Tag Archives: entrepreneur

The Real Cost of Virtual Spending

August 23, 2011 View Comments

A post on Slashdot about Virtual Land today got me to thinking about how strongly some games take over the player’s “actual” lives. We’ve all heard the stories about World of Warcraft fanatics (and the girlfriends who leave them)… and if you’re a fan of the American television series Office Space, you probably remember when Dwight became obsessed with Second Life…

And then there’s the story of Ailin Graef, the world’s first virtual millionaire. She has made a fortune selling virtual real estate as well as handling tons of virtual currency to real currency exchanges every day… 

Foursquare is working monetizing their site by on incorporating coupons into their app as well the option to link your foursquare and Amex accounts…

I can’t help wonder… what happened to paper money?

 

 

I won’t lie. I pay my bills online and use a debit card a lot of the time rather than carrying cash. I can’t help but wonder though… isn’t the virtualization of money causing us to become even more detached from our spending? Paying for something with physical cash money is an entirely different experience than paying with your iPhone or tap payments.

And what will be the eventual outcome of this virtualization of spending? Are we all on the road to a deep dark pit of debt (like some governments seem to have fallen into…)

 

Entrepreneur Anshe Chung Makes $Millions Selling Virtual Land …
Anshe was the first person whose virtual property exceeded a real world value of 1 million dollars, and Anshe Chung Studios is perhaps the single largest third party developer of virtual property ever. … http://singularityhub.com/2011/08/23/entrepreneur-anshe-chung-makes-millions-selling-virtual-land-banking-and-fashion/

Virtual Property Tycoon FAST Online Money Making Masterplan …
Exposed At Last: The Invisible Secret That Online ‘Virtual Property‘ Millionaires Are Using Mercilessly To Turn FREE-TO-ALL Information Into Huge And Fast Lump Sum Payouts Without Any Marketing Know How, Customers

http://doublenature.com/internet-marketing/virtual-property-tycoon-fast-online-money-making-masterplan.html

 

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Do you think that the virtualization of spending will be the downfall of us all? And… I suppose a bit of a follow-up to my previous post about Security in the Cloud… what’s the risk of our personal bank and credit card information falling into the wrong hands?

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Exciting News…

August 15, 2011 View Comments

My good friend, Andrew Warner, interviewed me for his website, Mixery.com on Friday. It was a great experience. I’ve know Andrew for years and it was a lot of fun to talk through a bit of my own history in the world of startups and entrepreneurship with him.

 

Check out the full video interview now at Mixergy.com and be sure to let me know what you think. I would love your feedback.

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Wanna make $1m per year just wearing T-shirts? Who doesn’t right?

August 3, 2011 View Comments

A slacker’s dream: Make a cool million without having to do much of anything other than getting dressed in the morning. Totally just a pipe dream, right? We all know that making money takes hard work and long hours slaving away at our computers, right? 

Maybe it takes a little of both…

You’ve probably already heard the story of Jason Sadler and IWearYourShirt.com but if not, here’s a brief background:

In 2009, Jason turned himself into a human billboard of sorts by wearing the tshirts of hundreds of advertisers. He charged just $1 for January 1, 2009 and then $2 for January 2nd and so on… up until December 31, 2009, which cost $365. He wore each shirt for a full day and wrote about  and posted about it on via various social media outlets including Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. He made $70,000 that first year.

In 2010, Jason added another employee who also wore tshirts. In 2011, Jason and 4 other people wear the tshirts each day and January 1, 2011 cost $5… January 2nd, 2011 cost $10 and so on. This year, Jason will make more than $220,000 and he expects to bring in half a million next year, with no stopping in site.

Here’s an excerpt from his interview with David Seaman at entrepreneur.com:

DS: What gave you the idea for I Wear Your Shirt?
Jason: I’ve always been a creative thinker and, of course, have always worn shirts like everyone else. When the Million Dollar Homepage became a sensation a few years ago I knew there had to be something I could come up with that would hopefully be as successful and, maybe down the road, just as profitable.

Inspired by other people’s success, Jason is well on his way to the Millionaire’s club himself…

Jason’s personal blog, Focus More, Do Less suggests “Stop trying to do everything.”

On July 29th, Jason blogged about his plans for IWearYourShirt in 2012:
“I’m definitely wearing shirts next year and we will be having multiple shirt wearers. I firmly believe in what we do each and every day is helping companies and I know this because 90%+ tell me this. Social media is still new and brands need a unique way to get themselves out there… I can’t believe it’ll be year #4 for IWYS and you better believe it’s going to be even more kick ass than the past 3!”

He also wrote about his efforts to focus more on IWYS and do less of the extraneous stuff that always comes up. I’m of the same mentality (or at least I try to be) and this was a great reminder for me. I tend to get super excited about a new idea or project and I want to get it done, fast. But it’s important to maintain focus on the things that are actually important to driving our business rather than all of the little things that come up.

With that said, here is your Action Item for Startups based upon the life and times of Jason Sadler:
Strive for Balance – Jason says, “Work/life/balance is effing tough.” But it’s important to find that balance that’s right for you. Being out of balance not only affects your work, your relationships, but your personal health as well. (Jason mentioned on his blog that he’s gained weight, been eating terribly and more stressed than he’s ever been.) The lesson here is to take time for yourself. Taking the time for eating well, exercising, and meditation (or other forms of relaxation) are actually GOOD for your business. Because when you are strong and healthy, you’re better prepared to face the challenges ahead.

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