Pat FlynnEvery podcast appearance, updated as new ones drop

What does it actually take to sell a creator business? That’s what I wanted to get into with Pat Flynn and Liz Wilcox, who sat down with me to share some big news. After 18 years of building Smart Passive Income, Pat has officially sold the business - and Liz is the new owner. In this episode, Pat and Liz take us through the entire process, from why Pat decided it was time to let go, to how they valued and structured the deal, why Liz was the right person to take over, and how they planned th...

#589 On today’s episode I interview the other Pat Flynn, owner of Chronicles of Strength. I like to call him Kettlebell Pat Flynn. Why did I bring Pat on? Because we wanted to connect and understand what it was like in this world to share the same name as business owners and entrepreneurs, and help those of you who might be struggling with something similar. In this episode Pat and I have some deep philosophical conversations about our approach to business, our approach to generalism and focus, growing too much, and all that kind of stuff. Show notes and more at SmartPassiveIncome.com/session589 . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

So often we create a plan, a timeline for ourselves and just as we think everything is falling into place from out of nowhere comes an unexpected challenge or bump in the road. But what makes all the difference is how we face that challenge: do see it as an opportunity or a setback? If you see it as an opportunity, you’re among good company like our guest for episode 33, Mr. Pat Flynn. For those of you who don’t know him, Pat has his fingers in many cookie jars but he is most known for his business: SmartPassiveIncome.com . Join us as we talk about how Pat began as an architect and transformed into an online businessman on this episode of How’d You Get Into That? . MORE ABOUT THIS SHOW Pat’s early career days began when he was a student at UC-Berkeley in the San Francisco Bay area. Taking his love of Leggos and Lincoln logs, Pat opted for architecture. He wanted to utilize his creative abilities and serve the world by making something beautiful. Most important to him was to follow his dad’s guidance and go to school for a safe, secure job. Pat combined his love of architecture, his creative abilities and his dad’s advice to graduate with a degree in Architecture. After school, he landed a job in an architecture firm and worked his tail off. He went above and beyond what his role called for him to do; he served his company and wanted to be invaluable to them. Things looked golden for him, he was enjoying his work and was receiving feedback on what an asset he was to his firm. As the cherry on top of it all, he proposed to his girlfriend who said yes. He was thrilled for them to start their life together. But shortly after, his firm gave him notice he would be let go in the coming months. They acknowledged Pat as one of the best, brightest and youngest talents in their architecture business, but the economy was terrible. No one was building anything, hence there wasn’t a great demand for any architects. Around the entire country, work in the architecture field dried up and Pat’s job along with it. THE FINER DETAILS OF THIS SHOW: How much did Pat make in his first online sale? True or false: just a few years ago, Pat was deathly afraid of public speaking. What does he keep in a shoe box and what lesson can it teach you? How many TedTalks has he watched? The two questions he asks himself when faced with a huge pivot point in his business. And so much more! Immediately after receiving the news, Pat phoned everyone he knew in the architecture industry to ask if they had work and no one did. He was angry: with his boss, with himself. And most of all, he was worried about letting his parents down. They had paid for school for him and he wanted them to feel they had made a good investment. His dad assured him everything would be ok and he recommended Pat go on to pursue his master’s degree while he waited for the economy to improve. Pat always followed his father’s advice but for some reason this time it just didn’t sound