Internet Marketers can learn from Martial Artists

Back in 2006, I had the rare opportunity to meet and hang out with some top mixed martial artists and it was an amazing experience. I learned a LOT and it really opened my mind to the endless possibilities of what was achievable.

When I was younger, I was involved in some martial arts. It was really fun and I’m bummed that I didn’t stick with it more. Recently, I’ve been getting back into it and it’s really a blast. I see a lot of traits that are common amongst martial artists that I think most internet marketers should adopt.

I’m going to break down what I’ve learned from these great martial artists. I really think you guys will see the cross over into Internet Marketing.

Randy Couture

Extremely intelligent. It seems Randy’s strategy in the octagon is to outsmart his opponent and use his strengths against his opponents weaknesses. You will never see Randy in a straight up slug fest, nor will you see him talking much trash. He’s extremely well spoken and articulate in person and that shows in the octagon as well by his ability to almost always outsmart the opponent.

One of the really cool and interesting things about Randy is that he has his own gym in Vegas called XTREME Couture and he always invites different fighters to come over and train there with him. I’ve even seen him invite opponents he has fought in the past to come train and work on each-others weaknesses. I really think a lot of internet marketers should be doing a lot more collaborative work and ‘training’ and working with their past competitors on new ventures.

Dana White

Although Dana White is not exactly a fighter I would still have to say that he is a martial artist at heart. More interestingly, he’s a very effective businessman. He reminds me a lot of me in how he conducts business. He’s very frank, very to the point and just wants to get stuff done and get everyone paid. He’s a deal maker at heart and doesn’t take no for an answer. It makes sense that he was a manager before he was the President of the multi-billion dollar UFC.

Aggressive, in your face and not taking BS, this is the bulldozer style that people need to adapt in tough business situations. If you are an affiliate marketer trying to negotiate higher payouts, you could learn a thing or two from Dana

Forrest Griffin

This guy basically jump started the UFC to what it is today. He leaves his heart (and blood) in the Octagon, every single time he fights. He’s a balls to the wall fighter and is not going down without literally getting knocked out. Watch a couple Forrest Griffin interviews and you’ll see his “I won’t quit” attitude and how that’s got him to be one of the premium fighters in the world.

Internet marketers could learn something from this dude for sure. How can you not love the guy that just wont quit until he can’t swing anymore. I think a lot of internet marketers give up way too learn and it’s a total shame. I know a lot of guys that were so close to profit, and instead they gave up and made nothing.

Anderson Silva

I have a sort of interesting story about Anderson Silva that you might like. When I was at UFC 66 meeting all these guys and hanging out with Randy Couture and Big John McCarthy, I ran into a situation where I only had the chance to meet either Anderson Silva or Tito Ortiz. At the time, the main fight card was Tito Ortiz vs Chuck Liddell… so Tito was in the spotlight. The guy that setup this awesome opportunity for me asked me which of the two I wanted to meet more. I told him that I would much rather meet Anderson Silva because (even though he didn’t speak much English) I thought he was one of the best fighters to ever compete in the sport. Tito on the other hand, while being a good fighter, certainly isn’t at the same level as Anderson Silva. I considered Anderson to be one of the best in the world at the time. Fast forward 5 years, Anderson Silva has pretty much gone undefeated in the past 5 years and is considered the best fighter the world has ever seen. I’m really glad that I had the opportunity to meet him.

What I learned from Anderson? Calm. Dedication. Get in your opponents head. This guy is ice before a fight, but he’s a trash talking wild-man at the weigh-ins when the opponent is in front of his face. He knows how to get into the head of his opponent, even though he doesn’t speak the same language as 80% of them! Anderson is perhaps also very intelligent for using trainers that most fighters wouldn’t think to use, such as Steven Seagal. I think this is very smart, even if Steven Seagal doesn’t train Mixed Martial Arts which is what the UFC is. He still has 30 years of being an Aikido master and very gifted martial artist. For the record, Anderson Silva won his last fight vs Vitor Belfort with a move that was taught to him by Steven Seagal. Most UFC fighters would never think to try to end a fight with a move like that.

Learn from other industries and people

I’m always learning from whoever I can. I’m working a new start-up that helps others learn from the super successful people before them. I really hope to be able to announce the project to you guys very soon, once it’s in full swing. I think you’re going to love it!