Professional Documents
Culture Documents
uk
nice apartment
A
A cushy job
A loving girlfriend
Kind friends
A supportive family
I was wrong.
I’d ticked all the right boxes, but I’d forgotten one of the most important:
Purpose
eople told me I was crazy:“Scott, what are you doing?!Quitting your 9-5 is risky!
P
What if things go wrong?!”
Now, people ask me how I travel the world while doing what I love.
So, if you’re feeling stuck, I want to help you. This is why I’ve put this doc together.
It’s the guide I wish I had when set out to become a solopreneur over 5 years ago.
. B
1 uilding a Solid Foundation for Success
2. Goal-Setting
3. Making Money Online
or each category, you’ll find sub-categories and articles. You can jump to the most helpful
F
categories using the nav bar on the left-hand side of this Google Doc.
I’ve pulled out the most important points from the articles so you can quickly get the
information you need. These points are underTL;DR(too long, don’t read).
So please enjoy the doc, and I hope you find it helpful! :)
Scott
Updates:
- th September 2023: I’ve removed fluff and condensed the guide into 14 pages
6
rather than 19
- 7th February 2024: Medium article links updated so ANYONE can read them
- th February 2024:My most popular Medium articlesof all time(in terms of
7
views, comments, and earnings)
TL;DR:
- “ People with a well-paying job ask my advice because they want to quit to become
full-time artists.
“But full-time artists ask my advice because they’re finding it impossible to make
money.
“For both of them, I prescribe the lifestyle of the happiest people I know. 1) Have a
well-paying job. 2) Seriously pursue your art for love, not money.”
— Derek Sivers
- A job pays your bills. Side hustles give you a shot at scalable income.
TL;DR:
- hen you get a paycheck, pay yourself a fixed monthly percentage BEFORE
W
paying your bills. Think of it like a self-imposed tax. The money can
automatically come from one of your accounts and into another.
TL;DR:
- tep #1:Build your “mental health stack”— Checkoff your diet, exercise, and sleep,
S
and consider other self-care practices like meditation and therapy. It’s best to build
good habits before you need them.
- tep #2:Practice weekly “fear-setting”— Your fearsmay look absurd when captured
S
on paper.
- tep #3:Try Lex Fridman’s mantra routine— Positiveself-talk can put you in an
S
abundance mindset.
- tep #4:Embrace “slow productivity”— Zoom out. Ifyou achieved three great things
S
in the next five years, what would they be and why?
- tep #5:Seek “Subtle Fame”– “Subtle Fame” is whenthe occasional person might
S
come up to you in the street to thank you for your work, but you’re not bombarded
whenever you step outside.
scottstockdale.co.uk
TL;DR:
- “ The answer to every question I get about creating digital products could be
answered with this line: ‘Work away at it for 5+ years and you’ll get there.’ This is the
advice I wish I understood early on.” — Tim Denning
- “ Success isn’t that difficult. It merely involves taking twenty steps in a singular
direction. Most people take one step in twenty directions.” — Anthony J. Yeung
- Ask yourself these 5 questions before you quit your job:
- #1: Why do you want to quit?
- #2: Do you have a plan?
- #3: Are you financially secure?
- #4: Are your plans realistic?
- #5: Can you get another job if things don’t go to plan?
- hare a 3-year plan with your close family and friends before you quit your job, and
S
answer the following questions:
- Show your current financial situation— Do you havesavings in the bank?
Are you making money online? If so, is this enough to cover your bills? How
will you scale it?
- Describe your best-case and worst-case scenarios—Be realistic. Tackle
any doubts you have withthis fear-setting practice.
- Write down your main goals for the next three years— Draw up a
six-month plan after attending Google University(moredetails in Part II of this
guide).
- I recommend hitting the following conditions before quitting your job:
- 12 months of savings in the bank
- At least one steady client
- Replace your 9-5 income with the money you make online
- A proven process to land high-value clients
scottstockdale.co.uk
TL;DR:
- tep #1:Buy a fancy notepad with blank pages— Includethe following pages inside.
S
The order is up to you. These are just to get you started:
- our goals for the next 12 months. I recommend nomore than five.
Y
- Your dream home.Look on Pinterest. I found my dreamcinema with drapes
and popcorn machines.
- 100 life goals.Whatever pops into your head, writethem down. You can
always cross them out.
- Your dreams for the future.Think of these as yourlife goals. Go big!
- Your favourite questions.Here’s one of mine: “AmI complicit in creating
conditions I say I don’t want?” — Tim Ferriss
- Your role models.Maybe they’re famous. Maybe they’rehot. Maybe they’re
freaking awesome! Whatever the reason, write down their names.
- Your values. We’ll come back to this.
- tep #2:Flick through it every night for five minutes— You’re not looking for
S
answers. You’re feeding your brain.
TL;DR:
- oogle University is a phrase coined by a Medium writer called Tom Kuegler. His
G
belief is this:If you want to learn a new skill,Google can teach you how.
- J ump online and search for the skill you want to learn more about. You’re looking for
practical, actionable insights. Paste your learnings into a Google doc and re-read any
articles you may previously saved to your bookmarks.
TL;DR:
- 6-month plan is a living, breathing document. You’ll review it daily (ideally), and it’ll
A
help you work towards your goals.
- tep #1:Write down 100 goals— Don’t worry if youchange your mind. You can
S
use these questions to review them:
- On a scale of 1–10, how likely can I achieve this goal in six months?
- How excited am I by this goal on a scale of 1–10?
- Will achieving this goal make other goals easier or unnecessary?
- tep #2:Choose five of these goals to work on forthe next six months—
S
These goals are going to be based on the following five categories:
1. Work
2. Relationships
3. Location
4. House
5. Hobbies
scottstockdale.co.uk
- tep #3:Attend Google University (see above)— You want practical, actionable
S
steps to achieve your goals. Nothing fluffy. Include links to articles in case you want
to refer to them later.
- tep #4:Set dates— After attending Google Universityand detailing your goals, it’s
S
time to attach dates. To do this, work backwards from the end goals and realise what
you must complete to stay on track.
- tep #5:Journal daily— Spend ten minutes journallingin your Goals Google doc.
S
Type whatever pops into my head. Download your subconscious thoughts. This will
help keep you accountable because there’s nowhere to hide.
scottstockdale.co.uk
TL;DR:
- edium.com is a platform that allows writers to make money from their writing. You
M
can think of it as the YouTube of writing.
- I average 1-2 articles per week on Medium and make around $300-500
- he articles above are pretty short. Check them out if you want to start earning
T
money on Medium…
TL;DR:
- tep #1:Build a portfolio of work— You can do thaton medium.com. I’ve been
S
writing on this platform since September 2020 and have published 230+ articles. You
don’t need this many. Five is enough.
- tep #2:Apply for jobs on Write Jobs PLUS+— Thispaid Patreon job board
S
details 10-15 opportunities every weekday. Apply to jobs and link to your most
popular articles when you apply for jobs.
scottstockdale.co.uk
- tep #3:Slash your expenses— Being financially stable will help take the pressure
S
off your writing.
- Step #4:Keep practising— You’re only as good asyour last article.
TL;DR:
- here’s no right or wrong way to do this. You simply want to tell the world you’re
T
ditching your 9-5 to become a freelance writer.LinkedInis a great place to announce
this.
- ook at the profiles of creators who are winning. Optimise your headshot, banner
L
image, tagline, and about section. Copy my profile if you’re not sure how. Mine’s by
no means perfect, but it’s a good start.
TL;DR:
- y sharing your work online, you’re increasing the surface area for Lady Luck to land
B
on. Potential clients may reach out. They might want to work with you. Here’s what to
do when this happens:
- tep #1:See if you can get them to share their budget— Negotiating rates can
S
be tricky, but be direct upfront. When potential clients reach out, try to get a rough
estimate of their budget. People don’t like committing to anything without discussion,
so ease their comfort by saying you won’t hold them to any number. This will save
you so much time. I’ve jumped on calls and sent proposals, only to realise the
potential client doesn’t have the budget I require.
- tep #2:Jump on a 20-minute call— This will helpyou understand what they’re
S
looking for and how you can help.
scottstockdale.co.uk
- tep #3:Write a proposal— This doesn’t need to befancy. A simple Google doc
S
will do. Check out the articles above to see what this might look like.
- tep #4:Decide your pricing— My first client wantedone monthly blog post. I
S
considered all the steps (writing, research, etc.) and asked myself how long this
would take. Next, I considered an hourly rate that would make this worth my time.
Slide up and feel the energetic shift. You want to go from “not worth my time” to
“yeah, I’d do that”.
TL;DR:
- onsider outsourcing to a virtual assistant. Following the process in the article that’s
C
highlighted in bold can help you save 10+ hours a week.
- se a platform like Notion or Evernote to store your content ideas. A pen and paper
U
is also effective. Then,apply parallel processingto your writing(i.e. work on multiple
articles simultaneously).
- atch your writing tasks and purposefully generate five ideas a day. The latter will
B
help build your creativity muscle.
- onsistently post content on one platform for two years, and your life will change.
C
Once you’ve mastered one platform, add another.
- uild meaningful connections and collaborate when possible. We all want to work
B
with people we know, like, and trust.
- Rule #1 When Building an Email List? Share Your Ugly Stuff
TL;DR:
- tep #1:Set up email software from day one— I choseConvertKitbecause my
S
favourite creators recommend it. There are many email platforms to choose from.
- tep #2:Create a simple landing page so people cansign up for your email list
S
— Keep it simple. Minimal text, a single photo, and a clean background will do the
trick.
- tep #3:Write content and share it online— At theend of every article/blog you
S
write, add a call to action (CTA). A CTA is a single sentence telling people to join your
email list. Most importantly, it explains why. A good call to action is simple, concise,
and gives the reader a reason to click the link to your landing page.
- tep #4:Create a useful lead magnet that exceedsa subscriber’s expectations
S
— Most people won’t just give you their email address. You have to work for it. This is
where lead magnets come in. A lead magnet is simply something you give away for
free in return for a reader’s email address. Examples of lead magnets are ebooks,
email courses, checklists, or a free consultation with you over a video call. The key is
to make itrelevantandusefulfor your intended audience.
- tep #5:“Build the list. Email the list.”— Mostcreators recommend emailing your
S
list once a week. I email my list once every two weeks. Either way, be helpful. Care
about your subscribers. Give them free content. Help them with real problems.
Survey these superfans to learn about them.
- Don’t send newsletters because you have to. Send them because you want to.
TL;DR:
- he best plans start simple. A good idea on its own without execution isn’t worth
T
much. A not-so-good idea brought to life is better. A brilliant idea and brilliant
execution is the holy grail.
- hrill them, and they’ll tell everyone. When you make customers your priority, they
T
become cheerleaders.
scottstockdale.co.uk
- “ One of the secrets to getting what you want in life is creating the perception that you
don’t need a thing. That can be a difficult energy to project — especially when you’re
struggling — but committing to that perception will make you more attractive
professionally, personally, and even romantically.” — Curtis Jackson
TL;DR:
- ou likely have $1,000 on your Google Drive. See if you can turn your docs into lead
Y
magnets or digital products.
- Keep it simple. You don’t need lots of bells & whistles.
- y website:scottstockdale.co.uk
M
- Medium:@scottstockdale
- My podcast:Entrepreneurs Can Party
- LinkedIn:Scott Stockdale
- Email:scott@entrepreneurscanparty.com