Meet Steve Plummer

Have you ever had the feeling, “There’s more out there for me”? Or maybe it’s simply you’re not satisfied with the results in your life… be it lifestyle, financially or career satisfaction?

Well, that was me not so long ago and it was these feelings which ultimately have led me to where I am today… one of Australia’s highest-paid and in-demand copywriters.

You see I was a high school teacher and by any measure was very successful. I got on well with kids and helped them produce great results. I led teams of staff and had been promoted to Head of Department and Deputy Principal, and even been selected as a foundation staff member for a flagship new school, a prized assignment within the profession.

Things were going well, except… for me, personally.

I wanted more. I wanted better results. I’d been going for 20 years and no matter how much I tried to ignore it, I couldn’t get away from the nagging question, “Is this it?”

In other words, when I’m 70 years old sitting on the front porch reflecting on my life would I be looking back having been in one job, doing essentially the same things every year for my entire working life… or looking back with a smile on my face knowing I’d had a go and really lived life.

And so began my quest to find “it”.

The “it” was what I was going to do for the next 20 to 30 years of my working life.

As his personal, on-call copywriter, I’ve often heard Australia’s “Millionaire Maker” Mal Emery say, when he’s working with business owners who aren’t doing so well, “No one thing brings down an aeroplane”.

He’s dead right.

And the reverse is also true.

How do you succeed?

Well, as the man says, it’s no one thing.

But for me it was a series of ACTIONS over time.

It’s true. I’ve been fortunate.

But when, shortly after I’d landed the dream job as Mal Emery’s copywriter being paid a healthy six-figure annual fee, another copywriter said to me, “Mate you’re so lucky, you’re pretty much the envy of every copywriter in the country you’ve had such a rapid rise to the top!” I smiled, agreed but put a BIG qualifier on this statement.

I said, “Mate, you’re right, but everyone always only sees result, they don’t see what gets you there, luck really didn’t have a lot to do with it.”

Let me explain…

I was fortunate in that I was in the right place at the right time. It helped that my now good mate and life-changing mentor Bret Thomson was able to guide me. It helped that probably Australia’s best copywriter Pete Godfrey mentored me through his courses and live trainings.

But no one saw the hours and hours I put in to learning my craft. The late nights and weekends spent while working a full time, very demanding job.

People forget or don’t see the massive leaps of faith I took out of my comfort zone.

The (considerable) money I invested in my education came out of my bank account, not theirs.

The nervous (ok, that’s an understatement… lets’ say the gut wrenching all-consuming fear) as I waited to hear back from the first few clients I wrote for… was all mine and not theirs.

And what of the many times I said no to family and friends as I pursued my dream.

I guess it’s like the old golf saying, “The more I practise, the luckier I get”.

Really, luck has had nothing to do with my rapid success. Hard work has and doing certain things in a certain way has.

So what gets you there, to where you REALLY want to go in life?

Based on my experience, and remember I was an ordinary guy, mortgage, kids etc I’ve boiled down, at least for me, the keys to success:

• Know what you want. This can be the hardest step. But it makes sense, if you don’t know what you want you can’t possibly plan how you will get there now can you? Not sure what you want? Read. Read. Read. Get on different email lists. Expand your thinking and your mind. There’s plenty of stuff out t here to help you.
• Find a red-hot mentor who’s done what you want to do. You’ll short-cut the process and take years off the learning the curve. You’ll learn from their mistakes and successes. You’ll have someone to turn to for advice in the moments of self-doubt. My mentor Bret Thomson had a huge impact on my success.
• Invest in yourself. Spend the money. Free stuff from the internet is great and a good starting point. Investing in the best courses from the best out there in your chosen field is even better.
• Work your backside off. Be prepared to say “No” to others so you can devote it to your quest. It’s your life, your success, not theirs.
• Be prepared to have a go and do what it takes. I offered to work for Bret for free to start with. He reckons this made him sit up and take notice and made me stand out from many others wanting his guidance.

So… from standing start to hugely successful copywriter and marketing strategist in a couple of years with all the lifestyle (I work from home) and financial trappings, that’s pretty much how it worked for me, those five steps.

The thing is, I’ve since applied these to just about everything I do, be it business, writing or personal pursuits.

There you have it, that’s my story.

But this blog is about YOU and YOUR SUCCESS.

So if your career or business isn’t where you want it to be, there’s probably two questions you need to answer:

• What are you going to do about it?
• When are you going to do something about it?

I would suggest the time is now.

(Hint and note to self: in your career, in your business have you “settled” like I had or are you out there expanding, growing, getting stuck in and having a red-hot go?)

Reading this blog is a good first step because I present to you each week tips, little known strategies and secrets that are working NOW out there in the real world of business and marketing.

You’ll also get the odd reality check, I sugar coat nothing and tell it like it is.

And that’s got to be a good thing hasn’t it?

Remember, you only get one shot at life, make the most of it!

Steve