Okay, the final secret. Drum roll please….

Secret #9 – Giving…

Whether you want to call it tithing (I don’t) or something else there is magic in giving a fixed percentage of your income WILLINGLY to charities, religious organizations or just individuals in need.

I donate 5% (roughly 10% of profits) of all our companies gross income to several charities I support. Last year we gave away over $120,000 and this year I hope to get to $200,000 or more.

A lot of people talk about how they want to donate some huge sum of money to a charity or their church but then never get around to it because they feel like they don’t have enough right now or it’s not the right time. Frankly, I think it’s because it is not a systematic, regimented giving plan. If you would have told me a few years ago – I’d regularly be giving $10k, $15k, $20k+ checks each month to charities – I would have thought you were crazy because I could use that extra money myself for something. But when it becomes just a way you operate it’s much easier to start writing those checks with big zeros behind them. My dad thinks I’m nuts when I told him how much I donate but I’m more that pleased with my decision.

Where I Found This

One of the first times I heard about this was from the late Foster Hibbard, who worked with Napoleon Hill. Foster talked about setting up a “giving account” and a “wealth account”. The set-up was simple. You would take a fixed percentage of all money that comes in to you (i.e. 5%, 10%, etc) and put that amount into both accounts each time you received it. I only do monthly – but this follows the “pay yourself first” philosophy of getting rich also. So each month 5% gets paid off the top no matter what to myself (for investments and buying assets not toys) and 5% gets paid to a charity of my choice. (Dan Kennedy worked with Foster Hibbard and has a great distillation of this and his own wealth building philosophy in his book “No BS Wealth Attraction for Entrepreneurs”)

Fact is, I could see significant jumps in my own income once I started this 5% charitable giving. Some of the wealthiest and most successful people of all-time had discovered this secret. It’s been said that Rockefeller walked around everyday with a roll of dimes and gave them away. Carnegie was one of the biggest philanthropists building public libraries. Many people talk about the ‘filth rich’ or how ‘greedy’ rich people are – I’ve found just the opposite. Most of the truly wealthy and successful individuals are some of the biggest & most generous contributors around.

One perfect example I know personally is Frank McKinney. The Wall Street Journal refers to him as “The Daredevil Developer and Real Estate Rock Czar”. Frank builds these mega, multi-million dollar mansion in Florida on speculation (meaning no buyer before he builds it). And the guy plays just as hard for charity. He founded the Caring House Project Foundation to build self-sustaining housing and communities for the desperately housing. In fact, I’m one of the co-hosts for an upcoming event going on in November that should be absolutely incredible called “Frank McKinney’s Palm Beach Experience”. It’s worth checking out and all monies raised goes direct to the charity.

I firmly believe you cannot out-give the Universe.

If that statement is true than anything you give out comes back to you in kind multiple times. Meaning from a pragmatic standpoint you could look at this ally as a return on “charitable investment”. But that’s not it. There’s an incredible feeling from knowing one check you wrote sustained an entire village of enterpreneurial upstarts – like when I donate to Village Enterprise Fund. Or when you get a handwritten note from one of the charities you support talking about how surprised they were to get a $15,000 check out of the blue and what kind of help that means to their program.

Personally, I do due diligence on the charity I’m going to support for that particular month and then I write the check without expectation of what is going to happen with the money. At some point very soon I want to be able to even create my own foundation and donate more than just money – but for now this is my contribution.

A little behind the scenes disclosure – one of my goals with InternetLifestyle.com is to ask members to agree to give away 5% of their revenues that are a result of what they use from the site. My goal is $100,000,000.00 in donations per year from our members to charities of their choice. That’s only 2000 people each making a $1M/year.

I want to hear your thoughts on this and maybe try a little experiment…

For the next 3 months give away 5% of your gross income to a charity, religious organization or persons in need. Do NOT do it out of guilt. Do it with a light-heart and without expectation of what is coming back to you. Or if that’s too big of a step – try this and report back here. Just take out five $20 bills and look for someone to give them to who is in need with no expectation of return. Post your results and let us know what happened.
 

There’s been a lot of changes going on in my life lately…new house, new baby….and I guess a new site right here…

About 6 months ago, I purchased this domain (InternetLifestyle.com) because I thought it really captured everything I’m about. So I’m looking forward to seeing how this site evolves (and hopefully you’ll have a say in it). I really want to be beyond any type of “box” product.

It seems like just yesterday (really it was 2000) I started working out of my 1-bedroom apartment with a glimmer of an idea for my first website. (Yeah, I know this sounds like an informercial already – but I promise I will not show you how to place tiny classified ads.)

And now today, I have dozens of successful websites bringing in automatic cash flow for me regardless if I work or not. Of course, some months are better than others depending on if I’m actively running a promotion or not – but my original site InstantSalesLetters.com is still going strong after 7 ½ years making 6-figures per year.

Not bad, right?

Considering the fact I’ve basically not changed the site in years – I’d say pretty darn good. (Now, of course that’s another post when I show you how stupid and lazy I’ve been by not testing enough on this site and how I’m changing it.) And I still have no clue how to put up my own website.

Personally, the Internet Lifestyle means being able to do pretty much whatever you want, almost anytime you want and let the Internet pay for it!

Actually, most of my friends still wonder how I’m driving around in a brand new Aston Martin and how my wife, Missy, and I can take off for so many trips. A few years ago, we spent 2 months living on the beach in Manhattan Beach, California where we rented a house and just brought our laptops. I picked Manhattan Beach because I’m big into beach volleyball (even though I’m 5’8” – but I can jump!)

And that’s just another aspect of the Internet Lifestyle to me – do your work from anywhere you can get an Internet connection and follow your passions. I loved being able to look out at the Pacific Ocean each day and play volleyball almost every other day there. Last year we headed back again for a few weeks but this time with our son, Zak.

Personally, my own Internet Lifestyle means experiencing life to the fullest and living adventures! I get my thrills from any kind of extreme activity like Running with the Bulls, bungee jumping, sky diving, Baja racing, exotic car road rallies, falling out of attics, Zero G flights, an upcoming trip into space and more. I’ve posted a lot of these on my InternetRoadTrip.com blog.

I know for some people these kind of outlandish adventures aren’t for them – but if there is something you’re passionate about and excited for you can do it thanks to the income generated online. Or some people don’t need to make a fortune online – they’re happy with a little website on the side making a few extra bucks and maybe paying for a car payment or 2.

Truth is, never before have we lived in such a time filled with immense opportunity to do your own thing…quickly and easily. The Internet has truly been a revolution for anyone that wants to either “Moonlight Online” or got at it full-time and make a solid 6 or 7-figure+ income.

I love it when I hear from others living the “Internet Lifestyle” and would love to hear your comments.

If you’re already succeeding online what’s the best aspect of the Internet Lifestyle for you? Or what would the ultimate Internet Lifestyle look like for you?

Here are a couple things off the top of my head what the Internet Lifestyle means to me:

• Being able to take my son to his “My Gym” class on a Thursday and be the only Dad there.
• Having people from all over the world respect and appreciate your contributions.
• Meeting exciting and switched-on Entrepreneurs who enjoy having fun and good times to “mastermind” in whatever city we decide on. (Hmm…Amsterdam and Vegas were interesting!)
• Never having to set my alarm clock. (Or more recently being naturally awoken to the soothing sounds of a newborn crying.
• Drinking a beer (or 2) for lunch.
• Having money come in on autopilot while I was sleeping.
• Doing the work once and getting paid over and over again.
• Being able to fund nearly any kind of adventure by putting out another quality product or offering.
• Wearing shorts and t-shirts all day.
• Never having to worry about shaving.
• Forgetting what “Rush Hour” is and being surprised when you hit a standstill on the beltway in the afternoon.
• Never answering to a boss.
• Being able to turn off the laptop and take Zak to the Splash park
• Having your Accountant perplexed and surprised when you see him each year at what you do and how much it brings in.
• Being able to watch every little milestone in your son’s (and now daughter’s) life. Everything from his first real smile, first step and first word.
• Working with who I want…when I want.
• Deciding to splurge on a bottle of Colgin IX Syrah at a steakhouse with your buddies.
• Never waiting in lines because your concierge has put you on the VIP list.
• Not living for the weekends.
• Not having to look at the right-hand side of a menu when deciding what to order.
• Contributing to the causes and charities that are important to me.

Now to be honest, it’s not all good leading the Internet Lifestyle and working out of the house.

Missy will forget I have a “real” job and interrupt me to ask about what kind of rug we should get for the kitchen. Or Zak will knock on my office door during a conference call asking for “DaDa”. Or having the fridge be a few feet away to grab the last slice of pizza anytime I want.

But I wouldn’t want it any other way. Let’s hear your thoughts – post a comment.

What is your Internet Lifestyle?

What do you love about your own Internet Lifestyle? Or if you haven’t got there yet – how would you like it look like? See if you can list 10 things…

I’ve been meaning to post this – so I guess I can catch up a bit over the holidays.

Late October I played in the “Freeze the Disease” celebrity hockey game in Los Angeles. Thanks to you guys, we raised $11,500.00 to go towards cystic fibrosis research.

I was only in LA for 2 nights and I was pretty worried because when I got to LAX my hockey bag and sticks didn’t arrive. I had to have them by 12 noon the next day and I called the lost luggage line like 8 times to make sure everything really was on the way. My sticks and bag came on 2 separate planes – no idea why. But luckily, it all worked out and I got my gear around 11 am at my hotel.

We started the day hanging out in a huge VIP skybox at the Staples Center to watch the Kings play the Anaheim Ducks. It was pretty cool because in the box I was hanging out with a couple of the celebs. I talked up some wines with Jason Priestley (from Beverly Hills 90210) and his wife, Naomi. He’s got a 4,000 bottle cellar so that’s definitely a passion for him. A few notables also in the skybox were Alan Thicke (Growing Pains), Michael Vartan (Alias), Mark DeCarlo (Taste of America) and Bobby Farrelly.

Bobby is one half of the Farrelly brothers responsible for the hilarious “There’s Something About Mary” movie & others. Bobby was the goalie on my team and we talked for a few minutes there – I was interested in if he immerses himself in other people’s movies or not. Surprisingly, he told me he pretty much doesn’t watch many movies so that his comedy and writing stay unique.

The highlight for me was meeting “Mr. Hockey” Gordie Howe. Gordie is an absolute hockey legend and a true gentleman. This is a guy who played hockey professionally for 6 decades and widely regarded as one of hockey’s greatest player’s ever. In fact, Wayne Gretzky grew up idolizing him. Here’s his Wikipedia entry for more info.
About 10 minutes into the third period we all went down to the makeshift locker room (picture just a few drapes set up) to get changed for the game. I’ve played in professional rinks before when I grew up but it’s still a thrill to walk onto the ice in front of a few thousand fans.

I centered the second line with Maria Dennis from the U.S. Women’s National Team (1990) and Michael Faye, a noted photographer. The first shift out on the ice I took the puck all the way to the through the Defense and got a good backhander on net. I was thinking I’d make some good contributions coming off a 2-goal game the week prior during the University of Maryland Alumni game. But after that first shift – I pretty much did nothing noteworthy. (I didn’t even check Priestly like I joked with him I would in the skybox )

The only other semi-shining moment (that wasn’t) happened when I got a centering feed in the 3rd period from Faye and the goalie made a point-blank stop on me. Oh well, it didn’t matter much since we got trounced 11-5. We were missing a bunch of our ex-pros and at the last minute the other team picked up Igor Larinov, the all-star who retired from the Red Wings. I took 2 face offs against Igor and the first time he just let me win the puck without trying. The next time, I told him in Russian, “Okay, let’s go for real”. He was a little taken back and then we squared off for real.

After the game a lot of us hung out in the make-shift locker room drinking a few beers. I was drinking for awhile with Bobby Hull, Jr., son of famous BlackHawks legend, Bobby Hull and Brett Hull’s brother. We took his H2 over to Michael Faye’s studio a few blocks away for a little after-game party. That’s where I ended up talking to my new celebrity buddy, Mark DeCarlo. I told Mark I remembered him from a few years ago as the host of “Studs”. You might not remember that show – but you’d probably recognize Mark is you saw his mug on his site – http://www.markdecarlo.com/. He told me he’s working on a new show called “Tripping Out” which is right up my alley with cool adventures around the world.

Here are a few pics (I’m waiting on a few more from the organizers)…

The crowd all cheering for one man….no it wasn’t me…Michael Vartan!

#12 in the program but #1 in your heart!

Here’s Gordie (Mr. Hockey) grabbing my jersey ready to brawl

Checking the score and wondering how we’re getting crushed 11-5

Me and Bobby Hull, Jr having a few beers after the game