Lifestyle Design, Product Creation and Profit Sharing

Sorry I’ve been more quiet than normal lately.

I’ve been blogging once or twice a week over on the BoostCTR blog, not to mention blogging on my survival site, blogging on the Paid On Time blog, and writing copy for clients.

So there’s been a lot going on.

I have a few things I’d like to share with you today — just some ideas I’ve been thinking about lately.

Lifestyle Design

First of all, I started re-reading The Four-Hour Workweek. It’s one of the better books I’ve read in the last few years and worth reading a second time.

I find that it’s easy to always be reading new books — the latest and greatest stuff. That’s because first-time readings are generally more exciting and stimulating, kind of like an “intellectual buzz.”

But it’s harder to re-read a book and actually put it into practice. It requires effort. More thinking, more reflection. But that’s what I’m doing with 4HWW.

As part of my quest to mix things up and actually do the things I’d like to do, I’m taking my family down to Florida at the end of summer. We’ll be staying in a condo right on a white sand beach… for an entire month.

Reservation is already locked in, so we’re committed.

During that time, I’ll be working some — but not too much. The important thing is that we’ll be doing exciting things and creating memories NOW instead of waiting for the perfect opportunity (which never seems to come, by the way).

I’ve also recently become an avid Groupon buyer. I’ve gotten deals on rafting trips in the mountains, all-day bike rentals in Frisco (near Breckenridge), racing exotic sports cars at Pikes Peak National Speedway, and more.

By buying Groupons, I’m not only saving money on fun activities… I’m forcing myself to make time for activities I enjoy doing.

There are generally two types of people out there: those who like to have and those who like to do. I fall into the latter category. Recreational activities and traveling are what get me excited.

Product Creation

On the freelance front, I’m still doing a lot of client work. For the most part, I enjoy it. But I am actively trying to develop more passive income through automation, outsourcing, and the creation and sale of products.

I’ve created the Paid On Time Affiliate Trust Seal, and I’m in the process of marketing it and making it successful.

And I’m nearing completion on a new information product all about how to start, manage, and improve an affiliate program. (I’ve registered AffiliateProgramTraining.com to sell this new product.)

The funny thing is, this new product was entirely accidental. I had intended to give it away as a free report to promote Paid On Time. But as the report became longer and longer and longer, I realized it no longer made any sense to give it away.

I’ll tell you more about this product later.

Profit Sharing with Clients

Another development… I’m now doing more profit-sharing deals with clients. So instead of collecting flat fees for my copywriting all the time, I’m setting up profit-sharing arrangements where I get paid a percentage of the results I produce.

I’ve done this in the past — but the profit-sharing has usually been capped to a brief window of time. These new arrangements are longer term and have the potential to be quite lucrative.

The more I can make these types of arrangements work, the less fee-based copywriting I’ll need to do. And that’s ideally where I’d like to be: with a mix of income coming from the sale of products and from profit-sharing with my best clients.

This will also free me up to travel more and take more time off — and design the lifestyle I’d really like to live.

So that’s what’s on my mind — and on my plate — right now.

2 Questions to Ask Yourself

Here are a couple questions to ask yourself so you can begin to design and live the lifestyle you want:

1. “What do I need to do differently so I can earn the same income without working as hard as I’m working today?”

2. “How can I design my lifestyle so I can do the things I’d like to do THIS year instead of putting them off until some long-distant retirement?”

Hope you’re doing well.

-Ryan M. Healy