Tropical MBA: Entrepreneurship & Founder Lifestyle

This week, Dan and Ian are joined by a special guest: Brendan Tully from the Search Engine Shop (Dynamite Circle member, SEO, e-commerce and conversion optimization specialist). Brendan, Dan and Ian discuss the concept of Critical Non-Essentials (CNEs). CNEs are small changes that you can make to your business that bring huge results. The results that CNEs bring are super effective – changing a couple of small things could account for 99% of your improvements (thus 99/1 principle – forget the 80/20 principle). This Episode is features 8 useful CNEs that you can implement immediately, no matter if you run a consulting, e-commerce, software or more traditional business. Do you want to take your business to the next level? Learn from other successful entrepreneurs and check out DynamiteCircle, our community for entrepreneurs. Have fun. Leave a comment. Give us a ring. 888-554-8428. Go make it happen! :)

Are you interested in content businesses? Dan and Ian certainly are and plan to focus more heavily on web properties like blogs and niche communities in the future. In this episode Dan and Ian talk about 4 ways to monetize an existing content site starting today. If you don’t already have a site, you’ll get inspiration and information on what kind of projects you should tackle next. They don’t just talk theory, Dan and Ian also announce their latest content site (which is not related to lifestyle/business) to the world. Other topics discussed are the new Tropical MBA internship #9, Bali and an iPhone game that Ian is addicted to. Do you want to take your business to the next level? Check out DynamiteCircle, our community for entrepreneurs. Have fun. Leave a comment. Give us a ring. 888-554-8428. Go make it happen! :)

In this week’s episode, Dan and Ian talk about common small business myths. Learning about big, successful companies can be inspiring, but many entrepreneurs make the mistake of trying to copy their ways of doing business. The fact is that a company like Apple or Nike approaches marketing (and all other parts of running a business) entirely different than you should run your business. Listen to this episode to learn of the three most harmful myths. In the quick tips section radio DJ Dan Lyons gives podcasting advice. Furthermore, Ian recommends a podcast interview with “4 hour”-guru Tim Ferriss. Do you want to take your business to the next level? Check out DynamiteCircle, our community for entrepreneurs. Have fun. Leave a comment. Give us a ring. 888-554-8428. Go make it happen! :)

This week, Dan and Ian answer a bunch of listener questions. Topics include An in depth discussion on hiring (including: how to delegate, how to find cheap talent, …) Trade show hacks that Dan and Ian use (hustling involved) How Dan and Ian first got started when they founded their business 4 years ago The quick tips section features Rob Walling’s (from Startups For the Rest of Us) top 3 sticky apps of 2011. We just launched DynamiteCircle, our community for entrepreneurs. Check it out. Have fun. Leave a comment. Give us a ring. 888-554-8428. Go make it happen! :)

In this episode, Dan and Ian unveil their private community for entrepreneurs, DynamiteCircle. The “meat and potatoes” section features an interview with Sean Ogle who is launching his product Location Rebel. Check out Location Rebel if you want to quit your job and make the leap into location independence. Sean and Dan discuss 5 mindsets that will break or make your entrepreneurial ventures. They also discuss how Sean ended up becoming one of the top lifestyle design bloggers. In the quick tips section you’ll learn how Dan got 200 new subscribers to his RSS-feed overnight. We just launched DynamiteCircle, our forum for entrepreneurs. Check it out. Have fun. Leave a comment. Give us a ring. 888-554-8428. Go make it happen! :)

In this episode, Dan and Ian talk about 9 tough truths about running or starting your business that bloggers won’t tell you about. Starting a business requires a lot of sweat, tears and sacrifices. You’ll feel lost or depressed every once in a while. You’ll have to stay at home while your friends go out and have expensive cocktails. Friends and family won’t understand or support what you’re doing. This episode is dedicated to these less glamourous parts of entrepreneurship. Dan and Ian also share their top 3 tips for people who are getting started with their business. In the quick tips section Dan and Ian talk about some of their favorite software and a really funny video. If you want to support the show, check out our first 50 episodes on sale. Have fun. Leave a comment. Give us a ring. 888-554-8428. Go make it happen! :)

After the successful sale of OutsourceToThePhilippines.com (and making more than $200 per post), Dan an Ian discuss content/blogging strategies. While they often make fun of blogging, providing high quality content to the right niche can be very lucrative. In this episode, you’ll learn how to identify a profitable niche how to come up with content one content strategy that caters loyal readers and long-tail search terms alike and a lot more In the quick tips section Dan and Ian recommend one of their favorite business books. There’s also a heads up for US citizens about an important upcoming IRS deadline. If you want to support the show, check out our first 50 episodes on sale. Have fun. Leave a comment. Give us a ring. 888-554-8428. Go make it happen! :)

This week, Dan and Ian answer a reader question about Hong Kong incorporation. You’ll learn What Dan and Ian’s HK incorporation experience was like. How much incorporating costs. Why internet business owners should set up a corporation in Hong Kong. Hong Kong vs. Singapore Hong Kong vs. the Philippines The quick tips will introduce you to a tool that makes your Mac even faster, a tool that makes using your computer at night easier on the eyes and some great podcasting advice from Dan Lyons. If you want to support the show, check out our first 50 episodes on sale. Have fun. Leave a comment. Give us a ring. 888-554-8428. Go make it happen! :)

In this Episode, Dan and Ian announce how the sale of their blog, OutsourceToThePhilippines.com, went. You will learn why they decided that it was time to sell this property and that Chris Ducker is the new owner. Chris is the only guy in the outsourcing industry whose products Dan and Ian have backed in the past (e.g. Virtual Staff Finder) so he’s the perfect buyer. This week’s meat & potatoes section consists of an interview with Chris Ducker. Dan and Chris talk about Chris’ future plans with OutsourceToThePhilippines. Outsourcing tips. How much you can expect to pay your home-based VA. What inspires Chris to keep working hard everyday in an environment (Philippines) where many other expats don’t have a similar drive. In the quick tips section you will learn of a piece of software that finally makes running and building membership sites both easy for the owner and usable for the customers. If you want to support the show, check out our first 50 episodes on sale. Have fun. Leave a comment. Give us a ring. 888-554-8428. Go make it happen! :)

In this week’s episode, Dan and Ian talk about hustling. Most people are better at talking about hustling than actually getting it done. Tweeting that you are hustling doesn’t mean you’re hustlin’. :) Just sitting in front of your laptop for 60 hours/week is not enough. If you listen to this episode, “The Tao of the Hustle”, you’ll learn the character traits that make an authentic hustler. In the quick tips section you’ll learn of a tool that makes working at night less eye-straining. If you are a Reddit-fan you will also appreciate the Reddit enhancer that helps you waste even more time on Reddit. If you want to support the show, check out our first 50 episodes on sale. Have fun. Leave a comment. Give us a ring. 888-554-8428. Go make it happen! :)