ABOUT OUR GUEST
Who is Mel Cutler?
Mel is a seasoned serial entrepreneur and renowned business coach whose ventures have birthed 6 companies (multiple of which have generated over 7-figures in revenue) over the last 12 years!
In this episode of the Total Freedom Podcast, Mel shares his fantastic ‘rags-to-riches’ story, his early-life retirement and what motivated him to come out of it, he also shares a lot of inspiring entrepreneurial (and life) tips, and gives away his recently released book: “Big Boom!: How to Ignite Your Life, Blow Up Your Barriers and Get Explosive Results in the Entrepreneur Revolution” for FREE to everyone who’s listening!
To find out more about Mel Cutler and his achievements you can visit his blog at MelCutler.me , follow him on Facebook at Facebook.com/melethancutler or read his book (which is for FREE as of this podcast episode’s airing date) at bigboombook.com
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
0:28 Chris introduces today’s guest, Mel Cutler!
1:57 To kick things off, Chris asks what Mel is excited about on the horizon and what his current focus is. Mel then goes on to talk about Success Academy, he mentions how being an ‘entrepreneur’ doesn’t necessarily mean being alone — most entrepreneurs tend to have an independent mindset — “They think they know best, they’re making mistakes, they don’t seek the help they need… and that was me back when I first started.” Mel says, as he then explains how Success Academy was a venture he went into with his wife, Kate Cutler, to support entrepreneurs that are either just starting or learning how to scale their businesses but are stuck, which they’re accomplishing both through online and live events.
3:25 The ‘rags-to-riches’ story — Chris asks Mel about where it all started for him and to share some of his journeys that lead to him being the successful man he is today…
3:37 Mel shares his humble beginnings into entrepreneurship; “I became an entrepreneur because I had to become an entrepreneur… it was in my blood!” He then mentions how his belief is that entrepreneurs aren’t born, but are “created and molded, often times by necessity.” Mel then tells the story of how his parents explained to him at a young age that they would only give him what he ’needs’, but if he wanted anything else but that, he would have to join the ‘rat-race’ by getting a job. He also mentions that from 16 all the way to 19, he worked multiple jobs… and got fired from every single one of them.
4:49 The realization in hindsight — “…and at that time, I didn’t know, but now I realize that having control of how much I made, having control of my time [and] freedom, having control of what I wanted to do and who I wanted to do it with, were core values of mine.” Mel explains.
5:08 Mel says something for the listeners that are entrepreneurs about everyone’s ‘rebellious side’, naturally wanting to go against the status quo and wanting to create something of a legacy, and how it’s just not possible with the majority of jobs but very possible in the realm of entrepreneurship.
5:28 Mel shares his awakening at 19: “…a breakthrough moment in my life and it was a negative event, at the time, but looking back on it, it was exactly the breakthrough that I needed, and that lead to finding my first mentor that helped start up my first company.”
5:51 Mel’s first company — Chris asks Mel about it and he mentions how his first company was a dial-up internet service in 2001 that quickly taught him the ups-and-downs of business.
6:30 Chris explaining how (almost universally) people learn so much from starting their first business; Chris then mentions how “You just gotta get in the game!”
6:52 Chris asks Mel about some of his biggest learning experiences within Mel’s first startup.
7:02 “One of the biggest mistakes is getting complacent… and listening to your ego.” Mel mentions as he then shares the experience that taught him this lesson…
10:09 Bouncing back from the loss — “…I believe that if you can do it once, you can do it again, it just depends on your ego.” Mel explains and then shares how a friend of his invited him to a real estate workshop that changed his life…
12:55 “There’s more to life than just succeeding” Mel shares this life tip and explains, “…helping others, leaving a legacy and asking yourself what you’re gonna be remembered for.”
15:10 Never ending life challenges — Mel explains how this is a universal constant:“By the time I was 25, I never had to worry about money again, financially, I was free, and I could do whatever I really wanted to… which brought up more challenges! We think that once we have all the money that all of our problems are gone, well that’s not the case. When you have money you have a different set of problems.”
17:05 Moving on to different things — Mel shares another story about what he did after his real estate ventures and entering into a mini early-life retirement …
18:05 “Once an entrepreneur, always an entrepreneur” at around this mark of the podcast, Mel tells Chris that even while living in a beautiful island, his entrepreneurial drive forces him to come out of his mini retirement. Mel opens up a bar, a surf shop and starts an import-export business from the Honduras mainland to the island selling to tourists.
18:43 The unexpected event in Mel’s mini retirement that he calls “the best thing” to happen in his life — Mel shares the story of how he met his wife while living in the island!
18:55 Brainstorming and coming up with Mel’s next big project (this time, with his wife, Kate!) — Mel mentions how after living in the island for a year, he and Kate came up with the concept for Success Academy.
20:10 Discovering the underlying science of success — Mel goes on to explain how he discovered NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) and how he incorporated it to Success Academy’s curriculum.
22:24 “You don’t know who you truly are, until some major s*** happens to you” Mel says as he explains how hitting ‘rock bottom’ can potentially change a person’s life.
24:34 Chris asks Mel about his recently released book “Big Boom!: How to Ignite Your Life, Blow Up Your Barriers and Get Explosive Results in the Entrepreneur Revolution” (A link to the Amazon page can be found above.)
28:50 MEL ANNOUNCES THAT HE IS GIVING HIS BOOK OUT AWAY FOR FREE FOR A LIMITED TIME! — Mel mentions that for a limited time, he’s giving away his book for FREE and let’s everyone know that to get it, all you have to do is visit the book’s website! — bigboombook.com
30:29 Mel leaves some important advice before the show comes to a close — he mentions 3 short, but POWERFUL pieces of advice for business, and for life! A must listen
Episode 12: Douglas Lim
Episode 3: Brian Evans/ There’s So Much Psychology in Everything We Do
Episode 15: Ben Settle
Episode 16: May Geronimo