In 2008, Jonathan Milligan set out on a mission to discover the passion and purpose of his life. A year later, he started blogging and found himself captivated by the idea that he could create his own path and the life he wanted.
If you’re reading this, you may be wondering the same thing as Jonathan: “What if I actually took the plunge and did it?”
Jonathan’s story is a blueprint for success. Today he is an author, blogger, speaker and online business coach. He has spent the last decade counseling, guiding, and directing entrepreneurs on how to pursue meaningful work.
Since 2009, Jonathan has been building a portable, lifestyle business through blogging. His passion is teaching others the roadmap to doing the same. His two primary blogs are JonathanMilligan.com and BloggingYourPassion.com
So what was the key to his success? We chatted with Jonathan to discover his top five pieces of advice for platform builders.
1. Have Present Courage
Jonathan says a major piece of the puzzle for him was just having the courage to get out there and do it–create the life he wanted. Once he stopped comparing himself to other bloggers around him, he had a total breakthrough.
“It was a great day when I realized I wasn’t competing against anyone but my own self. Every blogger you admire once blogged in complete obscurity. Courage and passion kept them going in the early years. Have present courage.”
2. Make Time for Self-Development
Jonathan recommends setting a time on your calendar for self-development. Make it a weekly appointment and use that time as an opportunity to dive into all the training from Platform University.
Success seeks no one. If you want it, you have to find it.
Jonathan lives by the rule of the “speed of implementation.” “For every hour you spend learning something, spend an hour taking action on it. Always challenge yourself to balance your learning with your action.”
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One big turning point happened for Jonathan after he launched his membership site. “I was making a full-time income from my blog, but the month-to-month revenue rose and fell according to my online course sales.”
After launching his membership site, he finally had predictable, consistent cash flow coming into his business each month. In fact, last year 35% of his income came from his membership site.
4. Find Community
Part of Jonathan’s success story was being plugged into Platform University and making the most of the resources we offer. “Be intentional about participating in the community. Get to know other platform builders in the private Facebook group. You may even find a mentor.”
It was also through Platform University that Jonathan found his very first mastermind group. He shared all about launching his mastermind experience on Michael Hyatt’s blog.
For every hour you spend learning something, spend an hour taking action on it. Always challenge yourself to balance your learning with your action.
5. Focus on Scale + Impact
For anyone building an online business, Jonathan advises intentionality with the types of income you pursue. “If you’re patient and pursue income streams that both scale and create impact, your freedom will increase. As your freedom increases so will your impact. Influence, impact and income work together like that.“
Because his membership site created consistent cash flow, Jonathan had the time freedom to write his latest book, The 15 Success Traits of Pro Bloggers, in just five months. Once the book launched, he was able to create even more impact.
You can read more about Jonathan’s platform journey here.
