Why you need to become an expert. EP #164 - Den Lennie

G', day, guys. Dan here with another episode of the how to Scale a Video Business Podcast.

This is episode 164.

And today I want to talk about why it's so important to become an expert in your field, in your niche, if you will, or your niche, if you're over the pond.

And it's. It's so critical because.

Otherwise you're trying to appeal to everyone. And when you try to appeal to everyone, you end up talking to no one. So it's super important that you develop expertise in your niche or niche and become a master of that.

You know, building a business is. Is really, really hard. And I'm. I want to rant about this a bit this week because I've been having a lot of conversations recently, and, you know, we turn away at least 50% of people who apply to be in our programs. And. And it's not to put you off. It's actually because we're very picky about who we want to work with, and because we want to work with people who are having great results. You know, just in this last week alone, one of my clients just announced he'd won a $35,000 project for one month. In fact, it says somewhere between 35 and 45. Another client's just $130,000 project. You know, regularly people are winning 10, 20, $30,000 projects, and it's not because they're like, you know, they've got some special secret. It's just that they're following the process that we teach in the vba, which is to become an expert in your niche or your niche and become known for that, your market. Because once you become known for that, you become an expert. Once you become an expert, everybody wants to work with you because. Or you're the guy who works in the kitchen equipment manufacturing, or you work in medical devices, or you work in health care, or you work in government. And so it's like, you can sit and listen to this and fight it as much as you want, but the clients that I'm working with who are focusing on stuff, style, or a niche or a niche are absolutely killing it and never have to worry about work. Now, that's not to say they don't have to work hard, because that's not what I'm saying. And building a business takes time, and it is hard. In fact, it's likely to be the hardest thing you'll ever, ever do. There's no job security, and you risk everything at almost every decision you make. But it also takes time. You know, You've got to be prepared for it to take seven to 10 years until you're really established. And oftentimes I speak to people who've been doing this just a couple of years, two or three years, and they've usually spent a stupid amount of money on gear. I mean, the record, I had a conversation with someone who'd spent £128,000 on equipment and was going out for £500 a day. It was just, it was just embarrassing. Like, you know, you've got to stop buying gear thinking that that is what clients give a shit about, because they don't. And I'm not saying you shouldn't have some good technology, but just like try and curb the disease. I had another call with someone who was really needed some help but couldn't afford coming to the program. But I just spent a thousand dollars on some new atem all singing, all dancing mixer when the basic version would have done. So like, you know, I'm not here to get into gear conversation, but like, just, just stop thinking that if you buy the equipment, it's going start to somehow magically make the work. So anyway, back to this idea of 7 to 10 years to really build a business.

I mean, you know, if you're willing to be patient, you can have everything you ever wanted. But you know, it's going to take seven to 10 years one way or the other. The alternative is you can work for someone else, but you'll never ever have true autonomy.

So we have to do is rationalize the rough with the smooth. You know, for me, it was 2008 when I got to a point where I just couldn't bear having to ask another grown man's permission if I could take a holiday or a day off. It was just the last straw for me. I didn't, I didn't want to have to kind of try and plan my family's vacations around whether or not some of the other guys in the office were off on holiday or not. And so I made the decision that, that I wanted to take control of my destiny. And you know, so, you know, at the time I was working for someone who is a bit of a control freak as well. And it was difficult to kind of really, you know, paint my own kind of brush. And it was his company, so I guess fair enough, you know, so. So I knew I couldn't stomach the situation any longer. And you know, don't get me wrong, financially I was doing really well. But I know that money doesn't make you happy alone. And despite earning in excess of six figures in that dear job and a company car and all sorts of cool benefits and bonuses, I was pretty unhappy. And so the only option for me was to go along. And after all, I thought I could do my job better outside of the organization. Anyway, I got to a point where I kept locking horns with the business owner and I was only ever going to go one way.

And I've read that if you have a kind of entrepreneurial tendency that you have to kind of embrace a certain naivety because it's the only way to take the leap of faith off the cliff edge, but couple that with just enough optimism and determination to truly believe that you can't fail. And that is what I believe summarizes the entrepreneurial journey.

And at the time, I'd been responsible in part for running a very successful web TV channel.

And at the time, I could see a shift to video as a powerful means of communication in corporate scenarios. So I went off and set up Fstop Academy.

With a business partner at the time. And just as a side note, I wanted you to exercise real caution about going into business partnerships.

Never ever go into a partnership unless you have a cast iron what if scenario documented and signed. I learned the hard way there was lots of things I just didn't know about this person at the time that I went into business with them. And it became a bit of a nightmare once we were actually there, but it cost me a lot of money to get out of it. But, you know, that situation very quickly disintegrated, as I hear so often with business partnerships where two parties get very enthusiastic about.

You know, what, what is possible. And then, and then one party just has their own agenda. And so I was kind of left holding the baby somewhat. And you know, in retrospect, it was the best thing that ever happened to me because I was suddenly, I'd given my six figure job, I'd remortgaged my house to start this business, and then I was held there going, what have I got now? So the best thing that happened me because. Because looking back, I was forced to dig deep and become really resourceful.

And it taught me more importantly that I had to get out there and sell. Because without sales, your business is just an expensive hobby. Let me see that again. Without sales and a focus on sales, your business is just an expensive hobby. Cash is the oxygen that allows your business to breathe. So if you have poor cash flow or low sales, then get off your arse and sell, because that is what is separating you from having all the success you want. And sales does not have to be sleazy. Sales is serving when it's done right. And we've got an incredible sales process in our, in our VBA for our members. That, and it's scripted. They basically take a script to use every time and they're always adding extra money to their quotes because of the way we ask the questions. It really is a phenomenal tool.

So the other thing is, is that when you start a business, you assumed 100% ownership of success and failure and everything in between. So it's very important that you accept that, that, that is the, that is the job you take on. You have to own everything. If you don't own everything, then you're going to be in trouble. You can't make excuses, you can't bullshit yourself when running a business.

And it's so easy to get carried away with the process and buying gear, but once that dust has settled, that's when the cold hard light of day beams down. You know, in year one and really every year after, from being brutally honest, your focus needs to be solely on sales. If you're making less than a million dollars a year, us okay, whatever equivalent that is in your, in your money, then your number one priority is sales and marketing. Letting people know you exist, letting people know how you can help them and selling them a solution that they pay you for that actually delivers the result.

You know, you just can't turn up and hope that people will hire you.

You know, and it's funny, someone said to me a little while ago, oh, well, it's all right for you, Dan, because you're Dan Lenny and you do all this Sony work.

And I said, you know, it actually means nothing in a commercial environment. Every single Sony project I have produced has been fought for strategically and I delivered huge value. Which meant in turn they asked me back.

You know, I did a whole period of, when I first came to Australia, we did the FS5 launch film back in 2015. And then I spent probably best part of and a half years going all around Asia for Sony, speaking at YouTube events. And you know, they asked me way back, maybe sort of March of 2017, if I do it. And even though they said they had these like eight or ten events all over Asia, they'd only confirm me like one gig at a time. And, and, and, and each, even though they said we've got these, these 10 different events across Asia over the next two years. And at each presentation they would send someone from Sony and they would write a report on me and send it back to Japan. So despite producing five launch films at the time, I think it's up to eight now. And I was still under continual scrutiny. And that is because they want to make sure that the message is right and that they're still getting value. And obviously I charge a premium for my services. So they, you know, they make, they want to make sure they're getting good value.

So the point is I have to deliver my A game on every single talk and engagement.

And every time I do an engagement, I provide a new quote and it's scrutinized. So don't ever believe that I somehow have it easier because I don't. I still have to jump through all the hoops. I'm probably just a little more polished at it nowadays. And I know what to say and how to argue my case for rates and travel. I always travel business class class. And they always ask why is the flight price so high? And I'm saying, well, because it's business class. They're like, oh, we don't normally pay business class. And I'm like, well if you want me to fly to India for a day and get on stage and deliver absolute value to your audience at YouTube, then that, that is my terms. Otherwise I'm going to fly from Sydney to, you know, Hyderabad and be exhausted and get up on stage and look like a bag of shit and not be able to string a word together. So you know, I always explained why.

And it's maybe, maybe the guy who suggested that I kind of somehow have it easier, confused reputation based on hard graft and over delivering every single time to every single person in every single department I've ever dealt with it. Sony Australia, Sony Japan, so Europe, the uk, you know, for somehow just being lucky, you know, everything was hard earned. And so let me be clear, I've always had to work for it, but I'm very smart about it. I always ensure I charge accordingly for my time. And I'm certainly not cheap compared to other names on the Internet who are very popular in these circles. But I'm not expensive. You know, one phrase I like to use when people ask how much? I say, you know, not as much as you think, but more than worth it. And like I said, you know, I always make it a part of my arrangement that I get business class travel and five star hotels. But let me explain why. Okay, so the point one, positioning it elevates my expert status if I stand out. And by the way, I'm always willing to Walk away if they're not happy to oblige me with ads, which just adds power to the frame.

Number two is I value my time. So I'm going to fly to Seoul or Bangkok or India for three days. I'm actually spending six days disrupted. So let's say I fly Tuesday evening, which means I leave the office at 2pm and I return to Sydney on Sunday morning. My engagements are actually only two days, so I charge for two days plus travel and I tend to absorb the days in the middle as a goodwill gesture.

So performance, you know, like I said, I actually use this phrase when I negotiate business, cloud, trust, travel. And so in order to arrive fresh and perform at the highest level, giving the audience the very best I can for 90 minutes, I need to be able to rest.

And as a side note, you know, that means going easy on the champagne when you get on board. You know, you have to be respectful and stay true to your word. I take my travel very seriously. When the days we could travel, you know, I'd always be very hydrated. I wouldn't drink on the plane, I'd always use it to get rest and productivity. I just get more shit done because I have lounge access and in seat power. That means that anytime away from the office I can still operate like, you know, writing articles or coming up with trainings. It means that when I do take those external.

Engagements, it doesn't impact my core business.

And preference number five, I like to travel in business and actually in first class, when I've got points, I'll upgrade to first class.

It's a great hack. If you've got someone willing to pay you for a business class flight, you get all these tier points which are status miles. That puts you way ahead of the queue for upgrades. And so.

More often than not, back in the days when we could travel, which won't be long, again, Australia is talking about opening up travel in October. Again, getting upgraded to business at first when you got lots of points generally happens a lot more than you might imagine. You know, I've actually been upgraded four times from business to first. And I've got to tell you, first class is incredible. Having a shower in the shower spa on the Airbus A380 on an Emirates flight is something else, you know, And I'm saying that it's incredible. It's everything you'd imagine it would be. So why not enjoy that? I love that kind of thing. Why not? And so here's how I'm able to do it. It's all about expert Status. So despite all of my years.

Making content for Sony, when they messaged me to ask me if I'd consider speaking at those events around Asia, the truth is they could have asked five or six different filmmakers.

And, and they probably would have been cheaper if I'm honest. But the bat swung in my favor and that's when I presented the idea, you know, that then when, when they present the idea to YouTube, like, you know.

I suspect and actually I asked the question, said, why did you ask me to do these when there are many, many filmmakers who would be cheaper, who have probably more, more content online? And they said, well, what swung it in my favor when they presented the idea to YouTube was the fact I'd had this expert status, I'd written a book. And so the fact that I'd written a book meant I was the only option for YouTube. So even though Sony were paying for me to be there, YouTube had veto on who is going to stand up and speak. And because I had a book, that's what separated me because none of the other filmmakers that they were thinking of, that I'm thinking of have a book. Now. I actually don't know if Sony had approached other people and I couldn't really care less either way, it's not really important.

But they did say that the book was a big factor in YouTube agreeing for me to be the one. And so, you know, it's, it's really important. Like writing a book, it really elevates your authority. In fact, a couple of clients of mine that I'm still in touch with today, you know, they, they wrote a couple of weeks. Simon Banks wrote How to Get Video Right and Louis wrote the Play button. And I'm really proud of the fact that I helped them, coach them through that process and it really helped them to elevate their position and authority and they're both doing really well nowadays. Nothing will elevate your expertise faster than becoming an author. But here's, here's the really cool hack. Okay. While I wrote my first book, business filmmakers, 232 pages in 2014.

You don't have to, it doesn't have to be a big full on masterpiece. You could write a 50 to 70 page book. In fact, my latest ebook is 18 pages. So if you want to go to my website@denleny.com, download the ebook, it's 18 pages long.

And so.

Here'S a kind of quick hack to how to kind of map out a book. When I wrote Business for Filmmakers, here's what I did. I simply followed a structure. I created a spreadsheet with 12 chapter ideas. I brainstormed all of the topics that I had knowledge around and I split each of those chapters into seven subheadings. I then wrote seven questions that I could answer about each subheading. And then with each subheading is just, you know, write three to 500 words on each subheading or record it in Otter or Loom or something like that. So with 96 subheadings you'll end up with between 30 and 50,000 words. And it will take you 24 days or six weeks writing 300 words per day, four days per week, and you could have a full on 200 page book. Now how hard does it seem to write a book now? You know, now to give you some context, I spent around 90 minutes writing 1500 words.

Which meant, you know, you could easily write 300 words in 30 minutes, maybe an hour's worth of thinking time and some procrastination, but either way, and I'm Talking about a 200 page book, Stop telling yourself you can't. It's actually a way easier than you think. And if typing isn't for you, because I'm a terrible typist, you can dictate your book.

And so especially with apps like Otter AI, you can basically speak it and it transcribes it straight away.

And when I first wrote my first book in 2014, I mean I sort of typed half of it and it was pretty bad with two finger typing. But another option is you could get someone to ask you the questions and then you record the responses and then get them transcribed.

But the simple solution is that, you know, you don't need to write a 200 page book to be an authority. You can actually write a book that is 18 pages or 10 pages long. And what I'm going to do next week is I'm going to give you a strategy for how to do that. I'm actually going to teach you how to write an ebook. And this is something that I've used in my online classes and in my training and in my live classes where we actually set a challenge and, and people go away and write an ebook in about three hours. So I'm going to do next week is actually run you through exactly the steps you need to take to write an ebook. Because if you, if you take all of the effort I've just explained about writing a full on book, it may be overkill, it may just not be what you need to do in your market. But I guarantee if you do do it, if you write a book that's like 100 pages plus long, that's a physical book, you will elevate your authority beyond everyone else in your space and it will absolutely create a buzz around you being an expert in your field. So, guys, I will see on the shorty next week, and then next week I want to teach you how to write an e book in three hours. All right, guys, see you soon. You've been listening to the how to Scale a Video Business podcast with me, your host, Dan Lenny. If you're a video business owner that's hit a ceiling and we benefit from mentorship, support and coaching, then check out how you can work with me over@denlenny.com don't forget to subscribe and rate the show over on itunes and we'd really appreciate you taking a few minutes to leave a review. And don't forget to share. If you feel you've gotten value from this episode and you think it would be useful for other filmmakers you know, then please do me a massive favor and share it on social media, media and in groups that you might be in. So thanks for listening. See you in the next episode.