Moving Forward is also available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Amazon Music.
JT Tran is a dating and life coach and founder of the ABCsOfAttraction. Learn how JT broke out of his awkward shell and is now coaching others to move forward in dating, relationships and with confidence. JT will also share with you his knowledge bursts for starting and scaling a coaching business and a secret for getting better clients.
Successes at a glance:
Former NASA rocket scientist (no really, he’s a rocket scientist!).
Founder of ABCsOfAttraction, a coaching service that focuses on dating, confidence and self-improvement skills:
Leveraged YouTube to create viral videos and high impact branding.
Changing perceptions and breaking stereotypes of Asian and Asian-Americans males.
Also teaches leadership and confidence to executives.
Featured on many media outlets, including:
Featured guest lecturer / speaker at some of the most prestigious universities:
Harvard
Wharton
Yale
Columbia
Univ. of Chicago
Rutgers
How JT get inspired to conquer the day:
For JT, it’s all about positive reinforcement. As soon as JT wakes up, he kick starts his morning w/ a top 40 playlist on Spotify. This is followed by reading through text messages and emails, especially ones from his female friends or that relate to any new revenue that has been generated from passive sources such as ticket sales to seminars. JT contrasts this to his experience in the corporate world, where you’re “living paycheck by paycheck.” In addition, JT loves reading fan mail, whether it’s positive love from fans or even harsh criticism from haters. This let’s JT know that his work is important and provides both “emotional” and “financial” validation that keeps him on course and moving forward.
Setback or failure that led to pivot and shift:
JT shares that his business has gone thru many transitions, evolving as times and the market has changed. One such transition was going from a pure pickup artist service to the broader dating and self-improvement areas. As a coach, JT became a known brand and expert in the subculture of pickup artistry. During this time, JT was experiencing tremendous success, working w/ students and quickly growing his business. However, w/in 1-2 years of putting all of his energy into coaching individuals every single weekend, partying (as that is part of his brand) and traveling all over the world, he was quickly burning out. Further, while JT was making a lot of money, he was just as quickly spending it, without reinvesting it into the business. JT realized he couldn’t continue doing this alone, so he decided to scale-up on a professional level. JT built up a team, franchising coaches and outsourcing some of the things he was doing as a solopreneur such as IT and tech support. He also found it necessary to go from sole proprietor to an established company, so he incorporated. This allowed JT to take his brand to a more professional and established level. As JT reflects, he made a pivot from a “hobby” that was making a lot of money to a business. The final piece to this transition was when JT raised his prices. As his model proved successful and clients saw incredible success, it was time for JT to put a premium on his service. Valuation and pricing are key ingredients that can fuel long-term growth, provide scale and frankly, attract better clients to work with. Think about it. If you are undervaluing your services so are the people you’re working with. When you realize the value of what you do, then you will attract those who see that value too. Those are the clients you want to work with. Moving forward listeners, JT started with a blog w/ the mission to improve his life. This transitioned into a coaching business and is now a successful brand and business. All of this started because JT wanted to get more dates. The opportunities for self-improvement are vast. But keep in mind, as you learn and grow, the opportunities to help others and create a business are also vast. It’s an incredible time to be a solopreneur or entrepreneur. Take a page from JT’s book and remember, always be moving forward.
Knowledge Bursts:
What is the one thing you need to know about developing a mindset of confidence, whether in a social situation or a business setting:
JT says “the enemy of being good is trying to be perfect,” citing a LinkedIn founder, who once warned that if you use perfection as your yardstick, by the time you put out a product, it’s too late to launch. By the same token, whether you’re approaching a girl or launching your website, be decent enough. Work on improving later. If you focus too much on being or getting it “perfect,” all you will do is end up delaying it or putting it off.
What is the important skill for starting a coaching business?
Know the product or service that you’re coaching on.
The ability to coach: just because you know your subject, does not mean you’re able to coach someone else in it. JT also reminds us that what works for one person will not necessarily work for everyone. Coaching, whether in pickup or dating, is definitely not a one-size fits all methodology. As JT shares, when he started learning about pickup, many of the techniques he learned did not apply to him, being an Asian-American. So as JT developed his own methodology, he tweaked it so it could fit his clientele better.
Marketing is key. As JT shares, you can have the best product and be the best teacher, but if no one knows about it then you won’t see any revenue from it. JT also drives home the importance of marketing by noting that if you have an incredible product or service, especially one that can help so many, it deserves to be out there. Think of marketing as your obligation to let as many people as are in your market know that you can help them move forward.
Book or media resource that inspired JT to bring out his best self:
The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss (Hardcover | Kindle): this book helped JT see the value of outsourcing parts of his operation, including IT, tech and web maintenance, so he could focus more on building the business.
JT’s Advice for you to Move Forward:
JT shares that sometimes when he wakes up, he feels overwhelmed by the list of tasks that he needs to undertake that day. And JT sympathizes with his students that attend his boot camp since he provides them with everything “plus the kitchen sink” so he knows whether it’s self-improvement or building your business, the day ahead can seem like a lot to take on. To that end, JT recommends that you choose three things that you can work on today to create change. JT likens this to the way doctors use triage to prioritize patients by need and urgency, under their care. Once you knock out the three tasks, move on to the next three and so forth.
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