Tropical MBA – Location Independent Entrepreneurship

Dan and Ian have been around the block a few times, and in that time they have seen many entrepreneurs come and go. What many don't understand is that the majority of entrepreneurial success stories don't happen overnight. Nearly every sustainable path to wealth and freedom is a journey that can take years, and often decades to achieve This week's episode is a list of the five common reasons that entrepreneurs will give up on their journey. If you identify with any of the reasons we mention on today's podcast, fear not. You can use the knowledge and information we share on this show to help you get over your obstacles and further sustain your journey as an entrepreneur.

A few weeks ago, Dan and Ian published an episode of this podcast about The Peter Principle, which is the idea that everyone will more or less rise to the level of their own incompetence. Today, we are talking about a different principle. This one comes from a great 19th century book, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. This episode begins with an excerpt from the book, where Tom is forced to paint a fence and convinces others to help him, eventually tricking them into painting the fence themselves. On today's show, we're sharing our thoughts on how entrepreneurs can use this same philosophy to lead a great team without working in their business day-to-day. We'll also be talking about the progress we've made with our new business venture - Dynamite Jobs, and why many entrepreneurs spend so much time focusing on top-line revenue rather than profits.

One of Dan and Ian 's favorite topics to discuss on this show is business ideas. In particular, they love brainstorming new business ideas with the listeners of this podcast. Coming up with a great business idea doesn't come naturally for all of us, though we believe it really is a skill that you can learn and get better at. Today, we are talking about the science behind a great business idea. In particular, we are sharing five techniques that you can use to develop your own business idea. We'll also be revisiting some of the business ideas that we came up with on an earlier episode of this show from 2015.

Every week, for over 450 episodes, Dan and Ian talk on this podcast about business, entrepreneurship, and location independence. They do so because they love creating and consuming audio content. It's no wonder then that when Dan finally wrote his first book, Before the Exit, he was naturally very passionate about creating a narrated audiobook version. On today's podcast, we are talking about audiobooks. In particular, we'll be talking about how we recorded our first audiobook, as well as sharing some of the most popular highlighted passages in that book. You'll also hear how audiobooks have made an impression on us, and why we think audiobooks are becoming so popular in 2018.  As a special bonus, listen in to find out how you could be the recipient of a very unique gift. 

Dan and Ian have spent many hours on this show talking about location and in particular the cities that location-independent entrepreneurs choose to live in. A little while ago, Dan read an article called Cities and Ambition by Paul Graham which theorizes that the cities we visit actually send signals to us in a variety of unspoken ways. Afterward, he felt compelled to write a blog post about the ways that certain cities "whisper" to us. On today's episode, you will hear that blog post, as well as some thoughts and reflections on some of our favorite cities. We'll be sharing what we love about those cities, why we can't stop visiting them, and what each of those cities has been "whispering" to us.

Podcast 56:28 | Download | Stitcher | iTunes | Comment This week, Dan and Ian are talking about the very first step to creating a lifestyle business. Contrary to popular belief, that is not quitting your job or coming up with a business idea. It begins with your personal finances. We’re talking about treating your bank account, your...

On today's podcast, Dan and Ian are talking about one of the most critical elements to their own success in business: masterminds. We've talked about the importance of masterminds before on this podcast, but we believe it is an issue worth addressing again because we have seen the benefits that entrepreneurs can achieve from them firsthand. When taken advantage of correctly, the value of a great mastermind cannot be understated, and masterminds have played a vital role in the business journey of this week's guest. Ryan Heneise is the founder of Booster Stage, an agency that does web app development for startups. Ryan was a guest at our recent event in Austin, Texas and took part in his first official mastermind. On this week's episode, you'll hear from Ryan about how that event unfolded, and the benefits that he has seen from attending that mastermind. You'll also hear tips on how to get the most out of a mastermind, and how to create a successful mastermind yourself.

Podcast 33:44 | Download | Stitcher | iTunes | Comment Dan and Ian struggled (as many entrepreneurs do) getting on their feet and creating the kind of success that would afford them the freedom in their lives that they were seeking. None of that would have been possible if they had succumbed to the subject of today’s podcast....

Podcast 33:26 | Download | Stitcher | iTunes | Comment Dan and Ian love sharing entrepreneurial origins stories on this show. Today, we are bringing you one from someone who has chosen an unusual entrepreneurial path. Neel Parekh is the founder of a cleaning services company called MaidThis, which operates all over Southern California. What makes Neel’s business...

On this week's episode, Dan and Ian are going to explore one of the philosophical concepts that they have been talking about increasingly on this show. The Peter Principle was originally published by Laurence J. Peter in 1969. The basic premise is that every employee or member of an organizational hierarchy will tend to rise to their own "level of incompetence". On today's podcast, we are talking about what this concept means for entrepreneurs, how it applies to us, how it applies to our businesses, and what we can learn from it. We'll also share some strategies for what to do if you believe that you've reached your own capacity for growth.

Dan and Ian share stories of financial freedom every week on this podcast. On this week's episode, they wanted to explore what that freedom actually means. To some, living a life of frugality can allow yourself to retire early, but does it really bring you freedom? One year ago, Dan wrote an article called The Cult of Early Retirement Meets (Or Strangely, Doesn't Meet) The Cult of Entrepreneurship. This article turned out to be fairly controversial, with many readers of our blog sharing their thoughts on early retirement, financial freedom, and more. Today, we are going to present an audio version of that article, followed by some opinions and reflections on the discussions that arose from it. You'll also hear our thoughts on why the writings of early retirement bloggers don't entirely click with entrepreneurs, why we believe our time is more valuable than money, and a whole lot more.

Dan and Ian return this week with another unique entrepreneurial origin story. In fact, today's guest has built a business in the last four years that has revenues in the low seven figures and he now employs five employees. Part of the reason we like to share these origin stories on the show is that there's a moment for every one of us when we really truly did not believe that we could achieve this sort of thing. Allen Walton knows that feeling all too well. Allen is the founder of SpyGuy.com, an eCommerce business which sells covert surveillance technology. Allen grew up in the suburbs of Dallas, Texas, and he still lives there today. On today's podcast, you'll hear Allen share the story of how he grew SpyGuy.com to a seven-figure business, what happened when he cold-emailed Mark Cuban, and a whole lot more.

As many of you know, Dan and Ian love hearing from the listeners of this show. A listener named Tom Hannon recently wrote in with a question that we really hadn't addressed on this show before. We've talked a lot about selling businesses on this podcast lately, but what happens when you don't have a choice? What happens when you are forced to sell? As we started talking with Tom, we discovered that he has actually sold twelve businesses of his own, and the circumstances of each of those sales were entirely unique. We invited Tom onto today's podcast to share the stories of those exits, as well as the lessons that he has learned along the way.

Today's show is all about seizing opportunities. Last year, Dan and Ian invited Greg Gerber, who is a member of our community The Dynamite Circle, on to the show to talk about how he gifted an up-and-coming entrepreneur an all-expenses-paid trip to our annual event in Barcelona. This idea of "paying it forward" has really taken off in the community since then. At our recent event in Austin, TX, Meryl Johnston offered two free tickets on behalf of her company, Bean Ninjas. Dan and Ian contributed a few free tickets of their own, with others offering free airfare, coaching, and more. On today's podcast, you'll hear from one of the recipients of that gift. Jen Anderson is the founder of Mai-Tie, a company that makes unique, fashionable bowties out of vintage Hawaiian shirts. While her business is still in its infancy, she has a huge amount of experience in the startup world, and some interesting insights into that as well. This is the story of what it takes to find your people.

Dan and Ian are back this week to respond to another listener-submitted question. Chris Cage from GreenbellyBar.com recently reached out to us with a problem that many listeners of this show have been struggling with: when is it the right time to hire somebody? This is a moment in the entrepreneurial journey that every entrepreneur will eventually reach, and it isn't always easy to make the right decision. Hiring can be expensive, from both a financial perspective and an emotional one. Fortunately, Dan and Ian have a rich history of hiring experiences, both good and bad. On today's show, they will be opening up about the mistakes that they have made, as well as the successes they have had when bringing people on to their team.