How I Made My First Million

What I’m about to tell you isn’t theory.

When my partner and I started our current business, we had nothing.

No money.

(Only $5,000 to our name.)

No experience.

(Not a single day worked in sales, marketing, or real estate.)

When I tell you the first few months were rough…

I mean it.

We were so broke, we couldn’t afford groceries.

We’d walk around the supermarket at lunchtime eating food off the shelves just to save money.

It sounds funny now, considering our business made 8 figures in under 4 years…

But at the time, we had hit rock bottom.

It was our lowest point…

Our wake-up call…

Our signal that something had to change if we wanted to make our first million.

The 6 Secrets

What led me to make my first million was changing my mindset in 6 ways.

And you can use them too.

Now, I know what you’re probably thinking:

“Mindset won’t make you a million dollars.”

I get it.

I know what it feels like to have no money and be told over and over again that a mindset shift can fix it all.

It seems like “woo-woo” bullshit…

But if I can go from broke and homeless, to making my first million with 6 mindset shifts…

Then so can you.

Secret 1: Fix Your Money Mindset

Money’s out there to be made.

It’s constantly printed, tossed into circulation, and made available to you...

Your issue isn’t a question of, “Why don’t I have enough money?”

It’s a question of, “Where is the money and how can I get it?”

Think about money as an infinite resource and adopt an abundance mindset.

Money isn’t a game where one person wins and one loses.

Everyone can live a life of affluence.

Because if there’s not enough money to go around today…

More will be printed tomorrow.

Your first step is to ditch the scarcity mindset — the idea that there’s not enough for everyone…

And normalise accessing affluence, wealth, and abundance in different environments.

You might not be able to afford a Lamborghini right now…

But you can test drive one.

How does it feel to sit in the driver’s seat? 

You might not be able to afford to stay at a 5-star hotel right now…

But you can order a fancy cocktail in the hotel bar.

How do the hotel guests act?

You might not be able to afford a $2M house right now…

But you can go to the open house.

How does it feel to imagine this is “my” home?

Expose yourself to what that abundance feels like, and put yourself in those environments.

This is how you manifest your financial goals.

Fix your money mindset by attracting exactly what you want.

Once you begin to understand what a life of abundance looks like for you…

Start to visualise the goals, habits, and rituals that will get you there.

Secret 2: Form Habits and Rituals

It’s no secret that forming good habits help you stay on track to reach your goals…

But before we dive in, you need to figure out your “why.”

Start by answering 2 key questions:

• What is my goal?

• Why is that my goal?

The “why” is super important because if you’re not emotionally attached to the outcome you’re creating…

You won’t care if you reach that goal or not…

You won’t prioritise the longevity needed to pursue that goal to the end.

And, if you’re already set up to give up… then the habits and rituals don’t matter much, do they?

Once you know your “why,” you can start building habits to reach your financial goals.

And one of those habits is the daily visualisation of your goals.

When I had no money, every single morning I’d write: “What does my future look like?”

And yes, write with a pen and a piece of paper.

I’d write my short-term and long-term goals as if they’d already happened:

• “I have $1 million sitting in the bank.”

• “I have a healthy, strong relationship with my partner.”

• “I have a successful business that is growing and expanding.”

The universe will give you everything you want, as fast as you want, and in the volume you desire…

As long as you believe and are open to receiving…

And ready to do the work to make it happen.

By making visualisation a daily habit, you will unlock the future you want.

And cultivate strong financial habits that align with your goals like budgeting, saving, and investing.

So, you have the tools to manifest your financial dreams, but now you have to embody it physically.

I'm talking about the habit of regular exercise.

When I was at my lowest point financially and mentally, I was also in the worst shape of my life.

When I was at my best, I was exercising for 60+ minutes every single day.

It might not seem like exercise is related to reaching your financial goals…

But it’s more about stress and anxiety management…

And the capacity to reach Flow State.

Physical exercise combined with the formation of a habit that keeps you focused, committed, and healthy…

Sets you up for success.

So, anyone can say, “I want to make $1 million.”

But the people who actually make it?

Are the ones who build healthy habits and rituals — and stick to them.

Secret 3: Learn a High-Value Skill

Test-driving a Lamborghini and writing out your goals is all well and good.

But if your brain isn’t hard-wired to do the work…

You’ll never reach your financial goals.

You have to start “doing the work,” but you also need to face a hard truth:

You don’t have the skills you need to reach your goals right now.

And I say that from experience.

When I started as a business owner…

I knew nothing about marketing or real estate.

If I relied on the knowledge I started with — which was zero — I would have failed.

I didn’t have the skills to succeed…

But I didn’t get discouraged.

Because I trusted myself to learn them.

And I got to work.

The first step is to identify the high-value, in-demand skills that will increase your earning potential.

For me, it was sales and marketing.

I love sales as a high-value skill because for me, it’s a surprisingly profound concept…

It’s bigger than being “good” at asking people for money.

Sales is about helping people get out of their own way…

To become the best versions of themselves…

To see a better, more effective way of doing something.

If you’re strapped for cash like I was, you might feel a resistance to prioritising learning a skill.

“I barely have money to eat, how can I spend money on building a skill?”

I get it — trust me, I do.

But when you’re trying to make your first million dollars…

You are the investment with the highest ROI.

Constantly learning and growing to become the best version of yourself is something that will never decrease in value.

So, with whatever money you have…

Pay for the necessities, then invest every spare cent you’ve got in yourself.

Invest in opportunities to:

Build, refine, and update your skills.

• Focus on areas of personal development.

• Transform yourself from who you are to who you want to be.

If you combine continuous self-improvement with continuous learning…

You will always add value to the marketplace.

But you need to create value through personal development and skill-building first.

Secret 4: Focus on Solving a Problem

As I said before, the best path to success is helping people become the best versions of themselves.

But when it comes to business, you need to do that strategically.

Put aside what you think people want… and find out what they actually want.

Look at your target audience and consider the following questions from their perspective:

• What problems are they having?

• What value can I add?

• How can I help solve their problem?

When considering your service, think about the size of the problem you’re solving.

The bigger the problem you solve…

The more value you will add.

This is where your commitment to education and self-development comes in.

Your newly acquired, high-value skill could be the solution your audience needs.

That’s exactly what I did with my company, Dashdot.

Dashdot helps people build scalable property portfolios…

But I didn’t choose real estate because it sounded “fun.”

I tried to buy a property myself and lost a bunch of money.

I made a lot of mistakes.

And I felt like that shouldn’t have happened.

So, to avoid making even more mistakes, I committed to learning the skills I needed to succeed.

I learned high-value skills like due diligence, negotiation, and running numbers…

Pretty soon, I got really good at it, then people started finding their way to me… asking me to help them avoid the same disaster I found myself in.

And that’s how Dashdot was born.

If you put people at the centre of everything you do, you will have greater longevity in business and in building wealth.

There’s no shortage of benefits from helping others.

Secret 5: Know Your Numbers

I attribute my success to self-development, learning, and helping others.

But another secret deserves the spotlight, too…

Knowing your numbers.

“Now hang on a sec…You want me to write out things like, ‘I have a million bucks in my bank account’...”

Then look at my empty bank account?”

… sort of, yeah.

The universe works in a dichotomy where everything “is” and “is not” simultaneously.

We want our finances to exist in the same “is” and “is not” dichotomy.

So yes, visualise your dream bank account balance and write it out every single morning.

But also take the time to consistently review ALL your numbers.

If you run a business, that means things like:

• Analysing key financial metrics like revenue, overheads and profit margins…

• Reviewing your marketing funnel and conversion rates along the way...

• Auditing your client experience metrics for signs that everyone is happy…

If you’re not looking at the cold, hard data on a regular basis…

How can you know if your goals are within reach?

Simple: you can’t.

To this day, I still look at our numbersdaily.

I always want to know:

• Are things going up?

• Are they going down?

• What can I do about what I see?

Build this muscle now.

Become obsessed with your numbers, and looking for trends…

Then watch your success soar.

Secret 6: Discipline and Focus

Show up and do the damn thing.

Because discipline and focus will bring you success.

So, take what we’ve learned, and sprinkle discipline and focus into the mix.

Fix your money mindset…

But remember embracing abundance is bigger than the shiny Lamborghini.

Form habits and rituals…

But don’t give up on the days you’re tired or unmotivated.

Learn high-value skills…

But commit to professional development on a regular basis.

Focus on helping people…

But consistently remind yourself that people are more important than profit.

Know your numbers…

But don’t give up visualisation at the expense of data-informed decisions.

Self-discipline is one of the greatest contributors to my transformation.

My accomplishment of turning nothing into my first $1 million (and now over $20 million)…

My ability to grow a successful, impactful business…

My consistent schedule and daily practices for growth.

At the end of the day, the idea behind self-discipline is simple.

When things get tough — remember your goals and keep going.

No matter what happens…

Then reassess, come up with new goals, and start again.

That’s how you make your first million.

The Payoff

When it comes to reaching a goal like making your first million, there’s one thing that delays success...

Patience.

… or a lack thereof.

People want instant gratification…

But making your first million — and every million after that — doesn’t happen overnight.

It’s playing the long game.

The more work you put in, the more you’re going to enjoy that sweet, sweet success on the other side.

Making your first million is hard work, and I’m not saying that to scare you.

I want to encourage you.

It’s a tough journey, but beauty is only ever in contrast.

Once you see that first million, and reflect on the work that got you there…

You’ll understand the process is worth the payoff.

And the payoff, I promise, is so fucking sweet.

Stay awesome, stay powerful.

P.S: Whenever you’re ready, here are a few things you might be interested in:

1. Advice On Starting Your Business: A powerful Youtube video where I answered a reader’s question on how to start a successful business.

2. 'How I Quit Alcohol' Podcast: One of my favourite interviews I’ve ever done. If you’re interested in learning how I came from rock bottom to create a life I’m proud of, you’ll want to listen.

3. Follow me on IG: Get bite-sized video content and behind-the-scenes of my nomad entrepreneur life

4. Join The Waitlist: We’re creating an exclusive online community of 6, 7 and 8-figure entrepreneurs seeking to become citizens of the world and achieve self-actualisation through business, lifestyle design, and personal evolution. I think you’ll love it: The Nomad Entrepreneur Network

And, of course, if you know other people who might enjoy content like this, please share this with them.

Your help in building this community will be forever appreciated.