5 Things Successful Online Entrepreneurs Know That Others Don’t with Yuri Elkaim

0:01Boom! Shake the room, Fire Nation. JLD here and welcome to Entrepreneurs on Fire. The only daily show interviewing the world's top entrepreneurs seven days a week. Today, we'll be breaking down five things successful online entrepreneurs know that others don't. To draw these value bombs, I brought to Yuri Elkheim and EO Fire Studios. Yuri is a former pro athlete, leading health expert, and renowned business coach, New York Times bestselling author, and the founder of Healthpreneur, where he helps health entrepreneurs, coaches, and practitioners start and scale online businesses that create more income and freedom and better results for their clients.

0:35And we talk about how time is expensive and money is cheap. We talk about the overnight success that takes at least three to five years, how entrepreneurs know that attention is everything, at least the successful ones, and oh, so much more. And a big thank you for sponsoring today's episode goes to Yuri and our sponsors. Is now the time to grow a successful business? Attend the world's highest rated business growth workshop taught personally by Clay Clark and now featuring football star Tim Tebow and President Trump's son, Eric Trump at thrivetimeshow.com slash eofire. Again, request life-changing tickets today at thrivetimeshow.com slash EO fire.

1:15Yuri, say what's up to Fire Nation and share something that you believe about becoming successful that most people disagree with. What's up, Fire Nation? And thanks for having me, John. Yeah. So I would say, you know, the one thing, especially in entrepreneurship is the inability to deal with uncertainty is one of the biggest reasons most people will not succeed in business. And what I mean by that is nothing in life is certain. And especially in business, if you're looking for certainty, you might as well go work for someone who's willing to deal with uncertainty because it's not going to happen.

1:51I love that. It's a great start to an episode that's going to focus on the five things successful online entrepreneurs know that others do not. And I want to start with this quote, time is expensive, money is cheap. You believe in this quote, Yuri, tell us more. I used to believe the opposite. I thought that money was the most important thing when I didn't have any, and therefore I used all of my time. And what I realized eventually, you know, in business, after doing this 20 years online, was that successful people in general, not just online, but in general, understand that you can always make more money, but you can never make more time.

2:31I think we all know that. But when you're starting out, and you're grinding away, and you're trying to do everything on the down low or the cheap, that's totally fine. But I think the biggest mistake that I made in my business starting back in 2005 online, was I spent three years trying to do everything myself. Because I thought, no, no, time is not my most valuable commodity. It's money. So I'm like, let me save my money and use my time. But everything shifted when I invested in my first coach or mentor. And I realized that by working with someone who's been there and done that before, I actually accelerate the process.

3:08I don't have to make all the same mistakes. I get to learn from someone else's mistakes. And therefore, I essentially buy back my time learning from other people. And yes, the trade-off is I spent a bit of money, but again, I can always make that money back, but the years that I've saved, I can never get back. And that's been a huge lesson of mine after many years of struggle when I first started. I love that, and it's so true. And we all go through that revelation at our own pace. I mean, listen, when you first start, I mean, you've got to get up, you've got to put in the reps, you've got to figure things out, you've got to make mistakes, you've got to learn, you have to pivot, you have to adjust, you've got to grind, you've got to do your thing.

3:46And then you start to learn some things and you say, okay, what can I take off my plate? What systems can I create to become more efficient? And then you'd be able, then you're being able to create this business where you can really focus on, hey, when, when do I work? When do I play? When's my free time? When's my focus time, et cetera, et cetera. But we still live in this world, you're already aware, we all want things and we want things right now. And you know this, I know this because it's just reality. Entrepreneurs are known to be impatient individuals. That's just something that happens.

4:18But I want to talk about how overnight success takes at least three to five years. So talk about that. I think you're a great example of that. I mean, you started this podcast, like it seems like decades ago. Yeah, 13 years ago. It's crazy, right? But for you, but again, you're a different animal. You were creating almost like a daily episode. Not almost. a seven day week episode for 13 years now. Yeah, exactly. So I'm sure you recognize that it didn't happen overnight. And I think you're an amazing example of what it takes to win in business or anything in life is you put in the work and you realize you're not going to see anything from it for a good amount of time.

4:59It's like planting a bamboo tree. Like, you know, apparently you don't see it for like nine years. And then in the space of a couple months, it grows, you know, several feet tall and business is the same. Like I've never real, I don't think I've ever met anyone who's been successful in business the first time around. It's like, it's usually their second or third rodeo. And for me, my first business, it took me, it took me seven years to make my first million dollars. And then when I started Healthpreneur eight years ago, it took us seven weeks. Now, if no one had seen the backstory, it would have been like, oh, well, that's, that's cool.

5:35It took you seven weeks. But I'm like, hold on, hold on. I came to the party with 13 years of experience by this point, a lot of failures. And so I think it's really important, especially in today's day and age, when everyone's seen the flash, because apparently that's what, you know, gets eyeballs on social media to recognize that for all the flash, there is a really ugly, messy backstory that I think is really inspiring and more important for people to dig into. And this is why I'm a huge fan of biographies, whether it's Howard Schultz from Starbucks or Phil Knight from Nike. Let me just stop you there right now because I need my next biography.

6:14So give me one that I may not have read yet that's kind of outside of the normal scope. This is actually not a book. It's an interview. It's a three-hour interview with Howard Schultz, who's the former CEO of Starbucks. And you can find it on YouTube. I don't even know who the podcast is with, but it's a three-hour interview. If you just type in Howard Schultz interview, interview, you'll see it. It's two guys who I think are in the SaaS world interviewing Howard Schultz. It's a phenomenal interview. Is that on the show Acquired, by the way? Dude, I can't even remember, to be honest, but it might be.

6:43I don't even know. So I will hold your feet to the fire real quick, though. So can you think of a biography book that's not in the norm as well? Because I will listen to that if I haven't yet. But what's a book? Well, my shoe dog, you know, maybe a bit more popular. I think that one was really cool. I just kind of like to see the journey of Nike, but also like even things like Arnold Schwarzenegger's biography. That was good. That was surprisingly good. The other one that I loved that has nothing to do with business with was Andre Agassi. I read that a couple of years ago. Open. That one was so good.

7:15I don't even like tennis, but like that put me on like this kick of, then I read Rafa and then I read Federer's and it was just so good. But it's like, there's this commonality, whether we're talking about athletes or business owners, there's this DNA that they all share in common, like, you know, just going through the ups and downs, the moments of despair, you know, the moments of wanting to give it all up and just, you know, keep persevering. And I think it's so important that people understand what it really takes to win in life, in business, in sport. It's not going to happen overnight. And I think it's really important to be honest with people.

7:53if you're selling any kind of business opportunity type of stuff, to just be like, hey, man, this is the hardest thing you might ever do. But because of that, it's also going to be the most gratifying and fulfilling thing you ever do. Because nothing great comes easy, whether you have kids or building a business. And I think because of that, we end up valuing it so much more as opposed to if it was just given to us like a trust fund. I completely agree. And one of the biggest takeaways from those tennis books that I did not expect to take away from it, by the way, was the reality that there's never this moment when you're on top of the mountain and you're as happy as you thought you would be.

8:32And you were going to feel as successful as you thought you would be. Like it's, it's sometimes it's the worst part of the journey for a lot of people because like when Agassi was on top, when Rafa was on top, when Federer, they all had the exact same experience. They were not happy. Like they still wanted more. Like now they were, they had different fears of like not being on top anymore. and this and that. And so to me, the biggest takeaway was like, don't just have like your head down and grind and sacrifice everything to get to the top of the mountain to accomplish your goal. Because a lot of people get there and they're like, man, this is not what I thought it was going to be.

9:05And look at all this life that I missed on the way here. So for me, it's the journey. It's like, how do I just love every day? How do I enjoy every day? How do I set aside time to work and to grind? And it's not gonna love every second of that, of course, but I'm enjoying the journey on the way to goals. And then once those goals are accomplished or are hit, it's that next step that I need to have waiting for me to kind of keep pushing me forward in a healthy but meaningful way. And Fire Nation, we have a lot more to talk about around this topic when we get back from thanking our sponsors. The job market is constantly fluctuating.

9:39Did you know that according to a recent ZipRecruiter survey, 76 % of employers plan to expand headcount for 2025? That's great news. and it's also a lot of time that will be spent hiring. If you're one of these employers who's ramping up hiring this year, don't miss out on this advice. Add ZipRecruiter's latest feature, ZipIntro, to your hiring plan. It lets you post jobs today and talk to qualified candidates tomorrow. Best of all, it does most of the work for you, so you save time. And right now, you can try ZipIntro for free at ziprecruiter.com slash fire. ZipIntro gives you the power to quickly assess excellent candidates for your job.

10:16Jump on back-to-back video calls quickly to determine who is the best fit. All you have to do is pick a time, and Zip Intro does all the work of finding and scheduling qualified candidates for you. Save time hiring for 2025 with new Zip Intro. Just go to ziprecruiter.com slash fire right now to try Zip Intro for free. Again, that's ziprecruiter.com slash fire. Zip Intro. Post jobs today. Talk to qualified candidates tomorrow. Is this your year to grow a successful business? Are you looking to learn the proven processes and success systems that have been used to create thousands of millionaire success stories?

10:53See thousands of success stories and testimonials from real people just like you who Clay Clark has mentored and coached into prosperity at thrivetimeshow.com slash EOfire. Clay's proven business coaching program is month to month and it costs less money than hiring a minimum wage employee. Yes, it's month to month and it costs less money than hiring a minimum wage employee. Schedule your free personal 13-point assessment with Clay Clark himself today at thrivetimeshow.com slash EO fire. Because Clay only takes on 160 clients and only allows 300 attendees to each business conference, you will interact with Clay directly.

11:30See thousands of real success stories and learn about attending the Thrive Time Show two-day in-person workshop featuring football star Tim Tebow and President Trump's son, Eric Trump today at thrivetimeshow.com slash EO fire. Become the next success story. Schedule a free consultation and request tickets to join football star Tim Tebow and President Trump's son, Eric Trump at Clay Clark's next business conference today at thrivetimeshow.com slash EO fire. Yuri, we're back and you believe that simplicity scales while complexity fails. Expound upon this and give us a real world example. Yeah, so I don't know if you've seen the commercial.

12:09It's a recent commercial where Jean-Claude Van Damme is doing the splits on top of two Volvo trucks. I think that is a great example of what it feels like in business to do more than one thing. Now, the difference is that Van Damme does that elegantly. Most of us would be torn apart. and again like i like we only you know we only have so much focus we only have so much mental bandwidth to do any given thing in any given day let alone build a business around my first business we eventually you know it eventually became very successful but it took a very long time because it was scattered it was unfocused we had more than 100 products 100 different funnels you know all sorts of different convoluted nonsense going on and part of the reason i sold the company was because i i wanted out like i didn't want to be involved in that anymore and when i started health premier i was like i'm going to do one thing and that's it i'm going to do one thing and i'm going to focus on it like a magnifying glass focusing the sun's rays and when i the first three years of health runner we had no instagram no podcast no youtube nothing.

13:24We had one acquisition funnel and that's all we did for three years. And now obviously we've expanded because, you know, the business has grown and so forth, but it's, it's a very different experience when you're on the inside of something that is very focused. And the challenge is that most of us entrepreneurs are very creative. And what I had to learn the hard way was to channel my creativity, my creativity vertically, as opposed to horizontally. So instead of me coming up with all sorts of new ideas and launching all sorts of new products and whatever else, I've taken that creativity and within our main coaching program, I drill deep.

14:03And I'm like, how can I create better solutions for our clients? How can I express my creativity in a way that's going to help our clients get unstuck in this one area or looking at where they need a bit more support? So instead of launching something else, which a lot of times is a distraction from doing harder work, which is solving problems that need solving. We're just using the creativity to solve problems in a given vertical. When you have a business, at least from my experience with that, it becomes a lot easier to manage and a lot more enjoyable to be a part of. And a lot of times businesses fail, not because of indigestion, but because of bloating and bloating means we've taken on too much.

14:48And I think that's one of the, like the thing about being an entrepreneur is like the very thing that gives us that, that spark to start things is the very thing that will kill the scalability of the business. But that creativity, that ignition that we have is amazing up until a point. But as soon as you start scaling, all of those new ideas that you want to execute on tomorrow will be the beginning of the demise. And especially if you have a team of people around you, it will drive them crazy. So that's why, you know, I'm a big believer in simplicity scales. A lot of the clients that we work with, you know, they'll come in with multiple different offerings.

15:25And right away, I'm like, I have a very good idea of where your business is at, just by the fact that you have plural courses or plural programs, as opposed to one singular program. Because even with one core focus offer, most people can be generating millions of dollars and helping a lot of people without having to expand horizontally. That's powerful stuff, Fire Nation. And one thing that I'm also a big believer in is that going one inch wide and one mile deep is such a better strategy every single time than just that one mile wide and one inch deep in all these different areas. Because if you can become the number one solution to a real problem in a growing industry, you are going to win because people want the best.

16:10So don't be afraid to niche your flipping face off. Now, I want to talk about number four of the five successful things that online entrepreneurs know that most other people do not. And that is that attention is everything. Tell us more. A long time ago, I heard a saying that said, where attention goes, energy flows and results show. A number of years later, I heard another saying that said, money follows attention. and you know even Gary V talks about attention is the the number one currency in today's day and age especially with like content and social and so there's there's two ways I look at this is you know attention like you have to be able to get people's attention before anything else like if if you can't command attention with a good hook a good angle a good message a good visual it doesn't matter how good your solution is because if it doesn't matter how good you are if no one knows who you are.

17:08So the first step in terms of getting people to know who you are is commanding attention. Now, I do think a lot of people forget that there's a very important bridge between that and the transaction, which is called trust, which is massively important, especially in today's day and age. But that'd be the first thing is like, we have to get very good as business owners at commanding attention and doing so in a way that feels congruent and aligned with how you want to show up. It doesn't mean you have to dance on wheels and stuff like that. It's just you have to understand the fundamentals of what it takes of self-promotion to get attention in a way that is useful for the business's objectives.

17:44The second type of attention is your own attention, is when you sit down at work, how are you using that attention? And again, because a lot of us are creatives, our brain goes a million miles a second and we're all over the place. I'm not immune to that. And so I feel best about myself when I'm doing deep work, when I know that I'm in the flow, when I'm focused and when I'm not distracted. Unfortunately, I have to set up conditions to allow me to get there. So as an example, at my computer, I use an app called self-control, which allows me to block pretty much every website I would ever conceive of visiting.

18:28And instead, I just live in Google Docs. So in the morning, when I do my deep work, typically it's going to be some type of writing or thinking, strategizing. I don't really need to be connected to the internet, to be honest, for that. But I like to type, I like to work on my Google Doc, so I'll turn everything else off. So the night before, I set self-control to run for 20, not 24 hours, but whatever the time frame is for the next day after my focus time in the morning. so even if I get that that anxiety that like that itch for like well I mean let me just see what's going on on Facebook or Gmail I can't can't do it because it's like you can't even access it so it forces me right back into my lane and the thing that I've realized at least for myself is that environments will always trump willpower even first thing in the morning when our battery is freshest it is very easy for us to check our phone check email check some social before we even get into our deep work.

19:27And I think all of those are only going to put us further away from our goals because worst case is you get an email that you did not want to see, or you start seeing negative comments on your social stuff. And all of a sudden it's like, it puts you in the wrong headspace versus if you turn all that off or just even band it for at least a couple hours, it's you and you, it's you and your creation of your future. And that's the real work that moves the needle. And so when I say that attention is everything, obviously from the marketing perspective, it's one thing, but also how we really harness our own attention to create meaningful work is very important as well.

20:06Yuri, thank you because I'm recommitting to that now because creation is everything. And I just love that idea of committing to deep work, not distraction work, not being on somebody else's schedule, but focused. You believe that branding is everything. but that it doesn't pay the bills at first. Tell us more. Yeah. So like, again, if you look at Entrepreneur on Fire, like if you look at this podcast, I think that's a beautiful example of a brand, right? You've been at this for a very long time. You don't need to have a crazy offer. You have an unbelievable track record behind you. And I think that's something that hopefully more businesses aspire to, but I don't think a lot will because most business owners, especially online, again, they're looking for the quick fix.

20:55They're looking for the, and we see a lot of this nowadays, like these really over the top promises of like, you know, get this number of clients, make this amount of money in five seconds or you don't pay. And that's great. That's fine. Like, it's, it's, it's like, you know, I don't know what the backend numbers on their businesses look like, but those businesses will do well in the short term, whether they can last in the long term is a different story. I've been online for 20 years, since 2005. And the only reason I'm still churning away here is because I have a good reputation. And I've never done anything to compromise my reputation.

21:36That's really, really important to me. And even though HealthPrunner is not the same business that I started 20 years ago, my name is the same. So when people see our ads or content like they do with everyone else listening here, they go to Google, they search us up, you know, Uriel Kim reviews, Uriel Kim scam. And if they find stuff like better business bureau complaints, or someone was sent to jail for doing stuff, like, dude, you're screwed. Like that, that reputation, your brand is your reputation. So how do we build a brand that lasts the last, the test of time. Number one is we just make it a focus.

22:13We make decisions that are long-term focused instead of tomorrow. I want to build Healthrunner into a brand that extends beyond my lifetime. So if this brand is going to be here 100 years from now, yes, we have to take care of the short term, but let's never make decisions that are going to compromise the integrity of what we want to do for the long term. That's simply a philosophical decision. I don't think a lot of businesses have that same, they're just like, I want to make a lot of money and sell in three years. That's it, right? Some don't, some do. So number one is just being decisive in terms of what is the objective here?

22:49Do I want to build something and sell in a couple of years or do I want to build a brand that becomes the Coca-Cola for health professionals, but with maybe a better connotation behind it. The second thing is I believe content is the single most powerful way to build a brand. Now, the problem is in the short term, it takes forever to get traction. That's why, as I said earlier, it took me seven years to make my first million dollars in business because that business was largely built on the backbone of content. However, when that started picking up momentum, it was a machine that was running in and of itself on its own.

23:32The problem is that it takes a very long time for content to gain traction, to build trust in a marketplace, for people to find you. And it's always this dichotomy. So like with HealthBurner, for the first couple of years, the business was largely based around acquiring clients through cold traffic. It's the fastest way, at least for us, to bring clients in. But as the business has matured, we still do that. And also, we layer on top a tremendous amount of content. Because I know that if I can produce really valuable content, at least on YouTube, that's going to live there forever. And people find that, they will consume it, and they will build more trust with our brand.

24:13Then when they go search us up online and they don't find anything negative, but positive reviews and third-party validation of what we're doing, all of that reinforces the trust and reputation that we're looking to build in the marketplace. Because we are at the lowest we have ever been in terms of the trust scale, if you will. And so we're in this big trust recession. When I say we, I don't mean our business, but I mean like the market in general. Skepticism's at an all-time high. And especially when you have a sophisticated market, like many of us are operating in, when people have seen offer after offer, they've done one thing after another, they're more skeptical, they're more jaded, and they're looking for that one reason not to believe you.

24:58So anything you can do to build trust, to build your reputation and play the long game, I consider all of that part of branding. And essentially branding over time becomes what, when people think of your name or your brand, what's the association that they want to make with you. And for us, it's truth and trust. And so everything that we do in our business, we want to look at, are we doing what we need to do to be honest with our marketplace and build trust with our marketplace? And that takes a very long time. Yuri, you dropped value bomb after value bomb, brother. Very much appreciated. I've been taking notes over here and I hope you have too, Fire Nation, because there's a lot of value to get out of these words.

25:44Give us the biggest takeaway, Yuri, that you really want Fire Nation to walk away with from our conversation. Then give us a call to action on how our listeners can connect with you and learn more. And then we'll say goodbye. And thank you again for having me on. Yeah. Probably like 10 years ago, I think I was on for the first time. So I appreciate you as a friend, as a person and everything you've done with Fire Nation. Thank you. So if I were to share something with my younger self or everyone listening here, it's to put yourself in an environment that is going to raise you up because we become a reflection of our environment.

26:19We become a reflection of the standards of our peer group. And the fastest way to change behavior is to change your environment. Whether that means a physical location, like moving to a tropical destination or putting yourself into a group, a mastermind, a coaching program with other successful people, it forces you to level up and it helps you get out of your own way. That's the one thing I wish I would have done sooner. And it's something I continue to espouse to as many people as possible. So that would be something I leave everyone with. And if you've enjoyed this, I'd say the two best places to kind of keep in the loop with what we're doing is our YouTube channel, which is at Health Pruner.