally am using the Startup Package and finding a ton of value. It might seem high to pay this if you are a startup but think of how much you can get in return from using amazing tools? This is a business expense. For that reason, I didn’t hesitate for a second to sign up full-time after I used the 14-day trial and saw the potential. “You’re only one funnel away” as Russell says.
TLDR Version: Utilize email automation to send messages to various subscriber lists (the only work you need to do is the initial content creation, then it’s autopilot). Completely FREE if your subscriber list is below 2,000 and you’re sending 12,000 emails or less a month.
MailChimp provides marketing automation for e-commerce businesses. Send beautiful emails, connect your e-commerce store, advertise, and build your brand.
To be honest, I signed up for MailChimp months before I ever dug in and learned the ropes. It ended up being quite easy to use and integrate with other tools such as ClickFunnels and WordPress. The best part is that it is free if your list is below 2,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month. This way, you can keep it free until you reach a point where it makes sense to pay. If you grow it to above 2,000 subscribers, chances are, what you’re doing is working so you should continue.
TLDR Version: Email automation to send unlimited campaigns and newsletters to your subscribers. The lowest tier allows you to send emails to up to 1,000 contacts for just $25/month.
I have considered using SendLane after reading The Circle Of Profit by SendLane Co-Founder Anik Singal. On a side note, this book was amazing and so helpful in understanding step-by-step how to create a sales funnel and drive converting traffic to it. Check it out if you really want to open your eyes to the possibilities sales funnels can unlock. The book has “video breaks” where you can go to a link and watch a quick video to recap or further explain certain things.
TLDR Version: Get access to tons of high-quality, copyright-free photos, all for free.
This is my go-to site for high quality, copyright-free photos. In fact, many of my blog posts and some social media posts have pictures I’ve found on Unsplash. You can give credit to photographers if you like as a way of showing appreciation, but it isn’t required.
TLDR Version: Break free from reaching out to your graphic designer with this easy to use software. You can pay for some premium content, but you get amazing value and can get by on the free version alone as well.
This has been a true game changer for me and has made me much less reliant on my graphic designer friend. There are a few premium things you can pay for, but you get so much valuable uses with the free options. You can create banners, Facebook Ads, YouTube video thumbnails, logos and so much more, all for free.
Like most tools, I Googled “free screen recording software” and came across this gem.
OBS does a great job of capturing your screen all for free. I am currently using OBS as opposed to paid software as I’m not recording a ton of screen footage at this time.
TLDR Version: High quality, paid video editing / screen recording software. Get a single user license for $199.
Camtasia is a software suite for creating video tutorials and presentations directly via screencast, or via a direct recording plug-in to Microsoft PowerPoint.
I’ve used the software before and it works very well. I just don’t record enough right now to justify the investment.
TLDR Version: High quality, paid video editing / screen recording software. Sign-up for the basic option for $129.
ScreenFlow is basically the Camtasia version for the Mac. This was highly recommended by Anik Singal in the book I mentioned earlier, but I do not own a Mac and have not experienced the software yet myself.
Video Editing Software
Windows Movie Maker
TLDR Version: Free video editing software for windows. Enough to get by for basic video editing.
Windows Movie Maker is a discontinued video editing software by Microsoft. It is a part of Windows Essentials software suite and offers the ability to create and edit videos as well as to publish them. If you have it on your computer, consider checking it out. If not, you’ll have to use another program.
While many may roll their eyes at this basic video editor, I’ve used this for nearly all of my video editing for years and have few complaints. If you just need basic editing functions such as splitting or trimming footage, check this out.
TLDR Version: Free video editing software for Mac. Great tool for video editing.
iMovie is a video editing software application sold by Apple Inc. for the Mac and iOS.
I have seen my Mac-using friends edit footage on iMovie and it looks extremely user-friendly and easy to manage. Mac users, check this out and see if it suits your needs prior to paying for expensive software.
TLDR Version: Free video editing software for GoPro footage. Can work well but sometimes crashes.
Free software if you have a GoPro to edit footage. My version has crashed on me several times, but I still try to use it when I have a manageable amount of video to edit from my GoPro. It tends to mainly crash if you upload way too much footage. Maybe that’s because my computer isn’t powerful enough, or maybe it’s because it’s a free software.
You can do a few more neat things with this than with many other free editors, such as change video filters and color schemes.
TLDR Version: Royalty-free music! Just leave credit.
NoCopyrightSounds is a record label dedicated to releasing FREE music for the sole purpose of providing creators with the finest sounds to enhance the creativity and popularity of their content, safe from any copyright claims or infringement.
Don’t forget to leave credit where credit is due:
NCS Music is free to use for independent Creators and their UGC (User Generated Content) on YouTube & Twitch – please remember to credit the artist, track and NCS and link back to our original upload.
TLDR Version: Royalty-free music! Just leave credit.
Free music (copyright-free). Just be sure to leave credit.
Title Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Remember to reach out or comment if you have any questions, comments, or concerns. I’m happy to help explain things in more detail if you’re confused on any points. All of the above comes in extremely handy for my business and personal life. I love editing videos, building sales funnels, and automating things by using email autoresponders. I’ll talk to you soon. Remember to stay connected!
Whether you’re inventing a product or you want to create an online course for something you are good at, there are some tools you’ll want to consider investing in. Save yourself hours of YouTube research on these items. Trust me, I’ve already digested hours of footage myself and have summarized the best deals below to make your life easier. Here’s my list of startup necessities:
Camera
I personally use the Canon G7X and absolutely love it. You can also check out the Mark II version if you like as well. My photographer friend with fancy cameras like a DSLR bought one for himself and uses it more than any other camera he owns. It’s so lightweight and easy to carry!
Flexible tripod
Check out the JOBY GorillaPod Flexible Tripod. You’ll see famous vloggers walking around with one of these. It can be used as a selfie stick, wrap around oddly shaped objects, or provide a perfect tripod for you to set up as you record yourself speaking.
Lighting set for product photography or video recording
Whether you’re taking pictures of products or recording footage for an online course, good lighting will be very important. Check out the CowboyStudio Lighting Kit as it’s a true game changer.
1080p webcam
My Logitech HD Pro Webcam C920 is very helpful when I want to record videos at my computer or even do Skype calls with freelancers I’m working with.
USB Microphone
Consider the Blue Yeti USB Microphone for an absolutely amazing mic. I have this set up on my desk to record my podcasts and any other audio where I want the quality to be perfect.
Pop filter
Check out the Dragonpad Pop Filter to reduce the popping sound when you use words that start with the letter “P” in words such as “paper” or “partake.” This stays right in front of my Yeti mic to further clean up the sound.
Lapel microphone
Save yourself some headaches and get a lapel microphone. I recommend this one from PowerDeWise. I record directly into the Voice Memo app on my phone while I am recording footage on my Canon G7X. I then sync the MP3 track to align with the video. Your camera will record great footage, but without a lapel mic, the camera audio will pick up background noises and echo.
Please feel free to do some extra research on your own. I encourage you to click through the links and check out the Amazon reviews on all my suggested products (they’re all extremely good!). These are absolutely startup necessities if you plan on bootstrapping and doing a lot of the work on your own. Keep in mind that getting agencies or professionals to do any services for you such as photography, video editing, or more will be much more expensive than just purchasing the equipment on your own. Stay tuned for another post coming soon on software I recommend using (both paid and free).
Hello everyone, welcome to chrisbello.com ! This new site is basically going to be my personal resume. How cool is it to own a website with your own, actual name? I had to resort to chrisbello09@gmail.com years ago because chrisbello@gmail.com was taken, so I’m happy my actual name was available as a domain name. By the way, big shout out to my friend Jake Trevino for the suggestion in taking this step. He owns a domain name with his actual name, too! Check out his page at http://jaketrevino.com/ .
In any case, I had the crazy thought of starting my own Podcast. I listen to so much audio content via Podcast or Audible that I figured, “why don’t I create a Podcast to summarize key takeaways and actions from other resources?” I’ve even spent hours listening to Podcasts that aren’t even that great production-wise but that I find value from. I think that I can provide value and do so with decent production skills, but we’ll see how I do. My thinking is to have a general layout as follows:
Podcast Episode Layout
Introduction
Today’s goals
Show discussion
Key takeaways from each episode
Daily motivation
Actionable steps
Sign-off
Podcast Length
I’m aiming for short and sweet episodes. Maybe 10-15 minutes in length. Why so short? Because I think that it is enough time to get important information across while remaining concise. Once Podcasts start getting to be one or two hours long, it’s easy to get overwhelmed or lost. Or even worse, you might get distracted with something else and never finish the episode.
What’s the Podcast About?
This Podcast will provide motivation for entrepreneurs. Whether you just have an idea or you already have a successful company that is up and running, I will summarize key takeaways that are applicable to you. I will provide actionable steps to move closer to your goals, no matter what stage you are in. Goals are dreams with deadlines. It’s important to make a plan and work the plan. Having a bunch of knowledge in your head is useless if you don’t take action. I’m here to motivate you to do things that will help you move forward. Less dreaming, more doing.
Air Date
I have already recorded 4 episodes of the Podcast but just need to figure out where and how to upload them all after I clean them up a little bit. The internet is so great for learning how to do anything. A few YouTube videos on “How to Create a Podcast” were all I needed to feel pretty comfortable with this. I plan to edit my audio using Audacity and share to a few Podcast streaming platforms for anyone not using iOS. I’ll be sure to update everyone when the first episodes are live. If anyone is curios, I am recording directly to my phone using an IMDEN lavalier microphone, link below. This has been an awesome microphone and is under $10. Note that this is an affiliate link and that I’ll receive a small commission if you do choose to purchase one for yourself.
Thanks for checking this out and stay tuned! No matter where you are in life or what your goals may be, remember: less dreaming, more doing!
