EPP 100: From Jobless To Multimillionaire With Pat Flynn

In this week’s episode of the Extra Paycheck Podcast I am joined by an entrepreneur, a blogger, an author, a podcast host, the CEO and founder of SmartPassiveIncome – Pat Flynn.

Also available on: iTunes | Stitcher | Tunein | Google Play

Finally I have reached episode #100 on the Extra Paycheck Podcast! First of all, I’d love to thank you, the listener, since you’re the reason I keep on releasing new episodes every single week. Doing a podcast isn’t very easy but it is extremely fun and I believe very valuable for many listeners.

For this milestone episode I decided I should do something special. Pat Flynn was initially the inspiration for starting the Extra Paycheck Podcast in April of 2015. However Pat has been my role model for quite some years before I launched the podcast. I’ve always admired his work ethics, his transparency and all the value that he’s been adding to the online entrepreneurship community.

This episode is packed with a lot of different subjects and I am sure you will relate to at least some of it.

Who Is Pat Flynn?

In 2008 Pat was let go from his job as an architect. He did look for another job but the economy was in such a bad place that he simply couldn’t find the perfect job for him. This is also when he first ventured into the world of online marketing by building his very first website. This website helped others pass their LEED exam. When Pat starting earning money from this first website he started realizing the potential of the internet.

With time he launched the Smart Passive Income blog where he shared his income reports. He was probably the first person to do this and this helped him grow his initial audience. Pat is very transparent about his income but also about what works and what doesn’t when it comes to online marketing.

Pat’s SPI Podcast has just crossed 34 Million downloads. His other podcast, AskPat, is also in the millions of downloads. Pat is an adviser to a few companies such as Pencils of Promise, he’s a speaker at different events, he runs several businesses. All that while being a husband and a father to two children. Pat believes that starting his own business was the answer to the ability to have more freedom, flexibility and happiness in his life.

Why People Fail

We dedicated a part of the podcast to talking about success and failures. Pat reveals his secret to success and it’s rather simple: “hard work”. Tons of people are asking me what does it really take to succeed and the answer is consistent: work and time.

The other very popular question is: “How long does it take to see results online”. There is no definitive answer to this question as this timeline will be very different for every single person. It’s hard to estimate your success without knowing your work ethics, your niche, your ability to adapt and many other factors.

However Pat Flynn does mention that most (if not all) of his websites took an average of a year and a half to really start getting traction. I see many people complaining that they have been working on a website for 3-4 months yet they aren’t making an income. Well, here is your answer. A few months is too little time to really expect any significant results. Be patient, work harder, analyze your results and work some more. I am not going to give out all the juicy details in the show notes so scroll up and press the play button to hear the full episode 😉

How Does A Working Day Look For Pat?

Many wonder about how Pat Flynn manages to run his businesses, meet people and still have time for his family. In this episode Pat actually explains how he schedules his days. This part of the podcast is very valuable since we all need advice on organization and discipline.

Pat wakes up at 4 in the morning. I know this sounds crazy to all of you night owls and Pat claims he used to be a night owl as well. However there is a reason he changed his habits.

By 6:30 am, when most people are still asleep, Pat already has a few solid hours of work behind him. At 7 am or so he spends time with his children, takes them to school and gets some work done after that. In the afternoon Pat and his family go to a park and make it back home before the “after-work traffic” starts. On most days the family spends the rest of the day together until the kids go to bed. If there is still any work that wasn’t done for the day Pat will do it after the kids are asleep. He goes to bed at 10 pm.

Some of these things move around during the week since Pat has dedicated every single day to a different task. On Tuesday Pat usually records his podcasts. On Wednesday he does meetings and so on. To be honest I am jealous of such amazing planning skills and I definitely need to learn a few things from Pat.

Throughout the whole episode Pat shares golden nuggets of advice on how to start a business and how to make it successful. Make sure to pay attention when you’re listening to this one.

Resources And Links

Smart Passive Income – Official Website

Smart Passive Income Podcast on iTunes

Will It Fly Book  – Wall Street Journal best seller

The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod – the book that helped Pat with his morning routine

Sleep Smarter by Shawn Stevenson – the book that helped Pat better his sleeping

Green Exam Academy – if you’re curious about Pat’s very first website (that’s still alive and still making him money)

You can subscribe to the Extra Paycheck podcast and review it on iTunes.

If you do have any comments or question, please do use the comment form below! I will answer every single one 🙂

– Alex