Platform Conference Recap: 10/10 – Pat Flynn

Pat Flynn of Smart Passive Income blog was the 10th presentation at Platform Conference.  Tough room to work too – mid-morning, just before the coffee break, the last speaker at the conference, and coming on after the super dynamic Stu McLaren.  Well, he nailed it.  How?  Why he did a trumpet solo of course.  Seriously.  It turns out that Pat played trumpet in the famous University of California, Berkley, marching band.  In fact, he ended his band career as their leader.  The tie in becomes clear later as he wrapped up his presentation on “Platform to Profit: How to Earn an Income Online Without Selling Your Soul.”  So how did this self-described ‘marching band nerd’ get to close out the Platform Conference?  Read on.

Trumpet

Pat threw out one word at us – CARE.  To him this word is what makes all the difference in life, in work.  Care in the quality of your content.  Care in the impact of the first impression.  Care about your audience.  If you can nail this aspect with authenticity and sustainability you are probably going to be ok.  In fact, the better you are at this caring approach is the better you will be at earning revenue.  Pat pointed out that earnings in this business is a byproduct of how well an audience, a tribe, is served.  You must always be considering how you can add value to your followers.

Platform Conference Recap: 9/10 – Stu McLaren

This recap is the penultimate in my recap series on the Platform Conference held in February in Franklin, TN. In this 9th installment I cover the presentation delivered by Stu McLaren, co-founder of WishList Member, the most popular WordPress membership site platform, and a self-described tech entrepreneur. Stu, together with the next (and last) speaker, Pat Flynn, spoke on techniques to monetize the platform that you have created if you have followed the advice of the earlier speakers. The key in all this, though, is not to generate revenue for revenue sake. Instead it is about generating revenue to maximise the impact you have on your tribe. The mantra – “multiply your profits, multiply your impact.” For Stu, he gives back through World Teacher Aid. Read on to see his outline for ways you could develop your platform into a membership site.

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The focus of Stu’s talk was on the creation of a monthly (or similar) form of recurring subscription model for your internet outpost. Obviously content is king. You have to have something that others want to pay for before this even matters. However, before you get to that point, it is good to know the concepts so that you build content intentionally that supports the eventual monetization of your website or blog.

Platform Conference Recap 5/10: Cliff Ravenscraft – Podcast Passion

Iyou’ve ever stumbled onto podcasts on your iTunes, iPod, or Android device one name will soon jump out at you.  Cliff Ravenscraft.  The man has been podcasting for a long time.  He could be the urban dictionary definition of a prolific podcaster with well over 3,000 to his credit to date.  I will not go into all of what he does, but do yourself a favour and visit his website and listen to a few.  You will immediately be hooked as I was years ago by the passion that almost jumps from the speakers when you listen to him.  Passion as it turns out was the topic of his presentation, the fifth to our Platform Conference.  Read on.

Microphone on stage with spotlight on red curtain

Cliff’s life story is inextricably intertwined with his passion for podcasting. He was brutally honest at the conference. You get the sense that he is this honest in all he does. It is refreshingly candid. Cliff spoke of the debt he brought to his marriage. He spoke of his calling to the ministry in the Nazarene church. He spoke of the pull of his family to work in their insurance business. In essence, Cliff is a guy like you and I. Torn.  Struggling to discern the way forward…and all the while feeling the pull to pursue the road less travelled. In his case it was podcasting.

Platform Conference Recap: 4/10 – Jeff Goins (He’s a Writer)

Session number four in this epic 10 part ‘recap’ series was delivered by Jeff Goins speaking on ‘Starting From Scratch: How to build a platform with words, passion, and people’.  Last July he published his first book, Wrecked, a really genuine look at his coming to awareness that he should be doing more to serve in the world.  Over the years Jeff has developed the ability to speak on this with authority, and, having built his home base, he has come to accept the calling of being a writer.  His struggle reminds me of what I read in Steven Pressfield’s book, The War of Art.  Pressfield speaks of amateurs and professionals noting that “the amateur believes he must first overcome his fear; then he can do his work. The professional knows that fear can never be overcome. He knows there is no such thing as a fearless warrior or a dread-free artist.”  Jeff is a professional, not because one day his writing magically changed.  Rather, to me, it is because he is humbly committed to his art.  There is a ton of great content here so stick around.

Vintage Keyboard

Writing, and eventually writing as a professional, is the key component to building your home base.  Without it your space on the web is just a forwarding office for the content of others.  You have to do your own thing, mine the rich uniqueness of your life for content.  This is of interest to many more people than you would imagine.  Why?  Because it is genuine.  It is authentic.

Platform Conference Recap: 3/10 – Michael Hyatt: Prepare to Launch

Resistance. What can stop you from doing what you know you can and want do? This was the key theme in Michael Hyatt’s presentation on preparing to launch. It was the second session Michael presented and the third of the Platform Conference. The concept of ‘The Resistance’ comes from Stephen Pressfield’s book, ‘The War of Art‘, and earlier in Seth Godin’s book, ‘Linchpin.’ It is not a question of ‘if’. The resistance will show up in your life. Michael’s presentation outlined the key attributes of resistance and gave us strategies for dealing with it. My recap follows below.

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The resistors in the photo above serve a function in electronics. Resistors in your life prevent or slow you down from doing what you really need to be doing serve no function other than to confirm that the resisted thing really is what you should be doing.