My New Launch Was Scheduled For Today
.....Why I Changed My Mind
I have a friend who I regularly visit with at a local Denver area coffeehouse. He is a salt-of-the-earth person and very wealthy. One morning I got up the gumption to ask him about his personal journey to financial success. He boiled it down to two factors:
He works in a field that he is passionately in love with
When faced with a major decision in his life, he always trusts his gut first
It’s the second point that’s been resonating with me of late as I’ve explored new features for the “Great Books, Great Minds.” All of this culminating in a digital trapeze act highlighting my rationale for a price increase for premium members.
But this week, while on my morning walk, the full weight of what I’ve been feeling hit me:
“It simply doesn’t feel right to do this launch.”
If you have been following my emails over the past couple of weeks, you are aware that I’ve had some new “Great Books, Great Minds” offerings cooking on the grill. To be transparent, I had a flash of irrational exuberance after reading the book “Launch: How to Sell Almost Anything Online, Build a Business You Love, and Live the Life of Your Dreams” by Jeff Walker. And like most readers, why wouldn’t I feel this way given some of the value propositions extolled in the book.
Like that of Brendon Burchard, #1 New York Times best-selling author of The Millionaire Messenger who noted:
“I’ve personally used Jeff Walker’s methodologies to start from scratch and launch five brands, each of which hit one million dollars in revenue in less than 12 months. This book is invaluable, and Jeff is the modern marketing savant the world has been waiting for.”
And even Jeff, the author himself:
“The results were amazing! Within the first thirty minutes of launching my school, I’d made $30,000. That was around what I used to make a year when I was a preschool teacher. The week-long launch grossed me around $70,000. That was more money than I’d ever imagined. With the 3rd launch, I dusted the book off again and did ALL of the steps. This time, I grossed around $250k during launch week! The last launch I did about a year ago made $560k in the launch week! And I can proudly say that as of this year (2020), this former preschool teacher now runs an 8-figure/year business!”
Let me be clear that I am not throwing shade at the book “Launch.” It’s a great read, worthy of the platitudes. But for me, the fit and timing felt off. So despite all of the many hours I’ve put into creating the roadmap for this, at this point, it’s a hard no for me.
Now for the good news, particularly for those of you who are paid, member supporters. I will be upping my value proposition to you as a member of the “Great Books, Great Minds” without any increase in the member supporter rate. While I may reconsider a rate increase in early 2023, I’d rather immerse myself in delivering value to you through “championing the power of books as the currency of a more expanded life” than trying to make an immediate buck.
In other words, the free content of our member-supported format that’s modeled after NPR will continue.
And if you are a paid member, you will receive these additional perks
Priority invitations to private dinner discussions, in-person or online, with some of the world’s top bestselling authors.
VIP access to “Great Books, Great Minds” hosted author tours and book signings in major cities throughout the U.S.
Early notification of select, new release, non-fiction books; independent bookstores deals and specials; signed autographed copies
Exclusive audio and video interviews with noted non-fiction authors.
The meteoric growth that “Great Books, Great Minds” has achieved over the past 2 ½ years would not have been possible without the financial backing of our member supporters and sponsors.
So if you are not currently a paid member supporter of our growing community, I would like to invite you to consider joining at $5.00/month or $50.00/year. Every little bit counts in our quest to hit 1 million global subscribers by 2030.
Much Love,
Diamond-Michael Scott, Your Global Book Ambassador
Great Books, Great Minds