2019 Annual Review
Hey ,
Get ready to hear how much $ we made + a year in review + winners of a plane ticket to anywhere!
I heard a well known guru in the marketing space claim that if you cared about your business, you wouldn’t be working on a beach somewhere, you’d be at home with your head down.
What he doesn’t get is the “work from anywhere” way isn’t about avoiding hard work. It’s about the choice of when and where to work.
If you’re anything like me, I’m guessing your desire to start a work from anywhere business isn’t about not working.
It’s about freedom of choice.
Like snowboarding all day in Lake Tahoe yesterday, and then spending the hours of 4-10pm getting my work done for the day inside the A-frame AirBnB i’m staying in
Or riding bikes through a Vietnamese rice paddy and then sitting at a cafe and setting up your client campaigns before going out to a cheap and delicious dinner.
Having the day off work to spend with your family on special occasions… or being there for a friend during business hours when they need you most.
Or, yes I will say it, working on a beach in Thailand, then getting a $6 massage, a smoothie, and going back to work by the pool.
I work on the beach and next to the pool ALL THE TIME.
It’s not “for show.”
People who say “but what about the sun glare, but what about the SAND?!” have clearly never heard of tables and umbrellas.
Most likely they’ve never tried to work from a beach in Bali with $3 meals, cappuccinos for days and scooter rides at sunset.
Or an infinity pool or beach Cabana in Mexico…
Or a rooftop pool in Vietnam…
Or a cruise ship deck in the Bahamas…
So, my year was another year filled with “working from anywhere.”
It’s been hard work, but well worth the lifestyle and the impact DigitalNomad.Com has been able to make on our customers, clients and students.
If you ask anyone that knows me, they will most likely tell you that I work harder than most people they know, but it doesn’t mean I don’t get to do it on my own terms.
1. Where I worked in 2019
I rang in the new year boarding a plane from DaNang, Vietnam, taking a 28 hour flight to Miami, and waking up to Yoga at sunrise in South beach.
I also launched a new Podcast during all of this, which has received 17,031 downloads and 45 episodes published.
I cruised the open seas with 100 other business owners, visiting Tortola, Saint Thomas and The Bahamas, all while my funnel brought in over six figures.
I spent February in Denver, snowboarding at Copper Mountain, drinking coffee and strumming the guitar in Portland, seeing live music and riding bikes in Austin, TX, attending Funnel Hacking live in Nashville, TN.
In March I traveled to Brisbane, Byron Bay and Cairns in Australia with my family, for my first ever international trip with family in tow.
I got to open up my phone and show my brother that my trailing 30-day revenue was $220,281 in cash collected.
I’m sure you can relate to familial pressure. When friends and family are constantly wondering when you’re going to “get a real job,” moments like that take some of the pressure off.
I also got to go scuba diving for the first time in the Great Barrier Reef and hold a Koala. Australia is in all of our thoughts as they struggle to stop the terrible bushfires. If you’d like to donate to help support the Australia bushfire victims, here’s a more comprehensive guide on the best way to help.
Scuba diving was awesome, despite Australia being one of the most naturally dangerous places I’ve ever been when it comes to wildlife.
After escaping the crocs, spiders, snakes and roadrunners in Australia, I landed in Ubud, Bali to get some much needed Yoga and heads down work.
I was in Bali for six months this year, with short trips to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I even stayed at the infamous “Marina Bay Sands” hotel in Singapore before heading back to Bali. You know the one that looks like it has a giant cruise ship on top?
Bali’s beautiful beaches, easy going lifestyle, cheap, delicious food, coworking spaces, fitness scene, fast internet and A+ coffee game make it hard to beat as a destination for a DigitalNomad
Now if only I could actually learn to surf…
I returned to the states in September, and worked on creating more free YouTube content to help our audience with mindset, marketing, sales and value creation.
My parents visited Denver for the first time in 5 years, and I got to show them around the mountains, take them on a hike and walk around Red Rocks amphitheater.
With one of the earliest snowboard seasons in Colorado’s history, I got to snowboard on Halloween. Seriously, this picture is from October!
November I was in New York City for some workshops and finally got to experience what the Big Apple is all about. Well, not really. I was only there for a week.
I may have to go back for an extended co-working trip and some more pizza.
I also started CrossFit, and while I’m getting my a** kicked, I can’t recommend it enough if you want a structured way to get in shape, while being part of a community and pushing yourself.
December I did a little snowmobiling in the mountains in Leadville, CO, and went heads down on the foundations for a new product we’re releasing + plans for the new year.
I rounded out the year with a trip to Lake Tahoe, CA and Whistler, BC in Canada to snowboard and work with some of my favorite people, who also share the “work from anywhere” way.
My friend asked, “who do you know that can go on a THREE WEEK snowboard trip?” as if he’s never heard of the internet…
Working from anywhere really is more accessible than ever.
This was my 6th year living the #DigitalNomad lifestyle.
2. How we acquired the digitalnomad.com
domain name
In March I used my detective skills to seek what I think is the best possible domain for our values at the company, DigitalNomad.Com.
I was able to create a win-win deal for the domain and acquire the name for a very large (undisclosed) sum from the previous owner.
The domain wasn’t for sale either.
The lesson here is, you can get anything you want in life if you can create win-win deals.
Most people are waiting for permission or for things to be easy. Just go out there and get what you want.
While it was a large investment, it was just that, an investment.
The domain will be home for all our future training programs, software tools and resources to fulfill our mission of helping all of you achieve the #workfromanywhere lifestyle and business so you have the freedom to focus on what’s important to you in life.
3. New Training Programs
The team and I released three NEW programs this year.
- Blue Ocean Ads – how to get 20,000 leads/month (167+ high ticket clients) with YouTube ads with a simple one-minute voiceover. We also hit our first $200k month from YouTube ads alone, a traffic source we didn’t even used to touch. Pretty cool stuff. Check out the free webinar here.
- Blockbuster Courses – how we’ve sold over $2 million in online courses in a saturated, competitive market, and how you can create your first online course from day 0 all the way to the two comma club. Get signed up here.
- 45-Second Client attraction – Stop bugging people to work with you and get agency clients to come to YOU with a simple 45-second video on Facebook. Get in for a limited time.
And then of course, our main focus, The Work From Anywhere Accelerator which teaches you digital marketing skills to get your first paying client in 60 days or less.
Our WFA students did $36,660.10 in sales in the last 7 days alone. That’s just reported sales, most people won’t report because they don’t want to give away their position.
Jump in and get yourself some of those sales!
You might not see it from the outside, but a new programs takes hundreds and hundreds of hours of excruciating concentration, curriculum development, storytelling and resource creation to communicate what has taken me and the team a decade of trial and error, and hundreds of thousands in educational programs, adspend and mistakes to learn.
I maintain the belief that online education is still the BEST investment you can possibly make.
For less than the price of ONE college course, you can get a decade of experience and an actionable strategy + step by step tactics to get results. And… the payback period is one client instead of thirty years.
Show me a better investment, I dare you.
It’s not stocks, it’s not “higher education,” the best investment is still investing in your skillset and earning power.
Sadly, the majority of people are still too stubborn to admit that it makes sense to pay for help, but just look at anyone who has made it.
They’ve all paid the price. We all have to pay one way or another, either with regret, time or dollars.
Time… never comes back.
You don’t want to look back at 80 and think “it took 60 years, but at least I saved a couple dollars on education.”
Meanwhile, your competition invested in themselves and has 100x the earning power that you do one year later and doesn’t need to worry about saving a couple bucks.
Someone asked me yesterday what I would do differently if I had to start all over.
I answered immediately.
I would have paid for help sooner. I wasted five years of my life making less than I could, struggling to figure it all out on my own when someone else had already figured it out.
OK, rant over…
Most importantly in this section, we have made continuous upgrades to our flagship program, The Work From Anywhere Accelerator.
Often times when we have an outside consultant or new team member come in who has been through our competitor’s programs in the past, they say “I can’t believe how much value you include for the price point. This is much better than anything I’ve seen.”
You might not realize this, but most of our competitors sell a similar program but charge $6k – $8k for less than we have in our program.
Combine that with the weekly Q&A calls, FB group support and the amazing community of WFA family and I really don’t think there is any other option when it comes to choosing a program to support you over the long term.
Random comments about WFA on why they rated it 5 out of 5 stars
4. New Hires + how much we made + two comma club award
It takes a lot to support 1,652+ customers, 150,000+ readers and just shy of $2.5 million in revenue (we’ll break it by the end of the month).
Imagine having thousands of people reaching out for support, guidance, resources and trusting YOU to get them results. It’s not a responsibility we take lightly.
It’s our life’s mission.
I say “our” because this is the year that the WFA team grew beyond just me. There’s no such thing as a self-made man, and I certainly couldn’t have accomplished this much on my own.
I finally started to learn how to hire and manage a company that’s not just me and my laptop this year.
While I’m still learning, we added some amazing team members some of whom have since left the company for various reasons, and some who are still here.
2019 DigitalNomad.Com team stats:
- 50+ weekly team meetings, study sessions, brainstorming pow wows and even more discussions about how to make all of our clients and customers as happy as possible by developing great products, funnels and experiences for our audience.
- Hired 8-10 in house team members throughout the year
- Interviewed dozens and dozens of great candidates
- The WFA team, including contractors, is at times 15+ people contributing to creating the best possible experience for the students and clients of DigitalNomad.Com
- 100+ updates to the WFA program
I should note that one of our most valued team members got the job by sending me a “trial project” unsolicited, and we created a position for him.
Don’t be afraid to prove yourself ahead of time and stop submitting resumes and talking about yourself and thinking you’re going to get a job!
You have to also realize that “no one is hiring” is not an excuse. A business owner will hire you anytime you can provide a return on investment.
For more help on this, check out my most popular podcast episode of the year, How To Get A Job.
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While tons of amazing work goes on behind the scenes that you will never ever see, some of our team members are student-facing.
Most notably for all of you, we brought on Jamil Velji as a head coach to provide the best possible support to the students.
Jamil runs a multiple six figure agency ($20k+/month) using the exact strategies we teach in WFA and has been an amazing asset to the students and team alike.
Jump on a weekly Q&A call inside WFA with Jamil and you’ll be amazed at the depth of his knowledge and experience when it comes to getting clients and getting those clients results. If you’re in WFA and you’re not taking advantage of these calls, you’re crazy.
If you’re not in WFA… you’re missing out even more.
Getting the two-comma club award for over a million in sales
I achieved a personal goal of mine this year, that was the result of blood, sweat, tears, breakdowns, struggle, testing, results, success, heartache, failure, sacrifice, pulling my hair out, considering driving for Uber to pay the bills and unadulterated joy over the last 3-5 years.
Back in February, Clickfunnels awarded me the two-comma club award for making over $1million in one funnel in under a year. On to the 10x award!
Want the secret to success?
Mastery.
I didn’t get this by focusing on something different than what I was focused on 5 years ago. I got it by focusing on the same things and becoming a master of the fundamentals.
When things get hard, double down instead of switching to something easier. This is the way. If you already have a roadmap, you don’t need a new one. You just need to actually practice and get good at what you’re already doing.
99% of people give up too soon, which means 99% of your competition is just going to drop out.
All you have to do is stay in the game long enough to watch them quit and success will be yours.
5. Seeing student results BLOW UP
As time passes and the WFA program begins to mature, we’re seeing the dramatic impact of time on results. Students that stick with it are beginning to blow up, like Cody who has stuck with WFA for ten months, and has not only closed countless deals, but is working with one of the largest white label agencies in the world, training their team, and speaking at conferences.
And Marla who has been with us for over a year has been invited to speak in Japan about her groundbreaking work in acupuncture marketing.
And _____ closing deals worth $20k or more… I’m not even going to give you his name because I don’t want you hounding him over it, but just FYI, there are all kinds of awesome marketers including the guy who closed this deal inside WFA.
One deal worth $20k!
You can accomplish less than you think in a week or month, but much more than you can imagine in 1-2 years. Stick with it!
We got hundreds and hundreds of testimonials this year, seen people quit their jobs, get $50k/month clients, travel the world and do all sorts of crazy things.
Give yourself two months and you’ll learn skills and get clients.
Give yourself commitment over the long term and you’ll get a life you never dreamed was possible in this short amount of time.
Focus on the fundamentals (customer research, the right copy and offer, the right types of clients, practicing your skills and sticking with it, surrounding yourself with people ahead of you, getting help when you need it) and helping people, and you really can have anything you want in life.
6. The future of WFA, digital marketing and should you pick this for your business?
The demand for digital marketing only continues to grow.
Read that again. The demand for these skills is only becoming stronger with time.
It’s still day 1.
It’s still the best time to get in, and if you sit around waiting for the perfect “opportunity” instead of focusing on skill development and what’s already working, you will continue to sit on the sidelines while watching success story after success story pass through your inbox.
If you’ve been thinking about getting started, choose action.
We must all suffer the pain of action or the pain of regret.
The pain of action is short and is cured with results. The pain of regret and being unable to make a decision for our future lasts a lifetime.
7. The winner of the WFA plane ticket + free enrollment + BOA
The winners of our giveaway for a free plane ticket to anywhere, and free enrollment in WFA have been announced and emailed!!
If you won, you know who you are.
As soon as we get confirmation, pictures, and figure out where our lucky winner is going to take their plane ticket, we’ll email everyone here and let you know who won and where they’re going.
Thanks to everyone who entered.
Ok, I know you want a hint.
Here’s the first names of the three prizes.
If you’re on there and you haven’t seen the prize confirmation email yet, please check your spam folder.
First prize (free plane ticket to anywhere + WFA):
Caleb (LucidMusic)
Second prize (Free WFA tuition):
Christina C.
Third prize (Free enrollment in Blue Ocean Ads):
Giuliano G.
*if you already have the program that you’ve won, we can swap it out for another program enrollment.
** all winners were randomly selected and no purchase was required.
8. Win a Macbook Pro + Sales Challenge in January
We’re holding a sales challenge for all of our WFA family in January.
For the WFA member with the most dollars in sales and new client business closed in their digital marketing business by February 14th, we’ll be giving you a MacBook Pro ($1,399 value)!
But as long as you make sales and post the proof in the group tagging us, you’ll be entered to win $250 CASH and 3 free months of The Lab 2.0 ($2,250 value) + other prizes for other strong efforts even if you don’t win – more details on that coming soon.
If you want to join the challenge, come join the WFA family.
9. New this year: Top Secret client-getting software
We’re developing new top-secret client-getting software and releasing new features throughout the year to our WFA family.
We’re also launching an immersive mentorship experience with calls 3-4 days a week, clients booked FOR You, done-for-you campaign setup and more.
Keep your eyes peeled for details.
Here’s our promise. the longer you’re with us as a reader, customer or client, the better things will get.
10. Get on the phone pre-purchase to ask your questions about WFA before you enroll
We’re recently opened up a couple calendar slots for those of you who are on the fence about joining WFA, and are pretty sure you want to join and start or grow your business, you just need to talk to a real person and get your questions answered ahead up time.
If that’s you, grab a spot on the calendar while they still last. If there are no more spots left, we’re full, but you can still join WFA.
Oh, and if you’re not already in WFA, come join us now. What are you waiting for? A new life starts with a new action. You may look back a year from now and be amazed at how far you’ve come…
Sign up for The Work From Anywhere Accelerator Here
Talk soon,
Christian “Work From Anywhere” Martin
P.S. Ready to finally get the “work from anywhere” life for yourself, whether that means spending more time with your family, or spending more time dancing Salsa in Colombia?
Come join us on the free training and learn how to get your first paying clients then use funnel cloning to scale your business.
P.P.S. You are awesome, thanks for being a part of the community. I appreciate and believe in you. I can’t wait to see what you’re capable of in 2020.
