Only Shortcut You Need

In this short, but sweet, post (see what I did there?), I'm going to give you the super-spectacular, supreme secret shortcut that no one's talking about.

By using this shortcut, you can make your first Millions$ faster than most!

"Enough of the BS, Paddy, just get to the point!"

I hear you!

The secret shortcut is...Not looking for shortcuts!

That's right! Your biggest shortcut is NO shortcut.

Yes, yes. I can hear your facepalm from all the way over here.

But hear me out!

Most people are so preoccupied searching for a shortcut to the top, they end up completely missing their opportunity to climb. Some get so caught up in the idea of hacking the system they add untold amounts of stress, cost, and TIME to their success journey.

In fact, few things cost more time, money, and stress than shortcuts!

How do I know?

You see it all the time in various groups and communities. Also...I'm good at learning lessons, but I sometimes learn them the hard way. Which is to say…the costly way.

And by costly, I mean $30,000.

Allow me to Illustrate!

Early in my crowdfunding career, I sought one such shortcut.

I had already made a success of publishing novels, and my first Kickstarter had done exactly as I intended. So I may have gotten a little cocky.

I thought it was time for proper growth!

Therefore, I invested an ungodly amount of time, effort, and finances in the project.

I invested everything!

Ah! But I had a secret 😉

I'd developed a relationship with the business manager of the biggest influencer in my market.

I made the decision to spend $30,000 on a 30 second promo spot on their weekly stream. I'd asked around and reviews were mixed, but it seemed to have worked for a lot of people.

Now, there's nothing inherently wrong with spending $30,000 on a promo. These days, spending $30,000 on a promotion scares me a lot less than it did then (it's amazing how quickly things like that change).

There were, however, a lot of things wrong with my intentions, expectations, and mindset...not to mention that we couldn't really afford another $30,000 (we had already spread $30,000 across a dozen other promotions).

And I should have realized something was wrong early on. My communications with the business manager were fraught with frustration. They kept demanding that we change our launch date and were very unhelpful when we asked questions.

In retrospect...it was clear things were heading in the wrong direction from the outset, but my head was so wrapped up in growing my audience as fast as possible (in finding a shortcut), so I completely ignored the alarm bells.

Long Story Short...

The promotion fell flat on its face.

I can point my finger all day long (get your mind out of the gutter) BUT no matter how many things the promoter did wrong, the buck stopped at my front door.

I rushed into something head first and took a big risk without running proper projections and calculations.

I allowed my emotions and desire for a shortcut to get in the way.

I learned that there is no such thing as a shortcut to success.

And it cost me $30,000, during a time when margins were tighter than tight.

This loss ate into the project's profits and then some and had a HUGE negative impact on growth the rest of that year.

In fact, it cost a ton of time and a year of major stress as I struggled to claw my business out of a seemingly endless sinkhole. It almost cost me my company and several people their jobs.

So much for finding a shortcut!

Don't worry, we're all good now.

But, PLEASE!

The next time you think you see a shortcut...or you stumble upon someone selling a shortcut...remember that there is ONLY ONE shortcut to success.

And that is NOT TAKING ANY SHORTCUTS!

Is losing $30,000 irresponsible and embarrassing? Of course it is! But it also served as a vital lesson. And I want to share that lesson with you so you don’t have to learn it the way I did.

I don't want you to lose your funds, your sanity, or your sleep.

Wanting to grow fast is normal...like when you were a teenager and couldn't wait to be an adult.

But growth comes with time. Just keep climbing, and you'll be there before you know it.

But NO shortcuts 😀

Because the bottom line in the picture above is what a shortcut to success actually looks like.

Take it from someone who took a "shortcut"! 🙂