Reaching Cloud 9 Doesn’t Require Clouds 1-8
Glen / 
42 Comments / 
July 16th, 2009 / 
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My first ever audio interview went live yesterday which was quite exciting for me. I sent the link round to some of my friends to get some feedback and I took notes about how I could improve in this area for when future opportunities arise. One friend, who is a regular reader of this site, sent me an email saying “You know, I’ve heard your story so many times now that I know it off-by-heart.”
My reply was simply “Yeah, me too.” In the last few months I have been receiving quite a large number of interview requests and the questions generally start out by asking me to explain a little about me and my story. I get to give people a small taste of my background and where I am now, but there’s much more to it than that…
You see, the more I have been talking about the journey to where I am now, the more I realise how messy that journey actually was. I noticed that every time I took my life in a new direction, there was always a good chance that things wouldn’t work out. There was never a time when the next step for me was easy, perfect, obvious, or any other word that describes some form of easy living.
Some examples of this rough terrain include:
- Leaving my ‘group’ of around 20 close friends and moving to a different college to do programming
- Having to start my first year of college again due to poor attendance because I was working on online projects
- Quitting college at 18 and moving across the world to South Africa where I didn’t know one single person
- Leaving my job and hoping to sustain my income month after month online
I only moved to a different college because the path my friends were taking didn’t allow me to take my desired course. It turned out that I really disliked programming and certainly couldn’t see myself doing it as a career.
I had 50% attendance in college because I was spending all of my spare time on my DJ website, MyDJSpace. At the time, the site was becoming fairly successful and quickly grew to over 10,000 members. It was even featured in a book. Now? I haven’t logged into the site in over a year and I’m sure the traffic has dropped substantially. I ‘lost’ a year in college for something that doesn’t even fit on my radar anymore.
My second year in college was a dramatic improvement over the first and I actually ended up getting an A in Law. I decided to throw all that away when I moved to South Africa where I didn’t know one single person (not even my employer). For the first few weeks there I lived directly above a popular bar and I couldn’t stand it. That might sound like a dream to some people, but trust me, getting woken up by car alarms and street fights at 3am gets boring after a while.
Finally, when I arrived back in England in February, I had planned to be leaving by April or May at the latest so that I could start travelling the world. Some projects that I was putting my time into didn’t work out as expected and I have finally set my departing date for December 2nd.
My situation right now might look great from an outsider’s perspective but the path to get here wasn’t some perfect logical sequence. It was messy, but at the end of the day, the only thing that matters is…
Taking Steps, Regardless of Whether They Look Perfect
It bugs me a little when people only get to read a 30-second run down of my situation or see what I’m promoting in a book and send me an email like “You’re so lucky” or “Things won’t keep working in your favour.” Hopefully I’ve shown here that nothing was handed to me on a plate and this wasn’t an easy path. In fact, from what I’ve written here, it could easily be interpreted that I’ve made a ton of mistakes along the way.
And that’s what they were right, mistakes? Steps I shouldn’t have taken?
Surely if I could go back in time I would go to the same college as my friends because I know I hate programming?
Actually, no. I wouldn’t.
The important thing about my journey is that I took steps that looked right to me at the time. It’s irrelevant as to whether they seemed to work out perfectly when looking back.
If I hadn’t taken the steps that I took, I certainly wouldn’t be in the situation I’m in right now…
- If I didn’t go to the college I did, I might not have honed the skills of making new friends that worked so well for me in South Africa
- If I didn’t work on my DJ website so much when I was 16/17, I wouldn’t have the technical skills I do now to build websites which make me thousands of dollars each month
- If I did not go to South Africa, I certainly wouldn’t have created PluginID and now own the 11th most popular personal development blog.
Your own story might not be pretty at times either, and that’s OK. Success in any field is unlikely to come from some perfect path or process that you have devised. Instead, simply take the next step that looks right to you and follow it through.
Don’t worry about Clouds 1-8. You might see them on the way, but they’re not that important. Follow your own path (and it must be yours – not one to impress your friends, parents, or anyone else) as if you’re stuck to it with super glue, and I’ll see you on Cloud 9.
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This is a very interesting post and a much needed one, Glen. People constantly see successful individuals as the winners they are now as opposed to the strugglers they used to be. It wasn’t an easy road for you. All the mistakes and successes you have made culminate into who you are now. Don’t regret the past and look forward to the future at what you’ll soon become.
Hey John, thanks!
I definitely agree with that. It’s the same with authors I think. All people see is the finished result and the financial income the author may have received, not the months (or sometimes years) of effort put into creating it in the first place
This is a really great post Glen. I’m impressed by the way you’ve continued to offer your usual tremendous value, despite your huge achievements these last few days.
Thanks Graeme, I definitely wanted to get back into the swing of things, especially for those readers who had no interest in the product.
Glad you liked it
Love it, and I’m glad you wrote it. I think those of us who have followed your work have seen countless examples of how you’re this fairly young “kid” making a ton of money because you did all the right things… which smacks of “overnight success” or being in the right place at the right time.
But I think it’s SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO important to also reveal the tough road to get there. You made some HUGE decisions, took some significant risks, which could have just as easily turned out to be the wrong decision… but you kept on going. You made some choices, and if they weren’t the right ones, you made new ones to continue on your desired path. The fact is, you’ve worked REALLY hard to get to where you are, and you deserve every bit of what you have now, if for no other reason than for being brave enough to go after it.
‘K. I’m done with my sermon. Now I can get back to giving you a hard time… which is infinitely more fun.
Hey you
I can live with people continually thinking I had it easy or things were handed to me on a plate, but I did want to clear things up a bit for those who have a stronger grasp of reality and an open mind.
You’re obviously one of those people
Thanks for the comment. Look forward to more heated arguments in the future
I like this one.
I also believe that if a journey is all milk & honey it’s not worth walking it. Your past experience is what makes you who you are, bad experiences are as important as the good ones. Without bad experiences and wounds we’ll be eternal children.
Some of the most awesome and inspiring people I know have more bad experiences than good under their belt.
Cheers,
Iván.
I can definitely relate to that Ivan. A lot of success stories I read about tend to come from people who have had a lot of misdirection along the way.
Thanks for stopping by!
I’m very new to all that is Glen and PluginID so this was a great read. I admit, prior to reading this, it seemed like all these big successes you’ve made were a lot of luck and/or happenstance.
It really spoke to me about my own life when you pointed out that every decision was a fork in the road. Neither was wrong, per se (although regret in the future might have discolored things on its own). In the past few months, I’ve been emotionally and mentally working through some things about my past decisions. All were the right choice because I was doing the best I could do at that moment. I’ve been working on not grouping them together and, in hindsight, using them as DIScouragement and, instead, using them as a collective example to encourage me to stop choosing ‘safe’ all the time.
I’m glad you didn’t choose safe all the time because I like the Glen you did become.
Ah, that last sentence is so cute
It definitely sounds like this hit home with you Suzanne and I have no doubt that you’re experiences will make you stronger. I’m sure you will look back on those on day and certainly not regret they happened.
Glen, great post. I’m going to bookmark it for people who, upon hearing that I have a “good” (read: normal, something they can relate to) but that I do it from all over the world, say (you guessed it), “you’re SO lucky.” Or worse, “must be nice,” as though my work is somehow easier because I am location independent.
Thank you Liz, nice to see other people living the same kind of lifestyle here aswell!
I think this is one of best the pieces of advice you can give Glen:
Taking Steps, Regardless of Whether They Look Perfect. Taking action is definitely better than doing nothing, and as long as you`re taking steps you think are right, they`ll take you somewhere, and there`s always something to learn along the way.
Like Lee said, you deserve every bit of what you have now for all your hard work, congratulations
But he ALSO deserves it when we give him a hard time… ’cause he’s a rascal!
Haha. Wow, I bet you girls wish you lived in the UK.
Not really… but I wouldn’t mind if all three of us lived in Costa Rica. That could be a ton of fun.
I can’t wait for the day when you express your true feelings cease
Well, I admit I`d love to live near you, not in the UK, it rains too much, but near you, so we can sing Ken Lee together. And I`ll need Leee cause I love Lee.
I love it that Rosa calls me Lee, and Glen calls me cease. So I pretty much need BOTH of you to complete me.
menage a trois with two spanish chicks.
one is a libra ox.
somehow extremely yum and extremely scary at the same time.
Are you saying you are up for the challenge, Alex? There’s always room for one more on our Costa Rica trip.
extremely yum and extremely scary?, yeah, that sounds like me
Glen,
Thanks for sharing that bit on the people’s 30 second look. I had some experience with that first hand yesterday when I was showing my dad your case study from Hqhow and he responded “well, just because this guy made money, it doesn’t mean you will.” Of course, what he didn’t realize is my blog for this morning was directly a result of that conversation, so I guess our argument was a blessing in disguise. I’m working on dissecting your case study and planning on launching my first affiliate site soon.
Good luck Srinivas. Tell your dad I said be more open minded
Bravo!
The most important advice is to follow your own path and believe in yourself.
Hey Oscar, thanks buddy!
I enjoyed your interview with Brian, I like his unique approach.
I think it’s all about the quest. If you don’t have a quest, every problem will knock you down. When you have a quest that drives you, you get back up no matter how gnarly, twisty-and-turny the path might be … and it’s never a perfect path. Just ask Frodo.
J.D., I love your comment because I happen to have a Quest. And it’s totally true: it drives me and makes me keep going… more like Samwise, I guess (Frodo would never’ve made it on his own!).
I really need to hear this! You are wise beyond your year, Glen. I have a lot of trouble with wanting to make the next perfect step, but the truth is, every step has lead me to where I am today. And, I like where I am today. Thanks for the encouraging word!
Hey Karen
Thanks, I’m glad that it helped you! Everything that has gone on in your life has led you to every single moment (as you know).
Thanks for your comment!
Awesome, Glen.
I love your story and how many great learning lessons you have pulled out of it.
We all benefit from your inspired journey.
Glen,
I’ve been meaning to email you. So…
Yeah, I’ll get on that soon. Do you use GTalk?
Oh, and thanks so much for the letter. You rock!
Hey Marc,
I don’t use gmail but feel free to email me on plugin@ pluginid.com (without the space).
Hi Glen – Thanks for sharing all these “bumps in the road” you’ve had. Life really is messy, but it’s probably best that way. There is a lot more uncertainty involved when you make the best decision at the time you are making it, rather than trying to figure out how it will play out in the future. Because, really, you can only go with what you are attracted to at the time. If you spent a lot of time trying to predict everything that might happen, you’d probably expend all of your energy.
Hey Glen
but had made me think just how much work successful bloggers put in. It’s all too easy to think ‘so and so had a lucky break’ but it takes time, work and risks as you have shown and you have to give value otherwise why would people want to read what you write? So credit where credits due. Really good to have an insight into your journey – thanks for sharing 
Thanks for this post. I had been thinking about just how much work goes into blogging this week. I’ve been getting up at ridiculous o’clock to just have the time to get my new site up before I go to work. I’m not complaining cos I really enjoy it,
haha me too. i mean about knowing your story verbatim. but i know the juicy omitted bits too
haha.
never knew you lived above stones?!?! it’s all clear now. haha. which “popular bar?” i thought you were a woodstock alumni all the way
really liked the way you put this one together. the idea of not needing clouds one to eight is brilliant… but more than that, love your honesty. always. even though you are a full naaaiyer and don’t re-up on gtalk
but the best thing is how your story is disorganised. it isn’t easy. yet you own it. and embrace it. and make it happen. hardcore.
No, I lived above that place next to long street cafe
Not dubliner, the next one along. And I lived outside gardens before that, and even inside gardens for one night.
Hey! I wanna know the juicy omitted bits, too! Will those be in Alex’s next post? I can hardly wait!
I kinda wish Alex would write about it (because I wouldn’t) and we do have some pretty pimp stories. Alex if you do, make sure you include black couch + izikoda night *
*And fake midge night
And slow motion taxi crash night
And toto shack rave night
And truck death of 4 night
And 2 for 1 movie night
And poolside hubblies
Damn, makes me want to be back in SA
i totally agree with u
All i can say is Bravo. It takes a lot of guts to leave things that are so familiar to you and head out into the unknown alone. I hope i can face life’s challenges with half the courage that you have shown.
Awesome motivation, Glen, and I’m glad to hear that you are currently very happy with your life, and your situation–very unique story you have there though (going to South Africa with no friends, etc.)
I agree that while it isn’t always a smooth journey, our past experiences allow us to have the knowledge and experience to get to where we are comfortable at–it’s all a matter of not giving up until you get there.
I can see how some of my past decisions… even the unfortunate ones that I considered “bad” decisions at the time have allowed me to learn from them, and make me into the person I am today–as well as bring me into the situation I’m in today.
Great article, Glen… keep up the great work!