The $100 MBA Show

We usually think of content as something we give away. But should you be getting something in return, besides exposure? Today, we discuss whether to build the wall — the paywall, that is. Or at the very least, whether you should require an email address or other opt-in to access your premium content. Does it deter people from accessing your content, and possibly being converted?  Or does a gate ha...

Success requires the right tools. For entrepreneurs, tool #1 is usually the laptop.  It’s Q&A Wednesday, and we’re helping one listener decide which laptop is best for her business. She’s an online coach, so her window to the online world will have a major effect on her business.  With so many options and so many features available, the mind can boggle at the sheer variety of computers out there....

We work from home. Why? More importantly, should you? Some of the reasons are obvious, like the convenience of having no commute and the money saved on renting a space. But those aren’t the only reasons we’ve chosen to run our entire business — remote team included — from the same building in which we sleep and eat.  There’s a lot more to it. We’ve been doing it this way for about 6 years. We’ve a...

How long will this take? It’s a question we have to ask about every task, big or small. One of the toughest parts of managing a team is coordinating a long-term project with some sense of timeliness. Multiple people, multiple agendas, all adding up to one result.  It can’t take too long, but it can’t be rushed, either. You need some idea of how long a project should take, but everyone has to be on...

Social media can be hard to keep up with. But for entrepreneurs, every marketing opportunity counts.  So what’s up with TikTok? There’s always a “next big thing” in social media, and many platforms are more hype than usefulness. But TikTok is making waves, and its success has reached a point where ignoring it is no longer the wisest option. It’s currently the 4th largest platform online — bigger (...

Get better at what you do. Get faster. Get more efficient.  Get things done. Today, we’re highlighting the 5 best productivity tools an entrepreneur could ask for — when the budget is $0. It’s almost shocking that these tools are free, because the value they add is incalculable. At zero cost to you, you can organize your life and work in ways that maximize your output. If you’re putting the “lean”...

Entrepreneurship is challenging. But the biggest challenge is the mental challenge to leave guaranteed outcomes behind, and strike out on your own. It’s Q&A Wednesday, and we’ve got a risk-averse listener who’s terrified of failing in business. He needs to know how to bridge the emotional gap between a comfortable day job and the wild ride of independence. Getting started means taking a leap, a br...

You busted your butt. You worked the long hours. You poured yourself into your business. Now, it’s going well. Time to take some of that time back. It may take some serious effort to get a startup started, but once that business is off the ground, you deserve to refocus on your own life and happiness. It’s way, way too easy to get stuck in the habit of overworking. Hell, it’s necessary at first. B...

You don’t need to start a business to be an entrepreneur. You just need to find one. Sometimes, there’s an alternative path we just don’t see. Jaryd Krause saw one, as a working plumber who wanted to get into business for himself. Instead of creating a whole new operation from scratch, he got into the business of businesses — buying existing companies and turning them into largely passive income s...

Apple does not sell the most devices. Apple does not bring in the most revenue. Apple does not dominate the market.  But Apple makes more money than literally every other company. Today, we discuss how, and what it can mean for you. Your business isn’t the size of Apple’s, but the profit strategy Apple uses can work just as well at any scale. It’s about putting profit first, and making sure the ma...

It might’ve taken months, or more, to earn a customer’s business — but you don’t have that long to make sure you keep it. The first phase after the initial transaction is where the most important impressions are made. Before the purchase, the customer’s excitement about your product is theoretical. Once money has changed hands, though, it’s reality time. Either this customer will get the most out...

A big project is like a big meal: you can’t swallow it all at once. When the task before you is huge, where do you start? It’s Q&A Wednesday! We’ve got a question from a listener with a conventional job, but a problem that’s very common in entrepreneurship. Our listener’s new boss wants her to implement a comprehensive new approach office-wide, but has left it completely up to her to decide how. ...

Staying focused and motivated over the course of long projects is one of those skills an entrepreneur simply has to have. It’s one of the key differences between entrepreneurship and conventional work — you’re responsible for the long term, not just the day’s or week’s to-do list.  That said, we understand how tough it can be to sustain morale over months and months, especially when the endgame se...

Interested in entrepreneurship, but afraid to quit your day job? We’ve got incredible news: you don’t have to.  This week’s special guest, Shaan Patel, built a multimillion-dollar business on the side, while working full-time as a doctor. He’s the cofounder of ClearHat digital marketing, a best-selling author, and a successful Shark Tank contestant — and he did it all without giving up his 9-to-5....

In many ways, the earliest phase of starting a new business is the most fun. The possibilities are endless. The sky’s the limit. The only boundaries are imagination.  But eventually, you have to make a decision. Today, we discuss some general, universal truths we’ve discovered in the course of founding multiple businesses. We’ll share what we’ve learned to best determine what’ll work and what won’...

Finding great employees takes time and money. But are you getting the most from your hiring budget? No entrepreneur should be afraid of investing in great team members. That said, there are smarter, less costly ways to find the right fit. With a little knowledge, you can save thousands that would otherwise be wasted on redundant efforts.  We would know — we’ve found employees the wrong way ourselv...

Your workspace matters. Efficiency, productivity, and overall well-being are greatly influenced by the feng shui of your office.  It’s Q&A Wednesday, and one listener is curious about our own setup, specifically the workspace of our intrepid host, Omar. Over the years, Omar’s tried different arrangements to facilitate writing, podcasting, video recording, and everything else. His current setup giv...

SEO means traffic, and traffic means sales. If you’ve hit an SEO plateau, we can help. Today, we offer a few simple fixes that can really move the needle on your website. Search Engine Optimization is a cottage industry, with loads of experts claiming to have the “secret” to getting your site noticed by Google, et al.  But sometimes, the simplest tricks are the most effective. We’ve got some easy-...

Are you getting the most from your customers?  Don’t be shy: when your product delivers, customers have no problem rewarding you. If they can invest in even more value from your business, that’s a win-win. But as the business owner, you can’t just expect customers to offer you more revenue.  You’ve got to make a proposition. Today, special guest Mark Thompson stops by to explain exactly how to get...

Every entrepreneur knows you gotta keep the marketing content coming. But life being life, everyone needs a break sometimes. So how can you pump the brakes without losing momentum — and disappointing your audience? There is a way. Whether you host a podcast, write a blog, or run a YouTube channel, a little planning can give you the space you need to take a pause. With relatively small adjustments...

You have too much website traffic. What a great problem to have! As your business grows, so will your site hosting needs. You can’t afford to have a slow website that loses all the traffic you’ve worked so hard to gain. This is one of those crucial conversion turning points, when the fruits of your marketing can become the next crop of leads — or not.  A bad user experience on your site will turn...

Writing ain’t easy, but it’s necessary. It’s Q&A Wednesday, and one listener wants to know if it’s ok to farm out the blogging. The written word is irreplaceable as a form of marketing content, especially when it comes to SEO. People love blogs — and so does Google. But if you’re not a natural wordsmith, should you just delegate to one of the many talented full-time writers out there?  Yes, and no...

Motivation: it’s not all about the money. When you’re running a lean startup, every cent counts — and there often aren’t that many of them. Plugging away day after day for a long-term result can get tiring, even demotivating for your staff. So how can you keep your team genuinely excited about what they do, and wanting to do their best? Today, we’ve got 5 answers to that question. We’ve built our...

Office drama is unavoidable. But how you respond to it is your choice. Today, we have a ridiculously qualified guest teacher, Anne Grady. She’s a speaker, consultant, and academic with more expertise on the psychology of intra-office relations than just about anyone. Grady is here to explain  how to proactively head off the drama, and keep your workplace as low-stress as possible. We don’t always...

Are you ready for this. Really ready? Here at The $100MBA Show, we don’t sell “the dream.” We want our audience to go into business for themselves armed with the knowledge they need. Sometimes, that means asking extremely tough questions, and accepting the honest answers for better or worse. If you don’t go in confident and sure, things can end badly. Today, we discuss 3 specific questions that mu...