I’ll never forget only a few years ago, I was walking down the streets of Austin with a dime, asking people to double it.
We were in debt. I was struggling. I hated my job and the corporacracy and politics married to it.
I wanted a way out.
I looked at a dime and asked myself, “What would it look like to build a business off of this dime? A business that I don't work for, but that works for me?”
That’s exactly what I did. I doubled that dime 20 times: it became $100,000. We took that, invested it, bought inventory for our Amazon and eBay stores, and multiplied it until it was over a million.
If you value something small, stay consistent, and keep going, you can turn it into something much bigger.
Most people undervalue a dime and overvalue a million dollars. This is why most people are broke.
Take what you have. Invest in it. Keep multiplying it. Whether that investment is inventory, the house you want, or driving your car for Uber to pay off debt, multiply it.
I’m living proof you can do this. I’m not special. We all have different strengths and weaknesses. The two biggest things that helped? Staying teachable and being consistent over a long period of time.
This is not going to happen overnight. But if you stay consistent, you can reach the goals you want. I’m now able to take my wife to a super nice restaurant. If I had seen the bill for our meal five years ago, I would have died of a heart attack! I am careful with money and do not throw it around, but I do like to have fun every now and then. It’s investing in people and building memories, improving the quality of what is on the inside, and not just the outside.
No matter where you are at, you can do this.
If you feel hopeless, discouraged, and struggling, know this: if you have just a dime, just a little bit of something, you can turn it into something amazing if you are consistent and don’t give up. Don’t blame other things: take responsibility for your own stuff.
You can make this happen.
Tip #3: Focus on what the supplier values
Rule #1 in all negotiation is to focus on what is valuable to the other party first. Then it's much easier to get what you want as well. The final deal needs to make sense to both sides. Chinese suppliers value two things above anything else: friendship and long term business. Friendship often results in long term business. Chinese suppliers value friendship because a strong friendships between vendor and customer is a healthy business practice in Chinese culture. They will often address you as "friend."
They value long term business relationship because the cost of acquiring and learning the needs of a new customer is much more time consuming than working with the same customer for years. Business with an old customer is much less risky than business with a new customer. New customers are unpredictable and often flighty, resulting in wasted time for the Chinese supplier, going back and forth in a conversation with a customer who ends up not buying. So how do you do this? In your communication with the supplier, mention "friendship" and "long term business relationship." Weave it in naturally and let them know that you value both of these highly. Look again at my example message to a Chinese supplier: Hello Cynthia! I own a US company that sells aromatic oils and accessories. I am looking for a manufacturer who can create an aromatic oil holder. I am looking for a manufacture to build a strong friendship with for long term business relationship. I would love to see if you can create the model I need. Please, see the specs in the image I attached to this email. I would appreciate your prompt response.
We are looking for a good business relationship with a manufacturer!
Sincerely, Lucy
Notice that I focused on what they value. I stated two qualities they value highly: 1) long term business relationship and 2) friendship. These two qualities go a long way in Chinese business culture, so leverage them!
Don't be surprised if you get responses referring to you as "dear" or "friend," while these names of endearment might seem strange and awkward to us in the west, but to the Chinese, they are standard. The reality is, if you are willing to do business with them in a long term relationship, then you are, by extension, their friend. Concepts like friendship, loyalty, long term, integrity, it all mixes in their culture of business.
Photo by Joey Huang
Couldn't we stand to learn a thing or two from that style of doing business? How many of us here in the west have worked with corporate entities that we would categorize as soulless? The best business relationships form like friendships. They are people you want to stick with you. That's why I encourage you to be cautious about who you allow to do business with you. Finding the right supplier is a critical part of this process, and our members have access to all the tools and strategies for finding good people to do business with. Please consider journeying with us on this path of relationship and margin building. Don't let communication be a barrier to your passive income freedom.
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Married a pearl. Fathered 4 miracles. Fired his boss. Turned a single dime into $104,857. Today, a self-made millionaire, Seth and his team of 8 badass coaches teach entrepreneurs how to build passive income on Amazon.
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