Ed Lawrence joins James Smith for a brutally honest conversation about the problem with making money online, the illusion of quick success and the hidden grind behind overnight wins.
From starting 12 years ago with terrible videos to generating $300,000 from a single YouTube upload, Ed reveals how the "make money online" promise is sold as easy… but requires years of eating shit instead.
They discuss the reality of building a business, the trap of chasing views over revenue, the burnout of ad-dependent income and why most people give up right before the breakthrough.
Ed opens up about parasites nearly killing his business, the obsession required to succeed and learning to build a sustainable income through content, tracking and understanding what actually converts rather than what goes viral.
He explains:
◼️ Why making money online takes 10x longer than you think
◼️ How to escape the 9-5 without going broke
◼️ The trap of building followers who never buy
◼️ Why 800 views can make $33,000 (and millions of views can make nothing)
◼️ How YouTube teaches you every business skill you need
Timestamps:
00:00 – The Problem With Making Money Online
02:14 – Why Side Hustles Fail vs Full-Time Focus
05:08 – The Trap of "Free" Gym Memberships
06:33 – The Truth About Business Ownership
08:48 – Don't Start a Business Just for Money
11:05 – Building Followers vs Making Money
13:17 – The Stress of Ad Revenue Dependency
16:38 – YouTube is Not a Search Platform
19:15 – Binge-Watching by Design
24:13 – YouTube Makes You Better at Everything
29:35 – Fail as Fast as You Can
32:56 – Packaging Boring Content
37:13 – Everything Has Been Done Before
41:55 – Copy Your Own Outliers
44:41 – Views Don't Equal Money
49:13 – The 10-Year Overnight Success
53:05 – Getting Stuck in Your Comfort Zone
56:12 – The Parasite Wake-Up Call
59:11 – Is AI the Biggest Opportunity Ever?
1:02:00 – Bitcoin vs Gold vs Traditional Money
1:04:09 – Stop Researching Investments, Build Your Business
1:05:13 – Closing Remarks
Welcome to "The Problem With" where each week we look into a problem to get a better understanding of it. This podcast has no sponsors, only my businesses and investments, please check out the links below.
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