I don’t think you ever forget the people that made the most difference to your life. In business – it’s been my mentors that will stay with me forever. This week was the fourth anniversary of the death of a man who was my internet marketing mentor. I’m not sharing this story because I am sad (though I miss him) but to share a few of the details of his contribution to my business and my life. In 1998 (maybe it was 1997) I took off to Canada with my partner PJ, Kim Kiyosaki (of Rich Dad Poor Dad), John Burley (author of Money Secrets of the Rich) and a couple of clients to Vancouver to attend a marketing conference at Robert Kiyosaki‘s suggestion. Robert (author of Rich Dad Poor Dad) had attended the year before, enjoyed it and so suggested we attend. The three days was pretty typical of event… multiple speakers, each with something to sell, many with great information. On the second day a young guy (he’d have been no older than 27 or 28) was introduced. He looked the typical geek with his glasses, narrow frame and shyness. Over the next hour or so as he spoke my mouth gaped open the whole time. He spoke quickly, so I scribbled notes as quickly as I could… his ideas, strategies, way of viewing the then new world of the internet, his enthusiasm and smarts were entrancing. I had never met anyone before who shared information like this. It was, at the time, the very bleeding edge of internet marketing and he, in his few years, had developed a name for himself as an internet marketing guru. The next day I braved asking him if he’d consider coming to Australia to speak for my then company, Pow Wow Events. He pretty much said yes on the spot – I’m sure that was because of the lure of a far away place he’d not been to than for the opportunity to travel a long way to do business with someone he’d just met.
To be honest while I was ecstatic to be able to share his information with Australians I was also secretly wanting to keep him as my secret weapon. I wanted to take on what he was teaching and unleash it before our unsuspecting competition knew what hit them… and that’s what we did. Not to big note our efforts, but we were very much at the forefront of website marketing and internet marketing in the late 90s and held that position for a while. Corey and I kept in touch for many years and he continued to produce great content and be very innovative. His events in Australia were often sold out and despite the number of times that we held up placards saying “SLOW DOWN” he couldn’t help himself. He was passionate and time was short and he needed to give us the keys to being successful internet marketers. The last time I saw Corey was at his wedding in La Jolla. He’d found his dream girl and he was the happiest I’d seen him. In the couple of years previous to that we’d not worked together much but kept in contact and when he was in Phoenix (where I was living) he’d visit. Only a few short months later he died while participating in one of his other passions, racing cars. I was shocked, angered, and in disbelief. I called his mobile and emailed him hoping the news was just gag… it must’ve been another Corey Rudl that the news was blasting about. June 2 was four years since his passing. I still miss him but no doubt my feelings are nothing compared to how his family and wife feel. None the less I realised only about 18 months ago that after his passing I fell into a rut around the area of the Internet. Imposters were popping up to take Corey’s place as THE internet marketing guru. I was angry. Enough time has passed now that I can truly express the gratitude that I have for the education that I received from him that , through its implementation allowed me, my business and our clients to be ahead of the curve. The internet has changed a lot and I sometimes wonder what Corey would be working on in this environment of social networks and Google and You Tube (and I know all those things I mention are OLD compared to what he’d be working on now). I know that EVERYTHING I learned from him still holds true. The mediums have changed, but the fundamentals hold true. I have met other masters in the area of Internet Marketing and I am open to learning from them and taking my skills forward. For an number of years I wasn’t. But I probably just needed time to grieve the loss of a friend. I cherish Corey’s memory and thank him for coming to Australia all those years ago. We touched a lot of people together through our shared work.
