Back again is crowd favorite Dan Martell (http://danmartell.com), in person at the Amplify LIVE event in Vegas in July, 2016. Dan never ceases to amaze me with his ability to think outside the box and innovate.  He not only shares what a fan of his did to work with him, but also how he's not afraid to look outside the industry to inspiration.  Another can't miss episode.   Mike and Dan Discuss: 3:51 Confidence 5:57 Idea to exit live 9:54 The treasure map to the treasure map 13:13 Best practices for Solopreneurs 15:34 Platforms - Nerding out on video and email 18:40 Studying storytelling 23:09 How do you stand on the shoulders of giants 38:54 Breaking bread at founders dinners 47:31 Always the student 49:02 Knowing when to go from six figures to seven 57:54 20,000 ft view, Person, Partner, Plan   Dan Martell is an award-winning serial entrepreneur and angel investor. He is the founder of five up-and-coming companies including Clarity, Flowtown, Spheric Technologies, Mentor @ 500Startup, and GrowLabs & theC100.org. As an angel investor, he has provided capital to more than 33 startups, some in exchange for ownership equity while others for convertible debt.     Dan’s journey through life was not smooth. His life is full of ups and downs, twists and turns. At a special Mastermind Talks entrepreneurial event which was held in Toronto, Canada, Dan surprisingly revealed that he wouldn’t have been successful if it weren't for a rough life.     He was born and raised in Moncton; a city located in Westmorland County in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. Dan opened up about coming from a poor family, raised by an alcoholic mother and a salesman father who rarely visited home.     While aged 12 years, a juvenile court ordered him placed in foster care. He didn’t last in one family for more than a month because of his constant distress. He was therefore moved from one temporary home to another. He returned to his family’s home after a year, but he didn’t found solace there. Life took a turn to the worst. Sadly, his parents divorced, he stopped going to school and found himself involved with hard drugs living a life full of crime.     At the aged of 16, he was sentenced to two years in jail for selling drugs to the daughter of the chief of police. He got it rough while in jail and promised himself that he would never get into the wrong side of the law again. He came out of prison a changed young man, but he later resumed his addict lifestyle. Nine months later, he was arrested for driving while high on PCP and driving over the limit. He was found guilty and taken to an adult correctional facility. He was placed in a rehab facility called Portage Atlantic near Sussex in the Canadian province of New Brunswick.     It is Portage’s structured treatment programs that saved Dan’s life. They helped him get back on track in his journey towards a drug-free life. His anger towards everything was replaced by regret, repentant and a new sense of purpose. He was helped by the rehab’s caring and friendly staff, all of whom were recovering addicts. After two years in the rehab, Dan finally returned home aged 19 beating the relapse statistics. He went back to school which also contributed to making a great difference for him.     After school, he raised more than $2M that he used to start Flowtown and later Clarity.fm; two companies that he grew and successfully exited. Clarity’s mission is to connect its members by telephone with business networks and expert mentors who provide advice in areas such as sales, marketing, and business development. He started this company using the experience he gained from operating Spheric Technologies and Flowtown.     Clarity was launched in January 2012 in New Brunswick and opened in May 2012. The company was started by Dan himself by partnering with a group of around 1,000 advisors, including Color and Science labs co-founder Peter Pham; lean startu...