This morning, as part of the business coaching I belong to, I was challenged to write my WHY, and I was asked if my actions were in alignment to my WHY. I like this question, because it is a deep seated reason for why we are in business. If all we want from our business is money, then you are likely to feel fulfilled by your tasks each day. I also think that when the days get tough (which they will sometimes), your WHY is what keeps you going. When you have something bigger than yourself to build, hard days become less of an issue. So, the questions were : 1. Your current WHY…. the real reason you’re building this business right now. 2. One shift you need to make this week to realign your actions with that WHY. Here are my answers : 1. Your current WHY…. the real reason you’re building this business right now. At the surface level, my WHY is about financial and time freedom. I want to be able to work from home, so that I can be available for my grandchildren. Attend their school sports days, be able to take them for experiences, all the good stuff. At a deeper level, my WHY is about Legacy Through Leadership. I believe true legacy is about WHO you leave behind, not WHAT you leave behind. You can leave your children with an inheritance (money or a business are the most common ideas of legacy that I see around the place), but if they don't have financial maturity, they will spend the money. If they don't want to run your business when you're gone, they will run it into the ground, or sell it. So, true legacy for me is WHO you leave behind - strong, resilient, compassionate leaders who are making the world a better place. I want my grandchildren to be confident in who they are and what value they bring to the world. I want them to have an entrepreneurial mindset even if they are working as an employee. I want them to have grit and determination and for them to have a purpose to their lives. That's WHO I want to leave behind as my legacy. Not money - knowledge, ability and drive.

Welcome to Metrics Monday, that time in the week where we (upon request of the members) pull back the curtains and show you behind the scenes of the Classifieds. Number of Members: 803 (+45) Number of Premium Members: 166 (+9) Percentage of members who are Premium : 20.7% no change About Page Conversion: 28.1 (-1.3%) Churn = 9 in December Discovery Ranking in Money: #31 (-1) Discovery Ranking Overall: #101 (-5) Highest Activity Day: 1264 on Tuesday Lowest Activity Day: 533 on Sunday What it all means: So, most of you know that we rose 16 places in the money category in a matter of about 48 hours due to our Black Friday Free For All. I was expecting a bit of a correction, but what surprised me the most was how long it took for that correction to occur. We were vacillating between #27 and #28 for most of the week, but then a dip in activity made the star flicker last night and then go off this morning when we settled into 31st place. Our activity has always been the lowest on the weekend, which makes sense as many of us choose to prioritize our families at that time. Another interesting number is the percentage of members who are premium, which has remained unchanged. I'm very happy with almost 21% of the members choosing to be premium, so this is a great number. You'll notice a new metric I'm tracking, which is churn. It's only reported for the month, so it's a bit of a weird one to track, but people have been interested in it. I'm not sure how long I will continue to report on it because, personally, I don't look at it. I think it's a normal part of running a community, especially one like this - sometime members leave because they are no longer Skool group owners... Anyway, in the future I'll make more of an effort to put prompts for posts in the community as it seems like this really inspires people to post and encourages great interactions, engagement, and sign ups in your communities. This past week has been a bit of a doozy for me with pink eye (thanks daycare!), laryngitis, and a chest cold/cough - and family visiting!!!

I’ve been thinking a lot as I build my 5 day challenge coming up next week. One sentence keeps coming up: “I’m not a business / online guy… I’m just a worker.” That identity has quietly shaped a lot of my decisions over the years. It’s safer to stay in the lane everyone expects of you - and that I expect of myself. Designing a 5-day experience for men who’ve outgrown the life they built is forcing me to step into a different identity: The man who is willing to go first. Not because I’m the smartest in the room… but because I’m prepared to say the quiet stuff out loud. If you’re a man 40+ reading this…What’s the identity label you’re starting to outgrow? And - if you're a man aged 40+ and you feel like you are drifting through life rather than taking the reins and directing your life, check out my community - the Midlife Misfit Brotherhood. Thank you.

Create a brand new post outlining a myth that people have about your area of expertise or the topic of your group. Use a compelling hook in your title, describe the myth, and then explain why it's a myth. Finish off the post by inviting people to check out your group to learn more. Then, find two other posts to be enlightened by and leave a comment. Don't get too wordy. There's a fine line between too much info and not enough info. Trust me. I go over the line all the time! 😂 TIP: Hashtag prompts are bonus prompts, so if you do this post, you still get your promo post of the day. 😉 I can't wait to see what myths you bust!

💥 MYTH: “If people pay for a course, they’ll take it seriously.” We’ve all heard it - “Those who pay, pay attention.” But, I think that’s only half true. Why? Because I’ve personally spent tens of thousands of dollars on courses and coaching programs… And most of them? Still sitting there. Unwatched. Unopened. Untouched. Why? Because buying feels like progress. My brain gets a dopamine hit just from clicking “buy now.” I convince myself that I’ve done something meaningful - that THIS is the course that is going to get me the result I want. I go into the course, I learn the foundations that they are teaching. Then, when it comes time to actually implement what I have learned, I shut down. Imposter syndrome kicks in. My negative belief that it won't work for me kicks in. My negative belief that I can't do anything right kicks in. I default to safety. To staying stuck. To doing nothing - even though the course cost me $5K (or more). So, the urgency fades, and the course gathers dust. 🧠 It’s not laziness. It’s identity. It’s emotional overwhelm. It’s a protective pattern that says: “Let’s not start this… we already have too many unfinished things.” So - for me, paying doesn’t create action. But having clarity has... Now that I know: - 🔍 Where I actually am - 🧭 Where I truly want to go - 🛠️ And what the next small step is… I am actually following through. The coach I am working with now gave me a distinct list of steps to take in the next week, and I have actually carried those steps out. Going to my office in the morning and knowing exactly what it is that I need to do, makes such a difference. This is clearly what I have been doing wrong for all these years. Inside my community - the Midlife Misfit Brotherhood, we talk about this topic. During my 5 day Wake The F*ck Up Challenge, I offer a 90 day Implementation Lab for exactly this reason.