Ezra: Hey, Ezra Firestone here with a special guest, someone who you know. His name is James Schramko, ladies, and gentlemen. How’re you doing James?

James: I’m doing fantastic. Thank you so much for catching up again Ezra. It’s always a massive joy in my life.

Ezra: Oh thanks, man. Well, I’ve got something to admit to you that I have not admitted to anyone. I haven’t even admitted it to myself until just now. Which is, I believe I am officially an espresso addict. I think I’m like, fully, like, to the point, where, like, this could potentially be a problem. I mean, not a problem, but it’s like, here’s the thing. I discovered coffee two years ago and…or three years ago now, and, like, I kinda got really into it, and now, like, I drink two espressos every morning. And I don’t know if that’s good or bad. I’ve gotta do some research on how much of this stuff you should be drinking, but like, I love it. It tastes so good. It’s so much fun, the ritual of it, James. It’s not even the stimulant side of it, because I can drink an espresso and go to sleep. Like, it doesn’t affect me the way it affects most people because I’m already like super hyper I guess, but the ritual of it, the grinding of the beans, the tamping it into the portafilter, the putting it inside of the machine, the watching it pull, the aroma of it, the tasting it, the steaming the milk, the whole ritual of making espresso, I’m in love with. And to go even further, I’ve spent quite a lot of money on this addiction of mine, and I have gone ahead and upgraded my espresso machine to something pretty fancy.

James: I don’t think it’s a bad thing. I mean, you could be a top fuel dragster or an ocean-going race boat addict, or on heroin or something, it’s coffee. And I think it’s okay in moderation, and there is some evidence, I think, to support that it could give you a nice feeling that will give you some alertness. I mean, they do forbid over caffeine intake for athletes because I think it might give them a performance advantage.

Ezra: Oh wow.

James: And it’s also, I don’t know if you’ve found about this one yet, but you can have caffeine sleeps, as well.

Ezra: Interesting. I have not found that.

James: That’s where you have a shot of caffeine and then you go and have a nap, and you’ll have these really awesome dreams.

Ezra: Wow, I’ve gotta try that. I gotta get into that. I got into this company called Clive Coffee. They’ve got a YouTube channel and I, like, watch all their videos and learn about espresso. And, like, it’s kind of interesting, going to what you teach, you know. They do basically Own The Racecourse, right? They’ve got me on their content, and like, a year later, I’ve been consuming their content for a year. And in the last month, I’ve spent like, maybe three grand with them. I upgraded from my Breville Dual Boiler to their machine. I upgraded from my Baratza Vario grinder to their grinder. And it’s amazing, like, it’s so much better.

James: That’s it. I’ve got the pro grinder and I’m on my second espresso machine, an Italian one. And I’ve also got the cold brew drip coffee maker that Jared Robinson bought for me. And I’ve got the stove top and then, of course, the French press, all different kinds of beans, I think it’s okay.

Ezra: We’re crazy people, we’ve gone…

James: Haven’t you built a whole business around it?

Ezra: Well, not yet but…oh I did, yeah. Well, I didn’t build a business around it, I partnered with a guy, and then I got out of it because it just…I didn’t have the capacity, man. I’ve got enough stuff to do. The last thing I need is to start trying to sell coffee. It’s like, you know what, no.

James: I would have been the one to say that, dude, like stick with…

Ezra: You were the one to say that.

James: Stay in your lane.

Ezra: Yeah, you totally did say that. Now speaking of you telling me stuff, that’s actually what this podcast is gonna be about. So, I asked you to come on because you wrote a book and that book is called “Work Less and Make More”, and I think it is the best dang book that has come out in 2017 for business owners. And I don’t say that lightly, and obviously, I’m a big fan of yours, and you’ve helped me a lot. And you’ve like, you know, coached me throughout the growth of my companies and, like, I believe in your coaching. And, you know, obviously you’ve got a bunch of students and you’re super successful. But, like, I think one of the things that’s popularized in entrepreneurial culture is this, like, you’ve gotta be working all the time. And, you know, you figured out a life that not a lot of people figure out, which is you make seven figures, and you also like, have time to surf, and have time for your family, and you’re not totally busy. And, like, what I’m curious about… Number one, go buy James’ book, “Work Less Make More,” I’m gonna put a link under this post. It is a phenomenal book. What I wanna know is a little bit about, like, for folks who maybe don’t know your story, like, the journey, man, you know. Because there was a time in your life where you weren’t working less and making more, you were working more and making less.

James: Yeah, well, you know, it was a gradual progression of getting a job and making more, and getting a better job and making more, and getting a better job and making more. I went through this progression from my first jobs, sort of, part-time. I don’t know, probably gardening weeds for my mum in the backyard and then lawn mowing. But then my first real job in an office, full-time, was as a debt collector on the telephones. And I think my salary was $18,500 a year. This is in 1991. And from there I kept increasing my wage. I went from there to a finance company. I got all the way up to $27,500. And then I went to a technology company and I was earning $35,000 a year. And that’s when I started having kids. And I was only about 24 when my first kid came along and I was on $35,000 a year, and my wife was on $35,000 a year, and she was stopping work. So I realized I had to make a lot more money and I got into sales. I convinced someone to hire me after getting rejected by Toyota, I got a job with BMW, and I only did it on the basis that I could earn double my salary. I needed to make in the 70s as an income and juiced up on Brian Tracy’s “Psychology of Selling” CDs, and other resources…

Ezra: Old school.

James: …yeah, that my sales team had given me when I was an administrator. I got into the sales role, within a year I was the top BMW salesperson in Australia. Two years later I switched to Mercedes Benz, kept increasing my income, I went up to $115,000, then $127,000. Then I got a management job in the same dealership and I went to $145,000. And then I was approached to go and be a general sales manager at another dealership and I was on $200,000, a