World Famous Comics: Your Portable Empire: How to Make Money Anywhere While Doing What You Love
Your Portable Empire: How to Make Money Anywhere While Doing What You Love
By: Pat O'Bryan Publisher: Wiley Average Rating: Binding: Hardcover Label: Wiley Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 240 Publication Date: August 31, 2007
Product Description: Praise for Your Portable Empire
"In a sea of snake oil and get-rich-quick nonsense about fast money on the Internet from people who haven't really done it, O'Bryan's book is a ship of sanity to an island of commonsense e-commerce? This works." —Mark Joyner, Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Simple.ology
"The Internet has leveled the playing field, making it possible for anybody to start a business. O'Bryan, however, has given us the easy-to-follow instruction manual on how to first discover your niche and then build it into a big enterprise that can run itself from almost anywhere-all from his successful and proven formulas. A great book for anybody serious about a better quality of life." —Joseph Sugarman, Chairman, BluBlocker Sunglass Corporation
"This amazing book can free all working people to make money doing what they truly love!" —Dr. Joe Vitale, author of The Attractor Factor and Zero Limits
"I know O'Bryan as a friend and colleague. He has painstakingly put together a book, with no frills or fanfare, that straight-up shares his hard-won wisdom. May I urge you to get it and read it? Not only will you enjoy it-but once you act on what you learn, you can profit mightily as well. Why? Because what's in this book lets you stop making the victim's compromise on a daily basis-and start doing the victory dance, whenever you want!" —David Garfinkel, author of Advertising Headlines That Make You Rich
"O'Bryan lives the portable empire, running his business from a laptop with a cigar and a glass of fine wine. There is no one better to be your guide as you create your own, because he's laid out every step for you in his inspiring and easy-to-read book. There is no need to be chained to a desk or locked in a cubicle, and your business can take you far beyond your kitchen table with the blueprint O'Bryan shares from his own successful journey." —Craig Perrine, www.maverickmarketer.com
"Freedom-O'Bryan's new book makes you understand exactly how to obtain it and create the lifestyle of your dreams. Anyone who can go from being a dead-broke musician living in a mobile home to generating six figures in a single month is worth reading." —Bill Hibbler, coauthor of Meet and Grow Rich
Pleasantly Surprised...Better Than Expected! When I read the forward by Joe Vitale I was immediately put off by the book. I am NOT a Vitale fan and don't like his marketing tactics at all.
When I read the first line of the book to my husband -- "This is the most dangerous book you'll ever read..." (or something to that affect) -- he told me that if it were him he'd throw the book in the trash instantly. He's not a big fan of bullsh**, clearly.
As I began reading the book I almost wanted to throw it in the trash. Especially when I read the section on "What is an e-book?" If someone doesn't know that then they don't deserve any opportunity to make money online.
I'll admit: There's no specific step-by-step to use in this book and it is very incomplete. Pat (the author) doesn't talk about his specific successful online campaigns through Google Adwords. He doesn't talk about what kind of info products he sells (although I wouldn't either). He misleads people into believing that you could make tons of money selling ebooks on topics like "how to sleep better" which is NOT a topic that would sell well at all.
My theory: He sells "money making" info products online and doesn't want anyone else to crowd how he makes his money online.
Why did I give this book 5 stars?
Two reasons:
1) He does a good job covering successful copywriting which will make or break your success with online (or any) marketing. Copywriting is the key.
2) In the lateral half of the book he discusses "mindset" in a way I have never read before. I've read hundreds of self-help titles and this book is unique in providing a different view of changing your mindset which made this book well worth it.
Buy this book if you want to be successful financially. No, it won't give you any instruction other than to create your own info products and sell them via Google Adwords. However, it will open your mind to the possibilities and help you change your mindset for success. That, alone, is worth reading this book.
Just do what Pat says I have a habit of over complicating things. Pat breaks it down to the most basic steps. It's still a lot of work, but if you just do what Pat says and stick with it. You'll end up with a successful product or two. Just remember not every product is successful, so stay with it.
Broke Guitarist to Rich internet marketer If you wanted every tip known to man on how to be a broke blues guitarist, Pat O'Bryan is your man. Here's a guy that has played music professionally for the better part of 30 years, toured Europe, landed recording contracts. And he's been so broke that he had a trailer repossessed. That's broke. Pat today would be the first to tell you that "a career in music is as dangerous as a crack habit" for him. Why? He explains it in his book, Your Portable Empire. Written after the broke guitarist stage, O'Bryan is able to sell his narrative with grace and humor.
Which leads us to Pat O'Bryan, rich Internet marketer.
This Pat O'Bryan is a hugely successful marketer who does his best work by the pool with a cigar in his mouth and wine in his hand - though it's a struggle to call that work. O'Bryan has developed a consistent system to deliver products to willing buyers. Not just any products but products that he has created to answer the specific questions that they are asking. His reward has been to make more money than he ever thought possible.
O'Bryan's book, Your Portable Empire, is both autobiographical - he doesn't spare himself embarrassment describing his life as an aging hippie musician- and informational as he explains his system, the steps to build it and how to duplicate it. It's also a genuinely fun read - a quality that is lacking in many "how-to" business books.
The first half of the book deals with the "how-to's". How to create a product. How to get a list. How to find mentors. How to find a joint venture. It's the "how-to" toolbox for anybody that is looking to create an internet business in information products.
Not interested in information products? Then take his same techniques and apply them to marketing your product or service. The key is automating your systems to remove you from the machine. By automating, you free yourself to take advantage of opportunities as they come at you instead of chasing your tail with unproductive tasks. In this sense, he is preaching from the same book as Tim Ferris, author of "The Four Hour Workweek". Automate, automate, automate. Look constantly to streamline your systems.
Each of the "how-to's" are written by experts in their field: Craig Perrine for marketing, Joe Vitale, author of the Attractor Factor and star from the movie The Secret, for copywriting and a cascade of others, each with a unique point to make. The only complaint about these sections is a lack of a call to action.
It's in the second half of the book that Pat O'Bryan shines. All the skills training in the world won't help you create Your Portable Empire unless you combine them with the mental and emotional skills to apply them consistently and successfully. Starting with a chapter titled "Your Inner Game" and moving to topics such as Self-sabotage Solutions, the Gold Zone, Failing Up and The Magical Marketing Tour, he takes you through the mental tools that you'll need. Every lesson is one he learned the hard way - by living it. That's powerful in telling and he's brilliant at teaching it.
This is a terrific motivational book with a ton to recommend it for skills building especially for the beginning infoprenuers. More advanced marketers will recognize and appreciate the emphasis on the Inner Game.
Awesome!! And I have not even finished reading it yet! I have only read the first 2 chapters and already it is a really great book. This book explains everything so you can understand it, and apply it to your own business. I will update this as I go.
not for everyone Overall it is pretty good. My biggest complaint is the bombardment of look alike products with different names. This is another book for creating an information product business-selling how-to-sell information products. There is a number of well networked individuals selling the same kind of dream-specifically creating passive income streams mostly through automated internet e-books and information products that can be downloaded instantly and the proceeds deposited into a bank account. This group has smartly cross-promoted each others work including good reviews and glowing testimonials.
So if you can create an appealing set of products to promote ongoing to a database of suckers(potential customers) over and over you can create your own "Portable Empire" as Mr O'Bryan has. The overall premise and approach might work in the real world but a couple of examples just didn't hold up for me; for example he says to take a hobby or area of interest and build a group of products around it. One example he uses is golf- I just couldn't see a set of information products with golf as the main theme being a regenerative information product stream-not enough to build the income stream to have the lifestyle that he espouses. Felt insincere and disingenious for me but there are some people for whom this book will provide enough of a blueprint to actually create something of value.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Trevor
