Today’s a Sunday. That means I spent >90 minutes on Campfire with my 30×500 students, answering questions, talking about biz and shootin’ the shit.
Today, I wanted to get my students’ opinions on some changes I’m making for the next 30×500. I’m always trying to increase the number of students who stick with it all the way through to shipping.
Here are some of the ideas I presented:
- an application process
- distributing 100% of the materials a month early to people who attend
- major changes in the software I use to run the class (tossing out a lot of the functionality, turning the rest on its head)
- a significantly higher price, which may require a payment plan
David Richards, a member of the current 30×500, weighed in on that last one:
Something in my gut says a payment plan might be a headache while dealing with student retention. First payment of $xxxx, sucking air after some Safari work, next payment’s due… naw, I’ll just bail.
I agreed with him. It’s certainly a possibility. There are parts of the class which require a lot of personal investment in time & energy to complete, and who knows?
But, I said,
…one thing I really worry about is NOT doing things I should do, out of fear.
The fact is, each one of these steps is scary to me.
I worry people might just “stop paying” on the payment plan
Even though the first Year of Hustle class had a payment plan, and nobody “just stopped paying,” I worry someone might.
I worry about raising the price
Even though I’ve successfully raised the price by over 300% since the first class (and worried about it every time).
I worry about sending students the 100% of the materials in advance
Even though last time, I gave away the “secret revelation” behind 30×500 (1, 2, 3), and three of the meatiest lessons (from deep inside the class 3 & 4, 5) — and it resulted in an even more productive, profitable class.
I know this one, particularly, sounds ridiculous. Why would I worry that more people will drop out or ask for refunds if I give them the material all at once, when my refund rate during class is already so low? People who have already passed the application process and already paid?
Well. Ever downloaded a bunch of ebooks or PDFs or slide decks, and because you had so many, you never dove into any of them? Yeah. I worry about that. And that a new student might read it all — and say “So, what?” Despite the fact that only one person out of nearly 300 students ever said anything like that. Yes, less than 0.4%. It’s still on my mind.
I really worried when I first offered the 100% money-back guarantee
It was a >$1,000 class. What if people take advantage of me? What if they took it to the end, took all the materials, got a lot out of it, and then dicked me over?
Every time I revise the sales page, and I leave that guarantee in there, I worry anew. Even though I’ve only ever given a handful of refunds per class.
It doesn’t matter.
What Does Worry Mean??
Worry isn’t always rational. Hell, most of the time it’s not. Worry is a sign you’re doing something you haven’t done before. Or it’s a sign you’re doing something you have done before, which worked just fine, and your subconscious is refusing to learn the lesson.
Or it’s a sign of absolutely nothing.
So yeah, I’m worried. About allllll kinds of things.
But whenever I feel worry, I’ve made it a habit to remind myself:
I should be much more worried that I’ll straightjacket myself with fear. That the real thing to fear is doing the same thing, forever.
NB: This blog post was inspired by Brooke Riggio, a 30×500 alum, who’s worried about his money-back guarantee:
I gave him that advice because when I was worried, other people gave it to me. And they were right. And I am right. But it is still scary and we still worry.
