Ryan Lee has a borderline obsession with entrepreneurship and independence. His life mission is to help as many people as he can live a better life.
Ryan started his first web site back in 1999 while still working full-time at a children’s rehab hospital. That site was to promote his sideline personal training business. This was BEFORE youtube, facebook, twitter and just about anything that’s cool now.
He grew that one fitness site into massive empire spanning multiple markets which now generate 7-figures per month of income in everything from health and nutrition to software and membership sites.
Ryan is the author of 2 books “The Millionaire Workout” and “Passion to Profits”. His live sell-out events have become legendary including the Continuity Summit and DotComXpo.
He has also contributed to the NY Times Best-Selling Series “The Worst Case Scenario Business Survival Guide” and has been featured in dozens of books including Moonlighting on the Internet, Masters of Marketing, Attention! This Book will Make You Money, and The Phenomenon movie. And he was also featured on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, the cover of Millionaire Blueprints magazine and dozens of other major media outlets.
He lives in New Canaan, CT with his wife Janet, and their 4 young children (Jordyn, Lauryn, Camryn and Jake). You can usually find him in the morning working from Starbucks, catching a movie in the afternoon and taking his kids to endless birthday parties and sports on the weekend. Oh yes, the life of an entrepreneur.
Ryan’s Story:
Ryan Lee started his professional career right after college as a recreational therapist who became a successful entrepreneur in the fitness and health space and is now expanding into helping other entrepreneurs live their ultimate lifestyles through his program, Freedym Academy.
After graduating from Ithaca College, he became a therapist in a children’s rehab hospital, as well as becoming certified as a physical trainer. While there, he started his own website part time with just a $20 ‘investment’. Because he was an athlete, he specialized in high-level performance training and offered training programs via his site, ‘Complete Conditioning’.
It wasn’t long before a major company noticed him and offered him a job. Literally 2 months after quitting his children’s rehab job and making the leap to the new company, the ‘dot.com’ bubble burst and he had to scramble again, getting a job at another internet-based company. He stayed there for 7 months and hated all of them and became a gym teacher.
During this period, he became really serious about his website and turned it into a paid membership site in 2001. It exploded and within 6 months, he was making $6K a month, which convinced him and his wife that it was time to dedicate his full energy into developing it even further. That was 15 years and countless websites ago! He is now a full-time entrepreneur and coach whose mission is to help other entrepreneurs realize their dreams.
Most Influential Person:
- In terms of business, he doesn’t have just one mentor. He has taken away multiple lessons and pieces of advice from several leaders.
- He believes in investing heavily in yourself and your own self-education.
- The key is in taking the information you learn and applying it immediately.
Biggest Challenges:
- At one point, one of his mentees stole several clients which hurt him financially and emotionally.
- At another point, he was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis-it’s very hard to run a business and be a leader full of energy when you’re exhausted.
- At the end of the day, life and entrepreneurship are full of bumps and bruises.
- The specific challenge doesn’t matter-it’s about the lessons you learned from the situation and how you used it for growth.
Building a Strong Foundation:
- Every industry goes through change and with the internet, those changes come at lightning speed.
- Too many entrepreneurs focus on just one technology trend-you need to be able to evolve and adapt.
- When you have a strong foundation, you can build and expand in any direction.
Just Get it Started:
- Perfectionism is the kiss of death-if you’re waiting to get it exactly right, you will not make it as an entrepreneur.
- In today’s world, 20 and 30 year plans are ridiculous. Things move quickly and they change constantly. Just start it and figure it out as you go.
- Don’t spend your time worrying about small details like business cards and your corporate structure right away-invest your energy into what gets you the sale.
Spirituality is Important:
- It doesn’t really matter what religion you do or don’t practice; any form of spirituality is beneficial.
- At the root of all religions are the core values of being a good person and doing the ‘right thing’ by other people.
- Your spirituality (or faith) can be a way for you and your family to bond and celebrate each other.
Defining living in your Purpose:
- Figure out what’s most important to you and build your business around that.
- For him, it was never about the money, it’s about the freedom of entrepreneurship
- There’s no point in working around the clock to make tons of money if you’re not enjoying your life.
Advice on how to be All-In:
- Embrace the “I don’t know”. Look at your venture as an opportunity to be creative and have fun.
- Remember that it’s not about your idea-it’s about your market.
- Figure out who you’re serving and niche it down until you become the clear and obvious choice for your potential buyers.
Favorite Quote:
- “Success is doing what you want to do, when you want, where you want, with whom you want, as much as you want.” – Anthony Robbins
Learn More:
- www.ryanlee.com
- www.freedym.com
- You can also text ‘Freedym’ to 33444 to get his newsletter