310 - Ryan Carson on Relationships, Motivation, and Mastering Sales

Live In The Feast

Today’s guest is Ryan Carson. He’s a father, entrepreneur, and a developer. He founded Treehouse, an online education platform that aims to makes technology education affordable for all.

After a decade running Treehouse, Ryan seriously considered selling the business. When he tried to let the buyer down easy, the buyer said he intended to “crush” Ryan and his business. This ultimately became a defining moment in his career.

He knew he would do anything to keep his business alive, including outworking and out competing his competition. It revived his fire for the business and pushed him to start learning all the ins and outs of business that he never had time for before.

After teaching himself sales, he found that it wasn’t necessarily complex, just hard. He kept himself motivated by using visualization tactics and learning from the most focused and intense people he could find, such as Jocko Willink.

Ryan has had a lot of wins, but he’s also learned the hard way about burning bridges and the importance of maintaining good relationships.

Today, Ryan spends his time growing Treehouse, and doing his part to bring equality in the workplace by providing technical education to the masses. Improving his physical fitness and being a good father and husband are also huge parts of his life.

In this episode Ryan talks about:

• Saying no and trusting your instincts when it comes to big decisions.
• How a CEO coach has been essential part of his business and personal growth.
• Visualization and how it can help you achieve your goals and, just as important, knowing what to do after you reach them.

Main Takeaways

• Take time to digest big decisions. Put your customers first and trust yourself to make the right call.
• Push yourself to learn new skills, but don’t do it at the cost of your family or personal life. Be focused and clear when you are working.
• Visualize your goals and really see your desired outcome happening.
• Don’t burn bridges. You never know what will happen in the future and how valuable those relationships may be.

Important Mentions in this Episode

• Treehouse
• Jocko Willink’s Podcast
• Eric Thomas on Buster Douglas + Mike Tyson