A while ago, well right after the announcement of the Next Internet Millionaire winner - I went ahead and emailed Jaimie Luchuck if I was able to get an interview with her. I now have her responses and I would like to share them with you.
Jaime is has a great personality - which you will be able to tell from just reading the interview. She also speaks as a regular person and not those 'gurus' with all those big words and acronyms. She came out with a product called 'From Cubicle Slave to the Next Internet Millionaire.' It is a book which is now being sold on Amazon.com. The book speaks of her personal experiences while being in a classroom and listening to the gurus of internet marketing.
Well let me give you the interview with the Next Internet Millionaire Jaime Luchuck.
Jaime, before the “Next Internet Millionaire†can you explain what you were doing before. Explain life from a 9-5 stand point because I know from the last episode we learned you were kind of hesitant to participate in the Next Internet Millionaire.
Before I went on The Next Internet Millionaire, I worked as a web editor in the Communications Branch for the provincial government. It wasn’t a job that I “hatedâ€, I enjoyed it well enough; I just knew that it wasn’t somewhere I really wanted to be. But I was on my way up, I could see my track to management ahead of me. I was caught up in the 9-to-5 grind. I wasn’t happy. I complained about my job, my co-workers. I just didn’t know what to do to get out.
Upon the arrival of the “Commplex,†you have met multiple marketers who already had some sort of expertise in the field. How did it feel to feel unaware of the challenges ahead?
I went to Colorado with the attitude of “the longer I’m in, the more I learnâ€. I never really gave any thought to the challenges ahead and what they would be. All I knew was that I had to do my best on them in order to have my team win, or, should we lose, that I would have a leg to stand on in the Judgment Room. I think it was better to be unaware so that I didn’t have to give them any thought. It gave me the opportunity to really listen to the experts and learn what they had to say, instead of focusing on what the challenge might be.
Throughout all the “Hacker Safe Immunity,†which one of them was the most challenging?
That’s an interesting question. The Hacker Safe Immunity Challenge where we were asked to eat worms was a challenge that I failed. I refused to eat the worms. That’s just something that I would never do and I had no intention of compromising my morals just to win a challenge. Because I wouldn’t eat the worms, I was disqualified from that challenge (because eating the worms greatly reduced the challenge itself that day, not eating them meant that it could not be completed within the allotted timeframe).
Throughout the execution challenges which one of them was the most pain staking?
Each was painstaking for its own reason. The 8-hour blogathon was definitely a stamina challenge. Focusing on one task for 8 hours straight was daunting. But, I’m really not a fan of cold sales, so popsicle selling on the street to strangers or giving away movie passes to total strangers was not fun for me. Also there were many challenges that I didn’t know much about, like real estate or eBay so they were, in their own way, quite challenging.
You and Laura seemed to have gotten along very well during the episodes of the Next Internet Millionaire, how did you feel once she has left the Commplex?
Laura and I did get along really well. When she left, after week 1, it became a lot more serious. The only girls left were me and Alisande, and the tension and competition were very strong. Everybody was beginning to feel the effects of the week-long competition. We had very, very long days, and a lot of information being crammed into our heads. But, yes, I definitely missed Laura after she left.
The day you were sick, you were determined to stay and learn more, despite any consequences. Did you regret your decision on that day? What has cause the illness you received?
I had stomach pain the night before that day and I took some painkillers. I never take pills, but I figured that since I was in Colorado and I really wanted to win, that I should take something for the pain and get a good night sleep. As it turned out, I had an allergic reaction to the medication (I tested this theory later and was right). I do not regret staying in the COMMplex that day. I really wanted to listen to Mike Koenigs and I learned a lot from him. I have been quite ill in my life and I know my boundaries. I wouldn’t have stayed that day if I had thought that I might be in serious trouble. But, I was in really rough shape. I just don’t know what a hospital would have done to help.
Charles Trippy is a very good competitor, specializing himself in Web 2.0. What were some tactics used to try to over sell him?
It might be naïve, but I just really tried to make the best products that I could make and hoped that they would sell themselves. That said, I participated in every aspect of preparing the sales letter, developing the websites, etc. Because Charles is quite versed in web 2.0, I tried to go offline in many of my sales. I was written up in newspaper articles, and I also got myself on some good bloggers lists.
I notice both you and Charles used similar tactics with second chance sales. Both of you used a clever chat system to try to capture your audience one more time before they left. How effective was the small script?
I have to admit that I believe the chat system was put on both of our websites by Joel. I’m not exactly sure how effective that tactic was. For me things like that are an annoyance, but everybody reacts differently to selling tactics.
Lastly, how does it feel to go in as a regular noob, if I may, into the Commplex and come out as a new improved Jaime Luchuck?
Being at the Next Internet Millionaire was a life-changing experience for me. I came in a disgruntled 9-to-5er and left with the confidence, inspiration and knowledge to leave my job and start my own company. I am now a published author (of From Cubicle Slave to the Next Internet Millionaire) and I’m running a program called Success in 12 Weeks (www.successin12weeks.com). I’m planning joint ventures with many different businesses and family members, and am using all of my newfound knowledge to build and expand my business. But, best of all, I’m having fun, I’m never complaining… and I love my job.
What I learned from the Interview
It is funny how a noob comes out being the next internet millionaire. Jaime showed that she was determined to win, having a great positive attitude to the situation and going to Colorado with positive intentions.
Though she use to enjoy her 9-5 but later it has become daunting and tiresome. I too still work a 9-5 desk job and yet I use to enjoy my job and now I do not look forward to it. I just go there to work and that is it. Though my job is great, it is the fact I have to wake up to some alarm clock to someone else's time to just earn a 'quick' dollar. I am exhausted of my job and would rather go from position to position just to make things non-repetitive. While the internet everyday of my task changes, I have to do this or do this or figure out this.
Jaime came into the 'Comm'plex not knowing anything about internet marketing but with a positive attitude she overcame the obstacles and earned her the title of the Next Internet Millionaire!
