Success Story with Scott D. Clary

➡️ Join 321,000 people who read my free weekly newsletter: https://newsletter.scottdclary.com ➡️ Like The Podcast? Leave A Rating: https://ratethispodcast.com/successstory Paul James is a digital marketing entrepreneur and founder of DialHawk, a call tracking and local SEO software platform that helps businesses optimize lead conversion. After dropping out of college in 2010, he built a six-figure agency from his brother's garage before scaling multiple ventures to 7-figure revenue. James is a bestselling author of Reverse Engineer Your Future (5-star Amazon rating), YouTube educator with over 305,000 subscribers, and has been featured in Forbes, Entrepreneur, and Yahoo Finance. Through DialHawk Academy, he teaches aspiring entrepreneurs local SEO and affiliate marketing strategies. ➡️ Show Links https://www.instagram.com/hellopauljames/ http://www.youtube.com/@iampauljames/ https://x.com/hellopauljames ➡️ Podcast Sponsors Hubspot - https://hubspot.com/ ShipStation - https://www.shipstation.com/ (Code: SuccessStory) Square - https://square.com/go/success SurveyMonkey - https://www.surveymonkey.com/scott Monarch Money - https://www.monarchmoney.com (Code: Success) Claude - https://claude.ai/success Huel - https://huel.com/scott (Code: scott) NetSuite — https://netsuite.com/scottclary/ Indeed - https://indeed.com/clary ➡️ Talking Points 00:00 – Intro 01:26 – What SEO Still Gets Right in 2025 04:25 – Paul’s Origin Story 06:48 – From Music to Entrepreneurship 08:40 – Choosing the Right Career Path 12:52 – Paul’s Biggest Business Decisions 15:20 – How Divorce Changed His Business 18:40 – Entering AI and Content Creation 19:57 – Sponsor Break 22:41 – Why Paul Left SEO for AI 24:02 – AI Marketing Strategies That Work 27:23 – Getting Real Value From AI 30:46 – Building an Audience That Converts 34:02 – Using AI Without Being Replaced 35:00 – AI-Driven Lead Generation 38:28 – Common AI Mistakes People Make 40:42 – Sponsor Break 43:12 – What AI Changed About Content 44:46 – Mental Models for Tough Times 47:41 – Habits Holding Entrepreneurs Back 51:04 – The Future of AI in Marketing 53:36 – Measuring Marketing Results 1:00:49 – Paul’s Most Important Lesson

➡️ Join 321,000 people who read my free weekly newsletter: https://newsletter.scottdclary.com ➡️ Like The Podcast? Leave A Rating: https://ratethispodcast.com/successstory Niko Mercuris is a serial entrepreneur who's built multiple multi-million dollar companies over 25 years, primarily in sales and marketing. He scaled call centers to over 230 employees that generated 14,000 sales per week—experience he documented in his Amazon bestselling book "2451 Sales Per Day." He's also the author of "Millionaire Mindset Mastery" and has been investing in real estate and financial markets since 2001. After losing $4 million in the 2008 crash, he rebuilt by diversifying into alternative assets and now coaches business owners on scaling operations, sales systems, and building sustainable wealth. ➡️ Show Links https://tradewithniko.com/join https://rebrand.ly/Niko-Live https://www.youtube.com/@NikoMercuris/videos https://www.instagram.com/nikomercuris/ https://x.com/NikoMercuris/ ➡️ Podcast Sponsors Hubspot - https://hubspot.com/ ShipStation - https://www.shipstation.com/ (Code: SuccessStory) Square - https://square.com/go/success SurveyMonkey - https://www.surveymonkey.com/scott Monarch Money - https://www.monarchmoney.com (Code: Success) Claude - https://claude.ai/success Huel - https://huel.com/scott (Code: scott) NetSuite — https://netsuite.com/scottclary/ Indeed - https://indeed.com/clary ➡️ Talking Points 00:00 – Intro 01:25 – The Mindset of Successful Investors 06:16 – How Niko Learned to Invest 13:20 – Surviving the 2008 Financial Crisis 17:58 – Hitting Rock Bottom 22:08 – Why Chasing Money Fails 24:05 – Beating Fear and Greed in Investing 27:42 – Using Leverage With Discipline 31:45 – Sponsor Break 34:29 – How Leverage Goes Wrong 38:43 – How Long It Takes to Learn Investing 43:09 – Best Investing Types for Beginners 48:25 – Sponsor Break 50:55 – The Biggest Trading Mistake 52:24 – What Really Drives Profits 55:52 – Niko’s Evolving Money Mindset 1:01:08 – When to Start Investing 1:07:03 – Advice to My 20-Year-Old Self

➡️ Like The Podcast? Leave A Rating: https://ratethispodcast.com/successstory In this "Lessons" episode, J.R. Martinez, an Army veteran, actor, and motivational speaker, shares his powerful journey of rebuilding identity after life-altering adversity. Drawing from his experience of being injured in combat and finding a new purpose beyond the military, J.R. explains how service, not status, became the foundation of his career. He reflects on how listening more than speaking creates real impact, why purpose often reveals itself through small moments rather than big signs, and how aligning your work with passion and values leads to long-term fulfillment. ➡️ Show Links https://successstorypodcast.com YouTube: https://youtu.be/mtwdhFMT13I Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/j-r-martinez-bestselling-author-speaker-veteran-actor/id1484783544 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/741QVpzbUXpkOm4L2BzJqR ➡️ Watch the Podcast on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/scottdclary

➡️ Like The Podcast? Leave A Rating: https://ratethispodcast.com/successstory In this "Lessons" episode, Ian Tien, SaaS scaling expert and co-founder of Mattermost, breaks down how to build and scale a $100M open source business in an increasingly high-risk security landscape. He explains why security is less about open versus closed source and more about culture, long-term investment, and collaboration with a committed community. Ian also shares how customer-led product development helped land early enterprise customers without heavy fundraising, and why focusing on impact, growth, and human connection is key to attracting and retaining world-class technical talent. ➡️ Show Links https://successstorypodcast.com YouTube: https://youtu.be/oZM4Zao3Aqs Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ian-tien-ceo-co-founder-of-mattermost-open-source/id1484783544 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/59DeI22hRs73LN4WzRBG4G ➡️ Watch the Podcast on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/scottdclary

➡️ Join 321,000 people who read my free weekly newsletter: https://newsletter.scottdclary.com ➡️ Like The Podcast? Leave A Rating: https://ratethispodcast.com/successstory Ryan Serhant is one of the world's most successful real estate brokers and the founder and CEO of SERHANT, a multidimensional brokerage operating at the intersection of media, entertainment, education, and technology. Born in Houston, Texas, and raised in Massachusetts, he graduated from Hamilton College in 2006 with degrees in English literature and theater. After starting in real estate in 2008 during the financial crisis and earning only $9,000 his first year, he went on to close more than $20 billion in sales throughout his career. He is the star and producer of Netflix's Owning Manhattan and previously starred in Bravo's Emmy-nominated Million Dollar Listing New York as well as a three-time bestselling author. ➡️ Show Links https://www.instagram.com/ryanserhant/ https://x.com/RyanSerhant/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanserhant/ ➡️ Podcast Sponsors Hubspot - https://hubspot.com/ ShipStation - https://www.shipstation.com/ (Code: SuccessStory) Square - https://square.com/go/success SurveyMonkey - https://www.surveymonkey.com/scott Monarch Money - https://www.monarchmoney.com (Code: Success) Claude - https://claude.ai/success Huel - https://huel.com/scott (Code: scott) NetSuite — https://netsuite.com/scottclary/ Indeed - https://indeed.com/clary ➡️ Talking Points 00:00 - Intro 01:25 - Chaos as a Superpower 04:25 - Lessons from Three Career Deaths 10:28 - When Hard Work Beats Luck 15:49 - Sponsor Break 18:33 - Working for Your Future Self 25:29 - Owning Your Reality 27:47 - Your Broken Relationship with Time 31:19 - Knowing When to Slow Down 33:23 - Sponsor Break 35:53 - Escaping the Hustle Trap 38:14 - Habits of 10-Figure Earners 41:04 - What's Next for Ryan 41:50 - The One Lesson for His Kids