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Hi Solopreneurs!
Welcome to today’s weekly Q&A session of The Solopreneur Hour. For episode 340 I jumped on Periscope to field questions from you and answer them. These Q&A shows are for you: ask any question you want on any topic and I’ll answer it.
If you want to be a part of the fun for the next Q&A join us on Facebook right here. Til then sit back and enjoy this Q&A edition of The Solopreneur Hour.
More About This Show – Your Solopreneur Q&A
DAN BYERS
Q: I use power point (slide decks) for presentations and I feel it’s dated. Do you have any suggestions for newer presentation programs or apps that might be more user friendly and better-looking?
A: 1. Who says you need a Powerpoint? Some studies have shown your listeners are more engaged when you don’t have slides. So consider doing it without the slides.
But I’m using Keynote, the Mac version of Powerpoint. Find someone on Upwork or Fiverr who could dress it up for you. You can get motion video, music and videos. You can create your own and hand it to a designer with your brand info and ask them to make it interesting.
KATHERINE BROWN
Q: What book would inspire a 21-year old into solopreneurship?
A: The Sexy Seven! Check the resources below or go to the Resources page and find the link.
SAM WEEGMAN
Q: What do you think of Soundcloud for podcasting?
A: I haven’t used it but I think it looks great. I think it’s cool that you can see the waveform, I think the user face is very cool.
HAPPY HOUR CONNECT
Q: Do you ever share passwords?
A: Sometimes I do. I have a strategy: when you’re starting a new endeavor create a new Gmail account for each. Use that email account to sign up for everything related to that endeavor, then if you want to outsource you can give them access to that account.
Sometimes you have to share passwords so be super careful about what you’re sharing and who has access to it.
CRYSTALEE DENT
Q: Do you use a VA?
A: I don’t. I have Lara who does the show notes for these episodes. And I have a new person I’m just starting to work with – he approached me – and we’re figuring out how we’re going to work together. He contacted me and offered to work for free for a week, and he did. The best move is to reach out to someone having already done the thing.
SAM WEEGMAN
Q: Have you been doing kettlebells?
A: Yes! I have every morning. Since January -nearly every single day- I started doing my age in push-ups and got up to 50. I do that every day and I do kettlebell swings every day. I started with 20 and I’m up to 31 now, my plan is to get it up to 75. I’ll have to be really fit to get there! If I can do 75 swings with a 55-pound kettlebell I’ll be in good shape.
RYAN GAMBOA
Q: I’m trying to find a good investment. I just sold a few classic cars and am sitting on some cash.
A: Good for you, that’s a great thing to have! I think I’d go back and listen to 305, Jason Hartman was on. He’s a real estate investor and I’d also listen to Cole Hatter on episode 280. He has a lot figured out in the real estate investment world and solopreneur world.
But you know I love vintage Porsches, I’d grab some 912s, early 911, 956s and maybe some Karmin Gaia. And then vintage Rolex, Heuer, Omega are all good watches to invest in.
I suggest investing in things you know about, bottom line.
TODD MIDDLEBROOKS
Q: How do you feel about companies that restore and customize vintage vehicles vs self-restoration?
A: I really enjoy the self-restoration, it’s part of the journey and the challenge. You need ingenuity, skill. But although it’s tedious it’s not as complicated as it might seem. It’s a lot of research – know the right message boards to go to and where to ask questions.
I like doing things myself, but I love that there are restoration companies. There’s a place near me in San Diego called Autobahn Interiors and people ship their cars to this place from all over the world to have them work on. I know it might be indulgent to have them to something but I know when I get it back whatever they’ve done is absolutely perfect!
To put a solopreneur spin on it you can apply this to anything from hiring a VA to a designer to a housekeeper. Do you want to do it all yourself or do you want to hire someone, an expert, to help you?
SAM WEEGMAN
Q: What do you think of the VW and Porsche emission scandal?
A: Overall my inclination is if I had a conversation with someone who was involved in this they would say it wasn’t supposed to go like this. I think it’s a bummer, do I think it’s going to hurt Porsche? Not at all. VW maybe. It’s always about great performance or great emissions. Either way they’re going to spend a lot of money!
Q: Where is the best place to learn everything I can about podcasting?
A: SoloLab of course! SoloLab is where you’ll learn how to do podcasting for a living. If you want to learn just how to create a podcast I’d recommend Cliff Ravenscraft. The one thing I’ll caution you about is there is 100 ways to do this so pick one and run with it.
TOM MCLAUGHLIN
Q: How do you recommend setting up video content for purchase for access or download similar to your Facebook Ninja course? I have a video course I am currently working on that is project based, broken up in approximately 6 half hour sessions, on how to build a rocking chair I designed (full-size paper plans will also be available).
I wonder about security if the video is made available for download…or better to just make access available online like your Ninja tactics course?
A: Here’s what I do: I use a plugin on WordPress called S2 Member. You can use it with OptimizePress also. You’d upload your video to Wistia or Vimeo you can do HD video and it’s portable to any outlet.
It gives you the option to have a private embed: can embed it on a private page and it’s not out to the public on Vimeo or Wistia. Then create a new page in WordPress, choose one that gives you the option for video, copy to go along with video and internal navigation.
Or create a regular page and copy the embed code over. S2 Member gives you the option to choose the access level, choose your level and publish. If someone doesn’t have a login it will boot them out to a sign up page. If someone is subscribed it will prompt them to login and they get to see the page.
Look for videos on how to set up S2 Member and they’ll walk you through the nuances. There are lots of options out there in addition to S2 Member, you want a membership plugin to WordPress that integrates with PayPal, etc.
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Selected Links and Resources From This Episode
rennch.com – a Porsche mechanic in your pocket
Got a question you want answered? Join us on Facebook and ask!
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The Sexy Seven
Episode 305 with Jason Hartman
Episode 280 with Cole Hatter
Cliff Ravenscraft’s tutorial on how to start a podcast
The Solopreneur Hour on the Twitter
The Solopreneur Hour on Instagram
Click here to get info on Sololab, a Unique Mastermind
